Thursday, July 8, 2010

Gloommy day bonus

The weather here in San Diego has been a bit depressing this week. It is no longer June! Hello, mother nature July is here, and that marine layer days that typically settles in during the month of June should be long gone. Both Monday and Wednesday's rides featured thick cloud cover and rain. Long sleeves in July, not cool (I came home dirty, cold and not so happy!!)
I seriously found myself wondering if I've been living in dream land, and thinking maybe it's still January. What can I say, it was a banana bread kind of day! I returned to a recipe I've tried a few times prior and think I'm getting closer to healthy perfection.
MMMM mmmmm GOOD! 
 1/2 cup brown sugar

2T honey
I added just less than 1/3C baking splenda
4 T yogurt butter
3 egg whites
1 1/2 cups mashed banana (3 large bananas)
1/3 cup fat free greek plain yogurt
1/3 cup applesauce (previously called for water)
 1t vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup oat flour + small handful rolled oats
4T flax seed
1 t baking soda
1/2 t baking powder
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/2C sliced raw almonds
1/2 t cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350° F. Coat a 1-pound loaf pan with cooking spray.
In a large bowl, beat sugar, honey and margarine until well combined. Add the eggs and mix well. Beat in bananas, yogurt, water (or apple sauce) and vanilla. Beat for 30 seconds. 
In a separate bowl combine flour, oats, flax seed, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and nuts. Add flour mixture to the wet ingredients, stirring by hand with a wooden spoon until the flour is just incorporated about 10 turns with a wooden spoon. Do not overmix.
Pour into loaf pan and bake about 45-50mins.

Let me know what you think. I want to experiment again and use some quinoa flour. 

Tasted even better after a solid 17mile trail run this morning!

To your health ;) and to my friends in Hawaii and out east please please send some sunny days this way!