Banana Yeast dough Cakes

I often end up with overripe bananas, that usually find their way into one-bowl type of cakes. As this time I was planning on making yeast dough roulades, I’ve decided to see how they would work in this type of dough. The result exceeded my expectations, and I have no doubt I will use this “trick” again. The mashed bananas gave the dough a wonderful soft and silky texture, and amazing aroma.
The sliced cakes were a hit when served at a brunch buffet. The slices are also perfect for breakfast, when served toasted with butter, or for preparing an exceptionally delicious French toast or bread pudding.  Either way you’ll choose to serve them, I’m sure you’ll enjoy these tasty cakes.

Makes: 3 roulades 11.5″ x 2.5″ (29cm x 6.3cm)
Prep time: 20 minutes
Proofing time: 3½ hours
Baking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:
For the dough:
5 medium bananas, very ripe (2 cups mashed)
4 cups flour (+ 1-2 cups for rolling the dough)
1 cup whole milk, warm
1 package (1/4 oz, 7 grams) dried yeast
½ cup sugar
½ stick (55 grams) butter, soft
1 L egg
1 cup golden raisins and dried cranberries
For the filling:
½ cup melted butter
½ cup sugar
2 Tbs cinnamon
For the milk syrup:
2/3 cup milk
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla

1. Mash the bananas with a potato masher and measure 2 cups.

2. Place 4 cups flour in the mixer bowl and create a well in it. Add the sugar and warm milk into it and sprinkle the yeast on top. Sprinkle a bit of flour on top and let stand at room temperature until the yeast starts to foam, about 5 minutes.

3. Add the butter, egg and mashed bananas. Attach the kneading hook and start mixing on low speed, stopping and scraping the bowl occasionally. Increase the speed to medium and knead for about 5-7 minutes, until elastic and smooth dough is formed. (The dough will be very soft.) Add the raisins and dried cranberries and mix.

4. Oil a large bowl, add the dough and roll it in it, to coat it with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place (inside the oven always works for me) for 2-3 hours, until the dough doubles in size.

5. Punch down the dough, add 1 cup of flour and knead a bit by hand. The dough will be (and should be ) quite sticky, but if it is too sticky to handle, add up to 1 more cup of flour.

6. On a lightly floured work surface, roll the dough into a large rectangle, about 36″x 10″ (90cm x 25cm). (If your work surface is not big, you can divide the dough into 2-3 portions and roll each one separately). Brush with melted butter and sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon on top. Roll into a long roulade and cut it into 12 pieces, about 3” (7.5cm) each.
7. Brush the pans with melted butter. Place 4 pieces, cut side up, side by side in each pan. Cover with plastic wrap and keep in a warm place for about 1½ hours, until the dough rises up to the pan edges.

8. Preheat the oven to 365F (185C) and bake for 30 minutes. While the cakes are baked, mix the milk, sugar and vanilla in a pot. Bring to a boil, lower the heat to medium and cook for 2-3 minutes. After about 25 minutes, when the cakes are almost done, carefully brush them with the warm syrup.

Place back in the oven and bake for about 5 minutes longer, or until the cakes are golden-brown. Keep in the pan for 5 minutes before carefully transferring the cakes to a rack to cool.