Banana Flax Bread

A few mornings ago, I was contemplating three rather excessively ripe bananas while Zach and his father, seated at the kitchen table, were having a discussion about fiber. This fortuitous collision of ordinary circumstances was all the suggestion I needed to bake a nice, hearty, fiber-filled banana bread. It feels a little odd to think I was inspired by a conversation that eventually led to less culinary topics such as, um, regularity, so I like to surmise my true motivation was the decadent ripeness of the dark, creamy, caramel-sweet bananas... but a little extra fiber, especially in the form of nutty wheat bran and flax seeds, is never a displeasure.

Banana Flax Bread

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup wheat bran
1/3 cup raw turbinado sugar
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1-1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas
6 oz fat-free vanilla yogurt
2 eggs
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup finely chopped dark chocolate (at least 80% cacao)

~ Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray.
~ In a large bowl, combine the flours, wheat bran, sugar, ground flax, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
~ In a medium bowl, whisk together bananas, yogurt, eggs, butter and vanilla.
~ Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, and stir just until moistened.
~ Fold in chocolate chips.
~ Spoon batter into prepared pan, and bake for about 50 minutes - until a wooden skewer inserted in center of loaf comes out clean. Cool loaf in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove loaf from pan and cool completely on rack... or serve warm! Perfect toasted for breakfast, or with whipped cream for dessert...