Strawberry Chia Banana Bread
I hope you guys are having a good week so far. We had a great weekend hanging out with friends. It was so nice to catch up with my old roommate, I was so glad she made the trip up from North Carolina! We escaped the heat by spending a lazy day tubing on the Shenandoah River on Saturday in Harper’s Ferry. The river was moving at a moderate pace and the water was refreshing in the high 70s. We had a blast!
On Sunday morning we headed to Arlington for a Nicecream team building activity – a donut run! We met at Sugar Shack where we had planned on eating a donut before running to Duck Donuts – a 4 mile run – and eating another donut. It was only 8am, but it was already really hot out so we decided to just share a pre-run donut. We were sweaty, thirsty and not much in the mood for donuts by the time we arrived at Duck Donuts, but we eventually did each order a donut – we had earned it!
I had never been to either Sugar Shack or Duck Donuts, but had wanted to try out both. That was part of my selfish motivation for suggesting the activity 🙂 We decided that the 2 shops are too different to compare. Sugar Shack donuts are yeast donuts that are made in the early morning and displayed in a case for you to take your pick. At Duck Donuts they are cake donuts, you choose your glaze, topping and drizzle and they make them right before your eyes. Some things we did conclude were 1. even donuts are not motivation enough to get people to come out and run 4 miles 2. this would be a better activity for the spring/fall (avoid 100 degree days)
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After all this donut talk you are probably wishing I had a donut recipe for you – not today sorry! But it is in the same family – Strawberry Chia Banana Bread! Yum!
Bananas always amaze me. They are such a versatile food. I eat a banana before races because it is easy on the stomach and provides a good source of energy. But it also makes amazing smoothies, pastries and desserts. This banana bread is super moist and the strawberries give it a summer flare. The chia seeds add some nutritional value as well as a complexity to the bread that makes it stand out from other banana breads I’ve tried. It is also low in fat, bananas and coconut oil substitute some of the fats used in other breads.
Strawberry Chia Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup banana, mashed (about 2 bananas)
- 1 egg
- 1tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 2/3 cup flour
- 1 tbs chia seed
- 1/2 cup strawberries, chopped
- 2 strawberries, sliced
Instructions
- Pre-Heat oven to 375 degrees
- Grease a loaf pan
- In the bowl of an electric mixer cream together coconut oil, white and brown sugar and bananas
- Add the eggs and vanilla, mix until fully combined
- In a separate bowl, combine the baking powder, baking soda, flour and chia seed
- Slowly add flour mixture to the mixer, mixing in between pours
- Fold in chopped strawberries
- Pour batter into greased loaf pan
- Top with sliced strawberries
- Place in oven to bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes
- Reduce the heat to 350 degrees, bake 10 more minutes
- Cover loosely with aluminum foil so the top does not burn, bake 20 more minutes checking at 10 and 15 minutes
- Let cool
- Slice and enjoy
Baking Tips: To get your bread to rise start baking at 375 degrees for 15 minutes, then lower the temperature to 350 for the remainder of the baking time. To avoid the top burning, loosely cover your bread with aluminum foil after 25 minutes of baking.
Enjoy!
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