If I was to ask you what your favourite smell to come home to was, I bet at least half of you would say banana bread baking in the oven. Am I right? What if you could have the smell of raspberry & chocolate chip banana bread baking instead? I hope I have your attention now!

I love the whole process of making banana bread. It’s one of those bakes that doesn’t require much skill (unless you count the skill of leaving a bunch of bananas to ripen without eating them). You simply add all of the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. Once the mixture is poured into your prepared loaf tin and scattered with a few extra special toppings, you’re pretty much done!

Plus, once it’s in the oven, you’re free to carry on with your day to day life for the next hour. Give me an easy-to-make recipe over a complicated one any day of the week!

Experimenting with flavours

I’ve made gluten free banana bread in the past and as much as the classics are delicious, it’s fun to experiment with new flavours. In this case, I’ve decided to make a scrumptious raspberry and chocolate chip banana bread, as those are the flavours I love!

Raspberries add a freshness to the banana bread, creating little bursts of fruity deliciousness every time you take a bite. Meanwhile, dark chocolate chips add an intense and indulgent element to this bake. The chocolate chips scattered on top of the bread are little drops of melted heaven. Even more reason to have a slice straight out of the oven!

Why not experiment with your own flavours in this recipe. Swap dark chocolate chips for white chocolate, or use blackberries instead of raspberries. Let me know what you come up with!

INGREDIENTS

4 ripe bananas
3 eggs
60ml maple syrup
2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
180g ground almonds
120g GF oats
1 tsp baking powder
0.5 tsp cinnamon
100g dark choc chips
150g fresh raspberries

RECIPE

1. Preheat your oven to 175C/350F/gas mark 4 and line a loaf tine with greaseproof paper.
2. Add your wet ingredients to a blender (bananas, eggs, maple syrup & coconut oil) and blend until smooth.
3. Then add in the dry ingredients to the blender (ground almonds, GF oats, baking powder and cinnamon) and gently blend until the dry and wet mixtures have combined.
4. Gently stir in the chocolate chips and raspberries – leaving a few of each for the topping.
5. Pour the mixture into the prepared loaf tin and top with the remaining choc chips & raspberries, pushing them slightly into the mixture.
6. Bake in the oven for 45-50mins until a skewer comes out clean. If the bread colours quickly, cover with tin foil for the remainder of the time.
7. Leave to cool fully before cutting into slices. Store in an air tight container.

Sophie x