Health and Wellness Wednesday

Health and Wellness Wednesday

By no means am I perfect or even close to it, especially when it comes to diet. Every once in a while I like to indulge in sweets, unless it’s the holiday season, from the end of November until after New Year I have little to no discipline. Once the season is over to help with the transition from all the holiday treats I reluctantly have to cut I’ll swap with something homey and comforting like my banana bread pudding. I make sure to cut the serving slices smaller than usual to help me with the pumpkin pie cravings I have to part ways with. This recipe isn’t vegan but you can always substitute the eggs with “vegan eggs”, the cream cheese for a vegan option or substitute it for chocolate chips or omit it altogether, and the sweetened condensed milk with sweetened condensed coconut milk. Jamaican Choice is my favorite brand of sweetened condensed coconut milk. It’s a bit difficult to come by all the way out here in sunny San Diego so I ordered it on amazon. 

Banana bread pudding

Ingredients:

2-3 browning bananas (the browner the better)

1 block of 8oz cream cheese (room temperature)

1 can sweetened condensed milk

2 eggs

1/3 cup of melted butter

1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon maple extract

1/3 cup of chopped pistachios (pecans or walnuts are good too)

1 cup of all-purpose flour

Pinch of salt

1/3 cup of sugar (optional, I personally think the sweetened condensed milk adds enough sweetness but to each their own) 

Directions: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl mash the bananas until they’re slimy and mushy, I like to leave medium chunks in mine. Mush the cream cheese into the batter. I’m ok with little pieces because it makes a nice bite once it bakes. Add in the eggs, vanilla extract, and maple extract making sure to mix them into the batter well. Add to the mix the baking soda, flour, and pinch of salt (and sugar if desired) mixing until the consistency is smooth (with the exception of the banana and cream cheese chunks… trust the process) before folding in your pistachios or nuts of choice. Grease a bundt cake pan before adding the mixture and bake for 45-50 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving. This recipe is best served warm with a caramel sauce or maple drizzle. I’m always on the go so I end up eating mine cold with no syrup or sauce to avoid my fingers being sticky. Enjoy!