#FeelgoodFebruary: Healthy banana bread

Our #FeelgoodFebruary campaign is all about keeping our spirits up in winter – and frosty mornings require proper fuel. Mix up your muesli for a slice of this healthy banana bread.

Sure, it may resemble the sugary-sweet teatime treat we’re all so fond of but it’s actually super virtuous. It’s grain-free (so all good for any gluten-free people or those of us keeping an eye on our carb intake), low GI (see ya later sugar highs and lows) and full of sustaining protein.

Packed with good fats, starting your day with a couple of slices of this could help keep any negative feelings from creeping in to your day.

‘The link between omega 3 fatty acids and brain health has been known for a very long time. Your brain is 60 per cent fat and the fats of which it is composed play a vital role in its normal healthy functioning,’ explains nutritional chef Dale Pinnock, author of Anxiety & Depression: Eat Your Way to Better Health (£14.99, Quadrille).

Give it a go!

Makes one (smallish) loaf

4 eggs
1 cup of ground flaxseed (we used this Linwoods variety, mixed with pumpkin and sunflower seeds)
3 tbsp water
140g ground almonds
1tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 tbsp low-GI coconut sugar
2 very ripe bananas (mashed)
1 tbsp cinnamon
Dried banana chips (to decorate)
Agave syrup (to decorate)

Method

1. Pre-heat your oven to 200C/400F. Crack your eggs into a bowl and add the water

2. Put your flax into a separate, dry bowl, add almond, baking powder and salt then toss together by hand

3. Combine wet and dry bowl, add in the mashed banana, mix and pour into a small, lined loaf tin. Bake for 20 -25 minutes then leave to cool.

4. Top with a few squeezes of agave syrup, broken banana chips and a few tablespoons of extra milled mixed seeds

5. Store in a plastic sandwich bag or a sealed Tupperware box in the fridge.

To serve: toast two small slices, add your favourite topping (it was unsweetened almond butter for us) and savour with your cuppa. Happy eating!

Summary

Recipe Name

Healthy Banana Bread

Author Name

Roisin Dervish-O'Kane

Published On

2015-02-02

Cook Time

25M