Paleo Banana Bread

This is my first time baking with coconut flour, and I am surprised how little of it I need. I like that this bread is "good for you" and tastes delicious.

The crumbs are moist, sturdy yet light at the same time. Delicate when warm, but held together nicely when cold. T. and I both preferred eating this cold. 

Paleo Banan Bread
recipe adapted from Eating Bird Food
makes one loaf

Wet:
3 ripe banana, mashed
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp coconut oil
1/4 cup almond butter
2 eggs

Dry:
1/2 cup (60g) coconut flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/3 tsp salt

Optional: chocolate, walnut, shredded coconut

1. Line loaf pan with parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the wet ingredients.
3. Once wet ingredients are combined, add in dry ingredients. Stir until combined. Gently stir in any topping.
4. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan
5. Bake at 350F for 40-45 minutes or until bread is golden in color and a toothpick comes out clean.
6. Remove from oven and let cool for 20-30 minutes on a wire rack before removing from the pan to cool completely.

*Store any leftovers in a sealed container at room temperature for a couple days. To keep it longer, store in the fridge or freezer.

Taste: 4 stars out of 5

A bit nutty maybe due to the coconut flour? Need to try more recipes with coconut flour to see what it tastes like.

Texture: 4.5 stars out of 5

Very delicate, light, and almost melts in your mouth!

Buckwheat Banana Bread

Experimented with buckwheat flour by substituting a little less than half of the AP flour in my healthy banana bread recipe. The buckwheat flour lended a mild nutty taste and gave the bread a more brown and nutty appearance. The texture was more bread like which I found it perfect for breakfast. 

For enjoying the next day, I like to give it a quick toast in the toaster and topping it with almond butter, honey and hemp seeds!

Buckwheat Banana Bread

2 eggs
1/3 cup (70g) melted coconut oil
1/4 cup (85g) honey
1/4 cup (57g) Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 mashed ripe bananas (about 394g)
1 cup (136g) AP flour + 3/4 cup (90g) buckwheat flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
90g walnuts, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 325F. Grease and line a 9x5 inch loaf pan and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, beat eggs, oil, honey, milk and vanilla for 2 minutes. Stir in mashed bananas, flour mixture, and add ons.

4. Pour batter into lined pan. 

5. Bake for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

6. Cool for 10 minutes, slice and enjoy!

Next days:

Taste: 4.5 stars out of 5

This bread is less sweet and very appropriate for early morning meals!

Texture: 4.5 stars out of 5

Expect more bread/ drier texture.

Healthy Banana Bread (My new go to recipe)

This banana bread recipe is actually very similar to a previous one I've baked and loved. Instead of maple syrup and almond milk, I subbed with honey and Greek yogurt and upped the amount of coconut oil from 1/4 cup to 1/3 cup. The resulting loaf is lightly sweetened with a moist interior and a nice crust.

If you have an extra egg, banana and don't mind some refined sugar, try this other recipe I have on the blog! For now, this healthier version will be on my regular rotation. It makes for a nice grab and go breakfast treat for those dreadful early work mornings.

Black Sesame Matcha Banana Bread

Hello neglected blog - 

Ever since I came back from my Japan trip, I've become even more obsessed with matcha. Something about the earthy flavor and the green hue is just so lovely. And Japanese's love for matcha is totally infectious. You can find matcha in every form imaginable in Japan. To name a few, there are matcha beer, matcha soba and of course matcha sweets. 

As I am older and away from home now, I find myself craving Asian rooted flavors. This black sesame matcha banana bread called to me because it incorporated two of my favorite ingredients/ flavors in fatty's favorite form of dessert - banana bread. 

This recipe uses one banana which is exactly what I had on hand and makes for a little loaf enough for two to enjoy.

Black Sesame Matcha Banana Bread
recipe adapted from The Pretend Baker
makes one mini loaf (5.8 x 3.2 x 1.8")

(28g) 2 Tbsp melted butter
(63g) 5 Tbsp cane sugar*
1 large egg, room temperature
¾ tsp pure vanilla extract
½ C mashed banana from 1 large overripe banana
(91g) ¾ C less 2 tsp all purpose flour
(6g)2 tsp culinary matcha powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp toasted black sesame seeds, divided

*for less sweet, use 40g

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a mini/small loaf pan with parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, combine melted butter and sugar and whisk vigorously until combined. Add egg and vanilla and whisk until light and creamy.
3. Add banana and whisk again until completely combined.
4. In a small bowl, sift together flour, matcha powder, baking soda and salt. Add to the butter/banana mixture and gently whisk/ fold until just combined. Take care not to over mix.
5. Fold in 1 TBSP black sesame seeds and pour in to prepared loaf pan.
6. Top with remaining 1 tsp black sesame seeds and bake on the center rack of your oven for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
7. Allow to cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes then remove and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
8. Store on the counter wrapped in plastic wrap for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

Taste: 5 stars out of 5

Nutty and toasty from black sesame seeds; banana flavor is prominent; sweetness on point

Texture: 5 stars out of 5

Fluffy and light; not crumbly; moist banana chunks

Banana Bread studded with Walnuts

ft. Joshua and Bo

My go to banana bread recipe has been this one with its perfect dome top and crack. But since I only have 3 banana this time, I decided to deviate a little. This recipe calls for identical ingredients in a slightly different ratio - 1/3 cup oil vs 3/4 cup, 1/4 cup of almond milk vs 1/4 cup of plain water and 80g maple syrup vs 70g sugar. The "healthier" ratio (less oil and no refined sugar) did not compromise the taste or texture at all!

Greek Yogurt Banana Oat Bread

Banana bread for the bae!

This soft and tender loaf does not need butter, oil, or refined sugar! I threw in some fresh blueberries along with chopped pecans because I am never a purist when it comes to banana bread or home baked goods in general.. just make sure you don't go overboard so you can have a tasty personalized treat- the best imo!

Greek Yogurt Banana Oat Bread
recipe adapted from Running with Spoons
makes one loaf (12 slices)

2 large eggs
1/2 cup (115 g) plain 2% Greek yogurt
2 medium-size, ripe bananas, mashed (200 g or 1 cup)
4 Tbsp (60 ml) maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup (60 g) quick oats
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/4 cup (150 g) white whole wheat flour 

Optional:
more sweet? add total of 6 Tbsp (90ml) maple syrup + 1/4 cup (50g) brown sugar
add-ins? 1/2 cup chocolate chips/dried fruit/nuts/etc.

1. Preheat your oven to 350ºF (176ºC), and lightly grease a 9 x 5 (23cm x 13cm) bread pan.
2. In a large mixing bowl, lightly beat the eggs until the yolks break apart. Whisk in the yogurt, bananas, maple syrup, sugar (if using), and vanilla, mixing until smooth.
3. Stir in the oats, baking soda, and cinnamon. Finally, spoon in the flour and gently stir it in until just combined. If you're adding any mix-ins, fold them in now.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan, spreading it out evenly. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
5. Remove the bread from the oven and let it cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring it to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Taste: 4 stars out of 5

Mildly sweetened; subtle banana taste

Texture: 4 stars out of 5

Not as soft and fluffy as AP flour banana bread but more hearty and dense due to white whole wheat flour. Oats added a good chewy bite!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Bread with Walnuts

Yasss! Chocolate for breakfast. And peanut butter. And banana too.. YAS YAS YAS!

This banana bread was a success with all the ingredients and flavors complementing each other and yielding a very tender and flavorful loaf. There's also a teaspoon of instant coffee powder making them no doubt breakfast appropriate.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Bread with Walnuts
recipe adapted from Broma Bakery
makes 1 loaf

1/3 cup (85g) peanut butter, slightly melted
~1/4 cup (40g) organic coconut palm sugar
1 cup (262g) mashed bananas (about 2 1/2 bananas)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup (59g) cocoa
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (113g) white whole wheat flour
2/3 cup (85g) walnuts, chopped

optional (but highly recommended):

banana slices (about 1/2 banana)
3 tablespoon creamy peanut butter, melted

Mash them bananas!

Gather all wet ingredients (except eggs) + sugar..

and whisk!

Add eggs and whisk till combined.

Combine all dry ingredients, sift, and mix into wet.

Walnuts are always a good idea (:

Mix until no more dry flour.

Top with thinly sliced bananas and it is ready to bake!

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large loaf pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the slightly melted peanut butter, sugar, mashed bananas, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla..
3. Stir/sift in cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
4. Stir/sift in flour.
5. Pour into loaf pan and top with thinly sliced banana pieces. Bake for roughly 55 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
6. Cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes.
7. Optional: top with peanut butter. Melt peanut butter in a microwave-safe bowl for 30 seconds, stir, and drizzle over loaf. Serve!

The white whole wheat flour added nutritious whole grain values and gave the loaf a loose/dry-ish crumb. I imagine the crumbs to be moist and tight if AP flour was used. Sugar was also drastically lowered from 150g in the original recipe to 40g. The sweetness was perfect for me after the reduction, especially when compensated with a generous drizzle of peanut butter. Ahh, let's just take a moment to admire the beautiful color contrast of the pb drizzle on the dark chocolate loaf!!

Taste: 4 stars out of 5

Rich complex chocolate mocha/pb/banana flavors.

Texture: 3.8 stars out of 5

Bread like; on the firm/dry side, but still very tender and moist as the crumbs loosen and dissolve with each bite. The exterior was crisp when fresh out the oven!

*Presentation: 5 out of 5

Absolutely in love with how aesthetically pleasing this loaf is. The thinly sliced bananas, peanut butter drizzles, and the dark color loaf.. so perfect. Tip: go generous with the peanut butter drizzles!

Green Monster Banana Bread

Rawrr! Green Monster Banana Bread?!?! YES (but no)!

I am always down to make a sweet treat more nutritious. Making the batter for this is like the beginning of making a smoothie. I will confess that I did taste the batter after the egg was added.. It was yummy. I didn't have greek yogurt at hand, so I subbed with a similar texture ingredient- tofu with a little bit of lemon juice to bring back the acidity to react with the baking soda.

Sadly, the texture was still off. The batter was way too loose and liquid-y.  It baked for 60 minutes with toothpick still coming out with a few moist crumbs. The loaf collapsed as soon as the oven was off. It sunk in more as it cooled. Once sliced, the interior was dense and extremely moist.


Green Monster Banana Bread
recipe adapted from The First Year
makes 1 loaf

3 bananas
1 & 1/2 cups (45g) fresh spinach *50g organic baby kale, baby chard & baby spinach
6 tbsp (126g) honey *70g honey + 30g maple syrup
1/4 cup greek yogurt *subbed with 1/4 cup (63g) tofu + 1 tsp lemon juice
1 tbsp (16g) creamy peanut butter *18g used
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup (120g) all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt *fine sea salt
*sunflower seeds, optional topping

Batter was lumpy so mixed some more in pan.

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. Line or lightly spray a loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.
3. In blender, puree bananas, spinach, honey, greek yogurt, and peanut butter until smooth.
4. Pour blended mixture into a mixing bowl and stir in egg and vanilla extract.
5. Add flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Mix well.
6. Transfer batter to loaf pan.
7. Bake for 48-58 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Sunken :/

I like the idea of adding greens in my banana bread. I would try it with a trusty banana bread recipe next time!

Taste: 4 stars out of 5
Prominent banana flavor. Could be a little less sweet.

Texture: 2 stars out of 5
A chewy browned exterior layer with a souffle like texture inside when warm.