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Makes
10-12 slices
Author Notes
This bread happens to be vegan, low-fat, high in fiber, and full of potassium-packed bananas. But that’s not why I like it. I like it because it makes the house smell like cinnamon-spiked nostalgia and because it’s difficult for anyone to eat a single slice (I love to feed people). The fact that maple syrup stands in for sugar, a little coconut oil replaces the usual butter, and flax seed acts as a binder in lieu of eggs is simply a bonus for those who prefer these alternative ingredients, which, in my opinion, shouldn’t be so alternative.
—Michelle McKenzie
Ingredients
1 cup
unbleached all purpose flour
1 cup
whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon
baking soda
1 teaspoon
sea salt
1/4 teaspoon
ground cinnamon
3/4 cup
Grade B maple syrup, at room temperature
4
large overripe bananas
2 tablespoons
ground flax seed
1/2 cup
hot coffee
1/4 cup
melted organic unrefined coconut oil
Directions
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Preheat the oven to 350° F. Lightly oil an 8 x 4 ½ x 2 ½ -inch loaf pan, preferably glass or enameled cast iron. - In a medium bowl, whisk together the flax powder with the hot coffee or water, stir, and set aside; it should become gelationous.
- In a large bowl, whisk the flours with the baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
- To the bowl containing the flax mixture, add the bananas and mash well. Whisk in the maple syrup, coconut oil, and reserved flax mixture.
- Add the banana mixture to the dry ingredients and whisk until smooth.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for approximately 75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Let the banana bread cool on a rack for 20 minutes before turning it out. Let cool completely before slicing.
Michelle McKenzie is the author of Dandelion & Quince: Exploring the Wide World of Unusual Vegetables, Fruits, and Herbs. Her second cookbook, The Modern Larder, is due to arrive in fall 2018 and will introduce home-cooks to a raft of new, flavor-packed pantry staples – e.g. shiso, ndjua, Job’s Tears, and dozens of others – and incorporate them into over 200 wholesome recipes.
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