Someone has been asking about banana nut bread for months now. In fact, every time I talk to/text/email this person, this is how the conversation goes:
Him: Are you still going to make me some Banana Nut bread?
Me: Yes. I keep forgetting but I promise I will make some.
Him: With sugar?
Me: *side eye* Nope. I am not using sugar any more.
So I finally decided to find the time to make the Banana Nut Bread but then……the kids ate all of the bananas! *sigh* I had to go to the store and buy more so that delayed me making it until today. I have used this recipe* from the Land-O-Lakes web site a few times; it’s actually the first dessert I made using Agave last year during my ‘no refined sugar’ challenge. I made the following changes to the recipe:
3/4 C. White (granulated) Sugar 1/2 C. Agave Nectar
1/2 C. Land O Lakes Butter Unsalted Sweet Cream Butter (Wal-Mart brand)
2 Land O Lakes Eggs
2 medium bananas (mashed) (I prefer sliced)
1/2 1 t. Vanilla
1 1/2 C. All-purpose flour All-purpose Unbleached flour
1/2 3/4 C. Chopped walnuts
1/2 t. Baking Soda
1/4 1/2 t. Cinnamon
Most traditional recipes instruct you to cream the butter and sugar first, but if you use Agave (which is actually a ‘liquid’), you need to cream the butter by itself. After you have creamed the butter, you can add the Agave, then the eggs, so on and so forth. Here’s a picture of what the batter will look like after you add the Agave to the creamed butter:
No, it doesn’t look like your traditional batter but trust me: It will turn out fine! Continue by adding the eggs, mashed bananas (I like ‘chunky’ treats so I sliced min instead) and vanilla, flour mixture (flour, soda, salt, and cinnamon) and then walnuts (if you choose to use them). When baking with Agave, remember to decrease the oven temperature by 25 degrees and increase the baking time slightly. If you have never baked using Agave, I suggest you add 6 minutes to the suggested time, check and if it needs a few more minutes just add them. Remember that each oven type (gas, electric, or convection) varies so the first time your dessert may come out a little lighter or darker than what you are used to, just note to make an adjustment the next time!
*Although this recipe yields one loaf, I doubled it. I was excited to use my Kitchen Aid Heavy Duty Stand Mixer (A.K.A. Big Bertha) today for this task. I don’t usually double recipes when using the smaller hand mixers because (1) my hand gets tired and; (2) you can’t always ensure that ingredients are thoroughly mixed. But Bertha is a beast and she handled the job beautifully! She’s such a pro, that I didn’t even have to watch her as she worked…I went about the kitchen doing other things.
Chunky Banana Nut Bread
Nutrition Information (Per serving – 1 slice)
LAND O LAKES
MY ADJUSTMENTS
Calories: 200
Cholesterol: 40mg
Fat: 11g
Carbs: 23g
Protein: 4g
Sodium: 180mg
Fiber: 1g
Calories: 148
Cholesterol: 42mg
Fat: 10g
Carbs: 12g
Protein: 3g
Sodium: 86mg
Fiber: 1g
