I Love using Bananas for Baking as evident from my Low Sugar Banana Muffins and Banana Walnut Bread. I like ti even more with walnuts. For me nothing tastes better than a combination of Banana and Walnuts. That being said, I was amazed to see that I dint have Banana Walnut Muffin posted when I have been making one quite a lot. I find having such treats around help me to avoid reaching for junk foods at the danger time - you know, the time between lunch and dinner. I read somewhere that if this period is not handled right, then thats where one goes bersek with their dieting strategies!
Anyways I have made these Banana Muffins with wheat flour instead of all purpose flour and it has healthy ingredients for a guilt free gluttony :) It is immensely moist with a crunch of generous walnut pieces. I have used minimal fat.
Method
Add the flour,salt,baking powder, wheat germ together.
Add the wet ingredients together . Mash the bananas with a fork. I do this to get little chunks of banana in my muffin. If you dont prefer that, mash it in a food processor until smooth.
Mix both of them until well incorporated. Blend in some nuts.
Drop spoonfuls of the batter into lined muffin pans.
Top it off with some nuts and bake in a preheated oven 350F for approximately 30-40 min or until done.
Serve warm. Some tea with this muffin would make you feel all the more good about yourself :), the way it does to me.
The Food Pyramid esp for Vegetarians is little complicated. The need to maintain the essential balance is so crucial - instances like did you take the required amount of Dietery Fibre? what about whole grains? Did your meal the whole day today include sufficient servings of vegetables and fruits? and Oh yes! Proteins? Yes the Pyramid and its classification look simple enough - but in day to day hectic lifestyle, we tend to forget taking each and every thing into consideration and in long run we realise that we have missed out on lots of nutrition and adequate amount of balance much needed esp for Vegetarians.
So, in order to make sure of that aspect, I try to plan ahead all the meals during the week - right from breakfast, lunch, tea time to dinner; making sure to see that I have incorporated all the essential groups in the pyramid. Unless spaced out - its almost impossible to gobble down all the servings in one go - hence the process has to start right from breakfast. Hence this is one of those recipes I came up with - to start off our day on the right note.
I bought a 10grain Bread Mix a while back. It has all the essential whole grains like wheat,rolled oats,Rye,Corn,triticale,millet etc).I also had Teff flour at hand and pancakes are so common in so many households - so made Pancakes out of them.I also wanted to add one fruit and some nuts- so grilled and toasted them resp for the topping. It was light, fluffy, hearty and filled with all the nature's best ingredients.
Method
1.Mix the flours along with baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a well and then add the eggs and milk and make a thick batter
Mix well and refriegrate for 10 min while you grill the fruit
2.Take the sliced bananas and with a brush lightly apply the maple syrup to the bananas. grill them for a min and set them aside.
3.Take the batter and drop a spoonful on a pan. cook for 2-3 min and turn.
4.Usually it gets done v fast - so make sure not to keep it for very long on the pan.
5.Serve it in a plate hot with a topping of bananas and some nuts - mm may be honey if needed.
Summary of health benefits
1) Whole grains benefits 2) Protein in eggs and milk 3) Fruit - banana brimming with potassium 4) Pecan Nuts - little goes a loong way. 5) Maple Syrup benefits
Can you think of more? I mean thats a good way to encompass lots of nutrition- dont you think :) This is my entry to Susan's Pancake Parade Event
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I have a penchant for..mm..lemme think...EVERYTHING! I am simply tooo *greedy* a person to leave out anything that one can possibly do. That being said - my journey in blog-o-sphere started for learning more about food - culture - ways of cooking ; to get inspired by all you talented ones and try to push my boundaries farther than the norm. That being such - when I am bestowed with awards , it makes me feel happy and appreciated.
Siri and LG have bestowed me with Blogging With a Purpose Award and Lg Esp has some v generous things to say about me. I am honoured Lg and thanks for thinking of me. I dont have to say anything about Siri - no not cos I have nothing to say - but cos if i start I wont stop. :) All the best dear for you-know-what dear.
Image taken from 
