Peanutty Chocolate Banana Bread

Sometimes you just can't improve on an original.....sometimes you can!  Add chocolate chips and peanut butter to banana bread and it gets better!   Don't get me wrong, I love just plain ol' banana bread too.  This is a great, just a little bit different, version of an original.  This recipe from Pampered Chef is a great bread to give and freeze too!  Bake up a loaf!!

Peanutty Chocolate Banana Bread

2c AP flour
1c sugar
1T baking powder
1/2t salt
1 c mashed ripe bananas (about 2)
1/3c milk
1/3c peanut butter
3T oil
1 egg, lightly beaten
1c milk chocolate chips (I've used semi sweet too)
1/3c chopped peanuts (optional for top)

Preheat oven to 350 and spray loaf pan with cooking spray.  Combine all of the ingredients down through the egg.  Mix just until moistened then add 3/4c of the chocolate chips.  Spoon batter into pan and top with remaining chocolate chips and chopped peanuts.  Bake 1hr or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Cool in pan for 10 mins then remove from pan to a cooling rack.

I've also cooked this in 3 mini loaf pans for 35 mins.

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

I just love pizza and so does my husband.  The only problem is that he is diabetic and pizza always raises his blood sugar too high.  So I decided to try to find a whole wheat pizza crust recipe that would be simple enough to do and still taste good.  I found it!  This recipe is soooo easy and makes such a delicious pizza...actually two!  I found this recipe in my Fleischmann's Yeast cookbook.  You can find other recipes on their website here.  A little tip...keep your whole wheat flour in the fridge or freezer.  Because it still has the wheat germ in it, it will go rancid quicker than regular flour.

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

1c whole wheat flour
2c AP flour plus a little more for rolling
1 pkg rapid rise yeast
3/4t salt
1c very warm water (120-130 degrees)
2T olive oil

In a large bowl, combine 1c of WW flour and 1c of AP flour.  Add yeast and salt.  Stir very warm water and oil into dry ingredients.  Add enough additional AP flour to make a soft dough.  Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic for about 4-6 mins.  Cover and let rest 10 mins.  Lightly oil two 12 inch pizza pans.  Divide dough in half and roll/stretch dough to cover pans.  Top pizza as desired and bake at 400 for 20-30 mins.  Baking time will depend on toppings and thickness of the crust so keep an eye on it.

Spiced Pear Banana Bread

Well I have about 5 over ripe pears and 2 over ripe bananas.  So I Googled "ripe pear and ripe banana recipes".  Well, it worked and I found this great recipe.  The original recipe called for 2 pears and 2 bananas per loaf so I doubled the recipe and just added the rest of my pears.  I think this recipe could be adapted for all pear, all banana, applesauce, or any combination.  Also, if you don't have yogurt on hand, I would think that you could use sour cream or buttermilk.  This is a definite "go to" recipe!

Spiced Pear Banana Bread

 2 cups plain flour
 1 teaspoon baking soda
 1 teaspoon cinnamon
 1/2 teaspoon ginger
 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
 2 mashed bananas
 2 mashed pears (peeled or use canned pears)
 1/2 cup white sugar
 1/2 cup brown sugar
 1/2 cup butter or margarine
 1/4 cup plain or vanilla yogurt
 2 eggs
 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a loaf pan and coat with flour to prevent sticking.

In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg.
In another mixing bowl, cream together the white sugar, brown sugar and butter.

Mash the pears and bananas together really well in another bowl.

Stir the pear and banana into the sugar and butter mixture and add in the eggs and vanilla, stirring well. Then stir in the yogurt, again mixing well.

Slowly pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture, stirring constantly. Mix really thoroughly until everything is perfectly blended together.

Spoon the mixture into your prepared loaf pan. You can place a few slices of banana on top and sprinkle with a little brown sugar for decoration if you like.

Place the loaf pan in the center of preheated oven and bake on 350F for 1 hour 20 minutes. Cooking times may vary, especially in fan assisted ovens, so check the loaf is done by inserting a toothpick or knife into the middle of the loaf. If it comes out clean the loaf  is ready.

Allow the banana bread to cool in the loaf pan for about 10-20 minutes. The cooling is important because the loaf will solidify fully as it cools.