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Cinnamon Raisin Banana Bread

September 8, 2017 · Natalie 84 Comments

Soft naturally sweet banana bread spiced up with cinnamon and speckled with raisins for a healthy and simple breakfast, snack, or dessert!

The first time I tried cinnamon raisin toast (which is later in life than you might imagine) I expected it to be sweet. Or more like SWEET! Even though I heard “toast”, my mind interpreted that to mean “oatmeal raisin cookie in bread form”. Spoiler: it’s actually just subtly sweet raisin-speckled bread. Usually. Although I’m sure there are some sugar-loaded sticky swirled recipes out there that could prove me wrong, and undoubtedly a packaged loaf or two too.

So when I was brainstorming banana bread flavors that haven’t been done a million times a billion ways by a zillion people, that same naturally sweet fruit+spice concept came to mind.

It’s been a while since I’ve baked anything with bananas. So long that when I posted this teaser photo on Instagram a couple of days ago no one even guessed banana bread. Surprise. More than a month long banana-free recipe streak = broken.

There was a time when I had not one but numerous bunches of ripe/ripening/so-ripe-that-when-you-pick-them-up-they-suicide-squish-to-the-floor bananas in my house at all times. But then my body said: whoa too much. And my freezer agreed. So I backed off, created some banana-free recipes to satisfy my smoothie appetite, and found love for other fruits (hello all the berries!)

And guess what? Now I can eat bananas in normal human amounts and my stomach is cool with it. Or even go a little overboard with the pan of fresh baked banana bread and a fork sometimes (because warmandfluffy = irresistible) and still feel fine. Proof that sometimes temporary absence does make the ~~heart~~ stomach grow fonder…or something like that.

When I start to crave all the baked and cozy and September-appropriate things, banana bread comes to mind almost immediately. It’s the epitome of healthy un-fussy baking. Tastes like cake. Feels suitable before 10am. Feels suitable again around 10pm maybe in combination with some form of chocolate this time. Basic in the best sort of baked good way.

I already have a couple of banana bread recipes on the blog – this basic oat flour version and this much more popular cornmeal one. This time my flavor brainstorming sesh led me down a long and decadent road of ideas involving streusel and chocolate and chocolate chips and chocolate chunks and chocolate glaze…

And then I remembered the last loaf thing I shared was chocolate. Back-to-back chocolate of the same shape, and you guys are going to think I forgot what the word “variety” means. I really should’ve invested in that bundt pan.

BUT. One bite into this cinnamon raisin BB and you too will be saying chocolate who? Jk we’ll never forget chocolate. For real though, if I could only bring one kind of banana bread to a deserted island it’d be this one. Two kinds of fruit, my fave spice, so much grain-free fluffy bread goodness – easiest hypothetical banana bread decision of my life.

Before we get to the recipe, allow me to use my powers of substitution telepathy and answer a few of your questions before you even ask…

Yes you can use oat flour, but know that the crumb will not be as nice. I set out with the intention of making this recipe with oat flour, but the texture turned out too gummy for my liking unfortunately. And I just couldn’t let that happen when I know there are better fluffier flour ways.

After the oat flour experiment, my next go to combination was almond flour + tapioca starch since I’ve been loving those two together lately. The texture was better this time around, but the crumb could still be better. Mashed bananas add so much moisture, it can be tricky to find the right dry ingredient mix to balance that out.

For batch number three, I swapped out the tapioca starch for flax meal. It tends to be a bit less sticky than tapioca and usually easier to find too. This batch was definitely my favorite of the three! The crumb was soft but not sticky, and I actually like the flax flavor in a wholesome bread like this too.

Oh wait! I almost forgot to tell you the thing. The thing that makes this loaf extra special and all-times-of-day apropos and…adult-y (although adding a -y to the end of words immediately cancels out any level of maturity, yes I know). There is no added sweetener in this recipe, just the natural sweetness of all the fantastical ingredients like almonds and raisins and bananas. It’s less sweet than you may be used to, but so perfect after your tastebuds settle into it. Sweeter than toast. Not as sweet as cake. It’s banana bread balance, friends.

But my favorite part of this banana bread? Three words: GOLDEN CRUSTY EDGES. Would it be weird to spread banana bread batter on a sheet pan and bake it flat like granola so it’s nothing but edges? Yes? Kay, never mind then.

Not toast. Not a cookie. Better!

Cinnamon Raisin Banana Bread

★★★★★ 4.6 from 13 reviews

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Yield: 6 slices 1x

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Description

Soft naturally sweet banana bread spiced up with cinnamon and speckled with raisins for a healthy and simple breakfast, snack, or dessert!

Ingredients

Scale

3 very ripe bananas
1/4 cup almond butter ((or any nut/seed butter))
1/3 cup non-dairy milk
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar ((or lemon juice))
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 3/4 cup almond flour (*)
1/4 cup flax meal (**)
1/3 cup raisins

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F.
In a blender or food processor or mixing bowl, blend/mash the bananas.
Add the almond butter, non-dairy milk, baking powder, vinegar, and cinnamon. Mix until fully combined.
Add the flour and flax meal. Mix until just combined, but be careful not to over-mix.
Stir in the raisins.
Spread evenly into a loaf pan (I actually used this 8×5.5″ glass container, but a standard loaf pan works too) lined with parchment paper or lightly oiled.
Top with additional raisins and cinnamon.
Bake for 35-40 minutes at 350F, or until golden brown and firm if lightly pressed in the center.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing and eating.
Keep in an airtight container for up to a week, preferably in the fridge for optimal freshness.

Notes

*You can make this recipe with oat flour, although I recommend the almond flour for best texture. You will not need the flax meal, just 2 cups oat flour. And be sure to not over-blend!

**You can use tapioca or cornstarch instead.

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Pumpkin Spice Ice Cream

September 4, 2017 · Natalie 51 Comments

Join the fall craze with a cold creamy twist! This healthy Pumpkin Spice Ice Cream is vegan + paleo made with 4 simple ingredients and no refined sugar.

Seasonal confusion at it’s finest.

Warm fall spices + cool summer feels – when does that make sense?

You could say never…or you could say always. Glass half full with me here, friends.

I could blame this premature pumpkin-ing on the need to get this chilly treat to you before the warm weather leaves us. But truthfully ice cream and pumpkin spice things are two of my deepest dessert loves, and I just couldn’t wait any longer to combine them. I’m proud I didn’t post this in July to be totally honest.

Although wait until after you taste it, because then you too may be wishing I had posted this ~~two~~ ~~five~~ all of the months ago so you could have been eating it ever since. I would even be so bold as to declare it my favorite flavor of the year so far, which is saying a lot considering the very tough peanut, pistachio, and purple competition.

It’s perfectly pumpkin-y. Scrumptiously spiced. Crazy creamy. And much more pleasant than sweating your way through sipping a hot pumpkin spice latte already. Silly Starbucks releasing pumpkin items the first week of September. Wait…

Fun fact: I used to hate pumpkin and therefore all pumpkin spice things. They still haven’t figured out what was wrong with me, but thank goodness I outgrew that madness. I blame all over pumpkin-ing that may ~~or may not~~ occur around here very soon on making up for those precious formative pumpkin years lost. Because I already have a list longer than I can count on one hand of pumpkin recipe plans, and I haven’t even consulted last year’s list of things I never got around to.

Fun fact 2: I never delete my idea lists, even if/when I should. Like now.

So let’s dive into the details. Thankfully the ingredient list here is easily one hand count-able…

Pumpkin puree. A whole can of the stuff. Because if we’re going to do this we may as well just turn ourselves orange already and do it right. I’m usually not one to pay extra for organic, but pumpkin puree is actually one place I will splurge (if buying canned goods ever even qualify as splurging?) Not because it’s organic, but because it is thicker, more orange, and actually tastes considerably sweeter and brighter than the conventional stuff. Up to you though, those are just my observations after going through many many cans of pumpkin.

Coconut milk. Now this is where you have some deciding to do. Full-fat coconut milk will make for the creamiest darn stuff pumpkin spice dreams are made of. Light coconut milk (or other kinds of non-dairy milk) will make for an icy texture and I do not recommend it. But you could do a combo of both (1 cup light + 1 cup full-fat) for a compromise between creaminess and fat content.

Personally I still suggest the full-fat version, but the half/half is another option to experiment with. Or if a low-fat pumpkin ice cream is what you are after, perhaps this recipe is more your cup of tea → Pumpkin Pie Nice Cream

Medjool dates. Oh yes, this recipe is fruit-sweetened too. Does this make it an appropriate fall breakfast food yet? Breakfast, dinner, snack, dessert–regardless of when, Medjool dates do make it naturally so sweet and creamier too.

Spices. It wouldn’t be pumpkin SPICE ice cream without ’em. I used a heaping tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice, but you can use more or less to your liking. And if you want to mix up your own, pumpkin pie spice is a blend of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice.

Also, can anyone tell me why they only sell pumpkin pie spice in those mini jars when I for one go through way more of that stuff than anything else in my spice cabinet?

Happy summer-meets-pumpkin dessert making to you!