For Tastier Banana Bread, Add This Unexpected Juice

One of banana bread's many virtues is its adaptability and how it invites additions, from nuts to chocolate chips and peanut butter, while another is the dense, cake-like moistness that most other breads can't provide. If you're looking for a single ingredient that maximizes both of these qualities, the unexpected inclusion of orange juice is the secret to making your next banana bread even tastier.

Using orange juice to modify a classic like our recipe for best brown butter banana bread is simple enough, provided you keep an eye on your batter. You should be safe mixing in a ¼ cup of orange juice at the point of the recipe that calls for incorporating your overripe mashed bananas. However, if you are concerned that the extra juice is rendering your batter too wet or thin, remember that at the correct consistency, banana bread batter should be easily picked up with a spoon, but should not pour like a liquid. If your batter does turn out a little gloopy, this can generally be corrected by adding 1 or 2 teaspoons of self-raising flour or plain flour with a pinch of baking powder, then whisking until sufficiently thickened. 

As will already be known by anyone who's combined banana and orange in a smoothie (such as our own Blood Orange Tropical Smoothie recipe), these two fruits complement each other well while also producing a complexity of contrast, with the creaminess of the banana playing off the slight sharpness of the orange's citrus notes. If you'd like to really double down on the latter, there are numerous rewarding options — you can include orange zest in the batter, top your bread with a sticky orange glaze or an orange-flavored icing drizzle, use orange slices as a garnish, or swap out the juice for sticky, sweet British marmalade, which is made with a unique kind of orange. 

There's also nothing stopping you from elevating your banana bread even more with ingredients that complement the flavor of orange. Some incorporate chocolate while others favor boosting the taste of the banana with a little dark rum. Whatever variation you opt for, make sure you check out these tips from a professional baker on making the best banana bread possible at home.