Banana bread brownies with bruleed banana

Generously butter a 9x9 square pan; optionally line the bottom with parchment, turned over and pressed smooth.

Whisk the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda until evenly distributed; set aside.

Mash two ripe bananas with a fork into a fairly fine puree, a minute or two.

Right before making the batter, melt the chocolate in the microwave 20 seconds at a time until stirrable.

Blend the sugar with soft room-temperature butter with a whisk or electric mixer until light and fluffy, a minute or two.

Add the egg, vanilla and banana puree and mix; it will look grainy and separated.

Add the melted chocolate and blend until smooth, like chocolate cake batter; re-melt the chocolate if it hardened.

Mix in the walnuts and chocolate chips with a spatula, then add the flour mixture last, so flour does not lodge in the walnuts, and mix only until the flour just disappears.

Spread evenly into the pan, into the corners, and smooth the top; lay banana slices on top in a 3x4 pattern.

Bake in the center of a 350 degree oven about 30 minutes, until a bamboo skewer shows just a little chocolate; if covered with batter, a couple more minutes.

Let cool; served cold.

Optional garnish: sprinkle about half a teaspoon of sugar on each banana slice and brulee with a blowtorch at its smallest flame, burning only the sugar.

Wrap and chill completely before cutting into 12.