Nutty, creamy, and moist this Almond Butter Bread tastes delicious! It is the perfect weekend breakfast snack to eat with your coffee.
What makes this banana bread different?
There is almond butter mixed into the batter which pairs well with those bananas and whole wheat flour. The almond butter brings out this smooth creamy and yet extra nutty flavor in the banana bread. Eating this banana bread is like having a slice of bread with almond butter but better. To get an even more nutty flavor there is almond butter and sugar mixture swirled on top of the bread. AND there are chopped almonds mixed throughout. This banana bread is different than the traditional banana bread and it tastes even better! It is filled with a lot of nutty flavors which I love and has a nice crunch in every bite from the nuts.
The story behind this creation...
I always have bananas leftover from the week and I often make classic banana bread with mashed-up bananas and a pinch of cinnamon. Bananas can make any baked good soft, and moist and creates this perfect consistency in a slice of bread. I love banana bread because it is a great go-to snack and it tastes DELICIOUS! I normally will take my bananas that are leftover and whip up a quick bread sometimes I add peanut butter or chocolate chips to add more flavor. I don't keep almond butter in my cabinet but I accidentally bought almond butter this week. I wanted to try something different so I thought I would add almond butter to my banana bread batter. I recently got the book Dessert People by Claire Saffitz and found the perfect recipe to try out. If you love banana bread and you love almond butter you have to try out this recipe. It is so so so GOOD!
A few tips to success:
Bananas - use extra ripe bananas because the super ripe bananas bring out the banana flavor. I used 2 bananas but you can add more bananas if you prefer. I don't like my bread with chunky bananas so I mash mine up to a smooth consistency with a fork but you can make it as chunky or smooth as you prefer.
Almond butter - I bought a natural smooth almond butter that has less sugar because this recipe adds a lot of sugar to the bread. If your almond butter has a lot of sugar in it you can add less sugar to the bread. You don't need chunky almond butter because you can add crushed almonds to get chunks.
Almond butter swirl - this creates an extra crispy top of the bread that I enjoy eating. You can also see the swirls after baking which gives off a nice look. You can skip this step.
Mix-ins - you can add any mix-in you want that will pair well with almonds. My go-to favorite is chocolate chips to make this an extra sweet treat.
Storage - this bread will last 3-4 days wrapped in plastic wrap and in an air-tight container. I prefer to eat my bread within 3 days of baking because that is when it is extra moist.
Spices - I love cardamon and cinnamon together. They pair well and bring out an extra kick in this banana bread. You can even add more spices like cloves or ginger. I love adding spices to most of my baked goods because it gives off a subtle taste of sweet goodness!
Almond Butter Banana Bread
Serving size: 1 loaf
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Source: Adapted from Dessert Person cookbook by Claire Saffitz
1/3 cup almond butter
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 eggs
2 ripe bananas, mashed (1 cup)
1/3 cup greek yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup almonds, chopped
Almond butter swirl:
3 tablespoons almond butter
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a loaf pan or use parchment paper.
Step 2: Make the almond butter swirl by stirring together the almond butter, sugar, and vegetable oil. Set aside.
Step 3: In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar until combined. Add in the mash bananas greek yogurt, and vanilla. Whisk in the vegetable oil and almond butter until smooth.
Step 4: Fold in the flour, salt, cardamom, baking soda, and baking powder until combined. add in chopped almonds, if using.
Step 5: Add batter into loaf pan and smooth out the batter. Add on top the almond butter mixture and swirl with a knife into the batter. Bake for 50-60 minutes until bread is cooked. Use a fork or toothpick to insert into the cake and when it comes out smooth the bread is ready. Slice and enjoy warm!
Comments