banana bread Archives - Momma On The MoveMomma On The Move

A traditional favorite in most homes, banana bread is a great way to use up those overripe bananas, turning them into something delicious! I have tried a few banana bread recipes from the one my Mom makes to one from my roommates in university and all have been delicious. But when I discovered this banana bread recipe I was in heaven! It was the most moist and the best banana bread that I had ever had. Containing no sugar, sweetened with applesauce and honey, and a boost of flaxseed, this is one healthy, but extremely yummy banana bread.

When I make it at our house, it never lasts more than a day because the kids and I gobble it up 2 or 3 pieces at a time.

I use my own *applesauce and chocolate, both homemade and of which I usually have on hand. The twins enjoy applesauce and cinnamon each morning at breakfast and I make up plain chocolate pieces that I keep in the fridge or freezer for whenever we need our chocolate fix.

Though you may have a favorite banana bread recipe, give this one a try, you won’t be disappointed!

*to make the applesauce I simply slice and core 6 apples, boil them on the stove until soft, then drain the water and blend the apples in the blender until smooth. I do not peel the apples as the skin contains lots of vitamins that you lose when you peel them and blends up so small that you don’t notice it in the sauce.

Banana Bread

1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour

flaxseed

1 1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tbsp cinnamon

1 tbsp ground flaxseed

pinch of sea salt

3 ripe mashed bananas

2 egg whites

1/4 c. unsweetened applesauce

1/2 c. honey

1/4 c. flaxseed oil

1/3 c. chopped dark chocolate

chopped walnuts, optional

In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, flaxseed and salt.

In a large bowl beat bananas until smooth. Add egg whites and mix. Gradually mix in applesauce, honey and flaxseed oil. Mix dry ingredients into banana mixture. Stir in chocolate.

Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan with Earth Balance Vegan spread. Pour batter into pan and bake for 45 minutes or until cake tester when inserted comes out clean.

We go through a lot of bananas at our house. We basically use them in smoothies and general eating but we make a lot of smoothies. In the morning, I make 2 smoothies for myself, a green smoothie of some sort and a fruit one for later in the day. Then I make a peanut butter smoothie for Matthew and the babies usually have a banana each for breakfast. These all include bananas so by the time breakfast is over we have had at least 5 or 6. Then in the afternoon I will make more smoothies for the kids, a green smoothie of some kind, or more like a chocolate smoothie with greens in it. Believe me this is a great way to get greens into the kids! I find the twins especially are more apt to drink their green smoothie than eat the vegetables off of their plate. But I digress, we go through a lot of bananas. We are out at least twice a week buying 12-15 so that we have enough for a few days but not too many that they go brown before we eat them.

Bananas are a great source of potassium, vitamins C and B6, as well as a source of iron. As a result they help increase strength and reduce stress and is an instant source of energy. This makes them a great nutritious snack and natural sweetener (often you can use banana to sweeten muffins or cakes instead of using sugar). Plus they are a great ‘grab and go’ snack.

Though we eat a lot of bananas sometimes we do find that they go brown before we eat them all, and personally once a banana is too soft or ripe I cannot eat it. I don’t like the texture, it’s too mushy. So as a result I use them in recipes, like banana bread and banana muffins. And when I have too many brown bananas I toss them in the freezer to use later.

I have always loved banana bread, it is one of my favorite treats and I recently found an excellent sugar free recipe in the Clean Eating magazine. It uses flax seed and flax oil as well as other tasty ingredients. It is dairy free too; so I tried it out. It was the best banana bread that I have ever tasted! It was so moist and delicious, it melts in your mouth.

I also really enjoy banana muffins as they taste just like banana bread, and have a great recipe from my mother. I have been able to adjust the recipe to meet our new dietary requirements of no sugar or dairy and they taste delicious. The first time I made them I used date sugar as the sugar replacement and though they were very good, they were even better when I tried the recipe using agave nectar instead. Mhmmm, they turned out so moist and fluffy! They turned out so well that I made them again within a week, not because I had leftover bananas that I needed to use, but because they were such a hit.

So I am sharing with you the banana muffin recipe with agave nectar (the banana bread recipe will come soon). Give it a whirl and try not to eat them all in one sitting! This sugar and dairy free recipe is sure to please everyone in the family!