Breakfast · Desserts

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread (nut, dairy, refined sugar and gluten free)

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Seems like everyone has a recipe for banana bread these days! No one is complaining, either. It’s probably one of my favorite things to eat, EVER. I was going to start this post by saying: “Am nuts over this new banana bread recipe!” but: (1) I’m starting to sound inadvertently cheesy. (2) this banana bread is nut-free, so that would just sound weird.

If you must know, I’ve been baking since before I knew how to ride a bike. Banana muffins and banana bread were the very first thing on my beginner baker’s agenda. A lot of you ask me where I get the inspo from or how did I start baking, and it all comes down to one sentence: I got it from my mama! She’s responsible for this baking bug and this passion for creating food and enjoying it with those I care about. I’m sure she’ll hear about this from my dad- who is like; my number one reader and the very first blog subscriber. He also loves to weigh in on my food photography and will eagerly call me out if he thinks my pictures look messy or too artsy or what not. Gotta love him! 🙂

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So back to banana bread business! Friends, there IS a magic old-school formula. My mom and I used to make it with the following universal ratio: 2 cups of flour called for 1 cup of sugar, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup of butter & 4 ripe bananas. And then sea salt, baking soda, a pinch of apple cider vinegar to activate the baking soda etc. It was an easy recipe. But, I’ve reworked our go-to formula to make it much, much healthier. Goodbye white sugar & white, bleached flour. Goodbye non-organic butter. Goodbye gluten & goodbye processed chocolate chips with modified-milk ingredients. Goodbye hormone-laden dairy milk.

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This banana bread is nut, gluten, dairy, & refined sugar free (and has flaxseed egg instructions for vegan options). I’ve written only one banana bread recipe in the past, and that one is a paleo (and GF) Peanut Butter & Chocolate Banana Bread. So I wanted to try something totally different this time. The best thing about this recipe: I’ll give you 3 different flour substitution options that work just as well. So you don’t have to scramble and get the exact same flour I used. You can if you want, but options are always nice. Am I right?

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You see; with coconut flour, you guys can’t really substitute another flour in equal measurements.  It’s near impossible, because there’s no other flour that will only use 1/2 cup to magically absorb, expand & create banana bread. Only coconut flour can produce a loaf with so little.  So I went with an all-purpose gluten free flour blend. And instead of the 1/2 cup of peanut butter or butter I tried this recipe against: sunflower butter, coconut oil & a vegan butter spread, Earth Balance. All three worked very well.  All three are nut-free & also solid vegan options.

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And the secret to groundbreaking banana bread is: it’s ALL in the bananas! Go big & make sure they’re really ripe. Friends, go to your local grocery store and ask them for the super spotty bananas they are about to throw out. They’ll be happy to send you home with plenty. These blackened bananas are literally banana bread gold! I keep them in my fridge and bring them out right before am ready to bake. You simply can’t compete with the banana bread these blackened bananas yield. And I mean blackened on the outside, only.

So let’s get to it. You will love this one! xx

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Chocolate Banana Bread (gluten, dairy, refined sugar and nut-free)

  • Servings: 8-10
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Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose gluten free flour blend  *or 2 cups sprouted, unbleached all-purpose flour or 2.5 cups blanched almond flour
  • 4 large, very ripe bananas mashed
  • 1/2 cup melted vegan butter (I use Earth Balance)* OR melted coconut oil OR sunflower butter.
  • 1/4 cup of almond milk
  • 1 cup of coconut sugar *or 1/2 cup of raw honey or pure maple syrup
  • 2 large eggs, at room temperature * or flaxseed eggs, see notes below
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp of sea salt
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 cup of chocolate chips of your choice (there are dairy-free ones available)

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350F and line a 9×5 inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together: flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, sea salt. *If you opt for coconut sugar, mix it in with the dry ingredients.
  3. Add everything else to the bowl: mashed bananas, almond milk, two eggs, vanilla, raw honey or pure maple, melted coconut oil or vegan butter & give it a really good whisk until you have a nice, smooth batter. Fold in *only 1/2 C chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
  4. Bake anywhere from 50 minutes to 1 hour. I always like to check it at the 45 min mark by inserting a wooden rod or knife in the middle of the loaf. If it comes out mostly clean, its ready!
  5. Melt about 1/4 cup of chocolate chips over low heat with 1 tablespoon of coconut oil or place them in a small pot over a sauce pan with simmering water. This will be the loaf “glaze”. The glaze is completely optional. I just like the glossy look & I find it seals in the moisture. Poke small holes with a fork along the loaf. Use a pastry brush to top with a thin layer of melted chocolate. I use the remainder 1/4 cup chocolate chips to just sprinkle on top the warm, finished loaf. Enjoy!!

Notes:

*For the chocolate glaze, set aside 1 tbsp of coconut oil.

* For 1 flaxseed egg I do about 2.5-3 tbsp of water to every tbsp of ground flaxseed meal and then mix it well and refrigerate for a few mins to thicken. Repeat for each egg the recipe calls for.

*If you use organic, unbleached all-purpose flour it would no longer be gluten free. The other two flours listed are GF.

By: Aleyda | The Dish On Healthy

13 thoughts on “Chocolate Chip Banana Bread (nut, dairy, refined sugar and gluten free)

  1. Hey Aleyda! I have just discovered your blog! It’s amazing! I’m desperate to try so many recipes! With this banana bread, could I use coconut flour? And if so how much would I need? I have a big bag so I’m looking for lots of coconut four recipes! 😋 Thanks 😀
    Melissa

    1. Dear Melissa, sorry I am only seeing this now! I had not seen the round of comments below this recipe. For banana bread I usually try about 1/2 cup of coconut flour. I also have a coconut flour banana bread recipe on the blog, see “Peanut Butter & Chocolate Banana Bread” for details, delicious and perfect for that big bag of coconut flour you got! 🙂

  2. Hi there,

    This look absolutely amazing and I really want to try this recipe but as I’m from England – any idea what the conversions are from cups to grams please?

    Many thanks,
    Emma

  3. Hi there,

    This recipe looks incredible and I really want to try making this but as I’m in England, any possibility you could let me know what the ‘cups’ measurements are in ‘grams’ please?

    Many thanks,
    Emma

    1. Thank you, Emma! Am SO sorry am only seeing your comment/question now. When making banana bread- for every 1 cup of flour the recipe calls for, I would use 135 grams. For goods like butter or oil, for every 1/2 cup I would use 113 grams. Hope this helps. Thank you for stopping! Hope you enjoy it! xx

    2. Dear Emma,

      I replied below, I figured it’s the same lady. 🙂 Thank you so much for your patience. I wish could’ve caught your question sooner!

      Hope you give this easy dessert recipe a try! Best way to start a Saturday morning… a loaf of this bread and an almond milk latte! xx

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