This quick bread is a favorite of mine not only because I am a huuuuuge peanut butter fan, but also because its not so sweet that I feel like its a dessert-only dish. Sometimes its my breakfast and sometimes its an evening snack! If you would prefer that it be more of a dessert bread then I recommend adding some chocolate chips and possibly subbing some of the pureed dates for sugar. If you’re like me and a little sweetness goes a long way, then I think you will enjoy it as is!
Whoever first thought of grinding up peanuts to make peanut butter is a culinary genius! Unfortunately, we couldn’t just appreciate a good thing, we had to go and add sugar, molasses, hydrogenated oils, emulsifiers, and some other unpronounceable add ins. The common bad guys when it comes to peanut butter are Jiff, Skippy, Peter Pan, and on and on.. There are a few good options available where you can avoid all the crazy ingredients. Smuckers natural peanut butter contains just peanuts and a tad bit of salt. Kroger brand also has a natural peanut butter with only peanuts and salt. There are a few other options out there and all it takes to figure out the good from the bad is looking at the ingredients list right below the nutrition facts label. The good stuff should only have peanuts and sometimes a little salt. If the list has anything other than peanuts and salt then put it back on the shelf and keep looking!
WARNING: Don’t blindly grab a jar of peanut butter that has the word “natural” on the front and assume its the best choice. Those also usually have all those unwanted ingredients even though they say “natural”… false advertising right?! Take the time to look at the ingredients list on back so you don’t fall into that trap!
Plant-Based Peanut Butter Quick Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup peanut butter
- 1 1/4 cup almond milk, unsweetened or other non-dairy milk
- 2 flax eggs 2T ground flax + 6T water = 2 flax eggs
- 1 cup pureed dates
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- cacao nibs or dark chocolate chips optional
Instructions
- Make flax eggs by combining ground flaxseed and water in a small bowl. Let sit for ~10 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 325°F.Grease or line 9x5" bread loaf pan.
- Make date paste by placing 1 cup of dates and ~1/2c water in a food processor. You may need to add water ~1Tbsp at a time and scrape sides down a few times to get a smooth final texture.
- In a large bowl combine peanut butter (may need to heat it for ~30 seconds in the microwave to loosen it up), almond milk, flax eggs, date paste, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and mix together.
- Add the flour and cornstarch to the bowl and use a sturdy spoons/spatula to mix well.
- Add cacao nibs at this time if you like.
- Scrape the batter into the loaf pan. Sprinkle cacao nibs on top if you like.
- Place loaf pan on the center rack.Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and let cool in pan for at least 15 minutes.
Notes
