Our good friends Dyan Solomon and Éric Girard own Olive + Gourmando, a perfect luncheonette on Saint Paul West in Montreal’s Old Port. Their little shop is what we expect the coffee shop in the afterlife to be like: they’re detail fanatics and it’s no contest the best place for lunch in the city. When they first opened, they were bakers, and the place was a bakery with a few seats. They still make bread, but mostly to use in delicious sandwiches. The front counter is displayed with brioches, croissants, brownies, and fruit pastries, and they’re all killer. We thought they were insane when they decided to open in Old Port a decade ago. It was a barren ghost town of bombed-out buildings, seedy bars, and grow-ops. There were no people, much less hotels and tourist shops selling maple-sugar products and “raccoon” Daniel Boone hats actually made from Chinese skunks. Like us, Éric and Dyan don’t take anything too seriously (Dyan can tell you many stories of Fred’s practical jokes when they used to work together: her showing up at 6:00 A.M. to a fake “dead man” at the bottom of the stairs; Fred putting a scraped lamb shank in his shirt, saying he may have hurt his hand. . . .) They’re Montreal classics and were kind enough to hand over one of their most beloved recipes.
Recipe information
Yield
Makes 10 luscious muffin-size loaves
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease 10 standard muffin cups with butter.
Step 2
In a small bowl, combine the sour cream and baking soda and set aside. It will puff up.
Step 3
Peel the bananas, put them in a glass bowl, and put in the microwave for 5 minutes. This will allow them to release their liquid. Transfer the bananas to a fine-mesh sieve placed over a bowl and allow to drain, stirring gently. You should have 1/4 to 1/2 cup (30 to 60 ml) liquid.
Step 4
Pour the liquid into a small saucepan and place over medium heat until reduced by half. Add the liquid back to the bananas and gently “crush” the bananas by hand. Do not liquefy or purée the bananas.
Step 5
In a stand mixer, or in a bowl with a handheld mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Add the vanilla, mix well, and then scrape down the sides of the bowl, making sure the mixture is smooth. Add the fluffy sour cream and mix well. The same for the bananas.
Step 6
In separate bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and spices. Fold these dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined. Do not overmix.
Step 7
Pour the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling each one two-thirds full. Top each muffin generously with the walnut pieces (untoasted, or they will be burned by the time the muffins are cooked). Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Let cool on a rack in the pan for 30 minutes, then turn out.
WARM BANANA CAKE WITH CHOCOLATE GLAZE AND COFFEE ICE CREAM
Step 8
Makes 1 (10-inch/25-cm) Bundt cake
Step 9
For an amazing puddinglike banana cake, substitute cake flour for the all-purpose flour. Add 1 cup (170 g) finely chopped Valrhona dark chocolate (Manjari is a good choice with fruity things) to the dry ingredients. Omit the walnuts. Bake the batter in a buttered 10-inch (25-cm) Bundt pan (or a buttered 11-to 12-inch/ 28-to 30-cm springform pan) in a preheated 350°F (180°C) oven for about 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Let cool on a wire rack.
Step 10
This cake tastes best not long from the oven. Serve within 1 to 2 hours of baking.
Step 11
Just before you are ready to serve the cake, make the chocolate glaze. Place 4 ounces (115 g) dark Valrhona chocolate (70 percent cacao), chopped, in a bowl. In a small saucepan, bring 1 cup (250 ml) whipping cream (35 percent butterfat) to a boil. Pour the cream over the chocolate and let sit for a few seconds, then stir with a wooden spoon until the chocolate is completely melted. Add 6 tablespoons (85 g) room-temperature unsalted butter, cubed, right away and stir until completely melted.
Step 12
Pour the warm chocolate glaze over the cake just before serving. Top with toasted crushed pecans. Serve with Sanka Ice Cream (page 260).
NOTE: BEFORE YOU BEGIN, KEEP THESE THREE TIPS FOR SUCCESS IN MIND
Step 13
Using unripened bananas for banana bread is a big no-no. As bananas ripen, their starch converts to sugar quickly. A black, spotty banana has more than double the amount of fructose of its “yellow brother.” Also, do not mash the bananas so finely they liquefy. If you do, the muffins will take forever to bake and will be too crisp.
Step 14
Freshly grind the cardamom and cinnamon in a spice grinder. The difference in taste is phenomenal.
Step 15
As with most cake or cookie recipes, have the eggs, butter, sour cream, and any other liquids at the same temperature to ensure better emulsion.
