banana bread buckwheat bakes

It’s been awhile.  Wouldn’t you say?  If you’re new around here you may be unfamiliar with the breakfast buckwheat bake.  This is something I came up with about 2 years ago when I was in search of a breakfast that would fill me up for more than 2 hours.

I have a ferocious appetite.  The buckwheat bake conquered that morning hunger like no other.  Seeing your enthusiasm towards this breakfast creation and realizing how much I loved to eat them, I was pumping out new flavor creations left + right.  Some of these baked in the oven, some cooked in the microwave, all were gluten-free and some were vegan. 

So, after a long hiatus, buckwheat bakes are back!  Well, at least for this post.

My plan was to create apple cinnamon buckwheat bakes for you today.  However, after 5 trials it just wasn’t working.  The apple flavor was undetectable amidst the hearty, buckwheat flour.  Oh well, I tried.  Really hard!

banana bread buckwheat bake // edible perspective

While I have a handful of bakes involving banana, my goal with this was simplification and perfection for 3 versions. 

oven baked with egg // oven baked vegan // microwave with egg

I left out the chia seeds and raw buckwheat groats and used a simple mixture of buckwheat flour + almond meal.  Simple as that!

banana bread buckwheat bake // edible perspective

I’m still doing a little testing with the microwave version above, but I have 2 oven bakes that are sure to bring you right back where we left off in buckwheat bake land.

banana bread buckwheat bake // edible perspective

Please be advised this is not a muffin.  It is definitely not a cupcake.  It is a dense, filling breakfast that is not sweetened with anything except banana.  Sure, sometimes I like to pour maple syrup over my breakfast, but it’s not an everyday thing.  For me, peanut butter or maple cinnamon almond butter is the perfect topping.   

But you can eat this however you like.

Maybe sliced open and stuffed with peanut butter + jelly?  Never a bad idea.

banana bread buckwheat bake // edible perspective

Below is the vegan version before baking.  It has a slightly softer texture but holds together perfectly from the inclusion of ground flax and is left with no gumminess at all.

banana bread buckwheat bake // edible perspective

I realize you don’t always have 30 minutes to wait for breakfast in the morning.  But, here me out.  You can throw this together in about 3 minutes.  Send it into your oven and go about your normal morning routine.  30 minutes later breakfast is ready and waiting. 

Or, you can make a larger batch on a Sunday and keep them wrapped in the fridge to quickly grab + eat all week long.  Just reheat, add a topping, and go!

If you are in need of microwave versions there are over a dozen on my recipe page along with a slew of the oven baked variety.  And, if you can’t do buckwheat [don’t like it, allergic, etc.] I also have a few oat based versions you may enjoy.

If you’re looking for fluffy muffins, check yesterday’s post.

banana bread buckwheat bake // edible perspective

Print this!

Banana Bread Buckwheat Bake

gluten-free, dairy-free // serves 1

• 5 tablespoons raw buckwheat flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons almond meal
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
• 3/4 – 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 medium banana
• 1 large egg
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and thoroughly grease a 4-5-inch diameter oven-safe baking dish or line with parchment paper.  Or, line 3 muffin tins with liners.
2. In a bowl, mash the banana until egg-like then whisk in the egg, milk, and vanilla.
3. Add all dry ingredients into the wet bowl, then whisk until just combined.
4. Pour into your baking dish and bake for about 30-35 minutes until the center is golden brown and set, and a toothpick comes out clean.  Let cool 5 minutes then slide a knife around the edge to release.
5. Top with your favorite nut-butter and/or a drizzle of maple syrup or honey.

Banana Bread Buckwheat Bake

gluten-free, vegan // serves 1

• 5 tablespoons raw buckwheat flour
• 1 tablespoon almond meal
• 1 tablespoon ground flax meal
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 medium banana
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and thoroughly grease a 4-5-inch diameter oven-safe baking dish or line with parchment paper. Or, line 3 muffin tins with liners.
2. In a bowl, mash the banana until egg-like then whisk in the milk, and vanilla.
3. Add all dry ingredients into the wet bowl, then whisk until just combined.  Mixture will be thick.
4. Pour into your baking dish and bake for about 34-38 minutes until the center is golden brown and set, and a toothpick comes out clean.  Let cool 5 minutes then slide a knife around the edge to release.
5. Top with your favorite nut-butter and/or a drizzle of maple syrup.

notes/subs:  For altitude around 5,000-feet, bake at 365-375 degrees F.  For a sweeter bake, I recommend drizzling 1-2 teaspoons of maple syrup or honey overtop before eating.  I like a lot of cinnamon and actually use about 1 1/2 teaspoons.  Adjust to your preference.  Raw buckwheat flour can easily be ground to a fine flour in a blender, magic bullet, or coffee grinder.  Be sure to use raw groats, which are a light yellow/green color.  If using 3 muffins tins baking time will decrease.

banana bread buckwheat bake // edible perspective

Kind of a lot of info for a Friday, huh?  Let’s sum things up.

Ferocious morning appetite?

Buckwheat bake.

Check the recipes above.

Happy weekend!

Ashley

pssst!Check out my feature over at Food52 today, where I talk about all things coconut butter!!  Still confused on what it is and how to make it?  This post will surely help!

1-ingredient coconut butter // edible perspective

Ever used coconut butter over ice cream?  INSTANT magic shell with ONE ingredient!

coconut butter magic shell // edible perspective

mayo-less stuffed egg salad

I made the most terrible meal ever last week.

Rarely do I have to throw an entire pan of food away but this-was-disgusting.  There was no coming back.  There was no saving this meal. 

I tried to make a coconut milk stir fry with baby bok choy as the star vegetable.  Whenever I make sauces I add ingredients very gradually.  Things were going okay until the coconut milk was introduced.  From that point I just couldn’t get it to taste right.  I moved on and thought maybe it would come together as it cooked.

I started stir-frying the veggies and then poured the sauce on.

Terrible.  No flavor.  I added a few more spices and drizzles of different ingredients to no avail.  During the taste testing I also came to the realization that bok choy is not really my thing.  I like it o.k. in small doses but realized I’m just not a huge fan.  I think it’s the texture.

Or, I may just need a lesson in how to properly prepare bok choy.

After that disaster, I moved on to my bowl of perfectly hard boiled eggs.

Mmmm, eggs.

I’ve made a few mayo-less egg salads before—one with Greek yogurt and two withhummus—but wanted something a little more traditional in flavor. 

The dressing turned out a little tangy, slightly sweet, and creamy.  The trick to the creaminess was adding one of the cooked hard boiled egg yolks.  The taste profile is similar to mayo but the consistency is quite different.  It’s not nearly as thick and doesn’t fully bind the chopped egg together.  However, this is exactly what I was going for, as I’ve never been a huge fan of egg salad so thick it maintains its form after being scooped.

A mopey hello from my photography sidekick, Dakota.

Print this!

Mayo-less Stuffed Egg Salad

gluten-free, dairy-free // yields 2-4 servings

• 6 large eggs
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 hard boiled egg yolk comes from 1 of the 6 eggs you’ll hard
• 1 1/2 teaspoons honey
• 3/4 teaspoon minced garlic
• 3/4 teaspoon brown mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon salt + pepper
• 1 cup bite-size chopped lacinato/dino kale
• 1/4 cup chopped oil-packed sun dried tomatoes blotted of excess oil
• 2 tablespoons diced green onion

1. Place eggs in a large pot and cover with cold water by 2-inches.
2. Bring to a boil over med-high heat and let boil for 1 minute.
3. Turn off the heat, cover, and let sit for 13 minutes.
4. While cooking, prepare a large bowl filled with ice and water.
5. Drain the water from the pot and place the eggs in the ice bath until fully chilled.
6. Once chilled, remove the shell from all of the eggs and set aside 1 of the egg yolks.
7. Place the oil, vinegar, 1 egg yolk, honey, garlic, mustard, salt, and pepper in a blender and blend until smooth.  Taste and add more salt/pepper if needed. 
8. Place the kale in a bowl, add 1 tablespoon of dressing, and massage the dressing into the kale with your hands to tenderize.
9. Chop or mash the remaining hard boiled eggs and place in a large bowl with the kale, sun-dried tomatoes, and green onions.
10. Add desired amount of dressing and gently fold all of the ingredients together.  Taste, and add more salt + pepper if desired.
11. Serve immediately or store in the fridge in a sealed container.  Dressing soaks in a bit as it sits.

notes: You can definitely leave out the “stuffing” ingredients of kale, sun-dried tomatoes, and green onion to have a more traditional egg salad.

Enjoy on crunchy toast or lightly dressed kale.  Can never get enough eggs, kale, or toast.

Hope you all had a delicious, relaxing, and/or adventurous weekend!

Ashley