There are a few recipes that take me right back to childhood, and banana bread is one of them.
Did your mom, like mine, bake big batches of dark brown banana bread? I loved coming home from school to a house full of the sweet aroma of baked bread.
My mom would cut a big slice for us, slather it with butter, and we’d sit at the kitchen countertop, legs swinging from barstools, biting into warm, soft slices.
Good stuff.
Until. Well … leave it to a nutrition education to make you rethink your food favorites.
Even though we once served it as an afterschool snack (or even for breakfast), that banana bread recipe your mother or grandmother made is far from healthy.
Sure, it contains bananas. But it also has refined sugar – some recipes call for more than a cup! – and refined flour.
So does that mean it’s off the menu?
Good news: it’s not. I’ve created a healthy version for you. Just like I’ve created healthy versions of all these other favorites:
- Pumpkin Pie (turned vegan)
- Cookie Dough Dip (made high-protein …with beans!)
- Blueberry Muffins (gone paleo)
- Chocolate Mug Cake (gluten-free, of course)
- The Perfect Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookie
- Peanut Butter Vegan Fudge
- Chocolate Gluten-Free Brownies
Sugarless Banana Bread
While some recipes-gone-healthy are only mildly good twists on the original, this one is fantastic.
Eggs and almond flour lend lots of protein, but also keep the batter moist, so you don’t miss the flour.
And the best part? No sugar. It also contains no stevia, maple syrup, or honey. All you need to sweeten up this bread is the bananas.
The secret behind this recipe is roasted ripe bananas. A quick turn in a hot oven will soften the ripe fruit, caramelizing the natural sugars. If you don’t have time for roasting, no worries. You can simply use very, very ripe – almost black – bananas, instead.
Once roasted, just toss the bananas in your high-speed blender with your other ingredients and you’re good to go.
How Does it Taste?
This bread will taste just like the banana bread you remember enjoying as a kid. Really!
With five bananas in the mix, the bread is sweet, moist and soft. And although I wouldn’t recommend topping slices with butter, a slathering of coconut milk yogurt (like Coyo) takes this one over the top.
Easy Add-Ins
If basic banana bread isn’t enough, feel free to stir in any of these upgrades:
- 3/4 cup mini Enjoy Life! chocolate chips
- 3/4 cup fresh blueberries
- 1/2 cup diced fresh strawberries
- 1 or 2 scoops plant-based protein powder
- 1/4 cup cacao nibs
- 1/4 cup hemp seeds
- 3 tbsp chia seeds
| Prep Time | 20 minutes |
| Cook Time | 50 minutes |
| Servings |
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- 5 ripe bananas
- 3 large eggs
- 3/4 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp vanilla
Ingredients
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- Peel bananas and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Roast in an oven heated to 450ºF for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the fruit begins to turn light golden brown on the bottom.
- Place bananas in a high-speed blender (or food processor) with eggs. Blend to mix.
- Add remaining ingredients, blending until well mixed.
- Spread batter into a large (9 x 5) loaf pan, sprayed with nonstick coconut oil spray or lined with parchment.
- Bake in an oven preheated to 350ºF for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the center springs back when touched lightly.
- Remove and cool slightly before turning out of the pan.
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