Spiced Pumpkin Banana Bread

Its five months now that I have stopped eating packaged bread, except for a few exceptions when one is visiting friends. So whenever I get a craving for eating bread, I bake one. This way, I know exactly what I have put in it and it’s free of preservatives and harmful chemicals that packaged bread has and I can indulge at my heart’s content.

Yesterday when I decided to bake a bread, I went rummaging for the ingredients I have in my kitchen. The initial plan was to bake a banana walnut bread (which I have made numerous times over), but turned out that I had only one over ripe banana and no walnuts. I knew I had some pumpkin left over in the refrigerator. And I LOVE a spiced pumpkin bread.

So that was that, and voila the idea of a spiced pumpkin banana bread was born. The recipe uses wheat bran and flax seed powder making it fiber rich and nutritious, also thus making it a truly whole grain bread. This bread contains absolutely no refined sugar, just 2 tablespoons of jaggery. It’s delicious, it’s salty, it’s spiced with a huge hit of cinnamon and slightly sweet because of the pumpkin and banana. And the toppings of pistachios’ and sultanas add that extra crunch and richness to it. It’s a perfect accompaniment with your afternoon tea.
Here’s presenting my spiced pumpkin banana bread and its recipe:

SPICED PUMPKIN BANANA BREAD

PREP: 15 mins PLUS COOLING TIME BAKE: 30 MINS TOTAL: 45 MINS

INGREDIENTS:

1 ½ cup wheat bran
½ cup whole wheat flour
1 cup grated/pureed pumpkin
½ cup mashed banana (1 big over-ripe banana)
2 cups plain yogurt
2 eggs
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup ground flax seed powder
1 tablespoon cinnamon powder
2 tablespoons organic jaggery powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt

Handful of pistachios and sultanas for the topping

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven at 170 degrees Celsius.

In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients: wheat bran, wheat flour, jaggery powder, ground flax, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.

In another bowl, whisk the wet ingredients: eggs, grated pumpkin, bananas, yogurt and olive oil.

Pour in the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until moistened.

Spoon batter into a 9”x 3”silicon loaf pan. Add the pistachios and sultanas as the topping.

Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to wire rack. Serve warm with tea.

Please Note:
~ This bread is very high in fiber, so consume it within 24 hours of making it.
~ Its advisable not to refrigerate it, but to store in some place warm.
~ The banana must be very, very ripe (sweet!) for this bread as there’s very little added sugar. The more the blackened skin on the banana, the sweeter it is. So, don’t throw away those, instead freeze them.

Post-workout Smoothie with the Goodness of Coconut Milk

Have you ever had freshly squeezed homemade coconut milk? If not, you are missing out on something absolutely divine.

The first time I made coconut milk at home was a couple of years back when I was on a sabbatical. Troubled with tons of time at hand, a hyperactive nature and an inquisitive mind, I tried my hand at doing a lot of things; be it gardening or painting or cooking or baking for that matter. Not that I had not done these things before but then this time I had the luxury of time. One of the many things I experimented with in my kitchen was to make coconut milk at home. And it was such an eye opener. Easy to make and the freshness, sweetness and creaminess of the homemade coconut milk is a thousand times better (and I am not exaggerating!). TRUST ME ONCE YOU HAVE HAD THE HOMEMADE COCONUT MILK, YOU WILL NEVER LIKE THE ONE BOUGHT FROM THE STORE.

Coconut milk is often considered a “miracle liquid” since coconut milk nutrition offers great ability to build up the body’s immune defenses and prevent disease. Coconut milk, along with it’s relatives coconut oil and coconut water are among the world’s healthiest foods ( and they are my favourite too). Coconut milk builds muscle and helps lose fat, provides electrolytes and prevents fatigue, improves digestion and relieves constipation, helps manage blood sugar and prevents anaemia, joint inflammation, arthritis and ulcers.

Today my post-run smoothie has this “miracle liquid” infused with saffron and a handful of almonds and pistachio. This creamy golden yellow naturally sweet coconut milk smoothie is packed with nutrition and goodness and is very good for weight loss. Here’s the recipe.

COCONUT MILK WITH SAFFRON AND NUTS SMOOTHIE

PREP: 15 mins

INGREDIENTS

1 cup homemade coconut milk (How to make Coconut Milk)
1/2 teaspoon saffron
1/4 cup water
10 blanched almonds
10 pistachio
1 tablespoon protein powder (I use Amway Nutrilite Protein Powder)
1 tablespoon cold pressed coconut oil

DIRECTIONS

Heat the water until it is lukewarm. Add the saffron strands to it. Let it steep for 10-12 minutes.

Add all the ingredients to a blender and blend for 2-3 minutes or until you have smooth paste.

Pour in a glass and refrigerate.

Drink up once your back from the run or post workout 🙂