Monday, August 20, 2012

Garden Harvest Bread...A Perfect Summer Breakfast Bread


I have a new love, a love for early morning runs, before the sun rises, before anyone can really see me running and judge me for running funny.  (I totally run with my elbows out and have been called out for it.)  Running when foxes and owls are out, because they too think they are invisible.  When yes, I need a light so that cars can see me, BUT hey that's exactly why I bought a light.  There's something about being up before the sunrises and getting to be a part of it.  No matter how many times I see the sun rise over the Potomac, I always want to stop and take a picture.  Maybe one like this....


Plus on days when I am running slowly, which happens often at the beginning of runs, you can notice things you wouldn't normally notice.  Like somehow in the dark this bridge looks awesome.  There are so many angles and the lights are just bouncing off so many different areas.


The fox and owl were hanging out nearby, but the fox saw me before I could get my iPhone ready.

So the idea for this bread came out during a conversation with Molly when were discussing the problem of having a freezer full of bananas.  The question being, what do you make now?  I got a little carried away thinking about it...I thought about the bananas in my freezer, the carrots and zucchini in the refrigerator and decided why not?  The bread came out dense and moist like your standard banana or zucchini bread.  This one is a bit healthier though, with no oil or butter and only one egg!  Plus it is jam packed with carrots, zucchini and banana.  Basically a great summer bread to have for breakfast.  Enjoy!


Dry ingredients ready to go: all-purpose flour, wheat flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin spice and a pinch of ground ginger.


Wet ingredients: vanilla, apple sauce, an egg and a little sugar.



Mix together and fold in the good stuff..aka banana, zucchini, carrots and raisins.



Fresh out of the oven!


Garden Harvest Bread: (recipe adapted from Cooking Light)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour 
1/2 cup wheat flour
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin spice
1/8 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup apple sauce
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup skim milk
1 large egg 
1 banana, mashed
1 cup grated carrots
1 cup shredded zucchini 
Cooking spray 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.

2. In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, ground ginger, baking soda and salt. 

3.  In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the apple sauce, sugar, vanilla and milk until well combined.

4.  Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until combined.  The gently fold in the banana, grated carrot, shredded zucchini, and raisins 

5.  Spoon batter into prepared loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 40-35 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove cake from pan. Cool completely on wire rack before slicing.

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