Chocolate Chip Zucchini Banana Bread

July 26, 20173 Comments

I am freaked out by the littlest thing right now.

While I was pregnant, I went to the dermatologist for a mole on my pelvis that was raised up and hurt. Thanks to Dr Google I had convinced myself it was cancer. Obviously.

The dermatologist thought that was fine; explaining that it probably hurt because of extra blood volume and circulation that occurs during pregnancy. However, she wanted me to come back for another appointment to check on a mole on my upper left thigh to get looked at again when I wasn’t pregnant.

I recently went back to confirm that she was correct that once I wasn’t pregnant my mole stopped hurting and for her to take another look at the one that concerned her. She took some pictures and measurements and said she wanted to do a biopsy.

While they were gone getting the supplies I was pacing the room plotting my escape. I was in a full on panic for the procedure. A super minor procedure. But still I was freaked, which really is just silly since I just had a C-section, which is A LOT MORE involved that this little biopsy.

In the end, it was really nothing but I had to talk myself off the ledge while getting it done. The most annoying part about the whole thing had been the ‘recovery’ as Hunter spends most of his time sitting on my lap so he basically sits right on it. Felt super great.

Pathology called back and explained I had an abnormal mole that often develop to be cancerous and they wanted to do a punch procedure to insure they got clear margins. I’ll spare you the details but I was dumb enough to ask what that involved and my immediate reaction was:

https://giphy.com/embed/k2A4gzRxDL4GI

via GIPHY

Again, nothing compared to having a C-section. But I get freaked out of the littlest things at times. Like splinters can totally freak me out. Or a cut on my foot. I can’t deal.

Wish me luck for 8/2. I’ll be giving myself twice daily pep talks until then.

Very much unrelated to terrifying doctor’s appointments, is this awesome Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread.

It’s the perfect combination of 3 great things rolled up into a golden topped quick bread. How can you resist a soft banana bread that is studded with chocolate chips? The zucchini adds to much moisture to the bread.

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Banana Bread

Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients

1 1/2 Cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 large bananas, approx 1 1/2 Cups
2 eggs
1 Cup shredded zucchini
1/2 Cup vegetable oil
1/2 Cup whole milk plain yogurt
1/4 Cup honey
1 Cup chocolate chips

Process

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Spray a 5 x 9 ” metal loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl. Set aside.
Beat the bananas and eggs. Add the zucchini, oil, yogurt and honey.
In 2 batches, add the flour; just mix to combine. Stir in the chocolate chips
Pour into the prepared loaf pan.
Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf is clean when removed. Remove from the pan and let cool on a rack.

Nutty Chocolate Chip Banana Monkey Bread

March 6, 2017March 6, 20171 Comment

Damn, toddlers are difficult.

Under statement of the year, right?

Besides stating all the obvious things like them freaking the eff out over dumb stuff like what shoes they want to wear (I swear we can NEVER find the pair she wants to wear right that very minute!) or the Minnie/Dora/Disney Princess of the cup she wants, we have entered a whole new realm of ‘fun’.

We have now entered the fun bed time fights that involve me moving things because they scare her. Last night I had to move a stack of framed pictures and canvases sitting on her dresser to get hung up since they “look like an alligator” Say what?!?

Then a little while later I had to move a bag in the hallway since it, again, looked like animals trying to eat her.

Can’t wait to see what tonight brings!

Also, I was asking her what I should put into the monkey bread. We settled on adding in chocolate chips (duh!) to the bananas and nuts. She was too into watching Shimmer and Shine on my phone (our cable isn’t hooked up yet… ugh!) to help me make it so understand what I was doing because…

as soon as it was ready and we offered her some “monkey Bread” she refused “EWWWWWW NO MONKEY’S BREAD.” Well then…

It’s like a

I almost called this Chunky Monkey Monkey Bread but I was afraid the double ‘monkey’ in the name would be confusing. Maybe?

And that’s all my silly stories for today!

Nutty Chocolate Chip Banana Monkey Bread

Makes 10-12 servings

Ingredients

3 packages of refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
1 Cup brown sugar
1/2 Cup granulated sugar
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
2 bananas, thinly sliced (about 1/4″ thick)
2/3 Cup finely chopped nuts, such as walnuts or pecans
1 Cup chocolate chips
1 Cup butter, melted

Process

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a fluted tube pan with non stick cooking spray
Cut each roll into 4 pieces.
Place half the banana slices, chopped nuts, and chocolate chips in the bottom of the pan.
Roll each piece into the blend of sugars and cinnamon. Then put into the tube pan.
Once half the pieces are in the tub pan, add the remaining slices of banana, nuts, and chocolate chips.
Finish putting the coated biscuit pieces into the tube pan then evenly pour the butter over all of the pieces.
Bake for 43-48 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before inverting on a platter for serving.

Buttermilk Banana Bread

January 8, 2016January 8, 20161 Comment

This week has felt like it would never end!!!!

I should find out today when I am actually moving to FL. I can’t wait. Plus, I am just someone who likes plans so not knowing still has been driving me bonkers. I mean, I could be there as soon as Feb 1st!!! yay! yikes!

Plus, I didn’t win Powerball on Wednesday. But I have high hopes for tomorrow’s 700 Million Jackpot. Oh man, I think I would faint if I won.

Plus, there has been house selling hiccups. But I’m trying to stay positive that it will all work out.

But this banana bread will solve all of life’s problems.

I sorta swear by that. Banana Bread will just make you happy. You can’t beat how your house smells as it bakes, the first warm bite you sneak, and how you manage it finish off the loaf without even thinking about it… whoops!

I love the subtle tang the buttermilk gives the bread. It gives the bread such a nice touch.

I have made several banana bread and banana bread inspired recipes, and this one is a real keeper. It doesn’t rise up as much as I prefer so it’s a bit more dense than I typically like but I love the flavor and the crust on this bread so much that is makes up for that. And, it’s only a silly personal preference sort of thing.

So, this recipe makes 2 loaves, which is awesome because banana bread rocks, but if you just want 1 loaf, you can easily halve it.

You can totally add mini chocolate chips, chopped up walnuts, or a strussel on top. Plus, using slices of banana bread would be awesome for french toast.

Take some this weekend to whip up some loaves of Buttermilk Banana Bread. You’ll absolutely love it!

And don’t forget your Powerball ticket!

Buttermilk Banana Bread

Makes 2 loaves

Ingredients

3 Cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 Cup unsalted butter
2 Cups sugar
6 very ripe bananas
3 eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
3/4 Cup buttermilk

Process

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 2 loaf pans.
Sift flour together with the baking soda and salt, set aside.
With an electric mixer or stand alone mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time. Beat in the bananas and vanilla extract.
Add the flour mixture mixing bowl in batches, alternating with the buttermilk; begin and end with flour.
Pour the batter into the loaf pans and bake for 50 minutes. Cool slightly in the pan before turning the loaves out onto wire racks to cool completely.

Adapted from Trisha Yearwood, via Food Network

Pumpkin Banana Bread- SRC

September 28, 2015September 28, 201521 Comments

Ugh, I’m so wiped out from the weekend, and I feel like I didn’t even do much. I just am so wiped out!! I felt asleep so early every night. It was so nice though.

Maybe it’s the change in season. Maybe it’s the crazy super moon! Maybe it’s just because I normally don’t properly sleep. hmm…

Anyway, it’s Secret Recipe Club Reveal Day. It’s insane that it’s already the 4th Monday of the month. I can’t handle it!!! October

Anyway (again), I received Susan’s blog called Food.Baby.Life!!!

I think that Susan and I would be great friends! We both have kids (well, I have 1, so far, but you get the point). We both have revamped the way that we eat as I’ve completed 2 Whole30‘s this year and she cut the crap out of her diet well. While we do eat more refine food we do like our occasional sweets too. And, best of all, we LOVE Banana Bread!!!

There is just so perfect about a nice thick slice of warm banana bread. So when I saw several recipes on there blog I got really excited. And then I came across a Pumpkin Banana Bread that made me super excited. It’s perfect for the season!!

I adapted Susan’s recipe has she used rice malt syrup and I couldn’t easily find it, so a bit of Googling revealed that I could sub honey for it. Awesome.

Plus, I added a bit of ginger to the spices in her recipe as I love it in pumpkin pie.

The end result was a bread that was packed with so much flavor from both the bananas and the pumpkin. The texture as light, but dense at the same time. The little chunks of banana gave it textural interest, as well as little pops of banana flavor. In particular, I loved that it was not too sweet, which was the result of just using honey. It gave it a nice subtle sweetness to it, plus gave great flavor.

Autumn inhaled a thick slice for dinner when I made it. I true stamp of approval right there! Plus, I loved it too!

I hope you’ll make this Pumpkin Banana Bread the next time you have some extra ripe bananas. Yum!!

Pumpkin Banana Bread

Makes 1 5 x 10″ Loaf

Ingredients

3 ripe bananas, mashed
2 large eggs
1/3 Cup vegetable oil or light tasting olive oil
1 1/3 Cups pumpkin puree
1/2 Cup honey
2 1/2 Cups plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon ginger

Process

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and line a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.
In a large bowl, stir together the mashed banana, eggs, oil, pumpkin puree, and honey.
In another bowl combine the dry ingredients and then stir these into the banana mixture until just combined (don’t over-mix).
Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45-50 minutes or until the top springs back when touched and a skewer comes out clean.
Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Serve warm or cold. Suitable to freeze.

Adapted from Food.Baby.Life

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Check out all the other great Secret Recipe Club posts this month!

And be sure to check out my 3 years of Secret Recipe Club posts!!!!

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Thanks for visiting. Please leave me a comment to provide some feedback. I appreciate all the comments I receive.

S’mores Banana Bread

August 13, 2015August 12, 20156 Comments

Last night, I went to my first spin class and I not only didn’t die, but I loved it!!!

It was so freaking fun. It was intense but I was looking for that. I loved the music and the instructor. I went with my co-worker Nancy so I had a buddy and wouldn’t chicken out once I got there. I’m glad that I went and stuck it out. I didn’t stop at all for the 45 minutes. Next time I have to work on increasing the resistance more every time the instructor guided up over those ‘mountains’.

The only issue is that it isn’t cheap. Oh dang. But that just means you need to visit my blog A LOT so I can go get some moolah to go to more classes so I can then eat these fun things like this S’mores Banana Bread. ha! But really…

I have an addiction to banana bread. I buy bags and bags of ripe bananas at our local grocery store at a discount. It’s really quiet brilliant. I get tons of bananas at a cheaper price and I don’t have to wait days and days for them to get ripe for banana bread.

And since it’s S’mores Week for Amanda and I, I had to make a version of my favorite banana bread that was s’mores-a-fide.

I really had tons of fun making this banana bread!!

It was all about getting the fun s’mores ingredients IN and ON the banana bread. It’s quite intense, but in a good way.

The trick to this bread is that you need not to freak out when you’re baking it. The marshmallows will get melty, bubbily, and brown while it bakes. They are basically just caramelizing. Super yum. But I’m just clarifying that so you don’t go ‘OMG! It’s all ruined’ and hate me when you are baking it.

I believe that you need to find some balance in your life, and the best way to do it is to eat some of this S’mores Banana Bread and then take a spin class! At least that’s my plan!

Also, tell everyone you know about my blog, so I can get to some more spin classes!!!

S’mores Banana Bread

Ingredients

For the Bread

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 overripe bananas
1/2 Cup sugar
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 Cup mini marshmallows
3/4 Cup dark chocolate chunks/chips
3 1/2 Graham Cracker Crackers, broken into small pieces

For the S’mores Topping

1/2 Cup mini marshmallows
1/2 Cup dark chocolate chunks/chips
1 1/2 Graham Cracker Crackers, broken into small pieces

Process

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Prepare a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan by lightly greasing the surfaces. Lay a piece of parchment in the pan with ‘wings’ hanging out the sides. Then set on a baking sheet.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
Put 2 bananas and the sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix together for 3 minutes; you want a light and fluffy banana cream.
Add the melted butter, eggs, and vanilla extract; beat well and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Mix in the dry ingredients until about 50% incorporated.
Add in the 2 remaining bananas with the mini marshmallows, chocolate, and graham cracker pieces. Mix together until the bananas are broken up and the rest of the ingredients are more incorporated.
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Give the pan a good rap on the counter to get any air bubbles out. Sprinkle the mini marshmallows, chocolate chunks, and pieces of graham cracker on the top of the bread.
Bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Rotate the pan periodically to ensure even browning. The top will get all bubbly as the marshmallows melt and get caramelized.
Cool the bread COMPLETELY in the pan for before removing by picking it up with the parchment paper wings. Slice and enjoy!

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Amanda has really brought her A game with this S’mores Fluff. Yep, S’mores Fluff. Marshmallow creme on flek. Let’s pretend I’m not old and have no idea what I’m talking about. Actually, I do know that you have to make this.