Low Fat Whole Wheat Banana Bread with Walnuts and Chocolate Chips

So, I have been trying to eat more fruit lately. With my job, I am often on the run, so bananas are a good fruit for my life. Unfortunately, I don’t really like bananas all that much. I am trying to train myself to like them, but there is something about the texture and the flavor that I just don’t really like. Bananas, like oranges, ruin the integrity of any fruit salad and get all squishy and gross. But alas, I am trying to get on the banana boat (see what I did there?).

I recently went to visit my mom in New Orleans, and I had a few bananas left. Needless to say, when I got back to Chicago, the bananas were super ripe. Thus I decided to make my first ever banana bread (I think I am coming around to this whole banana thing).

Like all my recipes, I did my research. I started with America’s Test Kitchen, Good to the Grain cookbook, and Epicurious. I merged a couple of recipes and came up with the following. The buttermilk replaces the oil. I used low fat buttermilk, and it gives it a lovely flavor.

Ingredients

2 large eggs (free-range, always go free-range)

 3/4 cup sugar

3 medium ripe bananas, smashed, about 1 cup

1/3 cup low-fat buttermilk

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

¾ cup dark chocolate chips (I used mini)

¾ cup walnuts, plus ¼ to top roasted and chopped

Preheat oven to 325°F.

Using a 9 x 5 bread pan, I love my Rachael Ray Lightly Loaf pan, grease and dust with flower. If you use a non-stick pan, you probably don’t have to grease the pan.

While I am baking, I usually prep everything that I need so the process can go smoothly. In a small bowl, mash up the bananas and set aside. In a bowl, whisk together the baking powder, baking soda, flower, and salt together. Throw your walnuts on a baking sheet and roast while you are putting everything else together, about 10 minutes or so. When they are all roasted, take them out of the oven, let them cool a bit, and chop up. I find this very satisfying because the walnuts have this really nice crunch while you are chopping them.

Beat the eggs and sugar until they are think and light, about five minutes. I used my standing mixer and set the timer for 5 minutes. Add in the smashed bananas and mix, about 1 minute, or until thoroughly blended. Add in buttermilk, oil, and vanilla; mix about 1 minute, or until thoroughly blended.

If you have a standing mixer, switch to the paddle attachment. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt over mixture; beat until just blended. Add in ¾ cup of chopped, roasted, walnuts. Mix about 15 seconds. Add in the chocolate chips and blend, about 15 seconds.

Transfer batter to prepared pan. Top the bread with the last ¼ cup of chopped, roasted, walnuts.

Bake bread until golden brown on top and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Turn bread out onto rack and cool.

Enjoy! Make sure you share some, even though you may not want to. Food kharma is really good for you.