Sometimes I think I could live off of potatoes and bananas and things to dip them in. Seriously. I eat both pretty much every day and never tire of them. The best.
One of my favorite ways to eat bananas is sliced up, topped with cinnamon, hemp hearts, oodles of nut butter, and/or granola. My sister coined this creation “banachos” and the name just stuck (at least in our circle).
This is less of a recipe and more of an idea. I want you to make banachos with whatever you like to eat bananas with.
It’s crazy to think I went 27 years without ever making a banana cake. Me. Yeah I know. What the heck.
Sure I’ve made banana breads and muffins a-plenty but never cake! When I realized this I had to change it. Since promises of cake for my birthday fell through for the second year in a row, I decided to make myself a cake.
I actually made this banana cake as a belated birthday celebration cake for a department luncheon, only to realize there was no luncheon this week. Oops. More cake for me I guess!
Once upon a time I made these chocolate banana penguin things for my Vegan Bites bit on Spoon University’s Insta stories. They were fun. Putsy, but fun.
In an ideal world, the feet and noses were to be made with orange candies. But I didn’t have any and wasn’t motivated to spend money on a bag of them only to use a few (Spoon doesn’t pay me for VB for the record, and I buy all the materials for cooking with my own money…and as a grad student I have about $40 a week to feed, water and caffeinate myself…so I gotta be selective with where my money goes) so I improvised and used cut carrots.
While eating them and being like wow bananas and carrots frozen together is rather awkward, I had an epiphany that perhaps baked together they’d be delightful. And so, the incident inspired this Vegan Carrot Cake Banana Bread.
So a few weeks later, I made some. And now I’m going to share it with you. I ended up enjoying the loaf. I think I like carrot cake as dessert with lots of icing and banana bread the regular way the best, but this was a really fun way to mix it up. Truly, if you like carrot cake and/or banana bread, you will probably enjoy this recipe. If you want, you can add a vegan cream cheese icing on top.
Personally, I wanted it as a not-too-sweet snacking/breakfast loaf, so this is the frosting-less route I went. But you do you. Live your best life.
I made this recipe with shredded coconut, too, and eventually decided it distracted too much from the rest of it and have concluded it is better without it. If you want dem coconut shreds tho, add in about 1/4 cup unsweetened.
Cheers to 2018, baking new things, and of course, BANANAS!
For regular banana bread, click here.
For dog banana bread, click here.
Bake Time: 30-40 minutes
Yield: 1 loaf
Ingredients:
Our department has a lunch meeting every Wednesday where first year students sit and eat while a faculty member tells us about their research how they got where they are, and sometimes their life story, etc. it’s a nice time / I’m all about free food.
Delivery options are limited around the Columbia University Medical Center campus. Hence why every single week lunch ends up being one of 3 options: pizza that smells like burnt Chuck E Cheese kitchen grease and is paired with a salad cloaked in sad cold deli meat (and one plain salad, but that goes fast), Dominican food, or on a good day, sandwiches on really strangely delicious fluffy crusty white hoagie bread.
Dominican food days are frequent, and I don’t hate it. The buffet has enough veggie options (salad with avocado, rice, beans) that I can finagle a decent meal out of it.
The star of every Dominican week is, of course, the fried plantains. Sticky sweet gooey goodness, the fried plantains have become a cherished and familiar treat.
It dawned upon me this week that I’ve never actually made plantains at home which considering bananas and potatoes are my favorite foods and plantains are essentially the potato of bananas (as in not sweet and rather starchy), is quite odd. So over the weekend I decided to change this. I picked up some plantains, 3/$1, at my local grocery store.
A kind woman was also picking out plantains when I was sorting through them. I asked her if she had any advice for a new plantain cook, and she told me to wait until the plantains were “soft like sponges.” Noted.
Now onto cooking. I don’t love frying things and my stomach doesn’t love eating large quantities of fried food. Hence why I after doing some googling to confirm it was possible, I opted to bake mine.
I did mine skin-on because the method sounded intriguing to me. You can totally peel them and cube them, coat them in oil and seasonings, and bake them that way (just for a shorter duration, 20-25 minutes until tender rather than 40-45).
If you are curious about the skin-on method as I was, I am happy to report that it totally works. Just take it out of the oven when the foil-wrapped plantain gives to a squeeze.
Next comes topping. I played around with topping these babies. One I coined and ate with melted vegan butter and brown sugar.
Another I drizzled with almond butter, cinnamon, and a dash of sugar. The last I ate with leftover black bean soup and cilantro. I decided they would also taste great with guacamole. All were solid options, and it was a very plantain-filled day.
Speaking of filled, I found plantains quite filling. I plan to keep this in mind since they are a cheap starchy piece of produce aka something I desperately need to befriend.
I hope you give these a try. If you do, please let me know, and let me know how you topped or are them.
Happy plantaining!
Prep Time: 2 minutes
Cook Time: 35-45 minutes
Servings: 2
Topping Ideas:
I’m between jobs that require me to be places and wear pants at the moment, and am starting school in just a few weeks so finding a job outside of my various freelance gigs feels kinda pointless at the moment.
So what’s a girl to do? Bake. Bake all day. Duh.
But what about when you’ve baked so hard you have too many baked goods to handle? Well, you bake for your dog, of course.
I made this banana bread with some random stuff I had around my kitchen. You can customize it to your liking or based on what you have in your pantry (there are several variations offered in the recipe; see below).
The awesome thing about baking for dogs is that if there’s peanut butter involved, they probably won’t be very fussy. I’m pretty sure I could have baked a piece of rotting bread and spread peanut butter on top and Millie would still be a happy gal. Bless her.
In case you were wondering, she really liked it. Shocking, I know. I even caught her jumping on the kitchen counter to get more (yes, she’s small, but the girl can HOP).
Feel free to think baking your dog banana bread is over the top. Because that might be partially true. But I’ve always believed that if you’re going to have a pet, you may as well spoil the crap out of them.
I’m working on another pet-related post to explain why this week has been tough for me, so stay tuned.
Also, I’ve promised to myself I’m going to be more consistent and candid with my blogging. I’m investing my time and energy into this instead of pursuits that do not grow or benefit me in any way.
So buckle up and get ready to join me next year as I go back to school yet again for my third degree (lol school forever) at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. #schooltilim50 #noregrets
Without further adieu…
Prep Time: 20 minutes, plus time to chill dough
Cook Time: 30-45 minutes
Servings: 1 medium-sized loaf of doggie banana bread (enough for 8-14 treats)
For human banana bread, check out this recipe.
Why is it that mini foods are more fun? At first it seems paradoxical, especially in a culture where bigger is better. But it’s undeniable. Mini food RULES.
You know what I mean. Mini m&ms and mini chocolate chips >>>>> than their regular sized counterparts. And whenever things are miniaturized, whether they be burgers as sliders or bite-sized cupcakes or those tiny peanut butter cups, something is always more fun about mini food.
I believe it has to do with food ratios and textures. Also visual appeal and general cuteness. But that’s just my two cents and super scientific take on the matter. Feel free to agree and/or disagree, my opinion is pretty much set.
Mini foods also makes them Millie-sized, and we all know any mention or thought of my sweet pup fills my heart and soul with joy. What’ can I say? She’s just ma girl.
So the idea for mini pancakes is actually inspired by the Silver Dollar Pancakes at Trader Joe’s in the frozen section. Lots of moms tell me their kids love them. I tell them my mom loves them. Go pita, shattering stereotypes.
I was off work today and wanted to do something a wee bit special for breakfast. As I had the time, I decided that I was going to make banana pancakes, because 1) I love bananas and 2) I wanted to “pretend like it’s the weekend, now” as that one Jack Johnson song goes because the way my work week falls at this moment Tuesday is my Sunday aka pseudo-weekend on a weekday. Confused yet? Cool. Let’s talk pancakes.
These wee babies are fluffy yet hearty, thanks to the creation of pseudo-buttermilk by combining almond milk + vinegar for a little bit of fluffy umpf, and the almond meal gives them a wonderful nutty flavor, reminiscent of banana bread with a density and satisfaction that will actually keep you full, unlike say, pancakes made with all-purpose flour.
I really loved these little guys. They are not only delicious, but adorable, and oh-so-dippable, which is an added bonus for me because I’m not a real adult yet and I really enjoy that sort of stuff / eating with my fingers. How sticky and delightful.
Make these wee ones and enjoy them plain, or with banana slices and maples syrup. Enjoy. Eat pancakes. Be happies. Go bananas.
-Kbakes out!
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 m inutes
Level: easy
makes 16-18 mini pancakes, serves two
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. In a small bowl or glass, combine almond milk and vinegar and allow to curdle for a few minutes. This is optional, but making this pseudo-buttermilk increases fluffiness. 🙂
2. In a large bowl, combine oat flour, almond meal, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Add mashed banana and nondairy milk and stir gently until just combined.
3. Heat electric griddle to about 300 degrees (temperature may vary greatly among griddles) or heat a small amount of non-dairy butter or coconut oil in a small frying pan over medium heat. Allow to heat completely before cooking pancakes. When you flick water onto the griddle and hear a sizzle, it’s time to go.
4. Place about 1 tablespoon of batter in small circles on the griddle. When the top begins to bubble and edges begin to brown slightly, flip pancake and cook on the other side. Each side should take approximately 60-90 seconds to cook.
5. Serve with banana slices and/or real maple syrup. 🙂 Enjoy and dip away~!
This title of this recipe should come as no surprise to those who know me. I love bananas. I love oatmeal. Boom: it’s a Banana Bread Oatmeal Bake for One. YUM.
Prep Time: 2 minutes
Bake Time: 18-25 minutes
Level: easy
serves one, easily doubled
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 F. In a small bowl, combine oats, oat flour, baking soda, and cinnamon. Mix.
2. Cut banana in half. Mash half of the banana and add to the bowl. Add nut butter or coconut oil and non-dairy liquid. Mix well.
3. Transfer to an oven-safe ramekin or dish. Slice remaining half of banana on top of oatmeal mixture. Place in the oven for 18-25 minutes, until fluffy, browned, and liquid has all absorbed. Serve with almond or other non-diary milk, non-dairy yogurt, and syrup or honey as desired.
