Peanut Butter Banana Bars (Healthy)

Submitted by Doing it Right

"These are my favorite go to snack "cake". Each serving fits perfectly in a snack size ziploc, and these freeze beautifully. I put one frozen in my lunch, and when I'm ready for it in the afternoon, it is thawed. Diabetic Exchanges per serving are: 1 Fruit, 1/2 Starch and 1/2 Fat. I am posting the recipe as written, but I always use Splenda. See note at the end of the recipe. Recipe is courtesy of Joanna Lund."

 

• Ready In: 35mins
• Ingredients: 8
• Serves: 8

ingredients

• 1 egg (or equivalent in egg substitute)
• 1⁄4 cup reduced-fat peanut butter
• 1 cup banana, ripe mashed (3 medium)
• 1⁄4 cup skim milk
• 2 tablespoons sugar substitute
• 1 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda

directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray an 8 X 8 pan with butter flavored cooking spray.
3. In a large bowl, combine egg, peanut butter and bananas.
4. Mix well.
5. Stir in milk.
6. In a small bowl, combine sugar substitute, flour, baking powder and baking soda.
7. Add to wet mixture slowly.
8. Evenly spread battter into prepared pan.
9. Bake for 20 minutes.
10. Cut into 8 bars.
11. NOTE: Make sure your sugar substitute can be used for baking.

Reviews

[Veggiequeen]

I loved these! But I should say I made a few critical changes, based on other reviewers comments. First, I was worried they'd be a little dry (I always use wholewheat flour). So I added a little more banana (about 3.5) and an extra tbsp of crunchy peanut butter (crunchy lends a great texture to the finished product). I also had to bake it for an additional 10 minutes until it was lightly browned. Most importantly, I thought they might be a bit flat as I noticed there were two raising agents, but no acid component to react with them. So I added 1tsp of vinegar to the milk. The final result was TO DIE FOR!! I thought maybe peanuts and bananas might be a strange combination, but after the second piece, I couldn't stop eating this! I also loved that the oil component was replaced by peanuts (nutritionally better as I use a no additives version), and there was hardly ANY sugar. I confess that I also sprinkled in a little stevia (about 1/2 tsp). My version turned out to be more like a cake than bars, however it was perfectly moist and it tasted really good!! What a great combination - thanks Goochie137 :)

 

[mums the word]

Nice flavour and certainly easy to prepare. The peanut butter flavour is very subtle so I think next time I will try using a "Crunchy" peanut butter or maybe add a little bit more. The texture is a cross between a snack cake and a banana bread. I tried it with a bit of butter on it and it was yummy. I used regular granulated sugar rather than a sugar substitute and baked it for about 27 minutes. Thx for sharing this recipe!

 

[Blake F]

Heavenly! I made these this afternoon intending to freeze them and eat one a day, but they were so good that I ate all of them. I used 1/2 cup of Splenda instead of 2 tablespoons.

 

[yamakarasu]

Super easy to make and delicious. This is a VERY soft, fluffy, light cake. It has a subtle banana/peanut butter flavour, which I really love. I used a full 1/3 cup of peanut butter and may try even more next time. I also added about 1 tsp lemon juice to my milk, and used regular sugar. It took closer to 30 minutes for mine to finish baking. I cut it into 16 pieces, and I like to spread a little extra peanut butter when I have a piece. So good!

 

[WorkNMomma]

My son asked for these, and he loved them!! They will definitely be our go-to recipe when we have ripe bananas. I followed the advice of multiple folks and added a couple of touches on my own: I used 1/2 cup of organic peanut butter, and I used 1/3 cup of sugar/Splenda mix. I also added 1 tsp of vinegar to the milk, and I added 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract and 1/2 tsp of almond extract. It took about 15 extra minutes to bake them, but they came out great. They're across between a cake and a bar texture. Flavors are subtle -- just enough peanut butter and banana flavor, without being too sweet. Thanks for posting the recipe!!