A while ago, I bought a jar of Kretschamer wheat germ with the intention of amping up the flavour and nutrition level of my usual bowl of morning cereal. Since then, every time I open the cupboard and see the jar lying there, I’m reminded of it’s existence and the need to put it to good use. So I started searching for recipes that used wheat germ.  I was looking for ways of using up some overripe bananas as well and that’s how this banana bread made using a recipe on their website came into being.

If you’re curious about wheat germ, read all about it here.

To give it some extra texture and flavour, I added some chopped dates and ground cinnamon.

You can never go wrong with banana bread and when it is made using whole wheat flour and wheat germ, it transforms into a completely guilt free pleasure!

 

Whole Wheat Banana Bread (original recipe can be found here)

Ingredients

1.5 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 cup Kretschamer Original Toasted Wheat Germ

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1.5 cups mashed ripe bananas

1 cup chopped pitted dates

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup buttermilk

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

Method

Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Grease and line the bottom of a standard loaf pan. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, wheat germ, salt, sugar, baking soda and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, whisk together the banana, dates, oil, buttermilk, egg and vanilla extract.

Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and add the wet ingredients to the bowl. Mix it gently until it all just about comes together. Transfer batter to the loaf pan.

Bake for about 55-60 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean. Once done, remove pan and place on a wire rack to cool for a few minutes before turning out the loaf to cool it completely.

Serve generous slices with cups of tea or coffee and enjoy this delectable treat!