Recipe Redux Celebration!
Recipe Redux has been around for 42 months! Congratulations to all the nutrition professionals involved in this wonderful program! Every month we are challenged to do what all of us enjoy–offering suggestions for healthy foods and meals with everyday items. This month we were challenged to look at a cookbook and choose a recipe from page 42 or 142 and make it healthier if needed. My go to cookbooks for everyday foods are Better Homes and Gardens and Betty Crocker. They both can tell you how to make everything from pancakes to pierogis. So in my Betty Crocker Cookbook at work, page 42 was a banana bread recipe. One I use at home all the time. I do make changes to it–constantly!
- 1¼ cups sugar
- ½ cup butter or margarine, softened
- 2 eggs
- 1½ cups mashed very ripe bananas (3 to 4 medium)
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2½ cups Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup chopped nuts, if desired
- Move oven rack to low position so that tops of pans will be in center of oven. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease bottoms only of 2 loaf pans, 8½x4½x2½ inches, or 1 loaf pan, 9x5x3 inches.
- Mix sugar and butter in large bowl. Stir in eggs until well blended. Add bananas, buttermilk and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt just until moistened. Stir in nuts. Pour into pans.
- Bake 8-inch loaves about 1 hour, 9-inch loaf about 1¼ hours, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Loosen sides of loaves from pans; remove from pans and place top side up on wire rack. Cool completely, about 2 hours, before slicing. Wrap tightly and store at room temperature up to 4 days, or refrigerate up to 10 days.
I make the following changes, depending upon the day!
- Substitute applesauce for the margarine
- Use skim milk or skim buttermilk
- Use one cup of whole wheat flour or wheat bran instead of one cup of AP flour
- Use nuts, or leave them out and add raisins or Craisins, or chopped apples
- Always add at least a teaspoon of cinnamon
- Add a 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
- Add 1-2 teaspoons orange zest
- Use blood orange olive oil in place of the margarine (my favorite!)
Check out other recipes from more Recipe Redux bloggers! Merry Christmas!
