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Tuesday, October 16, 2012

I baked: Low-sugar wholemeal banana orange loaf / muffins

This is our new favourite bread - the wholemeal banana orange loaf. No sugar added, no butter, and no kneading required. See why it's our favorite yet? ;D


I have made this countless times for my kids for their breakfast and tea time snack. The funniest thing was when Baby C asked if I could make these for her birthday "breakfast". Of course mummy would comply. :) Usually I make a loaf but for my cutie, I made them in these cute Angry bird cupcake liners. Seeing (and eating) these got her birthday off to a great start.

Birthday breakfast muffins ;)


Birthday girl is very happy ;)

On your mark, get set, BLOW!

Back to the loaf. You should use very ripe bananas for this loaf, to bring out the best of the banana flavours and for a moist texture. There is hardly any fats in this loaf, only 2 tbsp of oil is used and NO butter. I had some reservations since it's my first time using wholemeal flour to make bread/loaf but thankfully, my kids did not reject it and gobbled it all up. You do get quite a lot of texture going on, with the bran and nuts.

I really like the fact that I do not have to add any sugar to sweeten this loaf, instead it is sweetened by the ripe bananas, honey and freshly squeezed orange juice. I call it low sugar instead of no sugar as I am sure some would argue there are sugars in the fruits, but at least they're all natural. The ground mixed spice also gives this loaf a wonderful aroma. Am not sure if this loaf is good the next day as we always finish the whole loaf in one sitting! I do feel this is a very healthy, delicious loaf and best of all, very easy to make.




Low-sugar wholemeal banana orange muffins
Cooking time: 25-30 minutes (or 40-45 minutes for loaf)
Makes 8 or a 1-litre loaf

Ingredients
2 tbsp sunflower oil
90g wholemeal flour
90g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground mixed spice
20g walnuts, roughly chopped
20g almond flakes
2 large ripe bananas, mashed
1 egg
2 tbsp clear honey
Zest and juice of 1 orange

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.

2. Line a 8-muffin cup baking tray with paper liners. Alternatively, you can use a greased 1-litre loaf tin (use sunflower oil to grease it).

3. Sift the flours with the baking powder and spice, adding any bran that is caught in the sieve. Stir in the walnuts and almond flakes.

4. Beat the mashed banana together with the egg, oil, honey, orange zest and juice. Stir evenly into the dry ingredients.

5. Spoon into the prepared liners or tin and bake for 25-30 minutes (or 40-45 minutes if using loaf tin), or until firm and golden brow. Turn out onto a wire rack and leave to cool for 15 minutes. Serve warm.


Crusty exterior but moist on the inside

Best eaten warm



Full set of photos can be viewed on my Facebook page here. 

*This recipe was featured on Asian Food Channel's FB page on 18 Oct 2012.

32 comments:

  1. Looks absolutely great. I am not so into things that are sweet, much less if they are too sweet, these days. Must be old age. Ooooo...your kids are so lovely! Ever think of putting them in commercials? They are so lovable really!!!!

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  2. I simply adore looking at the pic of them both blowing out the candle... so priceless!

    no butter and no sugar... sounds wholesome and healthy! will try this for Dylan.. ;)

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    1. Yeah since I occasionally bake them cupcakes and cookies, everyday bread/loaf should be sugar-free in my opinion. Hope Dylan likes it!

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  3. Looks so pretty!
    No butter and sugar, so healthy as well. :)

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    1. Yah, but it still remained moist, thanks to the bananas. :)

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  4. you kids like it or not?
    no sugar wohh?

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    1. Yeah, they love it. Cos got all their fav things - bananas, orange and nuts!

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  5. I love the smell of baking at home
    i.e fresh bread / loaf / cupcakes everything lol .

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    1. Hehe I know you do! And I'm happy to bake for you :D

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  6. I love the texture and the ingredients!

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    1. Currently, this is the loaf that I make most often cos of its simplicity and no sugar used.

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  7. looks like another hit! i have a possibly-silly question though. would it matter what type of bananas are used. cos i tend to prefer certain types of bananas to others. ermmm, i'm not sure what's the exact name of my favorite, but it's the relatively big one that can be eaten even when it's still greenish :D

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    1. I guess you can use any type of bananas, as long as they are ripe. Cos ripe bananas have better flavour and makes the loaf more moist.

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  8. Awwwww... baby c is such a lucky girl to have a great mother like you! =) There are so much love in the air...

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    1. Thanks! I am lucky to have a beautiful daughter like her too :)

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  9. A brilliant idea to make a healthy banana cake & they didn't look dry at all though no butter was used, thanks to the moist & creamy banana!

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    1. My kids LOVE bananas, so anything I make with banana also they will like. Hehe!

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  10. They look so lovely and wholesome-the kids and the muffins! :P

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    1. Thanks Lorraine. I'm glad my kids liked this, as I was worried they wouldn't like the wholemeal flour that I used.

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  11. very healthy loaf, you should bake more for your family.

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    1. Yeah I bake very often now. Tomorrow I'm going to make them pumpkin loaf. :)

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  12. Happy Birthday , Chloe ! And what a delicious breakfast treat you have there :D Love these wholesome , hearty and healthy muffins , Yen !

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    1. Thanks Anne. Muffins for breakfast and then cake for evening :P

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  13. Thanks! I have two very cute models, makes my job very easy! :)

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  14. Awww your children are so cute!!! Thanks for stopping by my blog and it's very nice to meet you. The muffins look so moist and what a great way to celebrate birthday from breakfast - I love this idea!

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    1. Hi Nami! Thanks for dropping by at my blog too. I am hoping to learn Japanese cuisine from your blog, very inspiring.

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  15. Replies
    1. Thanks Vimitha, I really like tht no sugar is used! ;)

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  16. Must try this one, definitely a guiltfree muffin :) whats the size of the egg you use?

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  17. What an awesome recipe! I love anything wholemeal ^^ also, lovely pictures of baby C!

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