Paradise

A few months ago I was fortunate enough to experience all of the glory that the beautiful island of Kauai has to offer. Also known as The Garden Island, Kauai is a lush, green, tropical island filled with waterfalls, vibrant beaches, and the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, Waimea Canyon. One main road leads you from the airport through a handful of small beachy towns and gorgeous tropical terrain up to the northern part of the island where we stayed.

From there, our 5 days in Kauai consisted of driving with the top down, chasing waterfalls, spotting dolphins, dipping our toes in the sand and, of course, tasting all the foods! One of my favorite things about Kauai was that you didn’t have to go far to get from one açaí bowl to the next. Superfood smoothies, fresh juices, colorful açaí bowls, and coconut water straight from the shell - all in abundance and all things that make me a very happy camper!

One of the treats we tried that really stood out was the mango bread, sold curbside by a local at a popular waterfall stop. The friendly woman shared with us her selection of gluten-free bread choices, and, with mango being my favorite fruit, of course that’s the one we chose!

I’ve had plenty of banana bread in my life, raisin bread, cinnamon bread, all kinds of breads, but never mango bread! I fell in love with the very first bite, so of course I had to try to recreate it upon leaving paradise and returning back home.

I searched and searched trying to find Hawaiian mango bread recipes like the one we tried in Kauai, but could not find one that looked quite the same. However, what I did come up with left me more in love with mango bread than the first time!

This mango bread recipe has 2-3 full cups of roughly chopped mango, which really lets the mango shine and gives you full bites of the delicious sweet fruit throughout each piece. Not to mention, it’s gluten-free and refined sugar free (made with monkfruit sweetener)! I simply folded in some unsweetened shredded coconut at the end for an extra boost of Hawaiian flavor, but really the mango is the star of the show.

I know you’re going to fall in love with this recipe just like I did! It makes two loaves so (if you’re willing) you’ll have plenty to share with friends and family and can spread the love and spirit of Kauai through this recipe.

Mahalo Kauai for an amazing trip and for inspiring this wonderful recipe!

Enjoy!

Kauai-Inspired Gluten-Free Mango Bread

Adapted from Sackpac’s Magic Mango Bread recipe

Ingredients

Makes (2) 9x5 inch loaves

*Note: I recommend using organic ingredients whenever possible

• 2 cups gluten-free flour

• 2 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp sea salt

• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

• 1/2 tsp cardamom (or more cinnamon)

• 1.5 cups golden monkfruit sweetener

• 1/2 - 1 cup coconut oil, melted (optional: sub 1/2 cup coconut oil and 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce)

• 3 eggs

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 2-3 cups mango, roughly chopped

• 1/2-1 cup unsweetened coconut, shredded

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350ºF and spray or lightly grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans (I like spraying with avocado oil).

• Mix the first 5 dry ingredients together in a large bowl until all ingredients are evenly distributed.

• In another bowl, mix the monkfruit sweetener, melted coconut oil, eggs, and vanilla extract. Whisk together until blended and frothy.

• Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and use a wooden spoon to combine the ingredients. Fold in the mangos and shredded coconut until combined. Avoid over-mixing.

• Distribute the mixture evenly between the two loaf pans and bake for 50-60 minutes. Use the toothpick method to determine if bread is done (stick toothpick in center and if it comes out clean, it’s done!).

• Allow to cool for about 10 minutes before removing from loaf pans.

• Enjoy!