Grab your ripest bananas and bake these fluffy, epically moist, 1-bowl Banana Bars! Made with peanut butter and naturally sweetened with maple syrup, no flour needed. These gluten free and dairy free beauts double as a tasty dessert and nourishing snack. Kids love them and they're done in 30 minutes!
How oh how do peanut butter, banana, and eggs bake up into this magical fluffy bliss?! It's madness but it's here and now and we're doing it.
Whole Grain Banana Bread (with peanut butter), GF Banana Muffins, Banana Breakfast Cookies...hello, we're clearly due for a banana bar recipe.
My main goal for starting this blog was to inspire people to cook by sharing recipes that first and foremost taste amazing, are relatively foolproof to make, and also *just so happy* to be healthy.
You know I'll never sacrifice flavor for nutrition. These delish bars embody these sentiment to the fullest!
Ingredients
- Bananas: When I say my bananas were brown, I mean that literally. They had to go in the fridge because they were nearly oozing. But I'm telling you, that insane level of ripeness makes these bars (and all my favorite nanner recipes) epic!
- Peanut butter: The base of these bars and the reason we don't need flour. They don't even taste like pb, I swear. You could also use almond butter but they may need to bake longer since pb is more dry.
- Maple syrup: You only need a few tablespoons! I've made these with honey, too.
- Eggs: Key for fluff factor. I tested these with flax eggs and sadly the texture was all wrong.
- Spices: Cinnamon and nutmeg give major warm banana bread vibes.
- Chocolate chips: Delish sweetness. More is typically best.
- Baking soda and salt: Rise and rounding out flavor.
Let's make it! (step by step)
Mash your ripest banana (no shame in the brown) in a bowl.
Add peanut butter, eggs, maple syrup, vanilla, spices, baking soda, and salt.
Whisk until very smooth.
Stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter into baking dish.
Bake for 25 min. Cool, slice and devour!
Can I use frozen banana?
Yes, you can use frozen here! Just be sure thaw them (overnight in fridge is a safe bet) and remove as much water as possible before measuring.
Storage
Store leftovers covered at room temp for 2 days. Then store any remaining in the fridge. These freeze great, too!
Let me know in the comments if you make these gems! Your feedback means the world (and is immensely helpful to other readers). Cheers!
PrintBanana Chocolate Chip Bars (with peanut butter!)
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 bars 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Grab your ripest bananas and bake these fluffy, epically moist Banana Bars! Made with peanut butter and naturally sweetened with maple syrup, no flour needed. These gluten free and dairy free beauts double as a tasty dessert and nourishing snack. Kids love them and they're done in 30 minutes!
Ingredients
- 1 cup very overripe mashed banana*
- 1 cup natural salted peanut butter
- 2 large eggs
- 3 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp nutmeg
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- ⅓ cup chocolate chips, plus a sprinkle for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F.Line an 8x8 inch baking dish with parchment paper.
- Place banana in a mixing bowl (you'll need about 3) and mash with a fork. Measure out 1 cup. Add peanut butter, eggs, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt. Whisk until very smooth.
- Stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter into baking dish and top with more chocolate chips if you fancy (I always fancy).
- Bake for 25 min. Cool, slice and devour! These are amazing topped with my Healthy Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting.
Notes
If your peanut butter is unsalted, use ½ tsp salt.
Kelly Jones says
TOO easy when you have ripe bananas around, even on busy mornings before school. One bowl, no flour mess, and half the bake time of banana bread for the win! Perfect for the whole fam since it’s naturally low in added sugar.
Alexis Joseph, MS, RD says
Love this so much, thanks Kelly! You're the real MVP for whipping these up before school.
Alexis Joseph, MS, RD says
Thanks, Liam!
Dylan says
These are soooo good and come together in no time! They’re soft, fluffy, and just the right amount of sweet! Another fantastic recipe 🙂
Alexis Joseph, MS, RD says
Yayyy thank you so much, Dylan! Fluffy is right!
Dylan says
These are soooo good and come together in no time! They’re soft, fluffy, and just the right amount of sweet! Another fantastic recipe 🙂 This comment was left by a close supporter of Alexis Joseph, owner operator of Hummusapien LLC
Alexis Joseph, MS, RD says
Yayy thanks, Dylan!