On our grounds around the house here in Panama, we have all sorts of edibles growing.  Oranges, lemons, plantains, coffee, pigeon peas and bananas among them.  A few days ago, Ramon delivered a bunch of bananas to the garage and I have been waiting for them to ripen.  The time has come … it is banana bread season!  This is especially exciting as these bananas are organically raised without so much as a teaspoon of fertilizer or chemicals.

The trend seems to be to call a recipe “healthy” if some of the white flour is replaced with whole wheat and a bit of the butter left out in favor of yogurt.  Those are beneficial changes to be sure, but the remaining ingredients, including a pile of refined sugar, disqualify this production for the “healthy” label in my opinion.  Therefore, even though this version of Banana Nut Bread replaces some of the normal components with healthier ones, I will not call it healthy.  It is “sort of” healthy.  However, it is all delicious!

Cream the brown sugar, butter, vanilla and yogurt. Next will come the eggs and mashed bananas.

Add all of the dry ingredients to the banana mixture

Ready for the oven

Optional:  At the end of the recipe, you will find instructions for a Cinnamon Glaze for this bread.  This will make this loaf “dessert worthy”.

Banana Nut Bread

 

Author: Dennis Killebrew

Cuisine: American

Prep time:  20 mins

Cook time:  55 mins

Total time:  1 hour 15 mins

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Ingredients

• 1 Cup All Purpose Flour
• ½ Cup Whole Wheat Flour
• 6 Tablespoons Rolled Oats
• 2 Tablespoons Wheat Germ
• 1¼ Teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1 Pinch of Salt
• ½ Cup Walnuts Chopped Coarsely
• ¼ Cup Butter
• 2 Tablespoons Plain Yogurt
• ¾ Cup Dark Brown Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 2½ Cups Mashed Very Ripe Bananas
• ½ Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Instructions

1. Place a rack in the center slot and preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a loaf pan and set aside.
2. Measure the butter, sugar, yogurt and vanilla into a bowl. Cream this mixture by beating it with your electric mixer until well-combined and smooth. Add the eggs one at a time and mix well before adding the second, scraping down the sides of the bowl in between. Add the mashed bananas and mix well.
3. Measure all of the dry ingredients, including the nuts, into the banana mixture. Sir and fold everything together until the dry ingredients are just moistened. Pour the batter into the loaf pan and place in the hot oven.
4. Bace for about 55 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow the cool at least 8 minutes (I can't wait for the normal 10 minutes!) before serving.
5. Optional Cinnamon Glaze: Mix together ⅓ Cup Confectioner's Sugar, 2½ Teaspoons Milk, ⅛ Teaspoon Vanilla and ¼ Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon until a smooth, pourable consistency is achieved. Use a teaspoon to drizzle the glaze over the loaf once it has cooled for 15 minutes. See picture below.

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Loaf with optional glaze