Chocolate-Striped Banana Bread

Lately, a little stack of bananas has been accumulating in the corner of my room and was starting to turn very brown. I think besides just doing what bananas do, they were also trying to tell me that I need to get back on top of blogging and go make some banana bread!

Of course I have all the usual excuses for why I haven't been cooking or baking as often.. but on top of dance show auditions, midterms around the corner and work four days a week, I also have some very exciting news. You'll have to wait a little bit to hear what it is exactly (I want to have it more set in stone first!), but just know that it's kept me incredibly busy. I know I know, I'm being a tease. 

In the meantime, I highly suggest you take a break from your own busy schedule and make this banana bread. There are so many banana bread recipes out there in the world, but this one is so delicious. It's sweet, moist, super banana-y, and really fun to make with the stripes! Plus, as I have preached many times, chocolate makes everything better. 

Chocolate-Striped Banana Bread (adapted from this recipe at Babble's Family Kitchen)

makes one loaf

1/4 cup canola oil
3/4 cup sugar
3 ripe bananas
1/2 cup applesauce
1/3 cup soy milk
1 1/2 tsp white vinegar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp cocoa powder

1. Preheat your oven to 350º and lightly oil a loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the canola oil and sugar. In a measuring cup, combine the soy milk and vinegar and let it curdle for a few minutes. 
3. Mash the bananas into the sugar mixture, then stir in the applesauce, soy milk and vanilla. Sift in the flours, baking powder and salt. Stir with a spatula until just combined.
4. Pour half of the batter into a separate bowl and mix in the cocoa powder. Spread a layer of plain batter into your pan, topped with a layer of chocolate batter, then repeat until all of the batter is used up (I ended up with 4 stripes total). Bake for about an hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Success! Yummy, crumbly and beautiful stripes of chocolate and banana.

Here is a fun song to get you through the week :)

Whole-Wheat Apple Ginger Muffins

The skies have been pretty grey around here lately and I don't know about you, but if it's cloudy for too long I tend to fall into a slump. This month, though, I have vowed to keep myself out of those rainy day blues by doing little things to cheer myself up once in a while! Here's what I've come up with:

-Exercise every morning

-Listen to songs that take me back to really happy moments in my life

-Watch Breakfast at Tiffany's

-When I study, relocate once in a while to somewhere across campus to get a change of scenery plus a refreshing walk

-Wear lipstick (silly, but I've found that a little glamour always helps)

-Reserve a studio and dance around for an hour 

-Make an effort to prepare myself a good breakfast to start the day on the right foot

As far as breakfast goes, my favorite thing to do lately is bake a big batch of muffins or scones, freeze them and then heat one up in the microwave in the morning. Voila! Instant, delicious baked-goods. These yummy apple ginger muffins have kept me going for about a week now, and I'm still not sick of them :)

Whole-Wheat Apple Ginger Muffins

makes 12 muffins

1  1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

2 tsp grated fresh ginger

3/4 cup almond milk

1 tbsp lemon juice

1/4 cup canola oil (can be replaced with applesauce for a fat-free version)

1 apple, peeled and grated

1. Preheat your oven to 375º and line a muffin tin.

2. In a large bowl, stir together the flours, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, combine the almond milk with the lemon juice and let it curdle for a minute or two. Whisk in the ginger and canola oil. 

3. Add the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until just combined. Fold in the grated apple. Distribute the batter evenly between the muffin liners and bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

What do you do to cheer yourself up on grey days?

Banana Peach Spice Bread

Yay we got our oven back! Just in time. I finished a difficult paper for my literature class last night, so baking this bread was the perfect stress release. There is no better way to begin a week than by making some good old-fashioned banana bread.... except this recipe has a twist. I realized I didn't have enough bananas for the recipe I had planned on using, due to my late night peanut-butter-and-banana snacking, so I decided to mash up an overripe peach instead. Bananas and peaches go together great in smoothies, so why not in bread as well?

Banana Peach Spice Bread

(adapted from Susan's recipe)

2 large bananas

1 peach, peeled

1 tbsp white vinegar

1/3 cup soy milk

½ cup sugar

2 cups unbleached flour

¾ tsp baking powder

¾ baking soda

½ tsp salt

½ tsp cinnamon

½ tsp nutmeg

¼ tsp cloves

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray or wipe a 9×5-inch loaf pan with oil.


2. Mix the soymilk with the vinegar and let it sit until it curdles into vegan “buttermilk”


3. In a large bowl, mash the bananas and the peach together. Add the “buttermilk” and sugar and stir.


4. In a separate bowl mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir until it is combined.


5. Spread the mixture evenly in your loaf pan and bake until a knife inserted into the middle comes out clean or for about 50 minutes. Cool and eat!

This actually might be one of the best banana bread recipes I've made. It's not only vegan, but super low-fat, which a lot of people are usually skeptical about. However this quick bread will hush up any skepticism. It's moist, just the right density and full of tummy-warming flavor. Use this to surprise anyone who thinks vegan baking is bland!

On a different note, I know I set out with the intent that I would have new posts on here every other day, but between classes, Fearless and Loathing, work, being in a dance piece and actually trying to have some sort of a social life, I think that's gonna have to change. Here's the deal, I can promise at least one new post per week. Depending on my schedule and how often I cook, sometimes it'll be more, but I think once a week will suffice! I have so many recipes that I can't wait to make and share with you all, so stay tuned. :)

Speaking of staying tuned... does anyone else have to have music when they cook or bake? I know I do. This is a song from my banana bread baking music.