Junk free June - Warming banana bread

This recipe was a trial to see how satisfyingly sweet a banana loaf could be without refined sugar and even without the addition of honey. The result is a sweet, light and warming loaf which can be heated and sweetened with honey, maple or even peanut butter! It is a nourishing breakfast alternative and the ginger adds a delectable sweetness and warmness in these cooler months.

Ingredients

1 ¼ cups	Spelt flour, buckweat, high grade as alternatives
1	Banana, ripe
½ cup	Shredded coconut
1	Egg
2 cm	Fresh ginger, finely grated
1 Tbsp	Baking powder
1 tsp	Cinnamon
1 tsp	Vanilla essence/extract, good quality
1 cup	Milk, soy as an alternative.

Topping

10	Dates
1 drizzle	Rolled oats, or seeds

Directions

1. Preheat oven at 175 degrees Celsius and line a loaf tin with baking paper.
2. Mash the banana in a bowl with a fork. Add in your egg, vanilla, cinnamon and grated ginger.
3. Add to the wet mixture your dry ingredients - flour and coconut. Add in your milk until just combined, add more if you find the mixture a bit thick.
4. Pour your batter into the prepared loaf tin and decorated by adding dates, rolled oat, nuts and seeds on top. Bake for 45-50 mins until baked through. Cool in the loaf tine for 15 mins before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely. Enjoy on its own or toasted in the morning with honey and yogurt.