I asked my husband to buy me some bananas as I felt like making a healthy banana bread, and he went ahead and freestyled this baby while I was having an indulgent Saturday afternoon nap! And as much as it pains me to admit it, he absolutely NAILED IT! This banana bread is moist, sweet-but-not-too-sweet, chock full of healthy, nutrient-dense, fibre-rich ingredients and extremely difficult to limit to one slice. This one is a must-try!

Ingredients

3 bananas, mashed
1 extra banana to slice and put on top of the banana bread for decoration
2 cups almond meal
1 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup psyllium husks
2 egg whites
1/2 cup chia seeds (soaked for 15 minutes in 1 cup water - you can use milk if you eat and enjoy dairy)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla paste or powder
3 tablespoons maple syrup
10 dates, pitted and soaked for an hour in water, de-seeded and chopped finely (or you can blend them up into a paste with 1/4 cup of water if you have a high speed blender)
15 walnuts (30 walnut halves)
1/4 cup macadamia oil (or grapeseed oil)
1/4 cup water (or more if you need to thin the batter a little). You can use milk if you eat and enjoy dairy
1 teaspoon cinnamon or mixed spice

Method

Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
Add wet ingredients (except the one banana for garnish) and mix well.
Spoon mixture into a loaf tin lined with baking paper.
Slice your remaining banana and place slices on top of banana bread batter.
Place in a pre-heated oven (160 degrees celsius) and bake for 1 hour and 25 minutes (give or take, depending on your oven). Keep an eye on it from one hour onwards.
Your banana cake is cooked when you put a knife into the centre of the cake and it comes out clean.

This banana bread is divine warm or cold.