Peanut Butter Banana Bread

4/29/2015

Peanut Butter Banana Bread 

Sunday was an amazingly sweet, awesome day. The goddess of healthy baking, Loren of Sweet Loren's (also seen here and here), was in LA and happened to make a pitstop in the WeekNight Bite kitchen to do some serious baking with me. Her Paleo Blondies that she shared with us about a year ago (time flies!) are one of my most popular recipes and I can't even tell you how many times I've made them - definitely one of my go-to dessert recipes! Loren is absolutely incredible at creating all-natural, healthy, simple, and satisfying dessert recipes. This Peanut Butter Banana Bread is no exception. It's the real deal, and you all know how much I love banana bread. I'm addicted to this one. Seriously addicted to the point that I have another loaf baking in the oven right now as I write this post (and OMG it smells so good and it's almost finished!). I couldn't even wait 2 full days to make another batch. It's that good. 

As you may know, Sweet Loren's is an all-natural refrigerated cookie dough company. Her products are all non-dairy and are made from 100% unrefined ingredients and whole grains. You can really tell the difference when you taste them. They're just so GOOD, and I'm not just talking about the taste. You actually feel good even after you've had a few too many of them! There's literally no other brand like this one and I'm so excited that after years of envying the East Coast while they enjoy SL's cookies, we can officially stock up on the West Coast now too! So go "be sweet to yourself" (as Loren says) and snag her delicious place-and-bake cookie dough! 

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Ok. Back to the banana bread. Woah. It tastes beyond decadent and no one has to know how healthy it is . . . it can be our little secret. It's completely gluten-free and grain-free since it's made with coconut flour. What's coconut flour, you may ask? It's the meat of the coconut, dried and then ground to create a flour. It's a perfect flour substitute and is full of fiber and protein. Rather than cane sugar, this banana loaf is sweetened with coconut sugar and dark chocolate chips. So what I'm saying is that it's totally GUILT FREE and I won't judge you for eating half a loaf by yourself (like I just did). One last thing and then let's get to the recipe - if you want to make this recipe Paleo, just swap the peanut butter for almond butter. Alright, here we go . . . 

Ingredients
4 ripe bananas, mashed
4 tbsp coconut oil, melted
3/4 cup coconut sugar 
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (or Almond Butter)
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
4 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp semi sweet or dark chocolate chips

Yields one perfect loaf of banana bread.

- Grease a 9” x 5” loaf pan and preheat the oven to 350F.
- In a large mixer, combine bananas, coconut oil, and coconut sugar. Mix until everything is well incorporated.
- Add salt, peanut butter, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon to the mixer. Mix well.
- Add vanilla extract and eggs. Mix well to combine.
- Add coconut flour and 1/2 cup chocolate chips. Mix well one more time.
- Using a rubber spatula, wipe down the sides of the bowl and make sure all ingredients are well mixed.
- Pour batter into a prepared loaf pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle the remaining 1 tbsp of chocolate chips on top. 
- Bake for 50-60 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out slightly moist. 
- Let cool for 1/2 hour (if you can resist it!) and then slice, and enjoy! 

I know you'll love this recipe as much as we did! Let me know what you think!