I suppose recipes for Banana Bread are a dime a dozen–what’s the internet version of this idiom?  a million hits a Google search? (actually, it’s 7.2 million hits a Google search, to be precise)–but I love this recipe and I make it all the time.  I’ve taken Remarkably Domestic mom’s recipe and updated it by making it a little healthier.  No more margarine, less sugar, healthy add ins.  And there’s one more thing that makes this recipe special:

chopped chocolate!

It is, of course, chocolate.  Chocolate just makes everything special, don’t you think?  In order to keep the healthy theme going, I usually use dark chocolate.  I like to get a nice bar of eating chocolate and chop it with a serrated knife, but you could also use a bag of semi sweet or bittersweet chips.  I do think the darker the chocolate the better, though, not only for the healthy antioxidants but also to contrast with the sweetness of the bananas.  You can leave the chocolate out and still have a wonderful quick bread, but for the love of worms, why would you want to????

I’ve said before that I’m a huge fan of flaxseed meal, since it’s super healthy.  Oat bran is another addition that I use in baked goods often, and I usually put it in my banana bread along with the flax meal.  You can add other things, too, like wheat germ (gives the bread a bit more crunch and a slightly nutty flavor) or chia seeds.  I usually don’t add more than a total of a 1/2 cup of these add ins to avoid changing the texture of the bread.

Banana Bread

makes one loaf

• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour, such as King Arthur’s
• 1/2 cup flaxseed meal or oat bran, or a combination
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 medium to large bananas, extra ripe
• 12 oz. chopped dark chocolate, or 1 bag of bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks

Spray a loaf pan with canola spray and preheat the oven to 350°.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar. Add in the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition until well incorporated.  In another bowl, mix the dry ingredients: flour, flaxseed meal, soda and salt.  Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and beat until combined.  Peel the bananas into the bowl you used for the dry ingredients, and mash them well.  Add the mashed bananas to the batter and mix well. Chop the chocolate with a serrated knife into bite size bits and fold the chocolate into the batter.  Pour into the loaf pan and bake at 350° for 50 – 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Print this recipe here

perfect with a cup of coffee or as a snack for the kids

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