Healthy Banana Bread

I have always been a fan of Banana Bread, except when it comes to the calories that go with it. It didn't seem right that something made primarily out of fruit should be so bad for you. There had to be a better way. So I started playing around with my recipe and came up with a Banana Bread that gives you valuable nutrients with fewer calories and fat that tastes even better! It's true, regular Banana Bread tastes dry and bland to me now. I miss the nutty flavor of the wheat germ and I can almost feel my body thanking me for infusing it with whole grains and ground flax.

This bread has been nicknamed Hippie Bread by a former colleague of mine who swore it was the only healthy thing he ever ate that tasted good (I might be paraphrasing a little bit but he did love it). I wouldn't call this diet food, but if you are craving Banana Bread, this is definitely a healthy-er alternative.

Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Butter
2 Eggs
1 Cup Truvia (sugar substitute)
1/4 Cup Sugar
1 1/2 Cups Very Ripe Bananas (about 3)
1/2 Cup Plain Yogurt
1 T. Vanilla
1 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
1/2 Cup Ground Flax
1/2 Cup Wheat Germ
1/2 Cup White Flour
1 t. Baking Soda
1 t. Salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Soften the butter and then blend with an electric mixer until blended. Add in Truvia, Sugar, Eggs and Bananas and blend until fully combined. Blend in Yogurt, Vanilla, Salt and Baking Soda. Gradually stir in the Ground Flax, Wheat Germ, Whole Wheat Flour and White Flour until blended. Grease the bottoms only of two 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 loaf pans or 1 9 x 5 x 3 loaf pan. Pour batter into greased pan. Bake smaller loaves for approximately 50 minutes, checking the center of each with a knife at 45 minutes. A knife inserted into the center should come back clean not doughy. Larger loaves cook approximately 1 hour and 10 minutes but check the center of the loaf for doneness at 50 minutes.

I stirred up 2oz of cream cheese with 1 t. of honey and 1/2 t. cinnamon to spread on top of the warm bread. Tasty but not necessary. The bread is great by itself.