whole grain Archives | Page 22 of 28

Pumpkin bread has always been my favorite of the quick bread varieties and I’m sure you can guess why. I can remember my mom making several mini loaves at a time with the intention to freeze some, but few would actually make it that far. I’ve said it here, and I’ll say it again, I LOVE pumpkin. Period. But, enough about pumpkin because I want to show some love to bananas. I have found that people either love bananas or don’t particularly care for them. I’ve met many banana haters and banana lovers. I’ve met people that couldn’t even stand the smell of bananas and those that preferred waiting until they were black and shriveled before they ate them (I might have made some of you gag right there, sorry!). It’s quite the dichotomous world we live in when it comes to this fruit.

I don’t get to bake banana bread as often as I want to because it requires the forethought of buying bananas and letting them basically shrivel up, all the while having my apartment smell like ripening bananas. Sure, I could roast the bananas beforehand to help them soften and release their sugars, but that requires an extra step and more time with my hot oven on. I decided this past weekend it was time to bake some banana bread. I realized I have not been baking much for myself or anything other than the farmers market the past several months (mostly because it’s summer and turning my oven on is a pain) so I designated Sunday as a baking day. Dare I say it was actually sort of fall-ish weather as it was cloudy all morning and only in the 70s. Perfect banana bread baking weather, or at least as perfect as it will get in Texas at the beginning of September.

I’m going to give you the basic recipe for banana bread below and leave the add-ins up to you. This go-around I did a combination of pecans and chai spices but I encourage you to go with whatever suits your fancy. This isn’t a very sweet bread so please taste the batter and adjust it to your liking. Do be mindful though if you add too much more liquid to the batter that you might have to adjust with a bit more flour. I chose to bake 3 mini loaves, but you can also bake the bread in a regular loaf pan as long as you adjust the baking time. I’d say about 45 to 50 minutes would do the trick. Also, in case you haven’t realized by now, I bake in weights as it’s more accurate with gluten free baking so please don’t try to convert it into volume. You might have a banana catastrophe.

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The sun is out, it’s a holiday weekend, and the dewberries are ripe for the picking. I didn’t really plan a whole lot this weekend so I wouldn’t feel overwhelmed. Sometimes I go crazy with the to-do lists and planning and I usually end up feeling overwhelmed when I can’t cross things off. So far today I’ve picked a good amount of dewberries, had a leisurely brunch, and have plans to perhaps make some coconut milk ice cream later to go with a rhubarb berry crumble I’ll most likely make tomorrow morning. So basically, it looks like all my plans are food-related, but that shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that knows me.

Speaking of food, I made a big ass grain salad this past week. I find grain salads to be perfect for quick, healthy dinners because they don’t involve too much cooking, you can make a huge batch, and they keep well in the fridge. This version lasted me through several meals, but it could also be a great addition to a holiday gathering or dinner party.

I included some marinated tofu in this version because I was trying to use it up before it went bad, so you get a double dose of tofu along with the dressing. If that bothers you, replace the marinated tofu with another protein source or change up the dressing. I recommend using kale or another hearty green so that it can stand up to the dressing and not wilt. Oh, and don’t worry if you have leftover dressing. It makes a great sandwich spread, veggie dip, etc.

Have a happy holiday weekend friends 🙂

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Banana Bread

Big Ass Grain Salad With Herb-y Tofu Dressing