Healthier sugar-free banana bread

Everyone loves banana bread, but the most annoying part is waiting for your bananas to ripen. Fortunately, there are a few tricks. The first is the brown paper bag trick. The ethylene from the fruit will circulate and speed up the natural ripening process for the bananas. Naturally ripened bananas are the best bananas to use, and there’s no such thing as too black or brown when it comes to using bananas for bread. Unfortunately, this option still takes several days. 

The next best option is to use previously ripened bananas that you’ve frozen. You can freeze ripe bananas for up to 6 months. When you’re ready to use them, let them thaw on the counter for several hours. They’ll emit a brown liquid, but I recommend discarding the liquid because it may mess up the liquid levels in your recipe. The problem with this is it requires you to have previously ripened bananas. 

So let’s say you went to the store today and bought bananas and you want to use those for banana bread. I have one last trick—you can bake the bananas. Baking the bananas at a low temperature with help to break down the starches and concentrate the sugars. They won’t be as sweet as naturally ripened bananas, but they’ll work in a pinch. 

Random fact: Did you know there are over 1,000 varieties of bananas? But the only banana we see at stores is Cavendish because they’re easy to transport. But that wasn't always the case! The Gros Michel banana was the banana of choice until the 1950s when a fungal disease called Panama disease wiped them out. Guess what—that same disease is now attacking the Cavendish bananas, and there’s no way to stop it. So when it spreads, that will be the end of the banana as we know it. Scientists are working on a variety of solutions.

Healthier sugar-free banana bread

Yield: 1 loaf

Time: About 90 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups (170 grams) whole-wheat flour
• 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 cups (400 grams) mashed overripe bananas
• 1 cup (226 grams) plain Greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup (120 grams) coconut oil, melted
• 2 large (100 grams) eggs
• 1 Tablespoon (15 grams) vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• Optional: 3/4 cup (85 grams) chopped, toasted walnuts or pecans
• Optional: 2 Tablespoons (30 milliliters) maple syrup

Directions

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease metal 9 inch x 5 inch loaf pan and set aside.
2. Mix flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. Set aside.
3. Mix mashed bananas, yogurt, coconut oil, eggs, vanilla extract, and almond extract in large bowl.
4. Pour dry ingredients into wet ingredients just until no flour pockets remain. Don't overmix. Fold in nuts if using.
5. Pour batter into baking pan. It will be thick! Bake 55 - 60 minutes. Bread is done when top springs back and internal temperature registers around 200 degrees Fahrenheit. 
6. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for about 1 hour before removal.
7. Store bread at room temperature for up to 2 days, in refrigerator for up to 1 week, or in freezer for up to 3 months.

Tamarind caramel cookies

This is a sponsored post by Challenge Butter, but the text and opinions are all mine. Thank you for supporting brands that make Kylee's Kitchen possible! 

Today I'm talking about the 2024 flavor of the year: tamarind! This is according to McCormick & Company, the top-selling maker of seasonings and spices. McCormick deploys a team of chefs and food technologists around the world to seek out the top trending flavor. 

Now tamarind certainly isn’t a new flavor—it’s been around for thousands of years in Southeast Asia, Indian, and Mexico. But it was named the flavor of the year because it’s popping up more and more on menus across the world. It’s used in savory and sweet recipes, and it’s even used in drink recipes.

Tamarind is a type of tree that grows well in coastal areas. It commonly grows throughout Africa, Mexico, Asia and India, but it could also grow in South Florida. The tree produces pods with edible fruit. Once you remove the outer shell, the fruit is sweet, tart, and chewy with a texture similar to dates.

You can buy tamarind in four different form: pods, pulp, paste, and concentrate. I don't recommend buying pods. I couldn't even find them. The pods have a tough brown shell that you peel away to reveal the fruit, which is brown, looks similar to dates, and contains seeds. Tamarind pulp is the flesh from inside the pod without the seeds. In order to use the pulp, you must first soak it in hot water, squeeze it, and then discard the fibers. Tamarind paste is a pre-mixed solution of the pulp with a liquid. It's ready for cooking. It looks like a thick paste. Tamarind concentrate is a runny, dark liquid, and it is about 2 to 3 times stronger in taste than the paste.                                                                                                                   

I love tamarind in pad thai and in sweet chutneys for dipping samosas in, but I wanted to show off its versatility by using it in a dessert. I thought it's sweet-sour profile would offset the richness of caramel and pair really well with brown sugar cookies. I like to make my caramel using the dry method. What that means is I cook the sugar without water in a saucepan. The sugar slowly melts and turns into caramel. Then I finish it with heavy cream, butter, sea salt, and in this case, tamarind paste. I use Challenge Unsalted Butter in my caramel and cookie recipe. Using high-quality butter, like Challenge, has a big impact on the richness and flavor of the caramel and cookies.

I finished off the cookies with crushed, roasted peanuts and sea salt. I really like the texture it adds!

Tamarind Caramel Cookies

Yield: Makes about 20 cookies

Time: About 90 minutes

Ingredients

For the cookies

• 3/4 cup (170 grams) Challenge Unsalted Butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cup (160 grams) dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 egg, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups (240 grams) all purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• Optional garnishes: Additional sea salt, 1/2 cup roasted peanuts, chopped

For the tamarind caramel

• 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup (120 milliliters) heavy cream
• 2 Tablespoons Challenge Unsalted Butter
• 2 Tablespoons (30 grams) tamarind paste (or 1 Tablespoon tamarind concentrate)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt

Directions

For the cookies

1. Cream butter and both sugars on medium speed until mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
2. Add egg and vanilla and mix on low until combined.
3. In separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to mixer and mix on low speed until flour is just combined.
4. Cover dough and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.

For the tamarind caramel

1. While dough is chilling, make caramel. Add sugar to light-colored, large saucepan. Spread sugar in even layer, place over low-medium heat and allow sugar to melt.
2. Meanwhile, place heavy cream, butter, tamarind, and salt in small pot on stove over low heat. The mixture should never boil.
3. Bottom layer of sugar will start to melt first (may take upwards of 10 minutes to see anything happening). Use heatproof spatula to move sugar around until all the sugar has melted and caramelized. 
4. Cook caramel until it turns a medium amber color.
5. Remove skillet from heat and slowly pour in heavy cream mixture while whisking. Continue to whisk while caramel bubbles.
6. Pour caramel into bowl to cook and set aside.

Back to cookies

1. When ready to bake cookies, preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
2. Scoop dough into 1 1/2 Tablespoon-sized portions. Roll into balls and place on baking sheets. 
3. Grab small piece of parchment paper, place it on bottom of flat-bottomed drinking glass, and press cookies flat.
4. Place cookie sheets in oven and bake for 9-10 minutes, or until edges are gold brown, rotating halfway through baking time. Let cookies cool.
5. Spoon teaspoon of caramel onto center of each cookie and smooth top. If caramel is too hard, heat in microwave for 15-second intervals until caramel is pourable.
6. Sprinkle sea salt and peanuts on top of caramel.
7. Allow caramel to set for about 15 minutes before serving.