More to the point, I’m cooking. I’ve already told you about Saturday’s roasted butternut squash soup and yesterday’s baked applesauce. You’d think those would have been enough to satisfy the need to not let great produce go to waste. Not quite. Apparently, this also triggered a need to keep cooking. I had five bananas going brown and then a friend at Tai Chi gave me some more from his tree. I already have some bananas cut and frozen for smoothies in my freezer and was truly worried that the ones on the counter would be wasted.
Undaunted, I turned to the web and did a search for healthy banana bread recipes. I found several which included less than a cup of sugar and not much fat because each included a third of a cup of plain, low fat yogurt. The recipe that really caught my eye also included a third of a cup of creamy peanut butter and two tablespoons of chopped peanuts.
I had to debate myself, weighing the protein benefits of peanut butter and peanuts with the extra fat. Nuts are good fats, I argued. Plus, the leftover yogurt I had wasn’t low fat, it was no fat. The only bad fat in the recipe came via two measly tablespoons of melted butter.
Guess who won the debate? The peanut butter-loving me.
You might ask, what the hell am I doing baking banana bread of any kind when I’m following a low carb diet? Why am I creating this kind of temptation when I’m doing so well?
Damned if I know. Perhaps I’m testing my own resolve and proving to myself that I can, indeed, eat even a freshly-made yummy baked treat like a “normal” person.
Maybe I just want a piece of banana bread.
I didn’t have a full size loaf pan, so I split the batter into two smaller, one-use aluminum loaf pans. If the finished product tastes good, I will immediately take one of the loaves into work. That halves the problem right off the bat.
I am also making a commitment to myself, stating it publicly here, that I will not compulsively overeat the remaining banana bread. I will eat a healthy, food plan-appropriate dinner. Then, a couple of hours later I will treat myself to one small slice of banana bread. I will eat it slowly, enjoying each bite. When I finish the slice, that’s it. No going back for seconds an hour later just because room opens up in my stomach and the bread is in the house.
If, at any time, I feel myself getting out of control and compulsively reaching for little extra bites here and there, I will pour dishwashing liquid over the remaining bread, take the pan out of my house, and throw it into the trash can.
That’s my promise and I’m sticking to it!
Weighty Matters 
P.S. Everyone —
I’ve been able to stick to my resolve and not overeat banana bread! I also came home and did 45 minutes of Zumba Dance on the Wii after the regular Tues evening class was cancelled.
I keep wanting to make banana bread, but my husband keeps throwing out our over-ripe bananas! :p
The over-ripe ones are the best for breads.
This recipe is a keeper. I took the second loaf into work to treat my co-workers and get opinions. Only one person didn’t like the addition of the peanut butter. Everyone else liked the bread. I also gave out tastes of the roasted butternut squash soup, too, and it also got great reviews!
Oh. Well. If I could read other comments on my phone before commenting it might save me the trouble of typing on that tiny keyboard! 😉
But then I’d be deprived of the pleasure of your comments!
Cut the loaf into nice slices, possibly even cutting the slices in half (I can’t see how big the pan is from here) and freeze them. Then when you want a slice you have to go through the trouble of getting it out and defrosting it.
That’s what I was about to suggest, Forest Jane. I do that when once in a while I want baked goods. I’ll buy something at Trader Joe’s and put it in individual serving sizes in ziploc freezer bags and I’m good to go. If I’m impatient about the defrosting I’ll pop it onto paper towel and into the microwave for 15 seconds. Lovely when warmed. : )
Your recipe, BTW, sounds delish.
Hmm… bananas, yogurt, peanut butter… would the bread freeze well itself? If it does, freezing some (half a thin slice in one of those small snack-size baggies) might be a good way to make it an easily portable good-for-you treat. And I’ve found that having something frozen makes it easier to resist.
Or a doggie treat, if you find it too hard to resist. I know you have to avoid onions and chocolate, etc. but other than that, do you feed your dogs people food?
Hmm. I think I’m going to freeze half of the loaf right now. Thanks for the great suggestion.
No, this isn’t something I would feed to the dogs. I don’t give them a lot of people food.