Bananas & Breakfast on the Brain

I've been wanting to try this one for a while, and when I had bananas turning brown as Mike and I were packing for a weekend camping trip, I decided it was time to put said fruit to good use. Into the freezer the ailing bananas went, and out came the recipe for Anne's Breakfast Banana Bars. The recipe was easy to stir together and smelled divine while baking. I'm holding off trying them until breakfast tomorrow, but I really don't see how they could be bad, and it seemed a slightly more nutritious option than making Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (which still sound tasty, but I'm trying to exert a little self control here, and they wouldn't help with the banana situation anyway). I used blueberry Craisins for the dried cranberries and almonds instead of walnuts or pecans. Also, I lined my baking pan with foil, then coated with nonstick spray so the bars would be really easy to remove from the pan.


UPDATE: Very tasty indeed. If you cut the entire pan into 12 equal portions, each serving has about 200 calories. I will definitely be making these again, maybe adding dried apples with the current ingredients!

Anne's Banana Breakfast Bars
¾ cup unsweetened applesauce
¾ cup packed brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1½ cups mashed ripe bananas
4 cups rolled oats
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup walnuts or pecans, chopped

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. (I mixed the applesauce through bananas with a mixer, then stirred in the rest.) The batter will be very stiff. Spread evenly over the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking pan that has been lightly coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes of until golden brown and a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven to cool completely. Cut into bars and store in an airtight container or freeze in resealable freezer bags.


 

Comments

  1. hjoyferg11/19/10, 5:01 PM

    Two things: One - I added a little orange extract for a little extra yummy - Good stuff!! Two - I missed the oven temperature so guessed at 375. Was I close? Thanks for the tasty goodness!

    ReplyDelete

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