Healthy Banana Bread with Dates
This bread is deliciously moist and deeply flavorful. The cardamom is a complementary addition to the banana, coconut, and dates. I highly recommend toasting this cake and eating it with a generous smear of butter and a pinch of flaky salt. This recipe was adapted from Yotam Ottolenghi and Helen Goh’s Banana, Date, and Walnut Loaf. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 1/2 c toasted pecans, roughly chopped
- 7 oz Medjool dates, pitted, chopped into 1-2-3/4’’ pieces (28 dates)
- 3/4 c brown sugar
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
- 3/4 c water
- 3/4 c unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted
- 1 1/2 c + 2 Tbsp flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 Tbsp cardamom
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 2 ripe bananas, mashed (1 cup)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Additional butter and salt for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- To toast coconut, place in a large, dry skillet over medium-low heat. Stir frequently, making sure the flakes don’t burn—the color should be a light brown and the coconut will be fragrant when its done—3-6 minutes. Set aside and allow to cool.
- In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the dates, brown sugar, butter, and water. Mix until sugar dissolves and butter melts. Bring liquid to a boil, then immediately remove from the heat and transfer to a shallow bowl. Stir in toasted coconut, and set aside to cool to room temperature.
- In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cardamom, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Grease a 9x5 loaf pan with butter, then line with parchment—allow the paper to hang a few inches over the edge.
- Once the date and coconut mixture has cooled, add the baking soda, egg, banana, and vanilla; mix to combine. Finally, add the sifted flour mixture and stir until just combined—the batter will be thick; do not over-mix.
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan, it should reach about 2/3 the way up the sides. Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
- When the loaf is done, allow it to cool slightly before removing it from the pan and cooling it on a rack.