“Ew, Sarah, why would you EVER put sea salt and bananas together?” – You
What can I say, I’m good at reading minds. But you know what I was slightly less good at until recently? Baking banana bread. It has literally (and I mean literally, not figuratively…there is, in fact a difference) taken me YEARS to come up with the perfect banana bread recipe. I posted one back in my Tumblr-blogging days that I’m pretty sure consisted mostly of chia seeds. Not to hate on chia seeds (they have their time and place), but this recipe is tastier for sure, and just as healthy. Now, to address your sea salt inquiry, it’s pretty much universal knowledge these days that sea salt and dark chocolate are the new power couple. Caramel tries to make it a love triangle, but I am definitely on Team Chocolate. And lately, I have been putting dark chocolate in and on everything I can get my hands on.
Why?
Well, I’m celebrating, because (Spoiler: if you follow me on Instagram, then neither of the following things are going to be “big news” to you) after a whirlwind year of suddenly changing plans and deciding NOT to take a year off, I took graduate auditions and was accepted to everywhere I applied! I’m going to be pursuing my Master’s degree next year at the conservatory of my dreams in New York City, and I couldn’t be more excited. I also gave my senior recital a few weeks ago to a lot of positive feedback, which means I officially CAN graduate and go to New York City. Also, Ithought the performance went well had a lot of fun giving it, which for self-doubting and perpetually unsatisfied me was kind of big.
So, yeah… I’m declaring that I now deserve to put chocolate in everything. You can judge me or whatever, but you’re going to be thanking my little chocolate binge when you taste this banana bread. Notice I said when, not if, because that’s how sure I am that you need to make it immediately.
Just in case you’re not convinced yet and need a REALLY compelling reason to make it (other than that it’s chocolate banana bread and because I said so), it will use up your ugly, mushy, seemingly inedible bananas. I bet you’ve thrown out some spotty/browning bananas in your time, thinking they were unusable. Think again, my friend – your banana-wasting days have passed, because for this recipe and banana bread in general, the spottier the better! (Unless they’re actually rotten and wrinkled… Then you probably shouldn’t cook with them. :P)
These are what perfect banana bread bananas look like. <3
Also, this bread came out super moist, and has just the right texture! You could also omit the chocolate chips or walnuts (or both) and the base recipe would come out fine. I will definitely be keeping this as my go-to banana bread recipe!
1 cup unbleached whole wheat flour + 1/2 cup oat flour (may do 1 and 1/2 cups oat flour for gluten free alternative)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/3 cup 60% dark chocolate chips, plus 1 tbs. for melting
1/4 cup walnuts
Sea Salt
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350˚F.
In a mixing bowl, mash peeled bananas thoroughly until mostly smooth. Some small lumps of fruit will remain, that’s ok!
Mix in melted coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla, and then add the egg/egg white (adding the egg and coconut oil too closely together may cause the egg to cook in the hot oil).
In a separate bowl, combine the remaining dry ingredients (except for the 1 tbs. of chocolate chips for melting), and then slowly mix the dry ingredients into the wet.
Pour batter into a greased loaf pan.*
Melt the remaining chocolate chips, pour onto the batter, and swirl with a fork. Sprinkle the top lightly with sea salt, and bake for about 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Notes
*I recommend using coconut oil spray, which I swear by for baking, roasting, and sauteeing! So flavorful, and so much better for you than most non-stick sprays.
This recipe is one that I’m kinda sorta maybe really proud of, because it’s freaking DELICIOUS, and also super easy to make. Over my spring break, I first made this for my family to put over baked stuffed shells. The sauce was so tasty that I was using the shells that fell apart mid-boil to dip into the leftover sauce while the final product was baking.* My family also loved the sauce, which was very encouraging since they’re always the first to be honest about how my food actually tastes.
I’ve also noticed that it’s incredibly difficult to find a decent tomato sauce in the grocery store that’s also made without refined sugar. I found a pretty good all-natural pizza sauce once, but in general, none have lived up to my expectations. If you’re anything like me, you would much rather take the time to make something from scratch and be sure that it will turn out exactly how you want it. Thus, this tomato sauce was born. Plus, this is a fairly simple recipe and it makes 6 heaping cups of rich, sweet, flavorful tomato sauce, and probably costs less in total than it would to buy the same amount jarred. My version does contain 2-4 oz. dry red wine, (plus about 4 oz. to drink while cooking 😉 ) but you could easily omit that if you prefer not to cook with alcohol.
I collected inspiration from a few different recipes, but in the end tried to keep the ingredient list as small as possible. This was mostly so that I could have a go-to recipe that was both inexpensive and easy to make. The one recommendation I would make is that you buy crushed tomatoes WITHOUT basil for the sauce. For whatever reason, I just don’t think that tomatoes that have been canned with basil taste as good, and they have sort of a metallic aftertaste to me. Plus, when they’re available, using fresh herbs is always best anyway. The photo above features purple basil, which is the only thing I could find fresh in my grocery store, but it worked just as well. I used canned tomatoes to save time because I’m a college student with things to do (and because San Marzano tomatoes are amazzzzzzing), so if you’re a purist, unfortunately I can’t really help you. Tharry.
28 oz. can crushed San Marzano tomatoes (without basil)
2–4 oz. dry red wine
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
In a medium saucepan, warm the olive oil and garlic on medium heat, distributing the garlic occasionally.
Add the onion and red bell pepper and cover, stirring occasionally until very soft.
Add the red wine and stir. Once wine has cooked off (evaporated), add the crushed tomatoes and basil, and stir. When the mixture starts to bubble, lower heat and let simmer for 10-15 minutes.
Transfer ingredients to a blender (or use an immersion blender) and purée until smooth or at your desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste.
There are some concepts in this world that are simply genius. For example, the other day, I dubbed February 14th “Violin-tines Day.” This was not because I think that Valentine’s Day is essentially pointless, and that we don’t need a holiday to celebrate our loved ones. It also was not because I’m eternally single on Valentine’s Day. Well, maybe that was part of it. But seriously, it was because violins are awesome and the word play was crazy good. And thus was born my genius idea of the week.
I wish I could take credit for this week’s recipe idea, because it’s also truly genius. I don’t know exactly who originally invented the “cornbread quiche,” but I first discovered the combination on Imma Eat That, and have been drooling over the idea since. Upon Googling, I found other cornbread quiches as well, so my attempt is now sadly past the point of “groundbreaking.” But, I attempted to be original, my first attempt came out very well, and I ate so much of it at Sunday brunch that I thought I might literally become groundbreaking, so I guess that’s something.
Also, you know who else is a genius? Johann Sebastian Bach. Before you roll your eyes and give me a huge “DUH,” I listened to Bach cantatas while making this quiche, which I’m 99% sure is why it turned out so well. Just thought that was worth mentioning…
Combine cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In a separate bowl, whisk together egg, almond milk, and honey.
Combine the wet and dry ingredients, then stir in the melted coconut oil (this will avoid cooking the egg with the hot oil).
Pour batter into a greased, deep oven safe pan or dish – the pan should be big enough that the batter forms a thin layer at the bottom. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the mixture is just set, and remove from oven.
Quiche
Whisk eggs, egg whites, and almond milk, then add in cheddar and set aside.
In a pan, sauté chopped onion with garlic and a small amount of oil.
Set onions aside, then sauté the spinach in a separate pan and cover until slightly wilted, making sure to drain any excess water. Once spinach and onions have cooled, add them and the chopped tomato to egg mixture.
Season with salt and pepper, then pour on top of the cornbread crust. Return to oven, and continue to bake for about 25 minutes, or until the egg mixture is solid throughout. If the center jiggles when you move the pan, it’s not done. I baked the quiche for about 15 minutes with aluminum foil on top, and then removed the foil for the last 10 minutes.
I’m back! It feels so nice to return to posting after several weeks of “hiatus” and a few days of remodeling the site. Although I’ve stayed up-to-date on social media, I know I’ve been completely neglecting my blog, and that makes me sad. Especially since I keep excitedly hashtagging “#ontheblog soon” on Instagram, and then not actually following through. Isn’t that abysmal? Maybe you’ll forgive me, since preparing for graduate auditions, practicing for my senior recital, and attempting to play violin in general have taken up all of my time over the past few months. Which is weird, since I still can’t play violin. I’ll keep trying though, and maybe one day I’ll understand how this thing I’ve been doing for 17 years actually works. Maybe. I did start a practice journal, which for the past…. three days (haha) has proven itself to be pretty efficient so far. Planning out my weekly/daily practice goals and logging my progress has already helped me to approach my music from a fresh angle. Yesterday didn’t go as well, but I kind of sealed my fate when I attempted to practice solo rep after playing orchestra music for five hours. (Stupid…)
In other news, I just applied to graduate, which is strange, since I SWEAR I just got to college. Before I know it, I’ll have to be making mundane adult decisions, like whether “eggshell” or “tropical sand” is a better paint color for the cardboard box I’m living in master bedroom. I’m not quite there yet, so over winter break when I wasn’t obsessing over the future, practicing, or resisting the allure of Netflix, I was developing recipes like crazy. Some of the recipes were amazing, and some were… not. I made this granola for family and friends as a holiday gift, so I had several rounds of baking to perfect it. It didn’t really take many tries, since the first round was pretty great, but needless to say, this recipe has joined the ranks as “amazing,” and I will definitely be making my own granola from now on! I always like to make my own foods whenever possible and avoid store bought products, since it’s healthier (and often times, cheaper) to be in control of what goes into your food.
This recipe contains all “real” ingredients, and can be modified to fit your dietary needs/wishes. You can customize granola easily, and I admittedly had a little help from Buzzfeed when I made the first batch. Their article really helped give me a good idea about proportions, but I was able to tweak a couple things here and there until the final product was perfectly crisp, crunchy, nutty, sweet, and crackly. I hope you enjoy this granola as I much as I do (I literally had some in a cup of Chobani while typing this… I can’t stay away)!
Unsweetened dried cranberries (optional after baking)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 300˚F.
In a large bowl, mix oats, chopped pecans, unsweetened coconut, cinnamon, cardamom, and salt.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, vanilla, and egg whites, and then stir into the oat mixture.
Melt your coconut oil, and then add it to the oat mixture after maple/vanilla/egg (this helps to avoid the coconut oil solidifying in the cold egg/the egg cooking in the hot coconut oil).
Once all of your ingredients are together, pour them into a tray that’s lined with parchment paper. Using clean hands or a spatula, spread and flatten the mixture.
Bake for 45 minutes, or until the mixture becomes golden brown at the edges and you start salivating from granola fumes. At that point, I like to break my granola up into little chunks with a spatula, mix, and return it to the oven to continue toasting for a bit, maybe 5-10 minutes, until all of the little bits are golden brown.
Remove from oven, and mix in dried cranberries if desired.
This cornbread is adapted from a recipe by Paula Deen, but does not contain butter, refined sugar, or milk products of any kind. It is, however, incredibly delicious and moist. (Note: I hate the word moist, but I can’t think of any other word to accurately describe this bread’s moistness.) It also goes absolutely perfectly with my Pumpkin Kale Turkey Chili.
In a separate bowl, beat eggs, maple syrup, and almond milk. Gradually stir the dry ingredients into the egg mixture and mix well.
Once fully combined, add melted coconut oil and stir. It’s okay if the resulting batter is somewhat lumpy.
Add the dates, stir, and pour the batter into a greased baking dish. Bake for about 20-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Notes
Mine took about a half hour because I used a deeper, narrower baking dish. In the last 5-10 minutes of baking, I put foil over the dish to keep the heat from escaping.
