Better banana bread

I was going to wait until next Monday, and my next "healthier eating" post, to write about this, but I'm so excited about it that I couldn't wait that long.  I made banana bread on Monday and it wasn't gooey in the middle and burnt on the edges!  Hurray!!!  I think this is a first. :)

So what did I do differently?  I covered the pan with tin foil for the last 15 minutes of baking.  And it turned out beautifully!   Annika has been gobbling it up for breakfast.  I did a different recipe this time, to make it a bit healthier, and I'm really pleased with how it turned out.  It still tastes delicious, though, because of course, I couldn't leave out the chocolate chips.  Banana bread just seems naked without them. ;)  Anyways, here's the recipe I used (it's from the blog The Balanced Plate):

Banana Bread

Ingredients:

1/4 cup Applesauce, unsweetenend
1/4 cup Canola oil
1/2 cup packed (3.75 ounces) Brown sugar, light or dark
3/4 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt     
1/2 tsp Cinnamon, ground
1/4 tsp Nutmeg, ground
1 tsp Vanilla extract
Bananas, very ripe, mashed 1 and 1/2 cups (about 3 medium) - I used 2 large and it turned out fine
1/4 cup Honey     
2 Eggs, large
1 and 1/2 cups (6 ounces) Flour, Whole Wheat - I did half and half with whole wheat flour and regular white flour
1/2 cup Wheat germ, ground flakes
1/2 cup (2 ounces) Walnuts, chopped, toasted - I did chocolate chips instead

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, spray a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with non-stick spray.
2. Combine all ingredients up to the whole wheat flour in a large mixing bowl.
3. Whisk swiftly with a fork until all ingredients are well-combined and honey is not sticking to the bottom of bowl.
4. In seperate bowl combine the flour and wheat germ.
5. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour the banana mixture into it.
6. Using a spoon stir the ingredients together (do not beat or over mix!) Stop when there are no more dry spots of flour. Mixture will be lumpy.
7. Gently fold in the nuts (or chocolate chips!).
8. Pour mixture into prepared loaf pan and put in oven.
9. Bake for 50 minutes.
10. Lay a piece of foil loosely across top of loaf pan and bake an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center of bread comes out clean.
11. Remove from oven and allow to sit in pan for 10 minutes.
12. Turn bread out onto cooling rack and cool completely before slicing – at least one hour!! This ensures that all the moisture and flavor is fully absorbed by the bread.

Mmm, mmm good!