Why it works: Banana and coconut match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and 549 recipes mention both. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓
The recipe
Serves 12Ingredients
Contains: egg, milk, wheat, tree nuts (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
Method written by CompKitchen from the ingredient list. Not the original author's method, not kitchen-tested.
Heat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Lightly grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan with a little of the melted coconut oil.
In a bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together.
In a large bowl, mash the ripe banana well, then whisk in the brown sugar, egg, remaining cooled coconut oil, vanilla, Greek yogurt and almond or coconut milk until smooth.
Stir the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined. Fold in the diced strawberries, smashed raspberries, 1/2 cup coconut flakes and chia seeds.
Spread the batter in the prepared pan. Scatter the sliced strawberries and the remaining 3 tablespoons coconut flakes over the top.
Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until the center is set, a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and the top is golden. Cover loosely with foil if the top browns too quickly.
Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then lift the loaf onto a rack and let it cool completely before slicing.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Banana + coconuttop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together549 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
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Banana + vanillatop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together1,430 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl isobutyrate (fruity, ethereal).
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Almond + chiatop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together68 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
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Coconut + vanillatop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together2,294 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
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Coconut + chiatop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together66 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Flavor stand-ins for the almond
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, banana, sugar, egg, coconut, vanilla, yogurt):
- Almondthe original
- Pecansabout as good a flavor fit
Fit is the average pairing score against flour, banana, sugar, egg, coconut, vanilla, yogurt. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
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