The Best Ever Healthy Banana Bread
A healthy banana bread that is moist and full of flavour. My kid’s favourite snack for years hands down. Promise it will be the best banana bread you’ll ever eat!
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I have been making this Whole Wheat Banana Bread for years and it is always gobbled up by my kids as soon as it cools down so they can eat it! It is great for breakfast or a snack and super quick to make! This recipe was published back in 2017 but I have updated this post to include some tips, more nutrition info and some improved pics to drool over!
In fact, this recipe is so quickly gobbled up in my house I usually make two loaves and freeze one so I have it handy when I am in a pinch for snacks. You know the days when a herd of hungry kids show up on your doorstep ravished from a game of Capture The Flag.
Why I love this healthy banana Bread
- It takes less than 10 minutes to mix together
- This recipe doubles up easily (remember I warned you that this bread won’t stick around long)
- No oil which means low fat! Instead, I use applesauce to keep it moist
- It is made with whole wheat flour for some extra filling fibre
- Made without refined sugar – I prefer to use natural cane sugar instead. You can use regular sugar if you like it works out just as well.
- Just enough chocolate chips to keep it interesting and satisfy the kids that the bread isn’t 100% healthy (wouldn’t want that!)
Tip for Making the best banana bread
Got bananas that are turning brown — Wait! Don’t throw them out!
Ripe bananas are the number one trick to making moist banana bread.
I like to freeze my bananas when they start to get brown. This way I always have a supply of bananas on the ready when a request comes in. Believe me, this happens often.
Because my bananas are frozen they tend to take on some extra moisture. I attribute this to another reason why this healthy banana bread recipe is so moist. You can certainly use fresh bananas but make sure they are super soft. Not just a few brown spots but about 25% of the peel is spotting. Very ripe bananas add more flavour and sweetness to the bread without the need to add extra sugar and fat. When I use fresh bananas I always add about a 1/4 cup extra water the mixture so compensate for the moisture missing vs frozen bananas.
Tip!
If you are grossed out by the bananas turning brown in the freezer take them out of the peel before freezing and place them in a resealable bag or container. The browning peel is what turns them brown. You can also use this trick for using bananas in smoothies. No need to thaw the just freeze and pop them in the blender when you are ready to use.
Other recipes using ripe bananas
Double Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins
Oatmeal Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies
Peanut Butter Banana Nice Cream
How to make healthy banana bread
How to store and freeze banana bread
If you are planning to eat this healthier banana bread in the next day or two (of course you are!) then it is important to let the bread completely cool and then wrap tightly with two layers of plastic wrap.
To freeze follow the same process of letting the bread cool completely then wrap in a double layer of plastic wrap tightly and then wrap with another layer of aluminum foil. This is how my Grandma always wrapped here bread and it works well to keep the air out which stops freezer burn from happening. The banana bread can stay stored in the freezer for up to 3 months but let’s be honest we all know it won’t last that long!
Healthy Banana Bread variations
Need some alternatives to make this healthy banana bread recipe all your own? I have you covered. Here are some variations to try!
- Use dark chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet
- Swap out whole wheat bread for all-purpose flour or to make a gluten-free bread use a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend
- Add nuts like walnuts or pecans instead of chocolate chips or if add nuts to the chocolate chips if you dare!
- No cane sugar or sucanat – you can swap with white sugar
I hope you fall in love with this healthier banana bread as much as my family has!
Please let me know in the comments below what your kid’s favourite healthier snack is I would love to know!
The Best Healthier Banana Bread
Equipment
- Oven
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Loaf Pan
- Mixing Spoons
Ingredients
- 3 Bananas Very Ripe
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups Whole Wheat Flour
- ¾ cups Cane Sugar or Sucanat
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- ¼ cup unsweetened apple sauce
- ½ cup water as needed
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease loaf pan well and set aside.
- Mash bananas into a paste so that there are only small lumps if any. Add eggs and mix well until eggs are combined into the mashed bananas.
- Add flour, baking soda, salt, sugar, applesauce mix just until dry ingredients are mixed completely into wet banana mixture. Add water if using fresh ripe bananas because there will be less water content naturally then frozen bananas.
- Add chocolate chips and stir until evenly dispersed throughout the batter.
- Pour into loaf pan and bake for about 45 minutes to one hour. Or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Do not over break or bread will become dry.
Video
Nutrition
Notes
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Wow soooooo good!!! I did sub sugar with 1/2 coconut sugar and 1/2 swerve brown. What a treat. Heated up with a little butter ❤
So glad you enjoyed it Stacy. I have swapped the sugars before too and agree that it is still fantastic!
I never leave comments on recipes but I felt I had to because this is PERFECT! I usually find banana bread way overly sweet and heavy but this came out perfectly moist without being too dense, and really full of banana flavor. I did two small tins, one with chocolate chips and one with walnuts. divine!!
This makes my day Martha! Thank you so much for leaving a comment and I am thrilled that you love this recipe as much as I do.
This bread does indeed look very moist! Want to make it asap 🙂
Question: what’s a “kid’s cup” in regular cups?
Thanks!
Hi Larissa, I use one of the unsweetened applesauce cups that go in lunches like from Motts etc. I will update this recipe to be more clear. Thanks for pointing this out!
Yum!