A recipe for Raw 'Banana Bread'

This morning I had some errands to run in town, so after my tasks were complete, I duly popped into 'Infinity Foods' for a wee gander.

For those who are not familiar with Brighton; 'Infinity Foods' is I suppose a 'health food supermarket' (other wise known as a middle class 'earth mothers' dream). It's the kind of place where you can pick up biodegradable nappies, whilst stocking up on Goji berrys and Acai. God I love it.

If I was ever asked to summarise Brighton in a shop (although why that would happen I do not know), Infinity Foods, would unequivocally be that shop. The staff who work in there seem to be in a perpetual state of 'zen', as if they've just spent 6 months meditating with Tibetan monks, or just smoked waaaay too much weed as teenagers (to be fair this is Brighton, so both of these things are highly likely)

Anyway, the nub and gist is, whilst I was perusing the aisles, picking up ma Goji's. The consumerist and sugar fiend within me was drawn to a box of 'Raw Banana Bread Bars'. Now, I'm a sucker for a healthy bar, ever since my mother first gave me an 'Apricot Grizzly Bar' after dancing lessons aged 5 (I still get one in my stocking, god love her). They are also the perfect antidote for silencing the hungry beast that rears his ugly head around 4:20pm each afternoon, giving me the urge to binge eat 10 kitkats. And they are bloody yummy to boot, chewy, oaty (I love oats) sweet, and satisfying.
But this time, I didn't just blithely pop them in my basket and skip to the checkout. No, being the anal health freak I am, I just had to check the ingredients list, and quel horreur, I saw I would be paying, in essence, about £3.50 for a selection of pulverized fruit n nuts.
So for once in my life, sense took over and I firmly eschewed the urge to impulse buy and let the thrift within me place the box back on the shelf. Instead I bought a bunch of 'organic bananas' and set off home, Goji's in hand, to recreate said 'raw banana bread' for a lot less money.

Although to be fair, I did also buy a gluten free Chelsea bun, as well as some hemp protein (when in Rome) sooo all in all the savings weren't great... But they taste bleedin' delicious!!

Btw I'm afraid you need a food processor for these little numbers, unless you don't mind spending about 5 hours with a pestle and mortar...grinding away.


Raw Banana Bread

(This recipe makes about 8 2inch cubes)

300g whole almonds

120g walnuts

40g oats

1 tsp cinnamon (alter to taste)

4-6 medjool dates (depending how sweet you likey)

2 medium ripe bananas

pinch of rock salt

In a food processor, Blend the almonds, walnuts, oats, and cinnamon until the mixture has the consistency of course flour

Add in the Dates, and Bananas and pulverize until it forms a dough like consistency. Add salt to taste and pulse once more, then press the dough in a a loaf tin, or any old tin, really. And freeze until ready to eat...or just eat it...

et ouila!


(n.b. if you want, you can fiddle around with the ingredients a bit, i.e omit some of the dates for some dried apricots, or ground almonds for desiccated coconut etc etc... the world is ya oyster!)

crushin' me nuts