“Health Nut” Banana Bread
Banana bread is one of the ultimate comfort foods. I have played around with so many versions of banana bread, from my mom’s secret recipe (a classic banana bread) to loaded up with chocolate chips and slathered with whipped cream cheese (I know, I’m doing crunches right now as I think about it). This time, I looked at those two slightly forgotten about, I-promise-I’ll-eat-you-tomorrow, brown-spotted bananas on the counter and wondered “what would a healthier version of banana bread look like”?? So, I surveyed my seed, nut, grain, and spice cart and got a little creative.
I love banana bread, but the classic recipes include quite a bit of white flour, butter, and sugar. (I might be drooling…) I wanted a drool-worthy banana bread that’s healthy too. I replaced the all-purpose flour with Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour and some almond flour, replaced the sugar with maple syrup (you could also use honey), and used coconut oil instead of butter. Then, a dollop of almond butter, some nuts, seeds, spices, raisins, and dates. As a special treat, I used organic vanilla bean paste, but vanilla extract is perfectly fine too. The healthy fats combine to create the most moist banana bread I’ve ever had, and instead of drying out this banana bread actually gets more moist over time! This banana bread is delicious, guilt- and gluten-free!
Banana bread is a “forgiving” recipe! Get creative; you can alter your recipe in so many ways. Have fun!
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon Ghee (to grease the loaf pan)
- 1 1/2 cups gluten-free flour (I prefer Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour)
- 1/4 cup almond flour
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or vanilla bean extract)
- 2 ripe bananas, mashed
- 1 tablespoon creamy almond butter
- 1/4 cup flax, hemp or chia seeds
- 1/4 cup chopped nuts (cashews, pecans or walnuts)
- 1/2 cup golden raisins (or chopped dates...or both)
- 1 teaspoon coconut palm sugar
Instructions
Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan with Ghee and set aside.
In a medium bowl, mix the gluten-free & almond flours, cinnamon, ground ginger, nutmeg, baking soda, salt and set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the eggs, coconut oil, maple syrup, yogurt, vanilla bean paste (or extract) until smooth. Stir in the mashed bananas, almond butter, seeds, nuts, and raisins / dates.
Pour the batter into the greased pan and sprinkle the top with coconut palm sugar (or other raw sugar).
Bake for 55-60 minutes (until toothpick comes out clean). Cool for 10 minutes. Slice and serve with topping of your choice. Almond butter is great!
https://www.travelynneats.com/2019/01/14/health-nut-banana-bread/Almond, Orange & Saffron Cake
I love contrast. Light, dark, bitter, sweet, soft, strong, black, white, whisper, loud, cause, effect, beginning, end. Sometimes it’s not enough to luxuriate in the gray area; you have to stretch your arms wide and reach out to the fringes. You know, pull the ends together to a point of juxtaposition… Maybe that’s this cake for me. Bright, dark, nutty, deep, citrus spark, spicy, intense, playful.
Besides the delightful contrast in flavors, there is much to love about this cake. It’s a gluten-free sweet, under 10 ingredients, and surprisingly easy to make! If you’re wanting something different, don’t wait.
Sublime upon sublime scarcely presents a contrast, and we need a little rest from everything, even the beautiful.
~ Victor Hugo
- 2 medium oranges, chopped (including peel)
- 5 eggs, separated
- Pinch of ground cardamom
- Pinch of saffron threads
- 1/4 cup milk (or unsweetened original almond milk), for soaking saffron threads
- 1 cup superfine sugar
- 2 cups ground raw almonds (grind to a flour consistency in a food processor)
- 2 tablespoons sliced or finely chopped raw almonds
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line the base and sides of a 9-inch cake pan with parchment paper.
- Warm the milk (or almond milk) for 30 seconds in the microwave in a small bowl. Remove the milk from the microwave and place a small pinch (5-6) of saffron threads in the warm milk. Soak the threads in the milk for 30 minutes.
- While the saffron is soaking, heat the chopped oranges in a pan over low heat with 1 tablespoon of water. Cover and cook with a gentle simmer for 30 minutes, until the oranges are soft and the liquid has evaporated. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool. When cool, finely chop the oranges in a food processor.
- Whisk the egg whites in a clean, dry bowl until soft peaks form. Gradually stir in the superfine sugar and continue to whisk for 1 minute.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks together with the remaining superfine sugar for 2-3 minutes. Whisk in the oranges and then fold in the ground almonds, ground cardamom, and saffron (with the soaking milk). With a large metal spoon, fold in spoonfuls of egg whites until everything is well combined.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared cake pan, sprinkle with sliced or chopped almonds and bake in the oven for 50-55 minutes (or until golden brown). Check every 20 minutes while baking.
- Let the cake cool in the pan before turning out and dusting with powdered sugar.
- Store in an airtight container for 3 days.
