Almond Flour Banana Bread with Walnuts and Raisins (香蕉核桃葡萄干面包)

In my previous post, Scallion Pork Sung Roll, I talked about my quest and experiments with low-carb bakery items and desserts. I have been experimenting due to both nutritional and personal health concerns. So today’s recipe, Almond Flour Banana Bread with Walnuts and Raisins is another low-carb bakery item that I have been making quite often. At least for me, it barely raises my blood sugar and does not cause me any sugar spike.

Bananas ripens quickly at room temperature. I often have overripe bananas sitting in my fruit tray that are too soft for everyone’s taste. But overripe bananas make wonderful banana bread. In fact, the more ripe the bananas become, the sweeter the bread. Raisins also add natural sweetness. So I don’t need to add any sugar or sugar alternatives to this recipe. Almond flour is low-carb and also has a mildly sweet taste. The resulting Banana Bread with Walnuts and Raisins is soft, sweet, moist, and nutty. I cannot tell the difference between this one, made with almond flour, and its wheat-flour counterpart.

If you want even less carbs or less sweetness, just skip the raisins. Our family eats this bread either during breakfast or as an afternoon snack. It goes really well with coffee, tea, or milk. Another nice thing about this recipe is that it does not have to be strictly measured to have the intended result like some other bakery items. So feel free to experiment according to your own preferences.

Tools: Loaf Pan (9×5 inch or 8.5 x 3.5 inch)

Gluten Free, Low Carb

Preparation Time:  15 minutes

Total Time:  2 hours (including at least 1 hour cooling time)

Servings: 10 to 12 slices

Ingredients:

• 3 large or 4 medium very ripe bananas ¹
• 3 large eggs
• 2 cups blanched almond flour ²
• 1 cup raw walnuts ³
• 1/4 cup loosely packed raisins ⁴
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt ⁵

Preparation:

1. Immerse the 1/4 cup of loosely packed raisins in tap water. Chop the 1 cup of raw walnuts into small pieces.

2. Preheat oven to 350 °F.

3. While waiting for oven to preheat, prepare the batter. In a large mixing bowl, mash up the ripe bananas with a whisk or fork until completely smooth; like a soft mush. Beat the 3 large eggs into the mashed bananas along with 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract until fully incorporated.

4. Sieve the 2 cups of almond flour into a separate mixing bowl. Add the 1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda to the almond flour, mixing evenly.

5. Add the almond flour mixture to the banana egg mixture until fully incorporated. Drain the raisins. Add the raisin and chopped raw walnuts to the batter, mixing evenly.

6. Cut a long rectangular piece of parchment paper and line the long side of the loaf pan with the parchment paper. The paper should hang outside the pan on the long side. Butter or spray the other two sides of the loaf pan with oil. Use a spatula to slowly pour in all the batter. Tap a few times on the counter when done.

7. Put the loaf pan with the banana bread batter in the middle of the oven for 40-45 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the bread. Remove from the oven and leave on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Then take the bread loaf from the loaf pan and let it cool completely to firm up (about 1 or 2 hours).

8. Chop the banana bread into 10 to 12 pieces and serve. Use plastic wrap to store extra pieces on the counter for up to 2 days or in a refrigerator for up to a week.

Bon Appétit

Notes:

1. Use ripe or overripe bananas (not spoiled bananas that have gone bad) for this recipe.

2. Make sure you get the blanched almond flour, not almond meal.

3. Other nuts work well for this recipe too. I’ve tried pecans and hazelnuts.

4. Raisins add more natural sweetness to the recipe. But if you want even less carbs and less sweet taste, by all mean, skip the raisins. You can also replace raisins with 2 tablespoons of honey or sugar.

5. If your kosher salt is coarse, it’s best to grind it into finer crystals with a mortar and pestle.

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