Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 180°C / 160°C fan. Line a loaf tin with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, beat together sugar and butter until well creamed.
3. Beat in the eggs, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
4. Mix in the mashed banana.
5. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt, beat just until combined.
6. Finally, add the milk and vanilla and beat just until combined.
7. Pour batter into prepared tin. Cut the just-ripe banana in half lengthways and arrange on top of the batter, cut side up. Tip: There’s no need to push the banana halves into the batter, just rest them on top of the batter so that they don’t completely sink into the loaf during baking.
8. Bake until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean, about 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes. Tip: As the loaf is baking for a long time, loosely cover the top of the tin with a piece of tinfoil about halfway through baking to avoid the crust from going too dark or burning.
9. Leave to cool in baking tin on cooling rack for about 20-30 minutes before turning out. Leave to cool until just warm or completely cold.