Good morning! Hope everyone had a relaxing weekend. Mine was filled with the farmers market and lots of cooking.
I’ve been thinking lately about how grateful I am for each and every day of my life.
For every small step forward.
I know there’s nothing promised to me and that each moment and insight is a gift – all the chaos and pain that I’ve faced with my health that goes along with a fully lived life is also a gift.
I think it’s about what we make of our pain that determines who we are and the outcome of our lives.
What’s funny is that if we take teeny, tiny steps every day and we look back on our life… we can amaze ourselves at how far we’ve come and all that we have achieved.
The goal is to not let the pain or chaos in your life stop you – but to realize that these moments are a vital part of life and we can learn from them and grow.
I hope you can look back at your past pain and present chaos or pain and realize this.
Take a deep breath and remind yourself to stay in the present moment.
And then smile.
Now, who’s ready for a lil’ moist banana bread recipe? I know you wanna slice.
xox
Try to buy everything organic. Here’s why: The Benefits of Eating Organic.
Ingredients
- 2 2/3 cups gluten free oats
- 4 1/2 Tbsp. pure organic maple syrup
- 4 Tbsp. organic coconut oil melted
- 3 medium ripe bananas mashed
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 1/2 tsp. pure almond extract
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. aluminum-free baking powder
- 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
- 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a loaf pan with nonstick baking spray; set aside.
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Grind gluten free oats in a blender to create oat flour.
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Combine maple syrup, coconut oil, mashed bananas, sea salt and almond extract in a large bowl; set aside.
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Combine oat flour, baking soda, baking powder and ground cinnamon in a separate bowl; add this mixture to the wet maple syrup mixture along with cranberries, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds. Mix to combine (be careful not to over mix).
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Transfer mixture into prepared loaf pan and bake for 1 hour or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
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Remove from oven; set aside to cool for 10-15 minutes before serving.
I just made this, and I am so impressed with this recipe! You would never know it was gluten & dairy free! The texture is on point; it almost reminds me of Bob Evan’s banana bread. SO delicious! If I made it again, I would maybe add more spices next time though, like some nutmeg and cloves 🙂
YAY!!!!!!!! So happy Monica. Thank you!!!!
I’ve got overripe bananas and fresh cranberries and want to make gf bread…found you! Your facing pain daily caught me…holidays and the desire for familiar yet not healthy foods has set me back and now I’m fighting the pain again. Frustrating to be strong yet fragile. Thanks for the recipe. I’m going to try it paleo style since I can’t ‘do’ oats. Good luck on the journey to great health. Mine is up and down, but each day is a new day and gives room for improvement. Truly I can look back and see it. But it’s hard on the backwards days! Merry Christmas!
Thank you Bonnie; BIG HUGS! xooxxxxxx
sounds good
Wow, this looks so delicious! I’ve been reading a bunch of Information today on eating anti inflammatory foods, (obviously because I desperately need to and am tired of feeling horrible each and every day) but seeing this made me feel like I’m not going on a deprived starvation diet! I hope to find many more healthy “comfort food” recipes like this one, I think it’ll help to make the transformation that much easier. I’d also like to say thank you for your hard work and effort to help each and every one of us change our lives….one post, one recipe at a time!
Blessings and peace,
Tanja
This banana bread looks fantastic! Love all the mix ins. I am going through a bit of a tough time right now but I know you are right that things will work out in the end.
I really like this combination. I have oatmeal every morning with bananas, dried cranberries, nut and honey.
Any ideas what I can use instead of almond extract? I have a nut allergy – makes the gluten free/vegan a little more complicated.
Thanks
Amanda,
You can use vanilla extract. xox
Hi Amie, I made your Cranberry Banana Bread recipe today and we love the taste and texture of it but it came out dry. I baked it at 350 for 40 minutes and it was well done. I did notice that this recipe doesn’t have any eggs and I was curious about that. I did use the GF oats and grind them in the blender and followed the recipe exactly. I think a couple eggs would help. Did I do something wrong? Thanks. Theresa in Ocala, FL
Hi Amie,
This banana bread looks very good to me. We have bananas on sale for 39 cents/lb. this week at our local grocer (Basha’s) for all you metro Phoenix folks. Perfect timing for this recipe. I love the addition of cranberries and seeds for extra flavor, texture and of course, nutrition. Oh yeah!
Thanks again for all your great healthy works!
Susan
Scottsdale, AZ
This looks like a breakfast to go idea!
Enjoying this right now. It’s delicious! Thank you for a gluten free bread that doesn’t call for eggs!
Banana bread is always a winner! I’ve never made one with 100% oats, I usually use half of another flour but this one looks very filling, perfect for breakfast. Almond extract is a nice twist too from the more common vanilla. Found you on The Food Photography community on G+ 🙂
Thanks so much; so glad you found me on G+!
Hi Amie,
Your Cranberry Banana Bread Recipe looks delicious and I will be making it. I have a question though, my husband and I are on the Paleo Diet and we cannot eat any grains, so the gluten free oats is not an option. Can I substitute 2 2/3 cups of almond flour instead? or a combination of almond and coconut flour and what amounts? I am new at baking grain free recipes. We absolutely love your Cinnamon Zucchini bread and I will be making it again. Theresa in Ocala, FL
Thanks Theresa; great to hear from you! I haven’t tried using the almond flour and don’t know the substitute for it but you can try it. Wish I could help; search for conversions online and you can use that. Enjoy! oxxx
I have some GF oat flour… can that be used instead? If so, how much oat flour does the oatmeal make?
Thanks Susan; I haven’t tried oat flour in this recipe but you can try it. I don’t know the substitution but let me know if it works!
It’s difficult sometimes to savor the moment, but this banana bread will definitely help! Thanks for sharing– I can’t wait to try this recipe!
Thanks Tess; enjoy!!!