paleo banana walnut bread

I like Mommy's banana bread!

We eat a lot of bananas round these parts, and just like avocados and kiwis, those babies are hard to time. Too green, they sit abandoned on the counter. Too ripe, the fruit flies gather. The Holy Grail of banana-buying is to find one perfectly yellow bunch and one with stripes of green still down the sides; by the time you've eaten the yellows, the greens have ripened.

(Unfortunately each grocery store usually offers its bananas in a uniform shade of ripeness, so that to achieve said grail one must visit multiple stores. Ain't nobody got time for that.)

Anyway, I'm glad I have awesome recipes like this to use up the rejects. And stirring in some chocolate chips never hurt. Your call.

For a while I was using Tropical Traditions' coconut flour, but a little while ago, my mom gave me a bag from Peter Paul. I would say that it is a superior product! It has a light, fine grind that results in a great texture in baked goods, without any of the "grit" you may have experienced with coconut flour in the past.

I actually made two loaves of this just hours before my water broke. Took one loaf to the birth center, stuck the other in the freezer. Well done, me.

---

Paleo Banana Walnut Bread
(original recipe at Always Learning)

3 mashed bananas
1/4 cup melted coconut oil or butter
1/4 cup maple syrup, honey, or molasses
6 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup coconut flour
1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line loaf pan with parchment paper.
2) Combine bananas, coconut oil, maple syrup, eggs, and vanilla in blender until smooth.
3) Add all remaining ingredients except walnuts. Blend until smooth.
4) Pour batter into medium bowl and stir in walnuts.
5) Pour into prepared loaf pan. Bake for 50 minutes; let cool for 5-10 minutes in pan. Remove loaf from pan and finish cooling on wire rack.

This recipe also turns out very well as one dozen muffins (I usually leave out the walnuts). Bake for 15-17 minutes at 400 degrees.