Cooking with Kids: Banana Bread
I love to bake and lucky for me, so does my 5-year-old daughter. One of our favorite treats to bake is a tried and true recipe for Banana Bread that my Mom handed down to me. This banana bread has a nice crunch on the inside while retaining all of its moisture on the inside. It is soooooo good!
My theory on what makes it so tasty? Probably the 4 Tablespooons of butter that you melt and then cool. I really think that cooling it is key.
I have been hesitant to “healthify” this recipe because my family loves it just the way it is. However, after talking with Catherine Katz, I thought I would try her recommendation to substitute the one and a half cups of white flour with Soft Wheat Flour. But first, I had to find Soft Wheat Flour – not 100% Whole Wheat, but 100% Whole Wheat Soft Flour or Pastry Flour. It was not easy. I scoured the baking aisles at every grocery store in my area: Stop & Shop, Shaw’s, Roche Brothers. No one had this “soft” wheat flour that Catherine had suggested. Finally, I remembered that Ocean State Job Lot has an unusually large selection of Bob’s Red Mill Products. ”Voila!” as Catherine would say (she is from France). There it was.
My five-year-old daughter has made this recipe so many times that I almost don’t even need to tell her what to do. Whenever we have really ripe bananas, she asks if we can make it. This is the perfect recipe for kids. It is so simple.
3 large super-ripe bananas (NuVal score: 91)
1 cup sugar (NuVal score: 1)
1 egg (NuVal score: 33)
4 T. butter, melted and cooled (NuVal score: 2for Land O’Lakes, unsalted)
1 ½ cups flour (NuVal score of 91 for this Bob’s Red Mill 100% Whole Wheat Pastry Flour)
1 tsp. salt (NuVal score of 1)
1 tsp baking soda (Not scored)
Pre-heat oven to 325. Spray a 9 X 5 inch loaf pan with cooking spray; set aside.
In a bowl, mash bananas.
Beat in sugar, then egg and cooled butter. In another bowl, stir together flour, salt, and baking soda; add to banana mixture and stir until all flour is moistened.
Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
You can also add walnuts (NuVal score of 82), but my kids prefer it nut-free.
What to do if you only have two really ripe bananas? Add some apple sauce to your banana mix.
We loved this banana bread made with soft wheat flour. The consistency was perfect. Interestingly, the baking time in my oven was a little shorter than usual. It was done in about 50 minutes. So, if you choose to use this flour, set your timer a little early.
The incredible thing about cooking with your kids is watching them develop confidence in the kitchen. I am amazed to hear my daughter say things like, “Mom, can I have a rubber scraper? I think it would work better than this wooden spoon.” She is learning the tools, the tricks, and the lingo. Not every recipe needs to be super-healthy. What is important is that my kids are learning how to cook and bake so that they will know that not all food comes already packaged.
For more on Cooking As a Way of Life, check out Rachel Ray’s blog post on Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move Blog.
Question of the Day
Have you tried substituting white flour for whole wheat? What was the result?
Posted by: Melissa 12 comments
Posted in: Cooking with Kids
Tags: banana bread
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 7:07 am
This sounds like a great recipe and easy, too! Our Hy-Vee grocery stores have an abundance of Bob’s Red Mill products (and Whole Foods, too)…I’m glad to see whole wheat pastry flour receives such a great score.
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 7:15 am
Great recipe! I made Mango Bread a few weeks ago and used whole wheat flour, it was very moist. I have tried to make banana bread with WW flour a few times and it came out dry. Will definitely try your recipe instead!!
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 7:59 am
I just made this the other day with the whole wheat pastry flour (thank you melissa!). It was wonderfully moist and yummy. Both my boys gobbled it up. As a side note I used two bananas (they were enormous) and did not add applesauce and it seemed fine. I did not get the crunchy outside though.
We have been substituting WW flour for white flour for a while. I have not noticed a difference in our breads or other baked goods – and I feel good using it.
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 9:11 am
Just bought that same Bob’s Pastry Flour! AFTER I made the attempt at substituting all-purpose flour for regular whole wheat flour. I made a batch of muffins that I could definitely tell needed the pastry soft flour instead. We love banana bread at our house too!
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 9:49 am
Love banana bread. I like it with the nuts. I like that Soft Flour alternative. Definitely have to give it a try.
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 9:56 am
If you like REALLY moist banana bread, here is a tip I learned early on with son # 1 and still works with son #4. After removing the bread from the pan place in a plastic bread bag while it’s still hot/warm, then place in refridgerator. This is the moistest way to have banana bread without adding other ingredients to your recipe.
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 10:22 am
This really looks so yummy! and your little one really knows what she is doing–she is so cute!! Just one little trick from the Katz household: You can definetely do without the salt, and you won’t even know the difference–It’s amazing how much sodium it will add to your recipe and drive down your nuval score when in fact it’s just old habit passed on from our mothers and grandmothers which is really not needed! Also, to bring down the sugar a little bit, without affecting the sweetness, you can substitute a little bit of fat-free powdered milk (undiluted) for 1/4 cup of the sugar. The lactose in the milk is a natural sugar which also gives you calcium to boost! let me know if you try it, how it works for you!
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 10:27 am
You just read my mind! I only have two bananas! And, I’m so impressed with Catherine’s idea about the fat-free powdered milk. I’m going to have to give that a try sometime!
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 2:40 pm
I have a couple of tips to share: if your grocery store has a bulk-foods section, look there for whole wheat pastry flour. That’s where I find it in a couple of my local stores. Also, regarding subbing whole wheat for white flour in general, King Arthur makes a terrific “white whole wheat” flour that’s very nutritious. Remember, too, you can order products online from both Bob’s Red Mill and King Arthur!
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 2:57 pm
do you have the nutritional info you should share? calories, etc?
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 3:57 pm
Great tips, Catherine! I will definitely try it out. I would love to bring up the NuVal score on this family-favorite recipe!
on Jun 17th, 2010 at 6:26 pm
I have had great results using wholewheat pastry flour. I also substitute unsweetened applesause for most of the butter or oil in cake receipes. I think cakes made with wholewheat pastry flour tastes better and by using applesause instead of oil or butter your cake will be moister and are lower the calories.