It’s National Banana Bread Day and We Are Baking!
It’s National Banana Bread Day as we approach the 1 year anniversary of the resurgence of banana bread!
It is one of the simplest recipes on the planet and super delicious. Banana bread makers typically know that overripe bananas are the best to use when you are making banana bread but maybe didn’t realize you can also easily substitute a gluten-free flour to make this quick bread. Easy to swap wheat flour with some garbanzo flour made from chickpeas, of course.
The first banana bread recipe appeared in a Pillsbury recipe cookbook back in the 1930s, as they were in the business of selling wheat flour. Understandable. Well, fast-forward to a gluten-sensitive modern world and a global pandemic while still trying to keep a little bit of a healthy lifestyle, we have another way to make this very easy and popular favorite!
Banana bread is more like a cake but we use “butter” of some kind, even plant-based butter, or nut butter to top our thick bread slices. I like my slices toasted and with actual butter.
The bananas contribute to the nutrition of this bread as they are rich in potassium, help with blood pressure, and are considered heart-healthy. The garbanzo flour gives a good healthy dose of nutrition as the chickpea flour contains more protein, fiber, and vitamins than white flour. Plus, it is high in minerals and vitamins that also contribute to heart health. Maybe that is why National Banana Day lands itself in the National Heart Healthy Month!
Today, bananas are still the most consumed fruit in the US. We love our bananas for many reasons. “While overall fruit intake remains low, people have turned more frequently to bananas, grapes, blueberries, strawberries, and oranges in the past five years,” said Wendy Reinhardt Kapsak, MS, RDN, president and CEO of PBH. Check out the State of the Plate 2020 Research Report from the Produce for Better Health Foundation outlining these remarkable details focusing on truly helping all Americans easily enjoy more fruits and vegetables every day!
https://fruitsandveggies.org/stateoftheplate2020/
Start with this Easy Banana Bread to kick off your renewed spirit of consuming healthier foods into your everyday lifestyle! It’s as easy to eat as it is to make, so go bananas!
Easy Gluten-Free Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups garbanzo flour (chickpea flour)
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 3 medium, ripe bananas, mashed
- 2 tbls honey
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tbls coconut oil, melted
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup chocolate or carob chips optional
- 1/2 cup chopped raw walnuts or pecans optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350◦. Line a 9 x 4-inch loaf pan with parchment paper and spray with coconut oil spray.
- In a medium bowl, combine garbanzo flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and sea salt and stir.
- In a separate bowl, combine mashed bananas, honey, vanilla, eggs, coconut oil, and apple cider vinegar and mix until well combined.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until combined. Fold in additional options such as walnuts, pecans, or mini chocolate chips.
- Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 40-45 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Remove bread from pan to cool completely.
