When it's made with generous amounts of butter or oil, refined white sugar and full-fat sour cream, banana bread is far from the healthiest breakfast or snack choice. However, the inherent sweetness of ripe bananas and the flexibility of quick bread recipes allow for plenty of variation, and it's possible to whip up a loaf that offers lots of nutritional benefits while remaining low in calories.
Ingredients
The highest-calorie ingredients in banana bread typically play chemical roles that enhance the flavor and texture of each finished loaf, so dramatically reducing them or replacing them entirely with lower-calorie substitutes doesn't always work. For example, "Cookwise" author Shirley Corriher remarks that sugar caramelizes and tenderizes baked goods. Butter contributes to a light texture, eggs emulsify the batter and all three ingredients enrich flavor. With banana bread, it's possible to reduce the sugar and butter in some recipes because the mashed bananas add both moisture and sweetness to the batter.
Recipe
To make one loaf of banana bread with a total of 16 servings, you'll need 1 cup of brown sugar, 1/4 cup of "light" softened butter, three mashed bananas, 1/4 cup of skim milk, 1/4 cup of low-fat or fat-free sour cream, two egg whites, 2 cups of flour, 1 tsp. of baking soda, 1/2 tsp. of salt and cooking spray to coat the baking pan. Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, and then mix in the mashed bananas, milk, sour cream and egg whites. In another bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt, and add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees F. for about an hour or until the edges of the loaf are golden brown. According to "Cooking Light" magazine, each slice of the banana bread has fewer than 150 calories and just 2 g of fat.
Alternatives
Banana bread made with all-purpose flour creates a fluffy, high-rising loaf, but whole grain flour packs more nutrition. If you want to increase the fiber, protein and complex carb count of your loaf, replace up to half the white flour with whole wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour. You can also add small amounts of ingredients such as ground flaxseed, wheat germ or oat bran to the batter. To reduce fat and calories in a banana bread recipe that isn't already light, BettyCrocker.com suggests replacing up to half the butter or oil with nonfat yogurt, applesauce or fruit puree.
Considerations
Keep in mind that serving size also plays a role in the nutritional profile of your bread. If you make a loaf that is supposed to have 16 servings but you cut it into only eight hunks, for example, you'll be downing twice the calories or more with every piece, especially if you spread your bread with butter or sugary jam. No matter how healthy the dessert, you can keep calorie count in check by serving just a small amount and balancing it with other nutritious foods.
Member Comments