recipe by Anna Sobaski

Our friend Pete has provided us with his favorite variation on our Banana Bread Mix. He has prepared a gluten-free version of one of his favorite recipes for a family member with celiac disease. By simply adding walnuts and orange and lemon zest to the mix the result is a light and flavorful muffin or bread. Follow along with his recipe below.

One of my favorite banana bread recipes is from Britain’s Delia Smith – she includes lemon and orange zest in her banana walnut loaf, giving it a lighter flavor and feel than classic banana bread. I wanted to bake a version that I could share with a relative who has celiac disease and this is the recipe I used.

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup oil (if using olive oil, an extra light olive oil is recommended)
• 3 ripe bananas, mashed with a fork or pureed in a food processor
• 2 large eggs – brought to room temperature, beaten
• Zest of one lemon and zest of one orange
• 1 package of Breads from Anna Banana Bread Mix
• 2/3 cup chopped walnuts

Makes enough for 24 mini muffins and 2 mini loaves

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees using center rack. Check temperature with oven thermometer.
2. Use cooking spray to lightly oil pans.
3. Mix wet ingredients until they reach a creamy consistency. I use a stand mixer with wire whip beater on medium high for about a minute.
4. Thoroughly wash one lemon and one orange and scrape off their zest – you should get about 1 tablespoon of each. Add the zest to the mixture and whisk for a few seconds.
5. Sift in the bread mix and blend. I switch to a flat beater and blend for about half a minute.
6. Fold in the chopped walnuts.
7. Divide the mixture between muffin and loaf pans – you can make 24 regular muffins, 48 mini muffins, 4 mini loaves or 1 large loaf.
8. Bake 20 minutes for mini muffins, 25 minutes for regular muffins, 30 minutes for mini loaves and 60 minutes for large loaf.
9. Cool on cooling racks to room temperature.

It makes a nice, airy bread or muffin.

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