Soft Banana Bread Swirled With Ribbons of Chocolate

RECIPE OF THE DAY: FEBRUARY 7

FROM: @peanutbutterpluschocolate

WHY WE LOVE IT: If you're anything like me, you probably have bananas turning brown on your kitchen counter and feel guilty about throwing them out. This recipe calls for 3 overly ripe bananas; the more brown they are, the better. Don't let them go to waste!

TOTAL TIME: 

TOTAL INGREDIENTS: 14

MAKE IT FOR: Breakfast with a pat of vegan butter or dessert with a scoop of vanilla dairy-free ice cream.

SPECIAL NOTE: The cake has to bake for 45 minutes to an hour, so prepare accordingly. (If you need to start prep the day before or order ingredients online, we will let you know that here. Otherwise, assume the dish can be shopped, prepped and served the same day with readily available ingredients.)
Ingredients

• 3 overly ripe bananas medium size
• 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup coconut oil melted
• 1/2 cup almond milk room temperature 
• 3 eggs room temperature 
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup light brown sugar, packed or coconut sugar
• 2 cups gluten free baking flour 1:1
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp sea salt

for the chocolate layer

• 1/4 cup dutch processed cocoa powder
• 2 tbsp unsweetened applesauce
• 2 tbsp almond milk

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F and prepare a loaf pan with non-stick spray and parchment paper for easy removal. 
2. In a mixing bowl, use a fork to mash the bananas and then add in the applesauce, milk, coconut oil, eggs, vanilla, and brown sugar and whisk until smooth and well combined. In another bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and then add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until a batter forms. 
3. Remove half of the batter and place it into a bowl. Add in the chocolate layer ingredients to one of the bowls and mix until well combined. Add about 1/4 cup of the classic banana bread batter to the bottom of the loaf pan and use a spoon to smooth it out into an even layer. Top that layer with 1/4 cup of the chocolate batter and then carefully smooth the chocolate layer using a spoon. Repeat these layers until you have used all the batter.
4. Bake the loaf cake for 45 minutes – 1 hour and a toothpick comes out clean. I covered mine with tin foil after about 45 minutes to keep the top from darkening too much.