the ultimate healthy banana bread

Let me start off by saying, yesterday afternoon was a perfect Sunday afternoon. Saw family and friends, baked bread, drank some wine, did laundry, saw a movie with the man... And best of all, listened to the rain fall--for the first time in months. 

But let's get on with it, shall we? Lately, things have been changing around here. Doing the laundry and the dishes is starting to look a little different these days.

Since Ryan and I have both been making efforts to live healthier (we're eating better, he's pumping iron, and I'm training for a triathlon), we're watching more and more workout clothes go through the wash... And there are always at least three water bottles in use at any given time, meaning they're making a cycle through the dishwasher a couple of times a week.

When I started Sustainable Diet, I had every intention of foodie stardom a la Julie Powell or Molly Wizenberg: I wanted this to be a platform to try new recipes and, hopefully, someday, incite a publisher to ask me to, you know, write a book.

And don't get me wrong, I still want that (in fact, I have a new recipe to share with you today, so publishers take note!).

But here's the thing: sustainability does not stop at a diet. That's not to say that I'm changing my focus here; food is my green agenda VIP. Everything we eat is scrutinized, and more so by the day. Is it organic? Is it local? Is it ethically and sustainably produced?

Sustaining a healthy diet (for our bodies and for the earth) isn't just about cooking with whole wheat flour and replacing fats and eating pesticide-free produce. It's also about maintaining a healthy outlook on life. Which is where this whole exercise part comes in.

Yes, I'm advocating exercise. And lots of it.

As my training has "progressed" this summer (we'll go ahead and call it that), I'm finding that more and more, I'm enjoying the act of following up what I eat with doing something else good for my body.

So here we are. I'm off my soapbox and you're ready for a recipe.

With that in mind (and a swim clinic under my belt and three over-ripe bananas in the fridge), I set out to make a breakfast pastry I could feel good about. The catch? No fats and no sugar. Like any drunk-on-a-rain-shower home cook would do, using a few good proportions, I came up with my own recipe.

And it's actually good.

Instead of fats and sugar, I used a combination of low-fat organic vanilla yogurt, local honey, and organic unsweetened applesauce:

And to be sure we got plenty of whole grains with each bite, I used organic whole-wheat bread flour:

The Ultimate Healthy Banana Bread

1 1/2 cups whole-wheat bread flour (or all purpose, or spelt, or something)

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/3 cup low-fat vanilla or plain yogurt

1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

1/3 cup honey or maple syrup

3/4 tsp lemon zest

2 large eggs, beaten

2-3 very ripe bananas, mashed

Preheat the oven to 350. Prepare an 8x5 loaf pan or muffin tins. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. With a standing mixer or in a large bowl, beat together the yogurt, applesauce, and honey until combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, making sure to beat well after each addition. Add in the mashed bananas and beat until combined. In thirds, add the flour mixture.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan or tins and bake for one hour (loaf) or 35-40 minutes (muffins), or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool completely before slicing.

Unless you're like us and MUST try a bite before it's cooled at all. Hence the missing piece:

I'll admit, even I was skeptical at first. But this is a low-fat, low-sugar alternative to a breakfast muffin and you wanna know what else? It's delicious. Topped with a little bit of jam, or a side of berries, this is the perfect way to start the day, guilt-free.

The texture is a little different (not bad, just different), but I'm not a food science whiz so I'm not sure whether that's because of the substituted ingredients or some other reason (maybe it needed to bake just 5 more minutes, but we had a movie to get to)... But it's tasty nonetheless. The tang of the lemon zest is evident but not overwhelming, and the cinnamon adds just a faint spice to the bread. Next time I think I'll add some oat flour to the mix and see what happens.