Raise your hand if you’ve been straight-up ~swooning~ over the homemade baked goods filling up your Instagram feed. Everyone? Okay, same. And while many head straight to the kitchen after seeing those sweet snapshots, others—especially those who are, say, dairy-free or vegan—are left salivating and struggling to find a recipe to satisfy their baking fix.
Enter: a vegan banana bread recipe so delish you can't help but hop on the bandwagon and post a pic (or, let's be honest, a GD carousel) to the 'gram.
Like traditional recipes, this vegan banana bread is a great way to use up those overripe bananas that have been sitting on your counter. But the similarities stop there. This all-star recipe puts a spin on the classic version, leaving out dairy and adding in a few healthy ingredient swaps. Whole wheat flour is subbed for less nutritious white flour and, in turn, gives the bread a nice dose of fiber (6 grams per slice!). And instead of loading it up with refined sugar, the vegan banana bread is sweetened with pure maple syrup (which, BTW, is one of the best sugar alternatives out there). Adding in chocolate chunks, such as Enjoy Life Dairy-Free Chocolate Chunks (Buy It, $5, target.com) is optional, but I think everyone can all agree that banana + chocolate = one awesome combo.
While most banana bread recipes call for eggs, a stick or two of butter, and sometimes sour cream, this one leaves out all of the usual animal-based baking ingredients. So how does it get that undeniably moist, buttery texture? Thanks to a combo of plant-based butter and coconut oil. And need not forget other star ingredients like almond milk and apple cider vinegar, which are mixed together and in tandem with baking soda help make the loaf rise. (Speaking of rising, you might want to try your hand at baking this sourdough bread recipe, too.)
All you need to whip up this vegan banana bread recipe is 10 minutes of hands-on time before you pop it into the oven and wait for the magic to happen. Really, is there a better smell than homemade banana bread baking in the oven?
Chocolate Chip Vegan Banana Bread
Makes: 10-12 slices
Cook time: 1 hour
Total time: 1 hour, 15 minutes
Ingredients
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Combine the almond milk and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl. Stir briefly and set aside.
- Coat a loaf pan with cooking spray.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the whole wheat flour, cinnamon, sea salt, and baking soda.
- In another mixing bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients: vegan butter*, coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla.
- Mash the bananas, and add them to the wet ingredient bowl.
- Pour the milk-ACV mixture into the wet ingredient bowl, stirring everything together.
- Combine the wet and dry mixtures together and mix well. Fold in the chocolate chunks and pour the batter into the loaf pan.
- Bake for 1 hour or until the banana bread passes the toothpick test. (Baking pro tip: Use a toothpick to test doneness; bake until the toothpick comes out clean.)
- Allow the banana bread to cool slightly, then transfer the loaf to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- Cut into slices and enjoy. Store banana bread in the refrigerator.
Nutrition facts per slice: 300 calories, 14g fat, 8g saturated fat, 40g carbs, 4g protein, 6g fiber
*You may opt to use 1/2 cup of coconut oil or 1/2 cup of vegan butter instead of 1/4 cup of each.
