Got some bananas turning brown? Let them be, you can turn them into something tasty and healthy. If you like baking you know most recipes call for 2 or 3 at most so you’re still left with some bananas if you bought a few, but that’s over! This is also a dairy free recipe so you can forget about softening or creaming butter. I use a mixer to cut the work on mashing the bananas too but you can totally use a bowl and spoon.
For a healthier twist you can use your preferred sweetener if you want to cut on sugar and works fine, I’ve switched half of the sugar with monkfruit with good results; and because it has a lot of banana is packed with potassium and magnesium. Bananas have tons of benefits even for well muscle functioning and digestion, they are most well-known for their high potassium content, which can help lower blood pressure and is linked to a reduced chance of heart disease. Plus, they’re also rich in magnesium, with 37mg of magnesium, or 9% of the DV, in one large banana, this loaf uses 4.
Although the recipe is spoon friendly there’s an extra step I like to add when making this banana bread. Because this recipe calls for 4 bananas which is a generous amount it can make the bread a tiny but dense and a great way to balance that is adding air to the batter. You can easily add fluffiness and get a soft crumb by separating the eggs, mixing the yolks with the rest, beating the whites until you got soft peaks and folding the beaten whites at the end. You can totally skip this and go the easy way by just using a bowl and a spoon to mix everything evenly BUT I find this tricks works beautifully. I usually mash my bananas with the hand mixer so if it’s already going to be used it doesn’t hurt to take the extra step.
This recipe holds some additions like nuts, chocolate chips, coconut, almonds, dried cranberries, etc., just don’t exceed 1/4 cup so it doesn’t weigh it down and make sure is a dry ingredient like the ones I mentioned before and not something that adds moisture like fresh fruit, if you want to add other fruits make sure it’s dehydrated., dried cranberries or freeze dried fruits work perfectly. You could also just sprinkle some on top for decoration and texture. On this one I used shredded coconut, chopped walnuts and semi sweet chocolate chips. I always put a tiny bit of ginger, I feel like it brings a fresh element that just goes great and fresh ginger has many benefits so why not?! If you’re not a fan of ginger is fine because you wont even know it’s there but the fresh undertones will enhance the flavor, trust the process. When I say a tiny bit, this is what I mean, almost nothing. 👇
Isn’t this a marvelous and easy recipe? Do you need more reasons to try it? Pretty straightforward and simple. This recipe is also infusion friendly, you can use infused oil for this killer bread, it works perfectly! Totally healthy edible if you ask me!
Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
4 very ripe bananas
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup avocado or any neutral oil
1 teaspoon cinnamon
tiny pinch of fresh grated ginger or powder -optional
1/4 cup of chocolate chips and chopped walnuts -optional
*you can substitute the first 3 ingredients with self rising flour if you prefer.
Method:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
At this stage there are two ways of making the batter.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, cream together the eggs and sugar. Stir in the mashed bananas, vanilla, oil and cinnamon. Stir in the flour mixture, a third at a time, until just combined.
Pour the batter into a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Bake for about 1 hour or until a toothpick in the center comes put clean.
Let cool and store in an airtight container in a cool dry place.
Enjoy!
*Once completely cooled, this loaf freezes perfectly for later.
