I love banana bread! I like to use bananas that are very ripe with lots of brown splotches; they give a sweeter flavor. However, the bananas in my house are usually eaten before this stage. Not the case this week! I noticed the bananas in the fruit bowl were getting awfully brown, so, hey, it was time to make banana bread!

I knew I had a relatively healthy banana bread recipe; I wrote "yummy!" at the top of it. I decided, however, to experiment with this loaf and try to make it even healthier. Here is my healthier banana bread recipe:

• ¼ cup brown sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla
• 4 egg whites, beaten
• 1 ½ cup bananas, mashed
• 2 cups oat flour (you can use regular, white flour if you'd prefer)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit. Mix sugar, vanilla, and eggs. Add bananas. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Stir dry ingredients into banana mixture. Pour in bread loaf pan (9×5×3 inches) or muffin tin.

Bake 45 minutes for loaf. 20-25 minutes for muffins.

Notes: I added a mixture of chopped walnuts, dry oats, and cinnamon to the top of the loaf right before putting it in the oven. You may have to adjust your oven's temperature and/or cooking time depending on how powerful the oven is. Insert a knife in the middle of the loaf. If the knife looks pretty clean when you pull it out, the bread is done.

I turned down my oven since it's got some power to it. I didn't want the sides of the bread to burn and the middle to be gooey. I also baked the bread for 50 minutes.

The result: Better than I expected! The bread was moist and had a sweet flavor from the bananas, but not overly so. The walnuts added a toasty, nutty flavor as well. I hardly noticed the oat flour.

I enjoyed a warm slice as a treat instead of cookies or something far more sugary that I tend to eat. The bread was satisfying and calmed my sweet tooth, so I'd say this recipe is a winner.

If you try this recipe, let me know what you think. And feel free to experiment with it. I'd love to know what changes you make and your results.

Originally posted 2008-04-10 10:00:28. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Related Posts

• Healthier Sweet Snacks If you’ve got a sweet tooth the size of Texas and know that you’ve got to have a treat on a regular basis, try these sweet snacks (see below) instead of the usual candy bar or donut. They'll help quiet those sugar cravings, as well keep your diet on the......
• Book Review - The Healthy Carb Diabetes Cookbook I recently received a copy of The Healthy Carb Diabetes Cookbook to review for you. As the title states, this is a cookbook designed for diabetics. The just under 200 recipes meet nutritional guidelines of the American Diabetes Association. The cookbook emphasizes healthy carbohydrates - whole grains, fruits, and vegetables......
• Save Money; Eat Healthier - Bake Your Own Bread! Store-bought bread can be expensive.  I also don’t care for added preservatives and sugar.  And the fact is nothing tastes as good as fresh, homemade bread!  I bake bread using a bread machine I received as a gift, but you can find bread machines on sale or even at garage......
• Know Your Oats Oats are a healthy addition to just about any diet because they provide fiber, satiety, and help lower cholesterol. Oats come in various forms, so sometimes confusion results when trying to determine which kind to use! So, without further ado... Let's take a look at the the different kinds of......
• Tropical Granola Maybe it has something to do with summer, but I've been in a Hawaii sort of mood. I'm longing for pineapples, beaches, and palm trees. Those of you who live in such climates, please an enjoy one or all three for me. :) I was inspired by a recipe I......

Related Websites

• Agave Nectar Complex Carbohydrate Sugar Substitute I may have accidentally stumbled onto the perfect sugar substitute: Agave Nectar. Agave Nectar (or Agave Syrup) is made from the heart of several agave species... It is made from the same starting point as tequila, the heart of the plant known as the piña. It is 3 times sweeter......
• 15 More Things to Do in the San Francisco Bay Area 1 - Take your entire family or a bunch of friends out to enjoy one of the famous cable car rides in the San Francisco Bay area. 2 - Enjoy the international food and the wonderful music that plays all throughout the weekend during the Tapestry and Talent festival which......
• Five Ways to Start Eating Better Right Now Sometimes it is too easy to make excuses about eating the right foods. Whether it’s simply inconvenient, we feel that eating healthy deprives us, or the lure of unhealthy food is too strong, we end up putting off eating right until it may be too late. Here are five easy......
• Save Time, Money and Space in Over 80 Ways If you're looking for handy gadgets, tools and various items that can save you time, money or space (or all three!) this list of more than 80 top products is just what you need. Everyone's got saving money on their minds these days. Some of us are always looking to......
• No Tears Sunblock Bundle from Costco Sooo not "green", but it is the only sunscreen that does not invariably lead to tears in a child's eyes. Banana Boat Baby Tear Free is now at Coscto in Redwood City, CA. They currently selling bundles of 2 eight oz. spray cans and 1 one oz. cream tube of their......

Online Stores

• Durkee Recipe BBQ Sauces Outdoor Cooking & Eating Yard, Garden & Outdoor Living Nursery
• Vanilla Seeds & Bulbs Vegetables & Fruits Plants, Seeds & Bulbs Gardening & Plants Yard, Garden & Outdoor Living
• Homemade Sweet Baby Ray Recipe BBQ Sauces Outdoor Cooking & Eating Yard, Garden & Outdoor Living Nursery
• Bobbi Brown Lipstick Makeup Store
• Charlie Brown Windsocks & Devas Garden Decor Yard, Garden & Outdoor Living

If you liked this article, vote for it on del.icio.us and stumbleupon.


Categories:

Cooking/Recipes

Tags:

banana bread, healthy banana bread recipe, low fat banana bread