Banana Walnut Yogurt Bread

Sometimes I go a long time between blog posts. You can guess what that means -- there's been nothing new and exciting going on in my kitchen for a while.  (I did, however, get a high-five from my oldest tonight for this quick and easy supper featuring turkey sausage, peppers, and onions.) We're certainly not starving by any means, but we've been relying on standbys for the past week.  And a lot of raw veggies, like bell peppers. I'm kind of obsessed with the orange and yellow varieties at the moment -- so sweet and crunchy! We are eating six or seven a week.

However, neither man nor child can not live on bell peppers alone. It's
time to fire it up in the kitchen to power us through baseball, karate, school
concerts and field trips, not to mention looming work deadlines for both me and
the hubster.

When I'm feeling impotent in the kitchen, I gravitate towards baking. It
comes more easily to me than planning entire meals, and the results are rarely
anything but fabulous thanks to solid recipes and a little thing I like to call
sugar :) So, I eased my way back into the kitchen last night with this yummy
quick bread. A twist on classic banana bread, it uses low fat yogurt along with
a small amount of butter for a moist and tender bread with tons of banana
flavor. As with most of my quick breads and muffins, I used part whole wheat
flour for added fiber and nutrients. I also added walnuts for protein and
flavor.

It was a hit, and here's how I know. I tested it out on a group of dietitian colleagues at a meeting. A tougher bunch of food critics there never was -- but it's so yummy, it was a total hit. Dietitians are suckers for food that tastes good
AND packs some nutrition. Check and check.

Banana Walnut Yogurt Bread
Makes 1 loaf
Adapted from Cooking Light

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups mashed banana (about 3 bananas)
1/3 cup low fat vanilla yogurt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

In medium bowl, combine dry ingredients (flours through sugar). In separate
bowl, combine butter, eggs, banana, and yogurt. Add all at once to dry
ingredients, and stir just until moistened. Fold in walnuts. Pour batter into a
standard 9x5 loaf pan prepared with spray oil. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55
minutes. Top of bread should spring back when touched lightly. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing bread. Finish cooling on a baking rack. Store in airtight container.

CHOMP!