Banana Bread with Chocolate Glaze

So yet another week has gone by and I was AGAIN out of town and unable to have dinner with my Wednesday night pals. I miss them. But, even though I have not dined with them, I still cook/bake, trying recipes that catch my eye. For instance, as I was paging thorough the Best of Cooking Light (that I bought while in one of the FIVE airports I've been the past two weeks!), I came across this recipe for banana bread. I love banana bread….I like it even better when chocolate is involved and this particular version calls for a chocolate glaze.

Can you say scrumptious?

As with all Cooking Light recipes, the CL test kitchen staff reworks traditional recipes and lightens them up. This version calls for three bananas, two large egg whites, fat-free milk and reduced fat sour cream. Referring to this as the “most temping of all our quick breads,” the original recipe first appeared in a 1996 edition of Cooking Light and has been a consistent staff and reader favorite.

One taste and you will see why.

The texture is so satisfying and the bread itself is melt-in-your-mouth moist. I made three mini loaves and gave two away...one to younger daughter and one to across-the-street neighbor who watched Faye the Boston Terrier during another excursion.

As I write this post, I am sitting in the Albany airport trying to pass the time because my flight is delayed….thank goodness for the Internet, my laptop, and my iPhone.

Banana Bread with Chocolate Glaze
Cooking Light, reprinted October 2013

Ingredients
1 cup of sugar
¼ cup of butter
3 large mashed ripe bananas
¼ cup fat-free milk
¼ cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 large egg whites
2 (scant) cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
Cooking spray
2 ½ tablespoons half-and-half
2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chunks

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°. Combine sugar and butter in a bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Add banana, milk, sour cream and egg whites. Combine flour, baking soda and salt, stirring with a whisk. Add flour mixture to the banana mixture and beat until just blended….do not overbeat! Spoon the batter into a 9x5-ince loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. For the glaze, place half-and-half and chocolate in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH for 1 minute, stirring every 20 seconds. Cool slightly and drizzle over the bread.

There are only 184 calories in a slice (1/16) of this bread….a confection bargain for those of us who can’t resist quick breads or muffins and a cup of coffee in the morning.

Enjoy, dear readers!