Banana Bake-Off!

Laura doesn't do things by halves. For her latest Delia bake, she decided not only to try out the Banana & Walnut Loaf (on page 53), but to also make the Hummingbird Bakery's much more modern version of Banana Bread. Delia's Banana & Walnut loaf is an old classic, appearing in every edition of Delia's Book of Cakes. It's something I often choose to make when I have a handful of bananas going brown in the bowl (great excuse to bake something tasty).

They both appeared here at Chitty's on a Friday morning - we didn't have a team meeting scheduled, but it was a busy day and we collectively decided that a sit-down to judge the banana cakes was in order.

The two cakes were really quite different - Delia's was a traditional banana and walnut loaf, although was a lot more citrusy in flavour that I thought it necessary (zest of a lemon and an orange in a cake that should taste of bananas and walnuts seems a bit OTT to me) but tasted delicious all the same. Laura's version looked almost identical to the picture in the book and tasted great.

However (sorry Delia) the Hummingbird Bakery version won hands down - it was moist, sticky and spicy. No walnuts in that one, just bananas, but of the two we all preferred it.

I have to say, I love a banana cake, but I think next time my bananas are turning brown, I'll be reaching for the Hummingbird Bakery book and not Delia!