Banana-Oatmeal Bread…with additions / deletions…

Once cooled, it’s a temptation to not eat the entire loaf.

Since all of the bananas in the house decided to ripen at exactly the same time, I felt compelled to use them, or loose them. So…it is Banana-Oatmeal Bread recipe to the rescue! This is a really simple, super moist bread that is easily modified from its original recipe to the Kitchen Inventions version. Inspired by a Cooking Light recipe, the modifications work very well, and the final results are (in my humble opinion…) even better than the original.

The changes are highlighted in the recipe below.

Banana-Oatmeal Bread
Yield: 18 servings

Ingredients:

• 1  cup  packed brown sugar
• 7  3 tablespoons  vegetable oil
• 4 Tbl applesauce
• 2  large egg whites
• 1  large egg
• 1 1/3  cups  mashed ripe banana (about 2 large)
• 1  cup  regular oats
• 1/2  cup  fat-free milk or soy milk
• 2  3/4 cups  all-purpose flour
• 1 c. whole wheat flour
• 1/4 c . wheat germ or ground flax seeds
• 1  tablespoon  baking powder
• 1/2  teaspoon  baking soda
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/2  teaspoon  ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 c. sunflower seeds
• 1/4 c. chopped walnuts or pecans (toasted)
• Cooking spray

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine first 4 5 ingredients in a large bowl; beat well at medium speed of a mixer. Combine banana, oats, and milk; add to sugar mixture, beating well. Lightly spoon flour flours and wheat germ or flax seed into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon and nutmeg; stir with a whisk. Add to sugar mixture; beat just until moist. Add sunflower seeds and nuts to mixture. Stir gently to combine. Spoon batter into a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

(Original Recipe from Cooking Light, JUNE 1999)

One bite is definitely not enough!

 Let me know if you do any additional “edits” to the recipe, as I have not experimented with changing the sugar content. That is definitely something that we’d like to change and use less sugar – replaced by either agave nectar or honey…..just not sure how the texture would be, or if the dry ingredients would need to be adjusted. If you can help out in this area, please post some info. 

Here’s to all of those bananas that continue to give and give, so that we can enjoy this treat!

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