Hummingbird Bread

About This Recipe

To be very honest with you, I had never heard of hummingbird bread before Pinterest. I was immediately intrigued by the name and headed straight to Google to learn more. A tropical banana bread? Let's go!

What Is Hummingbird Bread?

In a nutshell, hummingbird bread is a pineapple-banana bread based off of the Southern classic "Hummingbird Cake," (a pineapple-banana cake). The origins of this treat are based in Jamaica, where it is known as "Dr. Bird Cake" after the scissors-tail hummingbird (locally known as "doctor bird," the island's national bird). In 1968, the Jamaica Tourist Board exported the recipe, along with other local Jamaican recipes, in a media press kit with the goal of gaining American interest in visiting the island.

What I Love About This Recipe

This recipe for hummingbird bread has more than just a "sourdough twist." It is quite different from most hummingbird recipes you'll find on the internet today. To be honest, I just took the idea and ran with it, incorporating the primary ingredients and overall concepts of the bread, but completely making it my own. Not only did I use my classic cream cheese base (which I use for most of my quick bread recipes), I also packed this recipe with pineapple tidbits (rather than the classic crushed pineapple) and reduced the amount of bananas for a more balanced flavor. It is filled with coconut flakes and crushed pecans for variety in texture and enhanced flavor. While the pineapple cream cheese glaze isn't necessary, it is a delicious addition that tops everything off perfectly.

All The "Why's"

Cream Cheese

Most quick breads contain a base made with two sticks of softened butter. Others add yogurt or sour cream. While this can be good, in my opinion, cream cheese is better. Though this recipe still contains butter, which is necessary for moisture retention, cream cheese brings a unique richness, texture, and even more moisture to the final bake. The final, overall flavor and consistency is elevated significantly and the loaf does not dry out as quickly.

Brown Sugar

Brown sugar is used as a sweetener in this quick bread. This means you can increase or reduce the amount to your personal preference. Sugar has other important contributions, too; it aids in browning, tenderizing, moisture retention, and preservation/shelf life. Therefore, I would not recommend removing it completely. The difference between brown sugar and white sugar is molasses. I chose brown sugar because I felt the deep flavors of the molasses compliment the flavors of this bread well. In reality, you can use either (brown or white) and come out with great results.

Butter

While fat can have many purposes in a recipe, one major effect is moisture retention. Without it, the loaf would be dry and crumbly, even with the cream cheese and sugar (which also work to retain moisture). Butter pairs well with the flavors of this dish, and serves just this purpose: to keep the loaf from drying out.

Sourdough Discard

The main purpose of sourdough discard is, well, to use sourdough discard. Unfortunately, the amount I use in this recipe is limited (if you know me, you know I like to use as much as possible in any given recipe), as this bread gets most of its moisture from bananas, eggs, and pineapple juice, leaving little room for the additional moisture from the sourdough discard.

Banana

One struggle that comes with hummingbird bread is balancing the banana and pineapple flavors. The banana tends to be overpowering, and the pineapple non-existent. In this recipe, I use only one, large banana, which is significantly less banana than most recipes, but is plenty of banana to achieve a clear banana flavor that is not overpowering. Be sure to use an overripe banana for best results. Bananas release more moisture as they ripen, which helps balance the overall moisture of the bread.

Eggs

The more eggs you add to your bread, the more cake-like the bread becomes. Eggs add fluff and moisture, as well as make your bread lighter and taller. I find two eggs to be the perfect balance: it is not too cake-like, but is also not too dense.

Pineapple Tidbits

The problem with canned pineapple is that the flavor tends to dissipate during baking. In my testing, I found that the pineapple flavor virtually disappeared from the bread when I used crushed pineapple, but that pineapple tidbits create pockets of pineapple flavor that don't dissipate. Instead, you get bursts of pineapple in your mouth with each bite, which I found to be an extremely delightful combination that helps to balance out the banana.

All-Purpose Flour

While I do try to eliminate flour in some of my discard recipes, it is not possible with this one. Flour adds necessary structure to an otherwise loose batter. It is important to measure correctly by volume, or just use the weighted measurements instead. Flour is one of the most inaccurate ingredients measured by volume, and too much flour can cause a dry and crumbly loaf.

It is also important to note that all-purpose flour is superior to bread flour in any quick bread recipe. In fact, the lower the protein content, the better. Though I have not tested it, cake flour may even work wonders. The problem is: cake flour is not a staple ingredient in many homes; therefore, I choose not to base a recipe off of it unless it is absolutely necessary. The reason all-purpose flour is important is the same reason we mix this batter until "just incorporated" - gluten development is not desired. The development of gluten produces a chewy texture, which is not desirable in baked goods like this one.

Leavening

This recipe uses a balance of baking powder and baking soda to leaven the bread, rather than the sourdough discard. This means you can bake your bread right away, without waiting for sourdough to do its magic. I prefer chemical leavening for sourdough discard recipes because we are using starter that is not in its prime state, and may not leaven well. While it is true that the addition of flour feeds the yeast, and you may get a slow rise, sourdough-discard-leavened bread has the potential to be more sour, due to the ever populating bacteria (which are responsible for the sour flavor) and still may not rise properly. Not to mention how the other ingredients in this quick bread would hold up during this waiting period, namely the bananas.

If you want to try long fermentation, do it in the refrigerator and wait to add the baking powder and soda until you are ready to bake. While the yeast in your starter will not function well (due to the cold temperatures), the bacteria will still work to break down the flour during this time. Still adding the baking powder and soda ensures you get a loaf that has been appropriately aerated (since the yeast from your discard will not be able to adequately do this on their own).

Cinnamon

The purpose of the cinnamon is simply to spice things up: to enhance and compliment flavors. This warming spice is completely optional, and can be removed or replaced with other warming spices, such as: cardamom, ginger, and cloves.

Salt

Salt brings out flavor. I use just a touch in this recipe to enhance all the flavors in this quick bread.

Inclusions

Both coconut and pecans help to vary the texture and compliment the tropical flavors of this dish. Coconut is not a traditional staple of hummingbird bread, but I felt it suited the banana and pineapple nicely. These inclusions could be replaced, one-for-one, with another mix-in or eliminated altogether, if desired. The base is one cup total of inclusions, but really this is flexible depending on your preference.

Glaze

A cake (remember, "hummingbird bread" was originally "hummingbird cake") usually includes a frosting, and for hummingbird cake, that is usually a cream cheese frosting. So, this optional glaze mimics this idea, only as a glaze instead of a frosting (for the sake of toning things down). The base for any glaze is powdered sugar (it dissolves easily) and a little bit of moisture to make it a liquid. In this case, I kept with the theme of the bread, using pineapple juice as the liquid over other options, like milk, as well as adding some cream cheese to mimic the flavors of a cream cheese frosting. The result? To die for.

📌 Quick Tip: Read the recipe in its entirety before you start cooking. This will help you understand the ingredients, steps, and timing involved, and allow you to prepare any necessary equipment or ingredients beforehand.