" I don't mind bananas if they come in this form " is a moment for me.
I remember my mom telling us, even when sick she can't have bread. That's how many South Indians are.Bread is often considered as a food when you fall sick.We always love our Idli and Dosa so much . I'm not an exception too. Once a week making idli batter and some other variety of dosa batter is a mandate for me. Last week was so hectic that I didn't get to follow my routine.This weeks breakfast had to be something like a quick fix that would help us a couple days... that's when this bread happened again .
I always look for an alternative method to use bananas as my son shine literally hates them. He would come up with different reasons each time you give him a banana.Oh no mushy... oh no slimy .... smells horrible ..etc I wonder no one would have such an enmity with this humble fruit like him. It was almost 6 years of battle to make him eat a banana , happily. When he tasted this banana bread few months ago , he said 'I don't mind bananas if they come in this form' with a wicked smile. And that was a moment for me.Since then , I bake this bread often as I always end up having over ripe bananas at home.
After having won the six year battle , do you think I will win a 60 year one ? I'm sure if Amma visits me here, she would take back her words on bread. It is 100 % whole wheat , no eggs , only minimum sugar.. all good but some butter .... I believe moderation is the key.
Why not regular wheat Flour ?
It makes the bread kind of heavy not as light & soft like the store bought one.
Why Did I use Date Syrup?
I wanted to to use minimum amount of sugar . I learned from my yoga master that heating up honey is not good, so used up some date syrup for light sweetness and also achieving darker color on the bread.
Replacements and alternatives ?
If you include eggs in your diet , replace flax seeds and 4 tbsp water paste with 2 large eggs.
Replace white whole wheat flour with All purpose flour / Maida , the same quantity or a mix of wheat flour and All purpose flour each 3/4 cup.
Why Dry fruits ?
The choice of dry fruits is purely up to you, But the dried cranberries gently cuts through the sweetness and makes that little bit of tart here and there makes you feel the bread is sweet with minimal sugar. Kind of cheating though :)
And the walnuts adds a beautiful texture and of course taste to the bread.
This is not a sponsored post. I have been baking with King Arthur's white whole wheat flour for a long now. If you are like me trying to avoid all purpose flour, trust me this works a charm in baking. The light and airy bread kind of melt in mouth is just perfect like store bought one without the guilt of using APF. One or two slices with a glass of milk makes a perfect breakfast.
Ingredients
White Whole Wheat Flour ....................................... 1 1/2 cups
Ground Cinnamon.......................................... 1 tsp
Baking Soda .................................................. 1 tsp
Salt ................................................................. a pinch
Dark brown Sugar ...........................................1/3 cup
Date Syrup/ Liquid Dates ................................2 tbsp
Butter .............................................................1 /2 cup *room temperature
Flax seeds ....................................................... 2 tbsp
Vanilla Extract .................................................... 1 tsp
Banana ( over ripe) mashed ............................... 1 cup
Walnuts ............................................................. 1/4 cup , chopped (optional)
Dried Cranberries ............................................. 1/4 cup(optional)
Method
Preheat oven to 325 F .
Grease a 9x5 loaf pan and set aside.
Grind flax seeds with 4 tbsp water to a smooth paste.
In a mixing bowl add wheat flour, cinnamon, salt , baking soda and mix thoroughly or sift well.
In another mixing bowl , cream butter and sugar , add in vanilla extract , date syrup, bananas and mix well with a hand blender.
Gently add in the flour mixture in parts , continuing with hand blender.
Finally stir in the cranberries and chopped nuts.
Transfer to a prepared loaf tin.
Bake in the middle rack for about 50 to 60 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted comes out clean.
Let rest for 10 minutes and transfer to a cooling rack.
Let cool completely before storing.
Tastes better the next day according to me.
Note:
You can add mixed nuts and fruits of your choice or avoid.
Cooking time varies , it would be better to keep an eye after 50 minutes.
Store in a airtight container and stays well for a couple days in refrigerator.
I remember my mom telling us, even when sick she can't have bread. That's how many South Indians are.Bread is often considered as a food when you fall sick.We always love our Idli and Dosa so much . I'm not an exception too. Once a week making idli batter and some other variety of dosa batter is a mandate for me. Last week was so hectic that I didn't get to follow my routine.This weeks breakfast had to be something like a quick fix that would help us a couple days... that's when this bread happened again .
I always look for an alternative method to use bananas as my son shine literally hates them. He would come up with different reasons each time you give him a banana.Oh no mushy... oh no slimy .... smells horrible ..etc I wonder no one would have such an enmity with this humble fruit like him. It was almost 6 years of battle to make him eat a banana , happily. When he tasted this banana bread few months ago , he said 'I don't mind bananas if they come in this form' with a wicked smile. And that was a moment for me.Since then , I bake this bread often as I always end up having over ripe bananas at home.
After having won the six year battle , do you think I will win a 60 year one ? I'm sure if Amma visits me here, she would take back her words on bread. It is 100 % whole wheat , no eggs , only minimum sugar.. all good but some butter .... I believe moderation is the key.
Why not regular wheat Flour ?
It makes the bread kind of heavy not as light & soft like the store bought one.
Why Did I use Date Syrup?
I wanted to to use minimum amount of sugar . I learned from my yoga master that heating up honey is not good, so used up some date syrup for light sweetness and also achieving darker color on the bread.
Replacements and alternatives ?
If you include eggs in your diet , replace flax seeds and 4 tbsp water paste with 2 large eggs.
Replace white whole wheat flour with All purpose flour / Maida , the same quantity or a mix of wheat flour and All purpose flour each 3/4 cup.
Why Dry fruits ?
The choice of dry fruits is purely up to you, But the dried cranberries gently cuts through the sweetness and makes that little bit of tart here and there makes you feel the bread is sweet with minimal sugar. Kind of cheating though :)
And the walnuts adds a beautiful texture and of course taste to the bread.
This is not a sponsored post. I have been baking with King Arthur's white whole wheat flour for a long now. If you are like me trying to avoid all purpose flour, trust me this works a charm in baking. The light and airy bread kind of melt in mouth is just perfect like store bought one without the guilt of using APF. One or two slices with a glass of milk makes a perfect breakfast.
Ingredients
White Whole Wheat Flour ....................................... 1 1/2 cups
Ground Cinnamon.......................................... 1 tsp
Baking Soda .................................................. 1 tsp
Salt ................................................................. a pinch
Dark brown Sugar ...........................................1/3 cup
Date Syrup/ Liquid Dates ................................2 tbsp
Butter .............................................................1 /2 cup *room temperature
Flax seeds ....................................................... 2 tbsp
Vanilla Extract .................................................... 1 tsp
Banana ( over ripe) mashed ............................... 1 cup
Walnuts ............................................................. 1/4 cup , chopped (optional)
Dried Cranberries ............................................. 1/4 cup(optional)
Method
Preheat oven to 325 F .
Grease a 9x5 loaf pan and set aside.
Grind flax seeds with 4 tbsp water to a smooth paste.
In a mixing bowl add wheat flour, cinnamon, salt , baking soda and mix thoroughly or sift well.
In another mixing bowl , cream butter and sugar , add in vanilla extract , date syrup, bananas and mix well with a hand blender.
Gently add in the flour mixture in parts , continuing with hand blender.
Finally stir in the cranberries and chopped nuts.
Transfer to a prepared loaf tin.
Bake in the middle rack for about 50 to 60 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted comes out clean.
Let rest for 10 minutes and transfer to a cooling rack.
Let cool completely before storing.
Tastes better the next day according to me.
Note:
You can add mixed nuts and fruits of your choice or avoid.
Cooking time varies , it would be better to keep an eye after 50 minutes.
Store in a airtight container and stays well for a couple days in refrigerator.
