BANANA-BLUEBERRY OATMEAL BREAD
(Source: A Little Maine Cookbook, Barbara Karoff, Chronicle Books, 1995)

I've tweaked this recipe a bit and now prefer it's rough healthiness to the heavier and richer conventional banana bread. My twin 4 yr-old nephews love it. I first made it for them with dried cranberries (instead of blueberries) and watched in dismay as they picked them out. But they ate all the bread, so I now make it for them without the "pits", as they called the berries. I prefer it with the cranberries as they add some sweetness and tang to the not-so-sweet bread, and it's also good with chocolate chips! The original version is what is found in the book and the revised proportions are mine (see Notes below).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 
                           ORIGINAL         REVISED         REVISED
                                           (1 loaf)        (2 loaves)
whole wheat flour              1 c         1-1/3 c          2-2/3 c
all-purpose flour            1/2 c           3/4 c          1-1/2 c
quick cooking rolled oats    3/4 c             1 c              2 c
sugar                        2/3 c             1 c              2 c
baking powder                 2 tsp           3 tsp             2 T
salt                        1/4 tsp         1/2 tsp           1 tsp
blueberries (or cranberries)   1 c          1-1/3 c             2 c
  -OR- chocolate mini-chips   ---            3 oz              6 oz

vegetable oil                1/3 c           1/2 c              1 c
eggs, lightly beaten            2               3                6
bananas                         2               3                4
In a large bowl, combine flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, and oats. In another bowl, combine oil, eggs, and mashed bananas. (Better yet- place these ingredients, including banana chunks, in the blender!) Add to dry ingredients. Stir in berries and spoon into loaf pan (9 x 5 x 3"). Bake at 350F for 40-50 min or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10 min in pan and remove to rack to cool completely. (For easier slicing wrap in foil after cooling and refrigerate for several hours).

NOTES: If you look at the original recipe, you have 1-1/2 c flour, total with some bananas, in a loaf pan. This barely filled half of the pan after baking. Furthermore, the instructions said to bake for an hour! I checked it after 50 min and it was most certainly done, and probably should have been taken out even sooner as I thought it was dry. I rarely find a recipe where I wonder if the author has tested it, but I did in this case.

Updated: May 6, 1996
Comments or questions? Write to me at suemaster@interport.net... (NOTE: remove "master" from the address)

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