In which the night is mild and deep and smells of fish.

Once upon a few weeks ago in Hamburg (remember Hamburg? -- still my pearl), good weather led to soaring spirits led to spontaneous adventuring led to an Elbe stroll to finish up the finest of Blue Hours. 'Round 11 p.m. in early July, sky finally settling down hue or two, the Sunshine Frenzy that had most certainly been swarming the harbor a few hours before had buzzed down to a few colonies of Young Persons hooliganning and a few disco boats popping their neon beats across the river ripples. Schooners swaying slightly to acknowledge a passing ferry, the unfinished Elbephilharmonie enjoying a smooth cocktail of time and city funding, Simba and Nala living somewhat happily ever across the way (now that they can finally take those sweaty costumes off for another night). Wandering through the spookily lit streets of the Speicherstadt, all silent but for the creaking of ships, the sighing of docks under footsteps, and the ghost of Michael Jackson wafting down the canals and sneaking in through the open windows of multimilliondollar HafenCity flats, summoned all the way from Neverland by a teenage party at the end of the pier. 'illie Jean-ean is not my-y-y 'over-er-er... I was amazed (and admittedly a little schadenfroh) at how one loud neighbor could probably maul the sleep of every resident even in this most deluxe of quartiers. Na ja.

Lights, camera, action.

(As per usual, click for a closer look.)

 

 

 

Bake Date: Magical (Vegan) Mango Banana Bread

 

Enough with the traveling -- let's just schmooze in the kitchen for a change (though we've still got trips to the USA, Baltic Sea, and Italy on the list, not to mention home sweet Hamburg).

Warm, spicy, fruity, with the perfect degree of mush to make your heart sing and hips start swaying like a palm tree in the breeze. During one of the last theater spurts I played with this recipe every weekend for four weeks straight. Somehow it never lasted more than a day. Pulled it out again lastnight, brought the product to work this morning and it was gone by 10 a.m., slurpiddy slurp.

What you need:

3 medium or 2 large ripe bananas
1/4 cup applesauce
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2  teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 ripe mango, sliced into wee chunks

(Tasty variations: chopped walnuts and chocolate chips; chopped dried apricots, ½ inch grated fresh ginger and finely chopped candied ginger…)

Oventemp: 350°F (175°C) ((450°K))
Makes: 1 heavy 9x5" loaf.
Musik: Anything presented by Putumayo based in the southern hemisphere, such as "Brazilian Groove".

Preheat oven. Lightly fatten and flour your pan.
Now ask yourself: Self? Is your mango already sliced and chopped into spectacular orangeyellow chunks? Answer YES, congrats, you may proceed. Answer NO, do that, then move along.

In a large mixing bowl, moosh the bananas well. Add the Brown sugar, applesauce/oil, and vanilla extract, and forkforkfork that in a spinning forknado of sweet integration. Mix in spices and salt, then baking soda. Now thicken with half the flour, fold in mango chunks, and grand finish with the remaining flour.

Goop the batter to the flowery pan and, if using, sprinkle with extra candied ginger/schoko/nuts/sugar grains. Bake in your preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes. The top should be lightly browned and a knife inserted through the center should come out clean, or with just a few sticky crumblies. Don't underbake this one, as it's already going to be sticky and mooshing with yumness when it's for-real baked.

Remove from the oven without burning yourself and let cool for at least 20 minutes before transferring onto a wire rack to cool completely. Try to depan it too soon and your product will look like a failure. Delicious warm. Delicious cold. Any way you slice it (or spoon it, as will more likely be the case).