Banana Bread (healthified)

When I got home home from the gym last night I immediately started putting dinner together. I marinated 2 chicken breasts (each cut in half to make 4 thin breasts) in a balsamic, lemon and basil marinade. My plan was to make chicken and steamed broccoli...until I opened the veggie drawer and saw kale. Then I decided on baked chicken, steamed broccoli and steamed kale. Just as I was putting the chicken in the oven Doug asked if I was making a starch. He's trying to put on some weight and asked that I add that into the mix. This was the perfect opportunity for me to try my new Quinoa pasta! I made the baby shells in a big pot and steamed the broccoli and kale over top of it. Once everything was done I decided it'd be easiest to dice up the chicken and toss it, along with the veggies, with the pasta and some pesto sauce. Mmm Mmmm Mmmm. It was delicious! I'm glad my eyes were bigger than my stomach because I have leftovers for lunch this week!

While I was waiting for the chicken to bake I read through some recipes I'd been saving in my email. A recipe for Pumpkin Banana Loaf with Chickpeas from the Peanut Butter Fingers blog I subscribe to peaked my interest and I decided to give it a try. I modified her recipe a little bit (I used Stevia instead of sugar, agave nectar instead of honey and egg whites instead of egg) and it turned out wonderfully.  In retrospect I could have added nuts or cranberries to the mix for some added texture and flavor. I'll have to remember that next time.

The loaf came out super moist and very flavorful. You can't even tell it's a "healthified" version! Below is the recipe I used. The original can be found on the Peanut Butter Fingers Blog.

Pumpkin Banana Loaf with (Undetectable) Chickpeas

• Makes 1 loaf
• Cook time: 65 – 75 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/4 cup agave nectar
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup white flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 3/4 cup stevia
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2) butter, softened
• 2 egg whites
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup canned pumpkin 
• 1 large banana, mashed

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place chickpeas and agave nectar in a food processor and pulse until relatively smooth. Set aside.
3. In a small bowl, combine whole wheat flour, white flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
4. Mix stevia and butter with a mixer until combined. Add egg whites slowly. Add vanilla extract.
5. Add chickpea mixture, pumpkin and banana to stevia mixture.
6. Slowly add flour mixture to stevia mixture until batter is combined.
7. Slowly pour batter into a loaf pan sprayed with cooking spray and bake for approximately 65 – 75 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.
8. Allow to cool before slicing.

All in all I think the bread was a success. I enjoyed a slice with a cup of coffee this morning while getting some work done from home. It was nice to have something different in the morning (I'm used to my Tone It Up Slim Down Scramble).

After working a bit from the laptop my alarm went off on my phone reminding me of a 9am conference call. I quickly grabbed my food for the day, and decided to make a smoothie for the road (the little slice of bread wasn't cutting it for this girl after a morning run).

I read an article this morning about the importance and berries and how they can help memory and cognition, so naturally I had to put berries in my smoothie. In to the blender went:

1 scoop of vanilla protein powder
Vanilla Almond Milk
Blueberries
Spinach
Ground Flax Seed
4 ice cubes


I can't really give measurements for what goes in my smoothies because I always just eyeball it. For some reason I'm always able o make the exact right amount, even without measuring. Yay me!

You may be thinking I'm a total freak for adding spinach but it adds in extra nutrients and you can't taste it at all! My smoothie was a deep blueish green. Weird looking but very tasty.

Today is a big day for the Stewarts: today is Doug's 30th birthday!!!!!

Yup, I'm married to an old man! LOL. In all actuality he is as playful and youthful as ever in probably in the best shape of his life. I'll update with birthday festivities later tonight or tomorrow. Have a wonderful day!