Banana Bread Brownies

 

I kept seeing a Banana Bread Brownies recipe on Pinterest and even pinned it myself. What a clever idea, I thought, especially for those of us who don't care for chocolate all that much or often.  Banana bread brownies...something about it just sounds right.

And it is.  So right.

Baked in a large jelly roll pan, the brownies make 35 pieces and come out to be little squares of OMG delciousness. 

I looked at the recipe I had pinned, one that had been adapted from another recipe, and looked at the original as well. Then I changed a bunch of stuff, not because anything was "wrong" with the original recipes, but because I've been trying to eat a little cleaner by add more whole grains to our diet, change out sour cream for Greek yogurt, use honey instead of refined sugar, etc., and I know from experience with banana bread that it's a great vehicle for whole grained flour.  Banana bread made with half whole wheat is actually tastier, in my opinion, than banana bread made with all all-purpose flour (and Gene can't tell the difference). 

These are truly not to be missed!

Glenna's Brownie Bread Brownies with Cardamom Glosting (a cross between glaze and frosting)

Recipe by Glenna Anderson Muse

Adapted from the Banana Bread Brownie recipes pinned to Pinterest boards

Wet Ingredients:

• 2 cups ripe bananas, mashed (approx 4-5 bnanas)
• 2 eggs
• 1 5-6 oz container Vanilla Greek Yogurt
• 1 cup honey
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

 

Dry Ingredients

• 2 cups 50/50 flour (half whole wheat/half unbleached white)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt

Optional:  1 cup walnut pieces to stirred into batter at the very end or sprinkled on top of the glosted brownies.

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees and prepare a 15"x10" (mine actually measures 17"x12" and worked fine)  rimmed jelly roll pan

1.  Sift dry ingredients together in a medium bowl and set aside.

2.  In large bowl, with mixer, cream banana and honey until smooth.  Add yogurt and eggs and mix until light and fluffy.  Mix in vanilla.

3.  In 2-3 batches, mix in dry ingredient mixture, beating until each addition is smooth.  Mix for 30-60 seconds after everything is mixed in.

4.  Pour into prepared pan and bake for 20 minutes or until lightly browned or finger touched to center of brownies feels firm cake structure. Do not overbake.

While cake is in oven, make topping.

 

Glenna's Cardamom Glosting (a cross between glaze and frosting)

Ingredients:

• 1 stick butter
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp cardamom
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1) Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat.  Add extract, cardamom, and powdered sugar.  Whisk to smooth.  Take off heat and set aside to cool slightly.

2)  Allow cake to cook for 10 minutes before pouring topping over.  Topping should be thicker than glaze but thinner and smoother than frosting (more the consistency of chocolate ganache).  If glosting is too thin, add more sugar, if too thick, add a Tbsp of milk and whisk until corrected.

3) Pour over still slightly warm cake and spread out evenly with spatula.

Makes 35 brownies.

Nutrition per brownie:  Calories:   133       Protein:    2      Carbs:    26     Fat:      3    Fiber:   2    Weight Watchers Points:     4

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