Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Bananas are the sore losers of the fruit bowl in our house. Last ones picked for the team, they wither away on the table, begging for affection that is now denied. There was a time in my 5-year-old’s life when he would couldn’t stop eating bananas, gobbling 3 a day and asking for more. That seems like eons ago.

On the plus side, I never did get to bake with bananas before–they would be devoured before I could get my recipe selected and prepped. Now I have all the bananas I want to bake with. The scales are tipping the other way!

Bananas are one of those things that I like in theory, but the texture gets me. Especially when they’re really ripe. Much more appreciated pureed in a smoothie or added to some muffins, they don’t get much love from me otherwise. I can’t help it–I gag. It’s such a shame–so many lost opportunities. So many more leg cramps without them.

It’s been a long time since I’ve made banana bread. There are oodles of recipes out there to choose from, all claiming to be the best. Because of this, I rarely make the same recipe twice! Usually I go for something with cinnamon and nuts–the epitome of banana bread. This time I wanted something different. Spunky. Bold. Insists that you stand tall and pay attention to it. What I needed was peanut butter.

This bread is wheaty, yes. It’s my attempt to mitigate the damage from chocolate and peanut butter chips. Because of this, I think it actually tastes better fully cooled. But I’ll leave that up to you. The aroma is difficult to resist–I won’t blame you if you can’t wait. You may want to wrap up  half the loaf right away and stash it in the freezer. It’s pretty easy to eat your way through the whole loaf in no time and not even realize it. Even if you do, I won’t tell. It has bananas and peanut butter–it’s healthy, right?

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

adapted from Oh Sweet Basil

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Course Breakfast/Brunch

Servings 8

Ingredients

  

• 1 3/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/4 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1/2 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt or sea salt
• 1/3 cup buttermilk
• 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2/3 cup raw turbinado sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3 medium bananas very ripe, mashed
• 11 oz package milk chocolate & peanut butter chips divided

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 9x5 loaf pan and set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Set aside.
• In another large mixing bowl, beat together the buttermilk and peanut butter with a hand mixer. Once smooth, add the sugar and eggs, beating until incorporated.
• Alternate adding the flour mix and bananas, ending with the bananas, mixing between each addition until incorporated.
• Stir in 1 1/2 cups of the chocolate and peanut butter chips.
• Spread into prepared loaf pan and sprinkle the remaining chips over the top.
• Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. You may need to tent the pan with foil for the last 5 minutes to make sure the crust doesn't burn.
• Cool for 15 minutes in the pan before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.