AIP Banana Bread

Banana bread is comfort food in the oldest sense - the smell of it baking changes the feeling of a house. That comfort does not have to disappear on the elimination phase. This loaf uses green banana flour and coconut flour instead of wheat, a gelatin egg instead of a chicken egg, and very ripe bananas for natural sweetness. It slices, toasts, and freezes well. It tastes like banana bread. You can share it without explaining anything.

Green banana flour is a source of resistant starch, a type of carbohydrate that passes through the small intestine without being digested and reaches the colon, where it is involved in supporting a healthy microbial environment. Resistant starch is not a cure. It is one steady input in the kind of gut-tending that supports a body working toward remission. Ripe bananas bring potassium, and coconut flour contributes medium-chain triglycerides from its natural fat content. Cinnamon adds warmth and carries its own modest anti-inflammatory reputation in the research.

This loaf is an act of ordinary care. Mashing the bananas, whisking the gelatin egg until it foams, the smell coming from the oven. Let it matter. Baking for yourself during a healing protocol is not a small thing.

Ingredients

• 2 large, very ripe bananas (approximately 400 g), mashed
• 1/3 cup olive oil or coconut oil, melted
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup green banana flour
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Gelatin egg (makes 1 egg equivalent)

• 1 tablespoon unflavoured gelatin
• 1/4 cup hot (not boiling) water

The bananas must be very ripe - deeply yellow with plenty of brown spots. Under-ripe bananas will not mash smoothly and will not sweeten the loaf enough. If your bananas are only lightly spotted, give them another day or two on the counter.

Method

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a standard loaf pan (8x4 or 9x5 inch) with a little coconut oil and set aside.

Make the gelatin egg first so it has time to set slightly. Sprinkle the tablespoon of gelatin over the hot water in a small cup and let it bloom for a minute without stirring. Then whisk it briskly - a fork works well - until it becomes frothy and slightly thickened. Set aside while you prepare the rest.

Mash the ripe bananas well in a large bowl until almost no lumps remain. Add the oil, vanilla extract, and apple cider vinegar. Stir until combined.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the green banana flour, coconut flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. The batter will be thick. Fold in the gelatin egg and mix gently until it is fully incorporated.

Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top.

Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until the top is deep golden and a toothpick or skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. If the top is browning too fast before the centre is set, lay a loose piece of parchment over it for the last 15 minutes.

Let the loaf cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning it out onto a rack. It slices more cleanly when it has had time to cool fully.

Variations

The loaf freezes well. Slice it first, wrap the slices individually, and freeze in a sealed bag. Thaw a slice on the counter for 20 minutes or warm it briefly in a toaster oven.

For added texture, stir 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut into the batter before baking.

Notes

Green banana flour behaves differently from wheat flour - it absorbs moisture steadily and the batter will thicken as it sits. Work quickly once the wet and dry ingredients are combined.

Coconut flour is highly absorbent. Do not substitute an equal volume of any other flour or the ratios will not work.

The gelatin egg is an elimination-phase substitution for chicken egg. It contributes structure without adding any ingredient that needs to be reintroduced.

*Adapted from healmedelicious.com*

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*Provenance: source-derived (re-grounded). Method rebuilt in ARM's own words from the ingredient list in /Users/Christopher/Documents/Claude/01-Projects/ARM/aip-source-archives/heal-me-delicious/aip-banana-bread.md (healmedelicious.com, author Nicole Charles). Ingredient quantities used exactly as given in source. Introduction and health framing written fresh. No third-party method text reproduced. No AIP exclusions found in the ingredient list. Flags: oven temperature and bake time estimated; servings estimated; gelatin and vanilla brand checks required.*