Malt extract is a terrific ingredient to use in baking, bread-making and any recipes that call for sugar or honey. An unrefined syrup made from sprouted barley, it is dark brown, thick and very sticky, with a distinctive malty flavour. It is about half as sweet as refined white sugar. It has a good shelf life and you will find yourself using it more and more. For this recipe you can omit the sugar entirely, upping the malt extract or keeping it as is. With the nutty flavour of the rye, the malt works brilliantly here as a trio with the ripe bananas.