v:gourmet

It’s Easter and Easter screams chocolate and baking and special treats. This is Bekah’s almost vegan chocolate chip banana bread, that she got from Food52 who got it from fiveandspice. It’s super tasty and is almost vegan. More macrobiotic which, depending on who you listen to, allows eggs once/month. I figure Easter is as good a time a month as any to make that egg exception. So cut me a slice and bring it on. And let’s toast spring, new beginnings, rebirth, and daughters who bake really well. I know what I’ll be saying thanks for today

3 very ripe bananas, mashed well

1 large egg, at room temperature (the temp here is important because a cold egg will congeal the oil/butter

2 tablespoons sour cream (or rice / soy yogurt)

2 ounces shot of espresso (or absurdly strong coffee)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon instant espresso granules

1/3 cup melted coconut oil

3/4 cups granulated sugar

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (whole wheat pastry flour would also work well)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon sea salt

Heat your oven to 350°F and grease a 9X5-inch loaf pan. In a medium-large mixing bowl, stir the mashed bananas together with the egg, sour cream, espresso, and vanilla extract, until everything is well combined. Stir in the instant espresso granules.

Next, stir in the melted oil until it is completely incorporated. Follow this by stirring in the sugar until everything is well mixed.

In a small bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Dump this mixture into the wet ingredients and stir just until there are no dry streaks left. The batter will still be lumpy. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake in the oven until a tester inserted into the loaf comes out clean, about one hour.

Remove from the oven, allow to cool in the loaf pan for 10 to 15 minutes, then gently run a knife around the edge of the bread and turn it out of the pan. Finish cooling the bread on a cooling rack.