Blueberry Banana Bread

I have 3 blueberry bushes in my back yard.   Birds got into my crop, leaving only one microscopic berry hanging on for dear life.  Then a deer ate it.  I didn't feel too bad, since by crop I mean usually 8 blueberries.  I have to start taking better care of those bushes.  I have been spoiled by the black raspberries (or blackberries) that grow wild in my side yard.  I pretty much ignore them, yet they give me almost enough black raspberries (or blackberries) to start my own fruit stand.

So I hit the Try-n-Save, where blueberries were on sale this week and picked up a few pints.  I had found an intriguing recipe on a bakery blog and wanted to try it.  The original recipe also used chocolate.  Normally I like chocolate in pretty much everything but garlic toast.  Bananas and chocolate are heaven on a frozen stick.  But for some reason the combo of blueberries, bananas and chocolate didn't interest me any. 

 Looks don't count ... tastes better than it looks.

 No need to to wait for your gluten-free friends to drop by to serve this baby. When you take a bite, your mouth won't believe there isn't a drop of flour in the ingredients.  So even 'tho this tea-type bread is Passover-friendly, it's delicious enough to serve all year round.

Don't cheat on cooking time!  If the edges are starting to turn brown but the top is still wet, keep on cookin'.  I cheated. The result was a tad gloppy yet still edible, but I wouldn't serve it to company.  Please don't make the same mistake I did.

Blueberry Banana Bread
Adapted from Keep It Sweet Desserts
Yield:  one loaf (8-12 slices)

1 1/2 cups (4 1/4 ounces) ground almonds
3 whole eggs plus 1 egg white, lightly whisked
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup light or dark brown sugar, tightly packed
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 medium bananas)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. table salt
1 cup blueberries, rinsed and dried

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 5×10" loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Place a piece of parchment, cut to fit, inside the bottom of the pan.  Lightly spray parchment with more cooking spray. Set aside

In a large bowl, stir together all ingredients except for blueberries, just until combined.  Avoid overworking the mixture.

Gently fold in blueberries until evenly distributed.

Top cracked a little.  Didn't affect flavor.

Pour batter into prepared pan.  Smooth out top, if necessary.  Bake for 45-55 minutes or until top is no longer wet and a wooden toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean.

Place pan on cooling rack.  Allow to cool before removing from pan. Slice 8 thick or 12 thin slices.