We were on our way back from an afternoon dinghy tour out to some of the most amazing islands, surrounded by beautiful turquoise water (more on that in the Family blog section) when we made a pitstop in Georgetown to check on our weekly WiFi status. Well, when you live on a boat (or even if you don’t) how often do you walk by a market and say “I really don’t need anything”. That never happens to me! Of course I needed to stop in and get that loaf of bread (never mind that I was just in there the other day for fruits and veggies) and right by the checkout counter they had a nice big box of what looked like week-old bananas. As soon as I saw them I knew what I had to make… you guessed it, Banana Bread!! It reminds me of home, happiness and most of all, my mom. She always made it when we were kids and always has an amazing loaf for us whenever we visit (or she visits us!). So, given that I left my recipe box in Miami, I consulted my food bible “How to Cook Everything Vegetarian” by Mark Bittman (an amazing book if you get a chance to find it), I came up with a banana bread variation using the cookbook and what I can remember of my mom’s recipe. So here it goes…

OnBoard Banana Bread
1 stick of butter
2 whole eggs
3 mashed ripe bananas
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1 tsp of almond extract (you can also use vanilla) – I never measure, I just pour some in.
2 cups of flour – I used 1 cup of oat flour and 1 cup of whole wheat flour
2 pinches of salt – guess that would be around 1/2 tsp. but I always error on the lessor side.
1.5 tsp. of baking powder
1 cup of chopped walnuts (or almonds, cashews, pumpkin seeds etc.)
Optional add-in’s: (all are approximate amounts b/c I just scoop or sprinkle these on straight from the pantry containers) around 1/8 cup hemp protein powder, 1/4 cup ground golden flaxseed, 1/8 cup of dried, sweet coconut flakes, and whatever chocolate (1/4 cup) and white chocolate chips (1/4 cup) I have on hand.

Very easy directions: Oven 350, timer for 45 – 60 minutes
– cream the butter, then add eggs, mashed banana’s, the almond extract and brown sugar
– mix together flour, salt, and baking powder, then add in any dry options from above
– pour dry ingredients into butter mixture and scrape sides down once on low speed
– stir in chocolate chips and nuts with a wooden spoon
– pour into greased and floured loaf pan and put it in the oven for around 45 – 60 minutes. A sharp, thin knife (or knitting needle if you are my Mom) works great to test for doneness.
– Wait 15 minutes to cool in pan (ha, ha! if you live on our boat, that never happens!) before turning it out on a cutting board and Ta Da… you have a delicious and healthy banana bread! If you happen to be boating near us tomorrow, dinghy on over for a slice! We love meeting new friends! Enjoy!!