Autumn Spice Banana Bread

Nothing says fall like the aroma of freshly baked banana bread. I’ve tried many different recipes over the years and have tweaked this one into my favorite. I made it today and it turned out perfect! It is moist, not too sweet, has just the right amount of spices… and it smelled so, so good while it was baking. 

Here’s what you’ll need:

1 cup of granulated sugar

¼ cup of brown sugar 

¼ cup of softened butter or coconut oil

¼ cup applesauce

2 eggs

3 or 4 mashed ripe bananas (about 1 ½ cups)

½ cup of milk+1 tsp. of apple cider vinegar (mixed together)

1 tsp. vanilla

1 ½ cups of whole wheat flour

1 cup of spelt flour

1 tsp. cinnamon

½ tsp. nutmeg

¼ tsp. cloves

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

 1 cup chopped walnuts

1.       Grease a 9X5X3 inch loaf pan. Make sure oven rack is in a lower position so that the top of the pan will be in the center of the oven. Heat oven to 350°.

2.       In a large bowl mix sugar, butter or coconut oil and applesauce. Add eggs and stir well. Pour in the mashed bananas, milk + apple cider vinegar and vanilla. Mix to a smooth consistency. Next, add the wheat and spelt flours, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda and salt. Stir until moist, add nuts and stir once more to evenly distribute nuts. Pour mixture into greased pan.

3.       Bake about 1 ¼ hours (75 minutes) or until toothpick inserted in the middle of the bread comes out clean. Depending on ovens, baking times may vary, so be sure to check your bread often towards the end of its baking time.

4.       Once out of the oven, let it cool for at least 5 minutes. Loosen sides of loaf carefully with a butter knife or spatula. Remove from pan and place on a wire rack. Let it cool completely before slicing.

If you’re looking to make it with chocolate chips, that works well too! My kids love that version and it makes a great snack in their lunch. To do so, I use the same recipe, but omit the nuts and spices, and add 1 cup of chocolate chips instead.

 Enjoy it with a cup of coffee or a spicy chai latte! I also like to have herbal tea on hand for the kids, as they love a good cup of warm tea with this banana bread after school on those cool autumn days…