Going bananas

Banana bread has always been a baking fail for me. Last time I attempted it I didn't grease the tin - yes, yes I know, but it's the dullest part of baking - I always used to get my mum to do it when I was a young baker, ha! Inevitably the bread wasn't budging when it came out the oven, so it was less a loaf of bread and more a piles of crumbs.

Lesson learnt, this time I dutifully greased and lined. But I wasn't out of the woods yet; I was all pinny-ed up with the oven on and butter measure out, when I realised I didn't have all the ingredients I needed.

The Arsenal/Spurs match meant that I was a prisoner in my own flat until the footie fans had passed out somewhere around 6pm, so I had to do a bit of tweaking on the recipe front.

Despite being up against, the result was my best effort yet. It even looked like a loaf this time and tasted so good I scoffed half of it in front of Come Dine With Me. The pub opposite was so impressed with my banana bread victory that they put on a firework display as a tribute. Or was that something to do with Halloween and Arsenal's victory? Nah, it was definitely the bread.