Sticky Bun Banana Bread

For every recipe you see on this site, I can guarantee that number has been met with an equal number of brownies, chocolate chip cookies and lemon bars. I’m referring to household tried-and-true family favorites recipes – ones that are repeatedly made no matter the season. For every unique, creative or distinctly different variation of a brownie that I try to muster up for the blogworld, most people in my family (especially the man I married) is happiest with familiar family favorites.

One of these is banana bread. Any blogger who’s been blogging more than 6 months has at least 2.5 different banana bread recipes. It’s the brownie for the health world – a sweet base with delicious flavor and texture! Banana bread is hard to mess up and extremely resilient. It’s also appealing in that with a few fun twists, it can still taste familiar and classic for people who don’t like to mess with what they love. THIS recipe has landed itself in the “tried-and-true”, commonly requested recipe pile at my house. This recipe has been made at least 6 times in the last 6 months and it’s always gone within a few days.

This bread is so fragrant and flavorful, it’s actually been finished off in less than a few days… my dog Enzo once stole half a loaf. He’s usually good about leaving the counters alone, which is why I left the leftovers on the counter without hesitation. It was wrapped in plastic wrap, waiting for Travis to take it into work one morning. Next thing we knew, the bread was gone, plastic wrap and all.

Admittedly,  I (mentally) accused the construction workers who were painting our new back door for taking it. They must have seen it and quickly grabbed it before anyone noticed. After all, if the dog had taken it, there would been some plastic wrap remains or cinnamon stains on the kitchen floor. Right? It wasn’t until I sat on the couch to work on my laptop later that morning, with Enzo jumping up next to me (happy as a clam) that I discovered the true criminal. He smelled like cinnamon and cloves. I understood his urgency to eat it all – it’s scent and texture is just too good. I bake this bread in two mini loaf pans to yield one loaf for enjoying warm from the oven and another to gift to a friend or freeze for later. It’s a great recipe to gift for the holidays or birthdays. It’s a fabulous recipe for a rainy day when you’ll be home to enjoy it’s scent in your kitchen. And it’s definitely delicious as a luxurious breakfast, with a soft spread of coconut oil or butter.

My healthy adaptions to this recipe have created a sticky sweet bun treat with the traditional flavors of banana bread. Pecans, sweeteners and a few other spices create a delicious coating on both the top and bottom of this bread. I told you this was special! It’s low in fat and high in protein. Enjoy that extra sweet, slightly crunchy coating and watch this become a family favorite!

Sticky Bun Banana Bread

In a large bowl, mix:
1/4 cup Butter or Earth Balance Butter, softened
¼ cup Applesauce
1 cup Coconut Sugar
2 Large Organic Eggs
1 cup Mashed Bananas (about 2 large or 3 small)
1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
½ cup Sour Cream or Yogurt (I used vegan brand)

Add:
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
½ teaspoon Sea Salt
1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
2 cups White Spelt Flour or Gluten-Free Flour Mix

Mix until it looks like a thick, smooth batter. Be careful not to over mix.

In a separate bowl, combine:
1/3 cup chopped Pecans
3 Tablespoons Coconut Sugar
2 Tablespoons Xylitol + 1 teaspoon flour
2 Tablespoons Oats
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon Nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon Cloves

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Line two mini loaf pans with parchment paper and gently spray with oil. Pour 1/4 of the pecan sugar toppings on the bottom of both pans. Add the banana bread batter. Top with the remaining pecan sugar topping. Bake in the oven in the middle rack for 35-40 minutes. Careful not to over bake! Optionally, sprinkle an additional tablespoon of xylitol over the top of the bread when hot from the oven. Enjoy!

Notes:

• I count it a miracle that Enzo did not get sick (or worse) from this bread because it does contain a bit of xylitol. PLEASE take extra precautions to keep this away from pets.
• Flour added to the xylitol helps the sweetener not melt into the bread. To get the appearance of sugar, additional xylitol is sprinkled over the bread once baked or substitute the xylitol for maple sugar or raw sugar.

Recipe adapted from here