Pear and Maple Syrup Banana Bread

This cake recipe is a brilliant way to use up browning bananas in the fruit bowl. It's all the more sticky and decadent with the addition of pears. 

100g unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for greasing
3 (about 250g) really ripe and speckly bananas (see tip)
100g golden caster sugar
2 ripe but still firm comice pears, cored and chopped, dusted in a little flour
1 tbsp maple syrup, plus extra to serve
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 large free-range egg
150g plain flour
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
50g pecans, roughly chopped

• Heat the oven to 180°C/fan160°C/gas 4. 
• Grease and line a 1 litre loaf tin with baking paper so it overhangs the short edges of the tin 
• Mash the bananas in a mixing bowl 
• Stir in the melted butter and caster sugar with a wooden spoon until well combined. 
• Stir through the pears, the maple syrup and vanilla extract 
• Beat in the egg. 
• Sift in the flour and bicarbonate of soda
• Gently fold in, along with the pecans, using a metal spoon.
• Pour the mix into the loaf tin, then bake for 45 minutes. 
• The cake should be dark on top with a soft, moist sponge. 
• Check it’s done by poking a skewer into the centre – if it comes out clean it’s ready. 
• Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then lift out onto a wire rack to cool.
• Drizzle with extra maple syrup to serve.