By Amie Valpone, Culinary Marketing Consultant & CEO of the gluten-free blog, The Healthy Apple.

Ready for a sweet treat on ‘Love Day’ but not ready for the sugar overload and empty calories? Look no further than this healthy and fiber-rich chocolate bread that will wow your Valentine with one bite! Try this Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free recipe:

GLUTEN-FREE CHOCOLATE SUNFLOWER BREAD

Ingredients

2 cups white rice flour
1/4 cup gluten-free cereal, crushed (rice crispies or any puffed rice cereal)
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 large eggs, beaten
4 large bananas, mashed
1 Tbsp. almond extract
1 ripe avocado, peeled
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup pistachios, chopped
1/4 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped
1 Tbsp. cacao nibs
1/2 cup oil

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F.
Spray a bread pan with nonstick cooking spray set aside.
Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl and then make a well in the center.
Add eggs, bananas, avocado and oil to the center and combine them before folding into the rest of the dry ingredients.  Mix well to combine; stir in sunflower seeds, pistachios, pecans, dried cranberries and cacao nibs.
Transfer batter into prepared bread pan.
Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Set aside to cool before serving.

Enjoy.