Wow, chocolate heaven, really. This bread is a rich, dark, dense loaf, made with ripe bananas, pureed prunes and chunks of bittersweet chocolate. I topped it with fresh quick-pickled strawberries and set in a pool of vanilla yogurt. Spa Chocolate Banana Bread fulfills the chocolate craving, always a little jewel.
RANCHO LA PUERTA
My dreams of visiting the Rancho La Puerta Spa still linger. At the beginning of the my health food road as a teen, I read about this spa. I am still very impressed with the organic gardening and food sustainability the spa has always advocated for many years.
SPA COOKING
Short of an actual visit, I have collected cookbooks from the spa, and this bread is a favorite. Filled with healthy ingredients, this bread allows for a chocolate indulgence with out breaking the bank on calories. Not at all sweet, no added sugar just the natural goodness from fruit.
I have made a few changes to the original recipe, such as using Cassava flour instead of wheat, making the bread now grain-free. If you choose all organic ingredients, such as free range eggs, organic bananas, and aluminum-free baking powder you are moving closer to a clean path of eating; each of us defining our own food choices, doing what works best.
Who doesn’t love the combo of chocolate and bananas? This loaf of bread is so easy and really avoids all the pitfalls of most banana bread, the sugar. Here good old prunes step in along with pureed bananas for sweetness. Enjoy the bread warm out of the oven. I topped it with quick pickled strawberries and vanilla bean yogurt. It only feels like an indulgent dessert.
BIJOUXS THE BLOG
People always ask me “what kind of food do you cook on your website?” I don’t have a real answer. I embrace a wide range of food here on the Bijouxs blog, all my “little jewel” recipes I have collected. I enjoy cooking, photographing and most of all sharing the recipes and I think there is a little bit of something here on the blog for everyone, now up to over 300 recipes.
From the beginning I have kept true to my goals for my blog and beliefs about the value of the home cook. You may notice there no editorial ads, no annoying pop-ups, nothing to distract you, making it easy to share my recipes with you. Another key take-away from the blog is what I have coined “everyday beauty all around us, right here in our kitchens.” This is heart felt and I bring you photographs of the real food I prepare, not too much fussing. I want the food to be as true to you and it is to me in my kitchen. My cookbooks also reflect this simple point of view.
As always, enjoy. B
