Vegan Banana Bread

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When life gives you ripe bananas, make banana bread!

This healthy, vegan banana bread is everything you want in banana bread. It’s moist, tender, dense, and full of flavor.

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How banana bread became the unofficial food of the pandemic

I’m sure by now you’ve noticed banana bread all over the internet during this time of uncertainty. Somehow, it has become the unofficial baked good of COVID-19.

And, I’m not making this up — Google Trends shows a spike in banana bread searches starting in March of 2020 (when the federal government announced a state of emergency due to COVID-19 and many people were starting to quarantine at home).

But, why? Well, it’s no secret most of us have been buying more food to stock up due to the lockdown restrictions of COVID-19.

This means there’s more opportunity for things to go bad. Unlike many other foods, though, when bananas over-ripen and go mushy, they can be repurposed, making them a low-risk purchase.

You can either eat them fresh or bake banana bread if they’re past their prime. Zero waste! It’s a win-win.

Interestingly enough, the first banana bread recipe was actually published by Pillsbury in 1933 in the midst of the Great Depression, another time of economic hardship for most Americans. It’s rumored that the recipe “was intended to encourage American housewives to use all manner of foods available in their deprived kitchens to make everyday staple foods, such as bread.”

It also can’t hurt that banana bread just so happens to be the epitome of comfort food.

Can banana bread be healthy?

Of course! Anything can be healthified.

Traditional non-vegan banana bread recipes that are made with butter, eggs, and refined sugar have high amounts of unhealthy saturated fat and cholesterol, but this vegan banana bread recipe is made without oil (or vegan butter), without flour, and without added sugar.

The only ingredients are:

• Bananas
• Almond milk (any plant-based milk can be substituted) – I like to make my own at home using my Almond Cow! You can use my code NATALYA for a $15 discount if you decide to buy one. They’re awesome!
• Applesauce
• Peanut butter (any nut butter can be substituted)
• Oat flour
• Almond flour
• Monk fruit (date sugar or coconut sugar can be substituted if you don’t mind added sugar)
• Flax meal
• Cinnamon
• Vanilla powder (or extract)
• Salt
• Baking soda
• Baking powder

Is banana bread vegan?

Because traditional banana bread typically includes butter and eggs, it is not vegan.

Luckily, these are easy ingredients to substitute when veganizing a recipe!

How to make vegan banana bread

In order to make banana bread vegan, I used a combination of applesauce, flax meal, and peanut butter to replace butter and eggs.

Plus, bananas also just so happen to be egg substitutes in vegan baking as well! So, really, it’s the combination of these four ingredients (bananas, applesauce, flax meal, and peanut butter) that substitute eggs and butter for this recipe.

Is banana bread gluten-free?

Traditional banana bread recipes typically incorporate all-purpose flour, meaning they are not gluten-free.

While I am personally not gluten-free, I try to avoid using all-purpose flour since it’s highly refined and contains very little nutritional value.

How to make gluten-free banana bread

For this vegan banana bread recipe, I replaced all-purpose flour with a combination of oat flour and almond flour!

Both easy-to-find ingredients, and full of health benefits.

Will banana bread dry out overnight?

This banana bread will not dry out overnight, but it all depends on how you store it!

If you leave it uncovered overnight, then yes – it will dry out. But, here’s how to avoid that.

First, be sure to cool the bread completely. Because you’re about to tightly seal the bread, you don’t want to trap any warmth inside with it, since this produces moisture and can cause the bread to become soggy.

Then, tightly seal the bread in a container, or cover it on a plate with some kind of wrap. Either way, make sure it’s completely sealed.

If you do this, your bread will not dry out overnight. In fact, I’ve found it’s even better the next day! The flavors seem to intensify as the bread sits.

How to make vegan banana bread moist

When making any bread recipe, the liquid, sugar and fats you choose to use can help add a moist texture.

In this vegan banana bread recipe, the moist texture comes from these ingredients, most of which are used to substitute butter and eggs:

• Bananas – this is a natural form of sugar, and also happens to be a wet ingredient, which helps yield a moist texture
• Almond milk – this is the liquid I used, but you can replace it with any plant-based milk
• Applesauce – this was used to replace coconut oil, and does a wonderful job at making the bread more dense
• Peanut butter – this is the fat I used to help add to the moist texture

The other thing to consider is how much you’re mixing your batter. An over-beaten batter will develop air pockets while baking, which will cause the banana bread to dry out.

So, when you mix the wet and dry ingredients together (in this case, when you add the oat flour to the rest of the ingredients), it’s best to use a spatula or whisk. This way, you can stop mixing once the ingredients are fully combined.

This is why when I add the oat flour to the batter, I first transfer the batter out of the blender to continue mixing it.

What toppings can I add? Do I need to add chocolate chips?

That is entirely up to you! I chose to fold in chocolate chips (but this is totally optional).

Some other add-in options are walnuts, pecans, or cinnamon swirls. You can also add toppings once the batter is in the loaf tin, like a sprinkle of nuts, seeds, or rolled oats over the top before baking. Extra nutrients!

You can also keep it simple and skip the add-ins completely. Your choice!

How long does vegan banana bread last?

In my experience with this banana bread recipe, it stays fresh at room temperature for about 4 days.

After this, I recommend freezing it if you haven’t already finished it!

Can you freeze vegan banana bread?

Yes, you can! When stored properly, frozen banana bread can keep for about 2-4 months.  

All you have to do is cool the bread completely, as you would if you were storing it at room temperature. Then, wrap it tightly in some kind of wrap. I suggest wrapping it a few times to make sure it’s completely sealed.

After that, place the wrapped banana bread in an airtight bag for extra security, and store it in the freezer for 2-4 months.

Looking to get rid of some of your bananas? Try these recipes:

Banana Waffles

Chocolate Waffles

Vegan Buckwheat Pancakes

Lemon Poppyseed Pancakes

Orange Creamsicle Parfait

If you try this recipe, let me know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag your photos with @healthiir on Instagram! I’d love to hear what you think. 🙂