Banana Recipe Round up

Did you get any pregnancy cravings while you were pregnant?    I don't remember too many with my first.   I did enjoy a few more things that I would have normally ate, like a few more poutines and nachos but otherwise I still ate quite healthy.

For baby #2 it is pretty much the same, I am having a few indulgences but still aiming to stay on track.    My craving this time around though is banana baked goods.  I could literally eat banana bread every day.  Oddly,  I am not actually craving real bananas, just banana baked goods.  I have never been a pure banana lover.  Even now I really only eat the excess of what my little one doesn't it to give baby #2 some potassium.
There is a cafeteria in a building across the street from my work and I swear they make the best banana bread I have EVER had!  I can guarantee it is not healthy and potentially soaked in melted butter after it is baked but honestly BEST EVER! It is dangerous really.   I tend to treat myself maybe once a week with it and for the rest of my cravings I go to recipes that are a bit more figure friendly like my Gluten Free Almond Banana Bread.

Since I need to mix up my banana baking and try some new recipes I have asked some blogging friends and scoured the web for some delicious banana baked goods and created this round up for you.  Some healthy, some not, but all 30 Banana recipes will satisfy any banana craving.

Enjoy!

Banana Nut Cake with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting	Chocolate Malt Banana Cakes	Brown Sugar Banana Bread
Banana Fluffernutter Muffins	Banana Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache	kinny Nutella Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Banana Spice Oatmeal-Walnut Streusel Muffins	Gluten Free Almond Banana Bread	Brown Butter Banana Peanut Butter Cookies
Honey Banana Poppy Seed Bread	Banana Bread Waffles	Super Soft Banana Bread
Peanut Butter Banana Brownies	Banana Lentil Muffins	Banana Pancakes
Brownie Crumble Banana Bread	Chocolate Banana Cake Bars (Vegan + Gluten-free)	Blueberry Banana Almond Baked Oatmeal
Banana Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting	Double Chocolate Muffins with Banana Cream	Banana Chocolate Chip Bars
Brown Butter Banana Donuts	Healthy Banana Bread	Purple Ribbon Banana Bread
Biscoff Banana Bread	Banana Split Cheesecake	Easiest Banana Bread Ever
Strawberry Banana Bread	Healthy Banana Bread Recipe *Egg Free	(Almost!) Fat-Free Pumpkin, Banana & Butterscotch Whole Wheat Bread

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Chocolate Malt Banana Cakes

I hate being late, and yet I feel it is happening more and more.  I want to say that when my husband is with me it is more him than me, that or I just haven't mastered the art of packing up with a toddler.  He thinks it takes less time to get places than it actually does.  I also think he never wants to be on time.  He doesn't like to be the first person at places, and I hate to be the last.

This morning I got a call from the midwives asking if I was on my way,  and I said "not yet" , apparently I was 10 minutes late for my appointment!  AAH!  According to my phone my appointment didn't start until for another 40 minutes.  Do you know how much this drove me crazy.  I hate to be the person that throws off the schedule and makes everyone else late.  That is why I hate being late, I don't like making other people late or wasting their time.  I rushed over and literally had maybe the fastest appointment ever so I didn't cause to much of a disruption.   I booked my next three appointments and actually put the time of the appointment in the subject as I fear daylight savings may have adjusted the date in my phone.  This could just be an example of my never ending technology curse.

I have another reveal dessert idea coming but with Easter rapidly approaching I couldn't resist picking up some Chocolate Malt eggs.  I love chocolate malt balls in general and these are just so pretty, colorful and fun to use this time of year.

Chocolate Malt Banana Cakes

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 3/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup malt powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3 bananas, ripe and mashed
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 2/3 cup chopped malt balls/eggs
• 4 oz dark chocolate, chopped
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Spray an 8 mini loaf pan with non stick spray or butter.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, malt powder, baking soda/powder and salt and whisk together.
3. In a large bowl or mixer bowl , beat butter until whipped. Add both sugars and beat until light and fluffy.
4. Add each egg, one at a time, beating just a minute.
5. Add the mashed bananas and mix on low to incorporate.
6. Add the dry ingredients in 2-3 additions on low until just combined. Add buttermilk and mix until mixed in.
7. Fold in the chopped malt balls. Divide the batter evenly between the 8 mini loafs.
8. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.
9. While cooling heat whipping cream in a small sauce pan until simmering. In another bowl place the chopped chocolate, cover with the whip cream and let sit a few minutes. Stir to combine and melt all the chocolate. Let sit a few more minutes and drizzle over the banana loafs and topped with more chopped malt ball eggs.

Cracked Grain Banana Bread

        

It has been two months since our little group of bloggers started our Weight Loss Wednesday journey.  I have missed a few posts along the way but I am still mentally trying to make more of an effort to eat healthy and continue being active.  

After two months I can say I have lost a few pounds, pants are fitting better and I am learning new ways to bake healthy.  With the holidays coming up it is going to get harder and harder to stay focused with parties, family dinners and fun holiday baking.  My solution will be to exercise harder, drink more water and find those healthy substitutions.  I will not gain weight this holiday season!  Say it with me!

Weight Loss Wednesday & Healthy Banana Bread

Believe it or not sometimes being a food blogger is not fun.  It is not fun on your waistline.  You become torn between two options.  1) Baking something to post for your followers which inevitably leads to testing and eating (possibly more than once), boom hit to the waistline.  2) Don't bake, don't post and then no one is happy.  Being a baking blogger is almost worse since 90% of what you bake involves the worst culprites in contributing to weight gain - butter, sugar, white flour.  UGH!  I  manage to try and find a decent balance with this, although I wish I did post more often.

Banana Peanut Butter M&M Cookies

Uh, Can you believe Easter is next weekend?  I am a little shocked and frankly unprepared.  I have barely done any Easter baking.   I feel like it has just crept up on me.  I guess it is a bit earlier than normal this year but I have no idea what I want to bake for my Easter dinners.  Maybe I should look at the massive list of baking "ideas" I just created.   The good thing about Easter is that usually means warm weather and it looks like the forecast is starting to change.

I do love my Easter candy though.  Mini Eggs/Eggies are my favorite but most Easter chocolates are just pretty and fun. I almost do more easter candy baking after Easter.  I stock up when it is on sale and then it is so easy to stuff chocolate eggs in something and you immediately have a great dessert.  Like these cookies for example, a banana cookie made that much better with some Easter M&M's

Brown Butter Banana Peanut Butter Cookies

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup unbleached all purpose
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 egg
• 3 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup peanut butter M&M's
• 1/2 cup peanut butter chips

INSTRUCTIONS:

1) Preheat oven to 350F. In a small pan, melt butter over medium heat, gently letting the butter start to brown.  It will get foamy and start to smell nutty.   Don't let it brown too much.   Place a coffee filter inside a metal strainer, place over a large mixing bowl and pour through the brown butter.  This will catch any bits that have separated.

2) In a small bowl combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. 

2) Add brown sugar to butter and mix together with a spatula.   Stir in egg and vanilla until combined. Stir in mashed banana.  

3) Fold in flour mixture until almost combined, then add M&M's and chips. 

4) Using a small scoop , place rounds on a baking sheet lined with parchment/silpat. 

5) Bake for 13-15 minutes until golden.  Let cool on sheet a few minutes, then move to wire rack to cool completely. 

These are almost more like mini banana cakes, that I wanted to eat for breakfast everyday. 

Butterfinger Banana Bread with Quinoa & Chia Seeds

I am a libra and I was recently told that libras like balance. We like balance and avoid conflict.  Not sure what my husband would say but I think this is mostly true for me.  I do some times like to add balance in to my desserts, it simply improves the justification odds when wanting to eat the dessert.  Dessert don't have to be all bad, but they don't need to be bland either.   So to offset the addition of butterfingers to this banana bread, I added chia seeds and quinoa.

See, Balance.  :-)

Butterfinger Banana Bread

Banana Lentil Muffins

Do you ever make a recipe and forget an ingredient?  You only realize the ingredient is missing after the recipe has come out of the oven and think CRAP,  I forgot something.    But, do you ever make a recipe and forget an ingredient and the recipe still comes out good.    The funny thing is this is the second time I have done this to a Banana recipe.   I went to make these muffins and forgot the sugar.  I did the same thing with a banana bread in the summer.   The interesting this is the bread turned out terribly, these muffins did not.   I actually almost didn't notice I forgot the sugar, it was just in a second thought that I realized I didn't add it.

Canadian Lentils were a sponsor at the Blissdom Conference and they were giving away chocolate chip cookies made with lentils,  a recipe created by Michael Smith.   These cookies were actually insanely tasty. Although in my opinion loaded with too much sugar, which may explain the good flavour.   They also gave us a cookbook of recipes that used lentils, I of course went straight to the desserts at that back of the book and found these banana muffins.   There were also brownies that I will be making soon enough.   I made a few tweaks, some on purpose and some not.

Banana Lentil Muffins

(adapted from Canadian Lentils)

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup green lentil puree  (1 cup of drained canned lentils + 1/4 cup water pureed together)
• 3 ripe bananas
• 1 egg
• 1/4 unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil 
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar ( I forgot this and they are still good)
• 1 cup whole grain bread flour
• 1/4 cup unbleached all purpose
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/3 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/3 cup chopped dark chocolate

INSTRUCTIONS:

1) Preheat the oven to 400F. Smash or puree the bananas.  I pureed them with my hand blender until they resembled a sauce.

2) Combine lentil puree, banana puree, apple sauce, egg, oil and sugar (if you remember).   Whisk together. 

3) In a small bowl combine flours, baking soda/powder, salt, cinnamon.  Add chocolate and walnuts and blend in. 

4) Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and fold in until just combined. 

5) Line 12 muffin tin with paper liners,  fill evenly with the batter.   Bake for 18-20 minutes.  Let cool in pan for a few minutes.   Store in air tight container.

Easy to put together, healthy and moist.   Good with or without sugar.  ;-)

MEG'S RATING : D-EEEE-LICIOUS!