VEGAN BANANA BREAD

DESSERTS (BAKERY)
Cooking temperature: preheat at 325°F. Bake for 50 minutes/pass the toothpick test
Recipe Yield: 12 servings
Serving size: 1 loaf, roughly 12.5 oz per loaf with the loaf pan
Equipment: 2 large mixing bowls, 1 fork or masher, 1 spatula, measuring spoons, whisk, food scale,
oven, disposable aluminum loaf pans, toothpick

INGREDIENTS
In weight In measure
Medium banana 99.6 oz 24 count
(7”)
Unsweetened apple 26.4oz 3 cups
sauce
Imitation vanilla --- 1 fl. oz/ 2 tbsp
extract
All-purpose flour 50.8 oz 12 cups
Cane sugar 16.10 oz 2.25 cups
Baking soda 0.630 oz 1 tbsp
Baking powder 1.68 oz 4 tbsp
Salt --- 1.5 tsp
Cinnamon 1.656 oz 6 tbsp

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 325° F
2. In a large mixing bowl, peel and mash ripened bananas with a fork or a masher.
3. Add apple sauce and vanilla to bowl, stir to combine and form a wet mixture.
4. Take another large mixing bowl. Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and
cinnamon.
5. Gently pour the dry mixture to the wet mixture. Use a spatula to fold dry mixture into wet
mixture until combine.
6. Pour the batter individually into the loaf pans. One loaf should hold around 12.5 oz (including the
aluminum loaf pan)
7. Bake for 50 minutes. A fully baked loaf should be able to pass the toothpick test. Insert a
toothpick into the center of loaf and remove the toothpick without any batter stuck to the toothpick)
NOTES from TEST 1
Amount of banana made the bread too dense and too large for a portion (it filled the entire loaf pan)
Because of the density, it took way too much time to bake ≈70 minutes (may not be as efficient for
facility)
Result: outside turning brown but inside is not fully baked. Too chewy
Directions on putting dry mixture on top of wet mixture was hard to follow.
Cinnamon flavor was strong
No baking powder was used
Salt was hard to measure. Use teaspoon instead of pinch
Cost: cost for a loaf was around $1.45. We are aiming for 33% of selling price: $2.5 but it was 58%.
Almost double.

2
NOTES from TEST 2
Adjustments were made to meet cost/satisfaction needs
- Salt changed from ½ pinch to 1/8 teaspoon
- Madagascar vanilla -> Imitation vanilla
- Decrease amount of cinnamon (too strong of taste in test 1)
- Decrease amount of banana (it’s banana bread. But it made the product too dense and takes
too much time to bake)
- Put in baking powder
These changes lowered the total cost and comes down to 26%. Meets the need of food coast % at most
33%
Two bowls for wet and dry mixture. Fold in together after both are stirred/whisked
Baking temperature time increased to 50 minutes
After test 2, scaled up the recipe so it makes 12 loaves each time.

3
Evaluation of Recipe
There were no issues regarding procurement since the ingredients were handed to us. For someone
who is making this recipe from scratch, it also should not be a problem because all the ingredients are
easy to purchase in the grocery stores.
For test 1, the directions were clear that it is not a standardized recipe. After testing it and filling out
the cost analysis, several problems came to mind. The bread itself was too dense because the bananas
hold too much weight. This caused extra time to bake it. The time to bake was around 70 minutes
instead of the 30 minutes mentioned in the recipe. The extra time caused extra brownness the out
layer of the bread which did not look satisfying. The preparation instructions were also confusing. The
cinnamon flavor was also a little strong for the bread. (although this is based on my personal
preference) The cost was also too high for this recipe. The Madagascar vanilla extract itself made up
26.4% of food cost. Adding up other ingredients, it came up to 58%. (Basically, the vanilla extract took
up 80% of the food cost) This is not acceptable if we want to sell the bread at $2.5o and also keep the
total food cost around 33%. I could decide on changing the portion size or exchanging ingredients for
a new recipe test. I chose the 2nd option because I wanted to keep the portion size as a loaf.
For test 2, I want to make changes to the 1st recipe and to standardize it by noting any changes and
the results. Instead of Madagascar vanilla extract, I used imitation vanilla, and the price decreased
significantly to 0.03 instead of 0.66. I also decreased 0.5 counts of banana since the 1st time was too
dense. I decreased 0.5 tsp of cinnamon so it wouldn’t taste too strong and still keep a balance between
it and the bananas. Other ingredients and their measurements were kept the same. Although the
original recipe called for a baking time of 30 minutes, I increased it up to 50 minutes to make sure it
was fully baked. The result came up a little better than I have expected. It was fully baked, and the
outside was a beautiful brown color that doesn’t seem burnt. The inside has a great texture that is
moist but not too dense or chewy. To standardize the recipe, I first point out anything that was
dissatisfying for test 1. I make slight changes to it, and test to see if those changes made the product
better. I think test 2 was good. I would say I am satisfied with the overall product. However, if I had to
point out something, I would probably note on the recipe to not to over mash the bananas. I had a
little chunk of banana in my test 2 recipe and it tasted good with the bread covered with it. This is
based on my preference, but if I need to test it once more, I would see if some chunks of banana
(instead of all mashed) would contribute to the texture of the bread. To fully standardize this recipe
and make it as a menu item at Bevier café, more tests would be needed to make sure there are no
slight issues. The cost of this recipe was also acceptable within the range. With changes such as
decreasing cinnamon & banana and changing the type of vanilla extract, the total cost to make 1 loaf
would be $0.65. The food cost percentage is 26%. This means we will make a profit if we sell at this
price.
I think we could try to sell this vegan banana bread at Bevier café; however, I do have doubts about
whether or not it would be a popular item. The bread is somewhere between a dessert/a dish that
gives satiety. So, this is probably an awkward state for the customer when deciding what to order. As
a cashier working on Mon./Wed./Fri. this semester, I would say the desserts’ sales varies a lot day by
day. One day we sold all our lime tarts and cupcakes, and the second day we only sold 1 cupcake.
However, it may be possible that the bread sells well because it is relatively a cheap price with a large
portion comparing to other desserts. We could give it a shot to try selling them and see how it turns
out.
Personal Evaluation
I think it is great how Bevier café is constantly working on developing new menu items while also
keeping a static menu. A static menu is great for customers who don’t often come to the café and
wanted to taste our “originals” once every while. The specials and new menu items are catchy and
bring surprises to both old and new customers. When working as a cashier last week, we had our
chef special- meatball and marinara. I had a returning customer who just lightened up when she saw
the display and was so excited to try it. I also loved how in the previous weeks the hot food 2 rotation
would do a test recipe on a side salad during service time. It is a great way to produce a new “taste” in
the café.
I know Bevier used to have biweekly menu rotations, but this semester due to COVID, we are not
doing it. It’s understandable, but I wish when the whole pandemic ends and when customers are
coming back, Bevier café will bring back those biweekly menus. It would even be better if we develop
the menu ideas based on the season/month. For example, the summer class could make
Thai/Chinese style beef cold vermicelli noodles. It would be refreshing on a hot day. Other entrees
like sushi/sliced pork spring rolls/chicken skewers are excellent choices too. For the salad, we could
try a berry salad/watermelon + cucumber salad/shrimp + onion + vinegarette during the summer or
even the beginning of the fall semester. On a freezing day, it would be nice to have a hot shepherd’s
pie/hot noodle soup/cheese melt and a warm salad. For side salads, I think chilled tofu cubes with
soy sauce/5-spice edamame would be great for summer. For desserts at Bevier, I was hoping that we
could have more varieties. It seems like we have a static cheesecake, tart, or cupcake every day. For
summer we could do a mango pudding/mochi/chocolate mousse. For winter, we could have warm
lava cake/warm rice pudding/mini apple pie. These are just random ideas, but I think it would be so
worthwhile to add some new menu items. It’s never a bad idea to play around with food and see how
it goes with the café. This is why I support the idea of bringing the banana bread as a dessert item and
we can see how customers like it or not.
Cost Analysis
Nutritional Analysis

Source: MyFitnessPal