Marbled Chocolate Banana Bread

      Whoa, what a week! With all this snow in the northeast, I don't know if I should be jealous that I'm not missing school or grateful that I'm not snowed in without power. To those of you who are snowed in or have lost power or both, hopefully things will get back to normal soon.

      I've been meaning to make this banana bread since it was first posted on fortheloveofcooking.net. Finally, two brown bananas later, I have. I made one change from the original: chocolate almond milk instead of buttermilk. Mainly because chocolate milk was the only thing I had on hand, and I really wanted to make this today. So if you're feeling adventurous (or you can't be bothered with buttermilk), you can substitute chocolate milk and see how it goes (tastes great to me!).

           Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside.

Combine the flours, baking soda, and salt together in a small bowl.
In a separate bowl, beat the sugars and oil with a mixer until creamy and smooth.

 

Add the mashed banana, eggs, milk, and vanilla then beat until blended. Gently fold the flour mixture into the banana mixture and mix batter until just combined.

 

Place chocolate chips in a medium microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 30-40 seconds or until almost melted. Stir until smooth (cook for a few more seconds if it's not completely melted).
Add 1 cup batter to the chocolate, stirring until well combined.

 

Spoon batter into prepared loaf pan, alternating between plain batter and chocolate batter. Swirl batters together using a knife. Place additional chocolate chips on top, if desired.

 

Bake for 70 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan before removing from pan to wire rack to cool completely. Slice and serve. Enjoy.

Marbled Chocolate Banana Bread

Yield: 8-10

Prep Time: 15 min.

Cook Time: 70-75 min.

Total Time: 90 min.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup of whole wheat flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana (3 bananas)
2 eggs
1/3 cup low fat buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Cooking spray
Additional chocolate chips, for topping (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside.
Combine the flours, baking soda, and salt together in a small bowl.
In a separate bowl, beat the sugars and oil with a mixer until creamy and smooth. Add the mashed banana, eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla then beat until blended. Gently fold the flour mixture into the banana mixture and mix batter until just combined.
Place chocolate chips in a medium microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 30-40 seconds or until almost melted. Stir until smooth (cook for a few more seconds if it's not completely melted).
Add 1 cup batter to the chocolate, stirring until well combined. Spoon batter into prepared loaf pan, alternating between plain batter and chocolate batter. Swirl batters together using a knife. Place additional chocolate chips on top, if desired.
Bake for 70 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan before removing from pan to wire rack to cool completely. Slice and serve. Enjoy.