Will Run For Cherry, Banana, Coconut Butter Bread

Enter, bait:

Cherry, Banana, Coconut Butter Bread.

Now we’re talking.

I think I should add FOOD to my list of inspiring workout tips. Some days, it’s just about the food, isn’t it?

Today you could slice the air with a knife. We get all kinds of sickening humidity in Southern Ontario. However, I say, when life gives you brown bananas, make banana bread.

I had a scheduled long run planned for today and as the clocked ticked it got hot, hot, hot. Morning workouts are really hard for me now because I am in the bakery around 6:30am and I am rushing to get out orders by noon. Getting up before 6 is not really an option since I am up until around 11pm most nights, so most of my workouts have been over lunchtime or in the evening! This makes for some sticky workouts in the summer I am finding.

As I went on my run tonight, this cooked in the oven…while I cooked outside.

Visions of sugarplums cherries danced in my head.

Some days, food just equals motivation. Wait, make that all days. VOO parfaits are what get me up in the morning!

The run:

• Distance: 3.5 miles
• Time: 30:06
• Avg Pace: 8:35 min/mile
• Avg heart rate: 161 bpm
• Max Heart rate: 178 bpm

Mile Splits:

• Mile 1: 8:48
• Mile 2: 5:20
• Mile 3: 9:01
• Mile 3-3.5: 4:01 (GET HOME TO BANANA BREAD!)

PS- Mile 2 is a joke! I am just checking if you are reading this and not glazed over at the eyes in a heaping puddle of drool right now. :tongue: Mile 2 was actually 8:14!

I also have to ask you, Does it count as a long run if the run FELT really long?  I say yes!!!!

All that mattered was this…

I was pretty much the happiest girl alive during the moment this bread touched my lips.

Not only is this bread everything I hoped it would be, but it was also the perfect post run snack and it didn’t need any Earth Balance spread. It was moist and dense but not overwhelmingly sweet.

Summertime Cherry, Banana, Coconut Butter Bread

I wanted to make a tropical and moist healthy vegan banana bread that would be perfect for summer. I adapted this recipe from my Tropical Balmy Bliss Spelt Muffins. If you are a fan of dense sweet breads you will love this recipe. This is not a light and fluffy bread!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup + 3/4 cup of whole grain spelt flour
• 1.5 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder (I use aluminum-free)
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon + 1/4 tsp ground ginger + 1/4 tsp nutmeg OR 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tbsp Chia seeds
• 4 small bananas or 3.5 medium ones
• 2 tbsp coconut butter (Warmed slightly)
• 3 tbsp sunflower oil
• 1/2 cup pure Canadian maple syrup (I use Medium/#2 grade)
• 6-8 Cherries, pitted and chopped, for garnish
• unsweetened coconut, for garnish

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350F. Take the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, baking powder, sea salt, spices, chia seeds) and whisk in a large bowl. In a small cup, place 2 tbsp of coconut butter in the microwave for just 10-15 seconds to warm. In a medium sized bowl, add the wet ingredients (banana, coconut butter, maple syrup, sunflower oil), reserving 1 small banana or 1/2 a medium banana for later, and mix very well, making sure to break up the clumps of coconut butter. Now take the banana you set aside and chop into 1 inch chunks. Stir into the wet ingredients. Now add the wet to the dry ingredients and stir until the flour is incorporated. Try not to overmix as spelt flour can become tough with too much mixing. Pour the batter into a pre-greased loaf pan. Take your pitted and chopped cherries and add them on top. Sprinkle with shredded coconut. Bake for approx. 45 minutes or until golden brown. Note: My loaf fell a bit in the centre and wasn’t cooked in the centre, so next time I might cook it longer at a lower temp (perhaps 325F for 60-70 minutes). Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 15 minutes before serving.

Possible substitution ideas:

• Sub Extra Virgin Olive Oil for Sunflower Oil
• Sub whole wheat or white flour for spelt flour
• Sub ground flax for chia seeds
• You could also add in pecans or walnuts! I made it without, but they would add a nice crunch!

I think the coconut butter was the WOW factor in this bread. While the bread did not have a distinct coconut flavour, it was moist, buttery, and luxurious! I am in LOVE! :heart:

I will be making this again and again and again. Possibly for the market on Saturday!?

So what did the man of the house have to say?

“I think this is the best sweet bread you have ever made, but I’m not positive I remember all of them.”

Can you handle him?

He also said, “If you ever made a banana bread with chocolate chips then that was probably my favourite, but if not, then this is my favourite.”

He kills me, he really kills me.

In conclusion: Make this bread. Stuff your face with a slice of it after a very hard, sweaty run. If you love moist, delicious, dense, and super healthy sweet bread you will love this summertime snack!

Tonight’s question: Does food ever inspire you during a workout? What food could inspire you to workout on those days when nothing else could?

Have a great night! I’m off to go freeze half of this loaf before I eat it all. :biggrin: