Chocolate Banana Bread

On the whole, I don’t need dessert in my life very often, but there are times when guests come when it’s a good idea to have something a bit indulgent in your toolbox.  Since it’s no fun at all to serve up food you can’t enjoy yourself, I enjoy looking for dessert/cake ideas that fit my dietary needs and preferences.  I found this one, and it worked beautifully when I adapted it.  I tend to just use fruit to sweeten things, but sometimes it’s not quite enough for everyone’s taste.  In such cases I use dates, or date syrup, since it is more nutrient dense than other sweetners.  In particular, it contains useful amounts of Potassium, Iron, Magnesium and Vitamin B6.  In this recipe, I used date syrup, but next time, I would add 6-8 whole dates instead for extra fibre.  If you have time, soak the dates in hot water for half an hour first for easy blending.

Chocolate banana bread

This is lovely served with natural yoghurt and berries for a dessert, or just by itself when visitors pop round for tea.  It’s best eaten fresh.  It takes minutes to whip up, so if you have folks coming by, pop it in the oven shortly before they arrive.  It will make your house smell divine, and you can have a lovely slice fresh from the oven when you’re ready.

Chocolate banana bread with yoghurt & berries 1/3 cup melted coconut oil

1/2 cup date syrup

2  eggs

3 mashed ripe bananas

1/4 cup milk of choice or water

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

7oz ready cooked beetroot

2 tablespoons cacao powder

1 3/4 cups coconut flour

1.Preheat the oven to 180C.  Grease and line the base of a loaf tin.

2. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend for 2-3 minutes until completely mixed together.  You will end up with quite a runny mixture.

3. Pour the mixture into the loaf tin and place on the top shelf of the oven for 50-55 minutes. Check after 40 minutes.  If the top of the cake looks as if it’s close to burning, cover the top of the cake with foil for the rest of the cooking time.  A knife inserted all the way through the cake should come out clean, but you may find it’s stll a bit sticky.

4. Leave the cake to cool in the tin for 10-15 minutes.  Serve warm, with yoghurt and berries, and save some slices to take to work the following day.