Perfect Vegan Banana Bread (lower sugar!)

Tested and perfected, best ever Vegan Banana Bread that's naturally sweetened with maple syrup, perfectly moist, and comes together in 10 minutes. Readers are obsessed with this crowd-pleasing recipe (100 five-star ratings!) because it tastes JUST like classic fluffy banana bread and comes out perfect every time. Your search for easy vegan banana bread all your friends will adore ends here!

I've always been a huuuuge banana bread gal. But one with zero dairy or eggs that still has that incredible texture and super satisfying, not overly sweet, banana-forward flavor? Quite a challenge, right? Wrong!

Making vegan banana bread is actually simpler than I thought. A few simple tricks we'll chat about below make it the foolproof, stand-out recipe it is. Non-vegans are equally as obsessed!

P.S. Don't miss the chocolatey, hidden veggie sister of this recipe--my beloved Vegan Chocolate Zucchini Banana Bread. I'm drooling just thinking about it.

Tested until it was 110% perfect!

• You've got flour options. I designed this recipe to be whole grain because the dietitian in me loves the extra fiber. My favorite flour to use is white whole wheat flour since it's less wheaty, but regular whole wheat flour is easier to come by these days and I've made it with that more times than I can count. I've also tested this with half all purpose and half whole wheat and it works perfectly!
• Use maple syrup or good old sugar! I use maple syrup to sweeten nearly all my baked goods so you can imagine my shock when a slightly larger amount of granulated sugar worked just as well. I found the maple version needs 5 more minutes in the oven.
• Vegan buttermilk is magic. It's so cool how combining non-dairy milk with a splash of vinegar creates that classic "buttermilk" effect-- it activates the baking soda for extra fluff factor (no eggs needed). The acid also helps breaks down the gluten to create a light, delicate crumb.
• Chocolate chips: I must got on the record saying banana bread sans chocolate chips is a crime. To me, they are as essential as overripe bananas LOL.

Let's make it together

Please let me know how this vegan banana bread recipe turns out for you by leaving a star rating and/or comment!

Perfect Vegan Banana Bread (lower sugar!)

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 101 reviews

• Author: Alexis Joseph
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hour 10 mins
• Total Time: 1 hour 20 mins
• Yield: 12 slices 1x
• Category: Dessert
• Method: Oven
• Cuisine: American
• Diet: Vegan

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Description

Fluffy Vegan Banana Bread that's naturally sweetened, perfectly moist and comes together in 10 minutes. With 80+ 5-star ratings, the Hummusapien community adores this recipe! It tastes just like classic banana bread mom used to make but it's 100% whole grain and has far less sugar. The only banana bread recipe you'll ever need. Freezer friendly!

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• ¼ cup non-dairy milk (I use unsweetened vanilla almond)
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 ½ cups very overripe mashed bananas*
• ⅓ cup pure maple syrup**
• ¼ cup oil (I use avocado oil)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups whole wheat flour, spooned and leveled
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp fine sea salt
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• ½ cup chocolate chips, plus more for topping

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 9x5in loaf pan with cooking spray. I like to line with parchment paper.
2. Place milk and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl (this is our vegan "buttermilk." Stir and set aside.
3. Place bananas in large mixing bowl and mash well with a fork. Measure to ensure you have 1 ½ cups. Add maple syrup or sugar, oil, vanilla, and milk mixture. Whisk well to combine.
4. Add flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Stir with a wooden spoon until barely combined (you should still see some streaks of flour). Fold in chocolate chips, mixing just a few more times until combined. Over-mixing causing the bread to be more dense.
5. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes for maple syrup version (1 hour 10 minutes for sugar version), or until a knife comes out clean. When about 25 minutes remain on the cooking time, quickly cover the bread with a piece of tin foil to avoid too much browning.
6. Once done, cool pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes before carefully remove from pan to cool completely. Store on the counter in an air-tight container for up to 3 days. 

Notes

*This equals 3-4 medium bananas, but be sure to measure since size varies!

**You can substitute ½ cup cane sugar.

TO MAKE GLUTEN FREE: Do not substitute almond flour or coconut flour for the whole wheat flour; they are not even substitutes and your banana bread will not turn out. For a gluten-free version, readers have had success with 2 cups of 1:1 GF baking flour OR 1 ½ GF baking flour + ½ cup almond flour. Or try my Best Gluten Free Banana Bread!

Freeze: Wrap the loaf tightly in foil then in a plastic bag with the air squeezed out. It will stay fresh for up to 4 months.