Sunday, March 13, 2011

Banana Bread, Healthified

This morning I have banana bread in the oven.  It still has about a half-hour to go, but already the aroma is beautiful and it is rising  nicely.  I took my usual recipe and made it healthier by using whole wheat flour and low-fat sour cream.  Originally, the basis for this recipe was for a sour cream coffee cake that I make all the time.  I took three overly-ripe bananas and mixed them in with the sugar and canola oil, and switched the all-purpose flour to a mixture of whole wheat flour and some cornstarch.  The addition of nutrition-rich walnuts adds to both the delicious and healthy factors as well. 

Banana Walnut Bread, Healthified

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
3 over-ripe bananas
2 tsp. vanilla extract
4 eggs or 1 c. egg substitute
2 cups low-fat/non-fat sour cream
3 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts for batter, plus another 1/4 cup for topping

Oven - 350 degrees F

Prepare two loaf pans with baking spray

Beat sugars with canola oil and bananas until smooth.  Add vanilla, and eggs, one at a time until well mixed.  Add sour cream and mix until smooth.

In separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and 1/2 cup of the chopped almonds. 

Add flour mixture to wet mixture and mix until completely incorporated.  Divide batter between two loaf pans and sprinkle tops with the rest of the chopped walnuts. 

Bake 45-55 minutes or until loaves test done with a knife or skewer.

Cool in pans for at least 20 minutes and turn out onto wire rack to complete cooling.

6 comments:

  1. This sounds delicious. I love banana bread. Thanks for the post. I can finally attempt to make it myself.

    ReplyDelete
  2. This looks so amazing! Being away at school really makes me appreciate the banana and zucchini bread my mama makes (this looks even better than hers)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hey, Skidmore student here,

    I had banana cupcakes earlier today (I can't say whether they were healthy or not) and they were the most amazing cupcakes I have ever had.

    My stomach just started rumbling... I think I may be addicted.

    That aside, thanks for the recipe. I think I'll be exploring more banana based baked goods in the near future.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hello, another skidmore student here,

    Banana bread is my favorite snack to munch on when I do not want a full meal. It just has this amazing taste to it. It's hard to explain. Every time I have the chance to have a piece of banana bread, I think I jump to the occasion.

    Thanks for the recipe. Now I can make my own banana bread.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Mhm I love banana bread. This sounds delicious. My roommate and I attempted to make banana bread the other weekend and we failed dismally, hopefully this time we will get it right!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Banana bread could bring about world peace.

    ReplyDelete