Swirly Nutella Banana Bread

September 28, 2011 24 Comments

Everyone needs a classic banana bread recipe in their life. This is fact.

Me? I like chocolate. Don’t get me wrong, I like a good healthy banana bread too. I just prefer chocolate over oats. Don’t judge. You know you do too.

This banana bread is lovely. NUTELLAAAAAA. Whoops, minor side track there….this bread is tasty, pretty, and perfect. Let’s get swirlin’ shall we?

To begin, pre-heat your oven and spray your pan. Then, in a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.

Mash your banana.

In a separate large bowl, beat sugar and butter with an electric mixer at medium speed until well blended.

Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Add banana, yogurt and vanilla; beat until blended.

Add flour mixture. Nom nom.

Beat at low speed just until flour is incorporated. Don’t over mix! This is important.

Spoon Nutella into a medium dish and soften in the microwave for about 10 or 15 seconds.

Add 1 cup of the banana bread batter to the Nutella. Spoon some into your mouth…whatever.

Stir until blended well.

Spoon a bit of plain batter into prepared pan.

Then spoon Nutella batter on top. Alternate Nutella batter with plain banana bread batter into the same pan. This is getting good.

Swirl batters together with a knife at the end. I just shoved my knife in at the end of the pan and worked my way to the other end. I did this once.

Bake 60 to 70 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cool for at least 15 minutes in the pan, and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Swirly Nutella Banana Bread
Recipe taken from Recipe Girl
Yields 1 loaf – about 12 slices.

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
3 large size bananas, very ripe and mashed
1/3 cup plain low fat yogurt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 cup Nutella (chocolate-hazelnut spread)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray 8×4-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray.

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

3. In a separate large bowl, beat sugar and butter with an electric mixer at medium speed until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add banana, yogurt and vanilla; beat until blended. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until flour is incorporated (don’t over mix).

4. Spoon Nutella into a medium dish and soften in the microwave for about 15 seconds. Add 1 cup of the banana bread batter to the Nutella and stir until blended well. Spoon Nutella batter alternately with plain banana bread batter into the prepared pan. Swirl batters together with a knife.

5. Bake 60 to 70 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Check the oven at 45 minutes to check the top of the bread for browning. If it’s browning too quickly, cover lightly with foil for the remainder of the baking. Cool for at least 15 minutes in the pan, and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Filed Under: Breads, Breakfast, Vegetarian Tagged With: ,

Blue, Blueberry and Banana Muffins

January 23, 2011 13 Comments

These muffins are blue. Not sad, but literally the colour blue. The combination of moist, banana batter with thawed frozen blueberries make this batter dance together and swirl.

I love the combination of banana and berry in muffin form. My absolute favorite muffin is my Strawberry Banana Muffin recipe, but this is definitely a close second, and an absolute hit with my boyfriend who requested I make these “as soon as the bananas rot”. Nice wording, I know.

To make these muffins line a 12-cup muffin pan with baking cups.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl.

Combine the egg, mashed banana, and melted butter in a large bowl and stir until thoroughly blended.

Add the flour mixture to the banana mixture and stir until just moist.

Add the blueberries until the mixture starts to become nice and blue. If you don’t want blue muffins, use fresh blueberries, or coat your thawed frozen blueberries with flour before adding them to your muffin batter.

Divide batter evenly among 12 muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full.

Bake until the tops of the muffins spring back when lightly touched, and are nicely browned.

After you take the muffins out of the oven, immediately place them on a wire rack to cool. Enjoy!

Blueberry Banana Muffins
Makes 12 muffins
5 weight watchers points per muffin

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups mashed banana (3 or 4 large bananas)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
3/4 cup blueberries (I used thawed wild blueberries)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with baking cups (you can grease the muffin pan if you don’t have muffin cups).
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl.
Combine the egg, mashed banana, and melted butter in a large bowl and stir until thoroughly blended.
Add the flour mixture to the banana mixture and stir until just moist.
Add the blueberries until the mixture starts to become nice and blue. If you don’t want blue muffins, use fresh blueberries, or coat your thawed frozen blueberries with flour before adding them to your muffin batter.
Divide batter evenly among 12 muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the tops of the muffins spring back when lightly touched.
Remove muffins from pan immediately and place on a wire rack to cool.

Filed Under: Breakfast, Muffins Tagged With: , ,

Banoffee Pie, Oh my.

August 30, 2010 6 Comments

I’ve been traveling around Europe for two months, and therefore haven’t been keeping my blog up to date. My bad, I know. During my travels I DID continue to bake and cook (Racelette and peanut butter clusters) since I had a kitchen facility, and had so much fun making big meals and sharing them with everyone.

While on my trip I met tons of people from all over the world. We hung out, shared stories, and most importantly shared food. On my trip a British friend made a really yummy English dinner consisting of Yorkshire pudding, and Banoffee Pie. After the pie my taste buds went wild! I’ve gone my whole life without this amazing combination. Banana meets toffee and they make a miracle.

I visited England on my travels and noticed that Banoffee is a very popular flavour there. I found it in tons of sweets ranging from fudge to ice cream to pastries. The Brit’s sure know how to make sweets.

To make the pie, mix graham cracker crumbs with melted butter and press mixture into 9-inch pie plate. Bake at 350 degrees F for 5 to 8 minutes.

Lower the oven to 300 degrees F for the toffee filling. Put the cans of condensed milk in a pot of boiling water (don’t open the tin first!) and allow to boil for 2 hours . When cool enough to handle, open the tin carefully. Once both the crust and toffee filling are cooled, spread half of the filling evenly inside crust. Slice the bananas and layer on top of filling. Pour remaining half of filling over bananas, spreading evenly.

Whip the cream with the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla and spread on top of toffee filling and bananas.

Then? EAT! I like my pie served chilled, so sometimes I put the pie in the fridge BEFORE putting the whipped cream on it. You can do it both ways though. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
10 tablespoons butter, softened
2 (14-ounce) cans sweetened condensed milk
3 large bananas
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Mix graham cracker crumbs with melted butter and press mixture into 9-inch pie plate. Bake for 5 to 8 minutes.
3. Lower the oven to 300 degrees F for the toffee filling.
4. Put the cans of condensed milk in a pot of boiling water (don’t open the tin first!) and allow to boil for 2 hours . You should put a lid on the pot to prevent all the water boiling off. When done, remove the tin and leave to cool a little (you could pour cold water on it to cool the outside). When cool enough to handle, open the tin carefully – the condensed milk will have caramelised and may well shoot out the opening.
5. Once both the crust and toffee filling are cooled, spread half of the filling evenly inside crust. Slice the bananas and layer on top of filling. Pour remaining half of filling over bananas, spreading evenly.
6. Whip the cream with the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla and spread on top of toffee filling and bananas.
*If you want to make your pie pretty, shave some semi-sweet chocolate on top of the whip cream. It will look perfect!

Filed Under: Pies/Tarts Tagged With: , ,

Banana Very Berry Smoothie

June 5, 2010 4 Comments

Aren’t fruit smoothies the best? I go crazy for them. My brain explodes with idea’s and I have trouble deciding what flavour I’d like to make. Strawberry-Banana? Yes please! Pineapple-Mango-Coconut? Gimme, gimme.

Today I decided to make a banana and mixed-berry smoothie, and I’m so glad I did. I used a nice, overripe banana, and some yummy frozen berries.

Strawberries. Raspberries. Blueberries. Blackberries. All fruits that make me happy.

Add some milk to those frozen gems and you have pure goodness. Serve this as a snack, have it for breakfast, or make it a drink with a meal! This frozen drink warms my heart.

I found this recipe on the SPLENDA® website, and adapted it a little. It makes two servings, and is 2.5 weight watchers points per serving.

Ingredients:
1 large firm ripe banana
2 SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Packets
1 cup skim milk
1 1/2 cups (310 mL) frozen mixed berries (I used a four berry blend of strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries)

Directions:
Put all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Be fancy, and serve with a straw.

Filed Under: Breakfast, Drinks, Snacks Tagged With: , , , , ,

Oat-tastic Low Fat Banana Bread

May 31, 2010 12 Comments

If I’m being perfectly honest, I must admit that my day to day eating habits are pretty healthy. Because I’m a vegetarian, I eat according to the vegetarian food guide and am constantly consuming tons of fruit and vegetables, whole grains, soy, nuts and seeds. I have a soft spot for chocolate, and sweets in general, but I don’t binge on these foods when I’m by myself. When I’m baking for myself I tend to bake healthy foods – such as Light and Lemony Poppyseed Bread, Energy-Packed Granola Bars, and this oatmeal banana bread.

This bread is packed full of fiber filled oats, and yummy ripe bananas. As you may have noticed, I love making muffins and breads with bananas. They are so tasty, and easy to bake.

So I hope you’re ready to get bakin’. This bread freezes so well. You just slice it, and then wrap it up individually. Perfect.

Begin by stirring together dry ingredients, including the oats and cinnamon. Look at those yummy oats!

In a smaller bowl, mash bananas with a potato masher or fork. Add oil and whole egg and mix thoroughly. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix well. Batter will be fairly thick.

In a medium sized bowl, with an electric hand mixer, beat the egg whites until medium stiff peaks form. Fold the egg whites into the batter in three additions. Pour batter into pan and bake until top of loaf is firm to touch, 45 to 50 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes.

Flip out and cool on a wire rack for another 10 minutes. Slice loaf into 8 equally sized slices

I got this awesome recipe from Joy the Baker. It makes 1 loaf. Cut it into 8 slices for 4 weight watchers points per slice.

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp  salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
3 tsp canola oil
1 large egg, beaten
2 medium egg whites, beaten
3 large bananas, ripe
1/2 cup uncooked old fashioned oats

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a loaf pan and set aside. In a large bowl, stir together dry ingredients including the oats and cinnamon.
2. In a smaller bowl, mash bananas with a potato masher or fork. Add oil and whole egg and mix thoroughly.
3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix well. Batter will be fairly thick.
4. In a medium sized bowl, with an electric hand mixer, beat the egg whites until medium stiff peaks form. Fold the egg whites into the batter in three additions.
5. Pour batter into pan and bake until top of loaf is firm to touch, 45 to 50 minutes.
6. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes. Flip out and cool on a wire rack for another 10 minutes. Slice loaf into 8 equally sized slices

Filed Under: Breads, Breakfast, Snacks Tagged With: , , ,

Strawberry Banana Muffins

April 25, 2010 6 Comments

Mornings are my favorite. The birds are chirping, the rays of sun peak through the clouds, and the rush hour traffic sounds like it’s in my kitchen. Wait. What? Yes, I live in the city, and it is LOUD. Thank goodness I’m moving in a few months. You see, living in the city is good for convenience and convenience only. I don’t have a car so it’s nice to be able to walk anywhere and everywhere I want to go but I miss the stillness of my Nanny’s waterfront. I miss being able to walk in front of my house and be completely positive that I wont see anyone. Maybe someone in a canoe, but that’s about it.

To cheer myself up, and shake the city blues, I decided to make my favorite muffin: Strawberry banana.

Strawberries are hands down my favorite fruit. I must say that I like every fruit, but nothing will ever take the place of my beloved strawberry. It’s plump, it’s juicy, it’s delicious. And mixed with banana? Yes please!

Oh boy, I got so caught up in describing the deliciousness of these beauties that I forgot to mention they’re healthy! This recipe makes 12 perfect muffins that are 3.5 weight watchers points each. Heck, eat two!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 stick of butter, (6 tablespoons) melted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2/3 cups sugar
1 large egg
2 large ripe bananas
1 cup fresh strawberries, diced (I don’t think frozen strawberries would work in this recipe)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake/muffin pan with liners. In a medium bowl, measure out and mix together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk egg and sugar together until well combined. Add melted butter. Mix well. Add vanilla. Squish bananas into the mixture. A nice squish should break the bananas up well enough to be incorporated into the batter.
3. Add strawberries to the dry mixture. Toss until strawberries are well coated with flour mixture. Add dry strawberry mixture to the wet mixture. Use a VERY light hand to mix at this point. The more mixing you do the tougher the muffin so try not to over mix.


4. Divide batter equally in liners. Bake until golden brown, about 22-30 minutes.

5. Cool for 5 minutes in the pan. Then enjoy.

Filed Under: Breakfast, Muffins Tagged With: , , ,

Chunky Chocolate Banana Bread

February 8, 2010 3 Comments

Ohhh banana bread how I love you. I love your warm, moist centre. I love the chocolate in you, and I love you covered in butter…

…back to reality. Hi! I love banana bread. I love chocolate. I love chocolate FILLED banana bread. Remember Bananas in Pyjamas? I hated that show, but I always thought it would be interesting to mash those singing bananas up and put them in bread. Then they wouldn’t be so annoying!

I also like banana muffins, but for whatever reason, they don’t give me the same satisfaction. Maybe it’s because they don’t slice like the loaf does, or perhaps it’s just because eating a whole LOAF to yourself doesn’t sound as bad as eating 12 muffins…you decide.

The following recipe is something I’ve made 100 times. In fact, I love it so much that I bought bananas specifically to let them ripen. And boy do I hate waiting. You see, the bananas must be well ripened for this bread. That way, their natural sugars can help boost the sweetness AND further moisten the chocolatey goodness.

The best thing about this bread is its moist centre. The sour cream gives the bread an absolutely perfect texture, and  the cinnamon helps balance the rich chocolate.

This recipe has been modified from the Bite me cookbook, and it’s awesome. Sooooo, squash up those bananas, chop up some chocolate, and grab the butter!

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups (3 or 4) ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
6 squares of chopped semi-sweet bakers chocolate

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, and coat two loaf pans with cooking spray.
2. Using an electric mixer, cream together sugar and butter until well blended. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add mashed bananas, sour cream and vanilla. Beat on low speed until blended.
3. With a wooden spoon, stir in flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and chocolate chunks just until moistened and the flour has disappeared. Spoon batter into prepared pans.


4. Bake for about 70 minutes, until lightly browned on top and cooked through.
5. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan before removing to cool on a wire rack.

Each loaf should yield 8 slices. Enjoy with loads of butter!

Filed Under: Breads, Breakfast Tagged With: ,
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