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12.04.2013

The Very Best Banana Bread



This is my all time favorite banana bread recipe.  I love having things like muffins & cookies for breakfast but they have to be somewhat healthy and not-too-sugary and this banana bread is PERFECT.  I make it with whole wheat flour and it's sweetness comes from the ripe bananas and a bit of real maple syrup (okay, and a little dark chocolate - which I think we have already established is a breakfast food).  No butter, no refined sugar, just a little coconut oil and some healthy nuts & seeds.  It's also one of the quickest recipes to make and your whole house will smell incredible while it's baking.  I love to have it for breakfast but this banana bread will make you happy any time of the day.  Serve it warm with a fresh cup of coffee or hot tea and a side of blog-reading.  Cozy blankets recommended.


You will need:


Dry Ingredients

2 cups flour (I like to use white whole wheat flour)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Wet Ingredients

1/4 cup of milk (for vegan option swap for almond milk)
6 tbsp. coconut oil (you can also use olive oil or butter)
5 tbsp. maple syrup
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups mashed, ripe bananas (about 5)

Additions:

1 cup of chopped nuts/seeds (I used a combo of walnuts & sunflower seeds)
3/4 cup chopped dark chocolate - about 100g. (optional)


Directions:


1.  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

2.  Grease & flour your pan or line it with parchment paper (I use a loaf pan but you can also use an 8x8 cake pan if you don't have one).

3.  In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients & mix well.

4.  In a separate bowl, mix together wet ingredients (I mixed mine in the food processor.  If you don't have one you can do it by hand, just mash the bananas separately first or it will be difficult to get rid of the chunks).

5. Pour wet ingredients into bowl of dry ingredients and gently stir until combined.  (When mixing wet & dry ingredients for baking you want to stir them as little as possible because once flour is mixed with a liquid it activates the gluten and the more you stir it the more the gluten develops.  Over-developed gluten will make your baking dense & tough instead of light & fluffy).

6.  Now fold in your nuts and/or chopped chocolate.

7.  Pour into your pan and bake for about 45 minutes or until golden brown & a toothpick comes out clean (or covered in melted chocolate - just not batter).

8.  Let cool slightly, slice & enjoy!





1 comment :

  1. That looks delicious!

    Caitlin x
    http://oceanicstars.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete