Cinnamon Sugar Blueberry Banana Bread

If you have bananas that are ripening way too fast (especially in the summer) and some fresh blueberries, then this recipe is for you!  Most of the work is done in the blender so it is easy and delicious too.

Cinnamon Sugar Blueberry Banana Bread

adapted from Crazy for Crust

Ingredients:
3/4 c. cane sugar
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/4 t. salt
2 overripe bananas
2 eggs
7 T. buttermilk
1 t. vanilla extract
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. baking powder
2 c. flour
2 c. fresh blueberries

Topping:
1/4 c. cane sugar
1 t. cinnamon

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375.  Grease a 9x5" loaf pan and dust with sugar.  Set aside.

Cream the butter and 3/4 c. sugar with a hand mixer. Set aside.

Add the bananas, eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, salt, baking powder and baking soda in a blender jar and process until smooth.

Pour half the banana mixture into the butter mixture, along with 1 c. flour. (Remove 1 T. flour from remaining cup and toss with blueberries).  Mix with hand mixer just until incorporated.  Add the remaining banana mixture and flour.  Mix just until combined.  Gently fold in the floured blueberries (this prevents them from falling to the bottom of the loaf while baking).  Pour mixture into the prepared pan.

Combine the 1/4 c. sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Sprinkle evenly over the top of the batter.

Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes clean.  The edges should be a dark brown with a crack down the middle.

Cool completely before removing from the pan.  This keeps for quite a while. Put it in the refrigerator after a day (if you are lucky enough to have any left!  Enjoy!

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Low Sugar Banana Zucchini Decadent Bread!

So when  I decided to bake last night, I was going to make some variation of banana bread and then zucchini bread as both of those main ingredients were in the refrigerator literally SCREAMING to be used.  In a few more days they would have been permanent residents in the trash can!!!

I know - you read the title and thought - how can low sugar and decadent be on the same line.  Have I lost it?  Well that is a different blog post!  LOL   But seriously - it makes perfect sense to me because the decadent and unexpected ingredient is dark chocolate.  If you have been reading my blog recipes, you know I am in love with the King Arthur burgundy chunk chocolate pieces. They are sooooo good - the flavor is the best; they melt better than any chocolate chip or chunk I have ever used, and they add just enough richness without overwhelming the recipe.

I would never have thought to combine bananas and zucchini, but I will definitely be using this combination in other creations. The inspiration was not mine.  I found the basic recipe at Brown Eyed Baker. And the dark chocolate chunks just put it over the top.  I have made chocolate zucchini cake and banana muffins with chocolate chips - so it was natural to add in the chocolate.  It's always better with chocolate, right?  Well in this case, it definitely is!

LOW SUGAR BANANA-ZUCCHINI SURPRISE BREAD!!

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups all-purpose flour
1½ tsp. baking powder
1½ tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. Penzey's baking spice (mixture of bread friendly spices)
1 tsp. King Arthur vanilla bean crush
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
1 cup Truvia Baking Blend
1 cup vegetable oil
2 ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
2 cups shredded zucchini (used the large grate)
1 cup chopped dark chocolate (I used King Arthur Burgundy Chunks......SO GOOD!!)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.   Grease two 9x5-inch loaf pans and set aside.

In a medium bowl, measure the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt and whisk together and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs. Add the Truvia Baking Blend and oil and whisk until smooth and combined. Add the bananas and whisk until well blended.  Add the flour mixture and stir gently with a rubber spatula until blended. Gently fold in the zucchini and dark chocolate pieces.

Just had to capture the marriage of the zucchini and the chopped dark chocolate.

The flavors blended perfectly and fragrance was intoxicating!!

Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared loaf pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. (mine were done in 40-45 minutes, but there is less volume with the Truvia Baking Blend).  Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove the bread from the pans and place on wire rack to cool completely before serving. Wrap in plastic wrap and enjoy every savory morsel.
Will keep about 5 days during cool weather.  Refrigerate if necessary.

This is truly as good as it looks!!  Another MUST TRY!!

Hope to be sharing some cards soon - working on a few in my head!!  Trying to get those creative juices flowing....... again!

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Surprisingly Good Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

I realize the title of this post makes no sense.   There is absolutely nothing surprising about the fact that bananas and chocolate are good together.  It's like peanut butter and jelly, cinnamon and sugar, cheese and crackers....... it's a perfect pairing.

But the surprise to me, was what a difference a little change in a recipe can make.  I had very ripe bananas that were literally screaming to be used.  I wanted to try something different and found a relatively simple recipe on Real Life Dinner .  But I decided to tweak it a little.  I am a huge fan of the burgundy chocolate chunks from King Arthur, but decided just to put one on top of each muffin and stay with the mini chocolate chips in the batter so the chocolate would not be overwhelming. But what I did want to add was the flavor of brown sugar to the muffin, but not just any brown sugar.  I am a huge fan of muscovado sugar so I used a 3:1 ratio with that and the granulated sugar keeping the total sugar required the same.  The flavor ended up so rich and moist - and I am eager to incorporate it into more recipes when I want that added "wow"!

BANANA CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS

3 large ripe bananas
1 tsp. vanilla bean crush
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup muscovado sugar (can substitute with light or dark brown sugar)
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2-3/4 cup mini chocolate chips
burgundy chunks for garnish (incredible dark chocolate chunks from King Arthur Flour)

Preheat the oven to 375.
Mash the bananas well and then add the vanilla, sugars, and egg and mix until well combined.  Add the slightly cooled melted butter.

In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients and whisk until blended.  Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix gently just until the dry ingredients are moist and mixed.  Fold in the mini chocolate chips.

Spoon the batter into a prepared (lightly greased or paper lined) muffin pan. Place one burgundy chunk in the center of each muffin and bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes and then remove from pan and finish cooling,.  Waiting for them to cool completely is the hard part!

Makes 12 muffins

This is definitely a comfort food.  It is great in the morning with a cup of coffee, as a snack in the middle of the day, or even a late night treat. And they stay moist for days.  I have clearly found a new favorite way to use my neglected bananas!  If you have not tried muscovado sugar, it is worth the search.  It adds such a depth to baked goods.  I think I have become a dark brown sugar snob!

Rich deliciousness... You have to try these....... NOW......

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Banana Chocolate CHUNK Muffins! - low sugar

Again, I had a surplus of over-ripe bananas.  I often peel them and put them in the freezer to use in smoothies, but wanted to another fun muffin recipe. And I think I found my new favorite!  The batter itself is low sugar, so the chocolate chunks can be omitted to keep them lower in sugar and calories......but....if you can add the chunks, the intensity of the flavor is memorable... and addicting!

And I wanted to try a muffin recipe using self rising flour and I was amazed at how beautifully they rose.  It was easy to convert - you just  take out any salt and baking powder and as long as your self rising flour is fresh, they will rise perfectly.   It was fun to experiment and learn something new, even at my age!! :)

Dark chocolate makes everything healthy, right?

BANANA CHOCOLATE CHUNK MUFFINS - low sugar

adapted from King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion cookbook

1 stick butter (1/2 cup_

1/2 cup Truvia Baking Blend

1 large egg

1/2 tsp. nutmeg  (I used fresh ground)

1/2 tsp. allspice

2-3 medium ripe bananas, mashed

1/3 cup vanilla coconut milk (regular milk is fine)

2 cups self rising flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 c. chocolate chunks (I used the Burgundy chunks from KAF)

Preheat oven to 350.  

In a mixer bow, cream the butter and Truvia baking blend until they are well-blended and smooth.  Scrape the bowl down, and add the egg, banana and milk.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, spices and baking soda. Add the chocolate chunks and gently fold into the butter mixture. 

Spoon the batter into 12 greased muffin tins.   Bake the muffins for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let stand for 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

Oven ready...

Oh the aroma!....

Patiently waiting for them to cool...

Look at that melty chocolate....... can you say breakfast decadence??

They warm up beautifully too and taste as fresh as the day they were made.

Try to find the time to put your ripe bananas to good use baking these muffins.  

I promise you will not regret it!

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Banana Toffee Streusel Muffins

I have had a large quantity of bananas in my kitchen lately and I keep forgetting to use them before they get too ripe. I love them when they are right at the in between stage of not too green and not too yellow. I kow that is weird, but I never liked eating really ripe bananas .  However, the benefit of a very ripe banana is that you can peel them and put them in the freezer to thicken smoothies, or just put them in the refrigerator after peeling . They will keep at least a week and make fabulous baked goods. So perhaps I am ignoring them on purpose so I HAVE to bake something yummy?  Hmmmm.........

Well however you end up with overripe bananas, this recipe is a must try.  If you don't have muscovado sugar, just use regular dark brown sugar. But let me just say - you haven't had your taste buds tantalized until you have tried this deeper, darker, molasses laden sugar.  I was prepared not to like it.  The scent of molasses was a bit overpowering when I opened the box and I was afraid it would overpower the muffins. But I could not have been more wrong.  It added a depth of flavor that made me want to savor each bite.  It was one of the best muffins I have ever made (until the next one!)

Cast of characters

BANANA TOFFEE STREUSEL MUFFINS

adapted from Table for Two

Ingredients:

2/3 cup muscovado sugar (I use Billington's)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
4 medium ripe bananas, mashed
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla bean crush or vanilla extract
2 cups white-whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt

Look at those decadent toffee pieces in the topping mixture.  I could eat the whole bag!!

Topping:

1 cup flour
1/2 cup dark muscovado sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup toffee bits

Preheat the oven to 350.  Spray the muffin tins with non stick cooking spray or line with baking cup; set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.

Using an electric mixer, cream together the butter and muscovado sugar until creamy and fluffy.  Add the bananas, eggs, and vanilla.  Beat well until well blended.

Slowly add in the dry ingredients until just combined.  Do not overmix.  Spoon batter evenly into the prepared muffin tins.

Partially filled muffin tins.

To prepare the streusel, combine all of the topping ingredients except the toffee bits.  Mix well then stir in the toffee bits.  Generously spoon the mixture over the tops of the muffin batter and gently press into the batter.

Batter with the topping in place!

Bake 18-25 minutes or until light golden brown. Let stand for 10 minutes before removing muffins from the pan.  Let cool completely on a wire rack.

Fresh out of the oven.

A closeup of that streusel goodness.  The muffin and topping are equally delicious!

A plate of muffins to share!

And one left for me.......oh.....so........good!!

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Banana Muffins with Dark Chocolate - low sugar and Truvia Baking Tips!

Bananas and Chocolate - what a great excuse to incorporate dark chocolate into the breakfast menu, right? Well,  these are going to be a staple. They are not overly sweet, but have just enough chocolate to make them feel decadent, without leaving overwhelming guilt in their wake!

I took this recipe and reduced the sugar with Truvia Baking Blend as I have been doing with most of the recipes of late.  I have been wondering if it made a difference in the finished product since I was reducing a quantity of an ingredient in half - so did that give me less batter in reality?  I wondered, but that was as far as I got until my friend, Nance asked a question about substituting regular Truvia for the Baking Blend.
Thank goodness Truvia has a conversion chart or you would need to have a math degree to figure it out!! But in finding that for her, I discovered some great tips for getting the best product possible when using the Baking Blend.

I will assume that you all know when you use the Blend that you reduce the sugar stated in half. So if the recipe calls for 1 cup of sugar, you substitute 1/2 cup  Truvia Baking Blend.  But here are the tips.  Add 1/4-1/2 tsp. of baking soda to help increase the volume.  And..... substitute at least 1/2 of the butter or shortening with oil.  I used both tips in this recipe and my muffins rose more and seemed a bit lighter.  I love learning the little tricks that make things look as good as they taste!!

So here is my latest muffin treat that is lower in sugar and tastes OH SO GOOD!!

Low Sugar Banana Muffins with Dark Chocolate

adapted from Buns in My Oven

1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup oil
1/2 cup Truva Baking Blend
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 bar (3.5 oz) 80% dark cocoa/dark chocolate, chopped (I used the bar from Trader Joe's)

Spray a muffin tin with non stick spray and set aside.

In a mixer, blend butter, oil and Baking Blend until creamy.  Add the eggs, one at a time and beat until they are well mixed.  Continue beating and add the vanilla.  Then add the bananas (premashed or whole if they are really ripe), and blend them in well.

Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.  Gently mix into the batter and finally fold in the chopped chocolate.

Fill the muffin tin 1/2-3/4 full and bake in a 375 degree oven for 15-20 minutes.  Check to be sure they are done by inserting a toothpick in the center.  Remove and let sit for 10 minutes, and then remove from the muffin pan and let cool on a wire rack.  YUMMMMM!!!

Makes 12 large muffins.

Banana batter with chopped dark chocolate - flavor sensation!

Ready for the oven with a surprise of vanilla sugar on top!

Fresh from the oven...

Yes the first bite is THAT good!

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"Dated" Brown Sugar Banana Bread

Oh that was bad - but it got your attention - right??!!??

I had planned to make a  new recipe for banana bread today, but I never thought about how important it was to have that cup of coffee first.  Lesson learned - I hope.

I was measuring my dry ingredients and needed 3/8 cup.  No problem. I knew I had a 1/8 cup measure and a 1/4 cup so I was good.  The math worked fine.    Where I failed was in reaching for the measuring cups without checking.  I thought I had the right sizes and moved right along - flour, brown sugar blend, baking soda, salt, cinnamon. I was whisking away and was about to go to the next step when that delayed sip of coffee aka caffeine shot kicked in.  I looked at the measuring cups and literally said out loud "OH NO!!"  My dogs looked at me like I was telling them that they were not going to get breakfast!!
But no -- the gasp was not meant for them.  I realized that I had pulled out a 1/4 cup measure AND a 1/3 cup measure!!  I might have been able to fudge a little had I just used the 1/3 cup - but no - I used both and knew that it was way too much sugar for the recipe.  So that bowl of flour mixture went straight into the trash .  I gulped a few more swigs of coffee and proceeded to remeasure and get the correct amounts into the bowl!!  Good grief!

So what was I making??  Here is the recipe, thanks to another blogger and a great cookbook.  Used a bit of inspiration from both!   And the second time around it turned out perfect!!!

Brown Sugar Banana Bread with Dates!

adapted from Cookies and Cups and  The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook

2 cups flour

3/8 cup Splenda brown sugar baking blend

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. baking spice (Penzey's Spices)

1/4 c. chopped dates

1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (4 small)

1/4 cup Greek yogurt (I used Trader Joe's vanilla bean)

2 eggs

6 Tbsp. butter, melted

2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350.  Spray a 9x5 loaf pan with cooking spray (I use EverBake from King Arthur Flour - love it and it never fails me!).  Set aside....

In a medium mixing bowl, mix together flour, brown sugar blend, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and baking spice.  Mix in the chopped dates. Whisk til well combined

In a separate large bowl, mash 4 small bananas (that is what it took for me to get 1 1/2 cups -).  Add yogurt (can substitute with sour cream), eggs, melted butter and vanilla.

Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and combine until just blended.

Pour into the prepared loaf pan.  OPTIONAL:  Sprinkle several tablespoons of the brown sugar blend over the top of the batter. It will form a nice crust as it bakes..

Bake for 45- 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then remove from the pan after running a knife around the edges to loosen.

Cool completely on a wire rack.

So when you forget to take a picture before it goes in the oven......

Oh I wish you could smell this...

It was SO hard to wait for this to cool!

Look at that crunch brown sugar topping!!!  So Yummy!

Tried a new spotlight feature on this picture - highlights all of the moist ingredients.

A closeup of the bananas and dated scattered throughout!

Ready to eat?  Breakfast anyone?

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Mom's Banana Bread!

Yes...   I have been on a banana kick.  I get in a rut and it takes me a few dishes to get out of it!! Plus it's what I happen to have available in the kitchen and I have not been paying attention to my bananas recently, so they tend to get overripe before I can put them in a fruit salad or do anything else!! (and I do have a supply of frozen bananas in the freezer for smoothies - YUM!!)

So.......I have been seeing a lot of banana recipes on food blogs the past few weeks, and there is none better than this recipe of my Mom's.  The grated orange rind gives it a wonderful fresh taste, and I love the addition of the chopped dates. They end up so moist and sweet and are a wonderful surprise texture in the bread.  My mouth is watering while I am typing this!!  I leave the walnuts out as I am not a big chopped nut fan in quick breads, but by all means add them if you like them!

And don't forget that awesome topping.  The buttery cinnamon sugar crust that is created on the still slightly warm bread adds another flavor level.  Wow!  You can also just brush melted butter over the top and sprinkle a cinnamon-sugar mixture over the top if you forget to have the topping ready to go.  Yes that has been my emergency fix on many occasions!!  And you can leave it plain as well - this bread stands on its own just fine!

MOM'S BANANA BREAD RECIPE

BATTER:

1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/3 cup dates, chopped
4 very ripe banana
zest of one orange
3/4 cup chopped walnuts, optional

TOPPING:

1 tbsp. butter, melted
2 tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon

Cream butter well and add sugar gradually.  Add eggs, one at a time and mix well.

Sift dry ingredients and blend into creamed mixtured.  Add 4 mashed bananas, 3/4 c. chopped nuts (if desired), rind of 1 orange and dates.

Grease and flour a bread pan.  Bake at 350 degrees  for 50-60 minutes.  Leave in the pan for 10 minutes.

After removing from the pan and while the bread is still warm, spread the topping mixture over the top and let cool.  (Mom says wait 48 hours before cutting ).

God bless her - I am lucky if I can wait 1 hour!!  But on the rare occasion that I have waited 48 hours, the flavors are at their peak!

And this time I really waited...... but look who else was waiting......

Here is a great photo of the bread...... but see that out of focus blur in the background???

Amazing what you can see when you shift the focus on the camera!!!  

That is Roxy ready for her own piece of banana bread.  She is still waiting!!!

 This is truly the BEST banana bread ever!

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Strawberry Banana Orange bread

I bought the most beautiful strawberries the other day at Trader Joe's.  As I have previously mentioned, I have a soft spot for berries of any kind and am totally content to just pop them in my mouth, sprinkle them over cereal, yogurt, throw them in a smoothie - you name it!! I love them in ALL forms.

And I love trying new things, so was delighted when one of the many blogs I follow, shared a recipe for Strawberry Banana Bread with Lemon Glaze

I made a few alterations, adding 1 tsp of orange zest, chopped the strawberries, and made an orange glaze instead.  Next time I will try adding some orange extract to the bread recipe to see if that orange flavor will pop a bit more!

In her instructions, she made three loaves. But I opted for two large loaves and was really happy with how they turned out.  The banana was the predominant flavor, but the strawberries surprised the taste buds with almost every bite. It was a great combination!


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