While Baby Was Asleep... Healthy Banana Bread

I am obviously not a food photographer and certainly not a pastry chef. I ended up with a sweet tooth this afternoon while Asher was napping, and in trying to stick with my healthy eating plan as much as I can, I decided to see if there was a healthy option I could whip up. I saw the quickly browning bananas sitting idly in my kitchen and knew they would be perfect for some good ol' banana bread.

It is definitely always easier to make the full-of-fat-and-gooey-deliciousness desserts and pastries than the healthy ones. At least, it's easier to make them turn out well! (Also, I only had wheat flour, so I had limited options. Shh...) I scoured Pinterest for wheat flour banana bread recipes and lo and behold this RECIPE from the blog A Full Measure of Happiness. I substituted the milk with almond milk since that's what I had on hand. 55 minutes later, I had a perfectly browned loaf of banana bread on my hands - complete with wheat flour, almond milk, and the superfood walnuts.

{  QUICK FACT: Walnuts are powerful antioxidants and can help reduce the risk of cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. Studies have also shown them to BOOST BRAIN POWER with their omega-3s that help with visual memory, multitasking, and problem solving. Yes, please!  }

Mine came out a little more lumpy than the beautifully pictured bread on Pinterest, but it was delicious anyhow. I did alter it a bit with the almond milk, so that could have been the culprit. I brewed a fresh cup of coffee and spread some cococut oil on my delicious, healthful slice of banana bread. Next time I might just try substituting coconut oil for the butter altogether!

You may already know, but coconut oil has so many health benefits and uses. I'm not one to go soaking my hair in it or anything, but using it here and there when it can yield great results and smell like a yummy coconut, it sure sounds like a win-win to me!

Here's some info on coconut oil:

Coconut Oil: Your New BFF
101 Uses for Coconut Oil

Asher was awake by the time I got the bread into the oven, but I'm always amazed at how productive I can be while he is sleeping some days. I also unloaded and reloaded the dishwasher, put in a load of laundry, and got some work done on Etsy. I'll hold on to that on the days that I want to do nothing more than lay on the couch while he's napping. We all need those times like that, too!

What things have you gotten done while baby is asleep?


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My Journey to Healthy Eating

I'm doing it. 

I am making the transition to a healthy diet.

I typically make healthy choices most of the time, but lately we have been eating out more and more and hitting that fast food lane much too often - and I have been feeling AWFUL.

The thought to reassess my diet came after catching a few minutes of a Dr. Oz episode on systemic yeast overgrowth. My fatigue had gotten so bad that I thought yeast could be the culprit and the underlying cause - my diet. Too many processed foods can throw off the balance of good and bad bacteria in your digestive tract, leading to overgrowth of yeast that can then enter your bloodstream and wreck havoc on different areas of your body. I don't know if this for sure was what was wrong, but having made a few adjustments throughout the past few weeks, I am feeling a lot better already.

My sister-in-law bought me this very informative book on healthy eating for kids and the whole family, Disease-Proof Your Child. (Thanks, Rebecca!!!) I am only in the first chapter so far, but it is perfect timing with my whole yeast diet plan and falls right into the same subject as a lot of the research I have been doing lately. I plan to have this thing read cover to cover very soon.

I also invested in The Fresh 20, a book with weekly meal plans using fresh, NON-PROCESSED, healthy ingredients. It gives you a shopping list for an entire week's worth of meals using only 20 ingredients (and then a few that you should stock up on initially in your pantry). I picked a random Summer menu and got started yesterday! It was only $100 for the week's ingredients and I even had to buy some of the spices that you normally would already have. So for under $100 you get 5+ meals and leftovers to boot! Pretty awesome.

Unfortunately, I can't divulge the delicious recipes since that would be copyright infringement for sure, but I definitely recommend the book and I'll walk you through the week's meals in pictures.

Yesterday's menu was:

{ Honey Lime Drumsticks and Watermelon Salad }

So, now I have to complete the week since I know you all are watching! Wish me luck!

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