Toddler kitchen – Banana Cake/Bread

We have made this recipe before and all three of us love it.  It is from the Baby Led Weaning Cookbook.  It is best made with ripe bananas.

Preheat the oven to 180c/350F (or in our case, wait to switch the oven on once you have finished the prep as we were in no rush)

Grease a 1lb loaf tin (we made more than one loaf).  Luath enjoyed this, I put some oil in the base of the loaf tins and gave her the pastry brush and told her to paint.  She could have done it with her fingers but the brush worked great.

Sift 100g (wholemeal) self raising flour into a bowl.  I initially had Luath help me sift the flour,

but she preferred the idea of spooning the flour out of the sieve and onto her tray.  I remeasured the flour and gave Luath her own sieve with some flour, a spoon and a bowl.


Add 1/2 teaspoon ground mixed spice.  I added 1/2 teaspoon to Luath’s bowl too.
Rub in 50g butter (we use olive oil spread).  Luath got quite into the rubbing action.


Stir in 75g raisins (or chopped figs).  Luath ate all her raisins even though they had flour and butter on them
In another bowl mash 200g banana (about 1 1/2 bananas), best to be well ripe.  Luath was torn between eating or mashing, she did a bit of both.


Optional: Add 50g walnuts, ground or well chopped –we missed out the walnuts, but they are a great addition.

Beat one egg and add to banana mix. I didn’t give Luath any egg

Add banana mix to flour bowl and fold in.  Luath’s bowl contents were all over her tray by this time so the banana was well mixed with the flour.

Pour into loaf tin.   Luath’s lovely concoction didn’t make it to a tin, it would have been quite a cake, some flour, mixed spice, some olive oil spread, no raisins or eggs and a little banana.  Maybe next time I’ll bake what she makes!

Bake – book says 45-60mins, in our oven it takes 20mins, and sometimes I need to cover the tin.

Cool in the tin for 5-10min then turn out.

Serve how you wish.  Luath and I eat it plain, daddy sometimes adds spread.  You could add cream, crème fraiche, custard….

 (Luath is 17 months)

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