No sugar Banana Bread
Here’s a recipe from my cookbook Let’s eat! which has a ‘Not-too-naughty’ section featuring lots of healthier baking and dessert recipes, with less sugar and white flour.If Bodhi and Carlos don’t get to the bananas before they turn perfectly ripe, I’ll make this very useful banana bread. It doesn’t have any added sugar – with three bananas (make sure they’re very ripe, the spottier the better!) its naturally sweet enough. It makes a great lunchbox filler or morning/afternoon tea snack. Personally I think its sweet enough as it is (and I’ve only ever had one person say they would have liked it sweeter), but if you want to you can always add 1 heaped tablespoon of golden syrup (or other sweetener) to the mixture to make sure its sweet enough for your tastebuds. Either way – it’s scrumptious and a whole lot better for you than any other banana bread recipe I know!*This loaf can be made gluten-free (use GF flour) and dairy-free (use coconut oil instead of butter). You can also make it as one large loaf (instead of two smaller loaves), just cook for about 10-15 minutes longer.
Ingredients
- 125 g butter or coconut oil melted
- 3 very ripe bananas mashed
- 1½ cups desiccated coconut
- 1 cup ground almonds
- ½ cup flour (e.g. plain, spelt, gluten-free)
- 1 level teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons vanilla essence or extract
- good pinch salt
- 3 eggs whisked
- 1 banana to garnish (optional)
- pinch ground cinnamon to garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C. Line two small loaf tins (e.g. 3.5 cup capacity) with baking paper.
- In a large bowl, mix melted butter/oil, mashed banana, coconut, ground almonds, flour, baking soda, vanilla, salt and eggs. Stir until combined.
- Spoon mixture into prepared loaf tins, dividing equally. Peel and cut remaining banana (if using) in half lengthways and arrange a banana half on top of each loaf. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes or until loaves are golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Leave loaves to cool in tins for 5-10 minutes before removing and transferring to a wire rack. Very yummy slightly warmed and spread with a little butter! Store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place for up to three days, or in the fridge for up to five days. It also freezes well.