Blueberry Banana Bread

Last week I found myself with a pile of brown bananas (no central air + high 90s = accelerated decomp of fresh produce on the counter), a flat of blueberries from Costco, and a hankering for an old favorite: banana bread. Since the spring I've really tried to devote myself to healthy eating as I'm getting a prediabetic diagnosis under control. Instead of going for the old standby bread recipe with tons of butter and sugar, I toyed around with some healthier options. And what fantastic results! The basis of the banana bread is Martha Stewart's Blueberry Banana Muffins, and I made a few very small adjustments ( fresh v. frozen fruit, some wheat germ, yogurt with the butter). I highly suggest trying it... I've got a second loaf in the oven right now (I've resorted to turning on the oven only after 10:00PM) to eat for snacks this week and cannot wait for it to come out. I used three bowls to prepare it, so I broke the recipe down into bowls.

Bowl 1: Beat
1/4 c. butter
1/8 c. plain yogurt
1/3 c. granulated sugar
1/3 c. packed brown sugar

After these ingredients are light and fluffy, add in two eggs. Crack the eggs one at a time and beat well after each addition.

Bowl 2: Whisk
1 c. flour, spooned and leveled
3/4 c. whole wheat flour, spooned and leveled
1/4 c. wheat germ
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Bowl 3: Mash!
2-3 over ripe medium bananas (you'll want about 3/4 c)
1 tsp. vanilla


My kitchen aid mixer is my prized possession, and I got bowl number one spinning and then let the mixer do the work while I worked on bowls 2 and 3. Once the butter and sugar and eggs are good and fluffy, you'll add bowls 2 and 3 to bowl one. Alternate the additions, and begin and end with the flour mixture.

Finally, toss in some blueberries. The original recipe called for 1 c. frozen berries, but I've used fresh berries both times. I also never measure the berries, just toss them until it looks perfectly tasty.

The original recipe is for muffins, but I've had no problems putting the batter in a loaf pan. My oven has a mind of its own, so I just keep an eye on the loaf until I can stick a toothpick in and it comes out clean, about 15-20 minutes for me.

PS: I kept trying to add a picture, but it wouldn't upload for some reason. Hmmmm... help?