This simple bread has all the flavors of gingerbread and all the nutritional benefits of bran bread. The moist bread is loaded with the typical gingerbread spices as well as beneficial fiber, nutrients, and minerals. It's also low in refined sugar and gets its modest sweetness from chopped dates and a very small amount of molasses. A combination of wheat bran, oats, and white whole-wheat flour make the bread "whole grain," and walnuts as well as eggs and kefir, buttermilk, or sour milk give the bread plenty of protein. I often use thick kefir in the bread, mainly because I make it and usually have some on hand (drinking kefir often helps with stomach/digestion problems if you take metformin and/or mounjaro--see https://www.thenfeedthem.com/post/does-drinking-kefir-help-with-metformin-and-possibly-mounjaro-stomach-problems for more information). Buttermilk or sour milk also will work in lieu of kefir. In moderation, the bread is great if you're on a diabetic diet or want to "eat healthy." The bread makes a nice treat for breakfast, and it's also good alongside soups, salads, with dinner, or as a snack with a piece of cheese and cup of tea or coffee. In other words, the bread is good anytime. Enjoy!
Gingerbread Date Bran Bread (Diabetic Friendly) -- Makes 2 Loaves
3 cups of plain kefir, buttermilk, or sour milk
1 cup of wheat bran
1 cup of rolled oats (old fashioned)
1/3 cup of canola oil
2 large eggs
3/4 cup of pitted dates, chopped
2 tablespoons of molasses
1 tablespoon of minced or ground fresh ginger (from the squeeze bottle is fine)
1 cup of white whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon of ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 cup of chopped toasted walnuts
In a large bowl combine the kefir, wheat bran, oats, canola oil, eggs, dates, molasses, and minced/ground fresh ginger. Mix everything well (just use a sturdy spoon) and cover the mixture with plastic wrap. Let the mixture sit for an hour or two so that the bran and oats can soak up some of the liquid. Add to the bowl the white whole-wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices, salt, and walnuts and mix them into the wet ingredients until blended. Spritz two 8- x 4-inch loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray or line the pans with foil and spritz the foil with cooking spray. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans.
Air Fryer: Air fry the batter at 320 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until a pick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out with no wet batter attached.
Oven: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the breads for 35-45 minutes or until a pick inserted in the center of the loaves comes out with no wet batter attached.
Let the breads cool in their pans for 15 minutes before removing them to cool completely. The breads will slice more easily when cool.
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