Coconut Cashew Banana Cake

  
1 bundt cake plus extra batter for muffins, loaf or smaller cake pan

Tip: Fruit, or sometimes vegetables, can be interchanged in cake or quick bread recipes. What you’re looking for is moisture. If you don’t like bananas, use more pears. Other alternatives: shred or finely dice apples, zucchini or carrots. Use canned or homemade applesauce. Check your supply and don’t be afraid to experiment.

Ingredients
4 very ripe bananas
2 ripe pears (or 2 additional ripe bananas)
¾ cup coconut oil
3 large eggs
1 ¼ cup turbinado sugar
1 ¾ cup whole milk kefir (can sub buttermilk)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
½ tsp coconut extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup almond flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 ½ tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp fine sea salt
½ cup roasted, unsalted cashews
½ cup shredded or flaked coconut (unsweetened or sweetened)
½ cup English toffee bits (I use Heath Bits O’ Brickle)

Prep
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Grease bundt pan well with soft butter (cooking spray ok if preferred). Prepare a bread pan or muffin pan for additional batter.
Wash and dry bananas and pears. Peel both; mash bananas in a large bowl, grate pears into the same bowl.
Roughly chop cashews.
Pour kefir into measuring cup; add vanilla and coconut extracts.
Blend AP flour, whole wheat flour and almond flour in a bowl; whisk in baking powder, baking soda and sea salt. Stir in coconut, toffee bits and cashews.

Directions
Using a mixer or mixing by hand, cream together bananas, pears, coconut oil, eggs and turbinado sugar until well blended. Stir in kefir/extract mixture.
By hand, carefully but thoroughly fold in dry ingredient mixture until all are moistened. Do not overbeat.
Spoon 2/3 of the mixture into the prepared bundt pan. Spoon the remaining batter into a prepared bread pan (can be scooped into muffin cups if you prefer).
Bake in the preheated oven until each cake tests clean when you stick a toothpick in the center. Bundt cake will take about 40-50 minutes; bread pan will take about 35-45 minutes; muffins will take about 20 minutes.
Remove cakes from the oven at their appropriate time and let them cool for about 10 minutes on a cooling rack. Turn cakes out of the pan and continue to cool on the rack.
Cake can be drizzled with icing of choice, dusted with powder sugar or left plain.
This cake will freeze well if you do not plan to consume within a few days. It’s also a great treat to share with neighbors or friends!