CHOCOLATE ALMOND BANANA BREAD

Chocolate Almond Banana Bread-High Protein, Gluten and Dairy Free

I’ve made many banana bread recipes for my family over the last 40 years but last month I wanted to develop a recipe that was high in protein , low in sugar-oh and gluten/dairy free so my whole family could enjoy it. To make this Chocolate Almond Banana Bread with this criteria in mind took a bit of thought but this results are more than worth it.

Substituting 1 cup of pure almond flour for a cup of lowered the glycemic index is one trick I used. This Chocolate Almond Banana Bread turned out to be super moist and delicious! I gave it to a number of friends as part of their Christmas present this year. Everyone wanted the recipe so I knew I had a winning recipe that my readers would want to try.

For this Chocolate Almond Banana Bread you can use 1 loaf pan or 2 small loaf pans like I did.

If you are used to your banana bread falling after it cools, a super neat trick I read about (and it works) is to  open the oven for 2-3 minutes before you remove the baked bread from the 

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cups Gluten Free baking Flour mix*
• 1 cup Almond flour
• ½ cup pure Cocoa
• 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
• 1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2/3 cup Sugar (or ¼ cup granulated Stevia)
• 2 Large Eggs
• 1 1/3 Cups Mashed Banana, (frozen and thawed or fresh)
• 1/3 Cup dried cranberries(optional but really good)

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray a 1 9×5″ or 2 6×4 bread pan(s) with nonstick spray.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
4. In another bowl, whisk together the oil and sugar/stevia. Add in the eggs and whisk again until just mixed.
5. Add the dry ingredients, banana and cranberries to the wet ingredients and with a spatula or wooden spoon, gently fold the ingredients together .
6. Pour into a bread pan and bake for 55 minutes (or 50 minutes for the smaller pans.
7. Once the bread is done, open the oven door, turn off the oven and let the banana bread rest for 2-3 minutes then remove and let sit on a counter (use a bread board underneath)
8. Slide a knife around the inside of the pan and carefully turn the bread out then place it right side up.
9. Once baked you can eat this bread immediately, keep refrigerated for up to 2 weeks or freeze it for later.