After my sophomore year of college, my family and I flew to Wisconsin to visit my dad’s old roommate from his undergraduate days and his wife. They invited us to stay at their house for a week, a gigantic place partway up a mountain with a backyard pool and plenty of space for relaxing, while they acted as our tour guides and showed us around their part of the country.
On one of our first few days, they planned for us to spend the late morning and entire afternoon exploring the Mississippi River by boat. Since the weather nearly refused to cooperate, staying cloudy and windy for our entire excursion (but thankfully no rain!), we packed jackets and blankets along with our picnic lunches and snacks.
After easing the boat away from the dock and out onto the open water (and boy is the Mississippi River wide—we couldn’t see the other side for long stretches at a time!), Dad’s roommate guided it up the river, pointing out significant landmarks and waterfront houses as we went, until we eventually reached a quiet spot with nobody else nearby.
He switched off the engine, and we started pulling food out of our bags and cooler. While munching on carrot sticks and big salami sandwiches, my dad pulled out a loaf of banana bread. He offered slices around to everyone, and when I asked where the loaf came from since I didn’t remember picking it up at the grocery store with Mom the evening before, he replied…
The gas station.
Apparently, when we fueled up our rental car that morning, he saw it on one of the mini-mart shelves and brought it up to the cashier. Everyone else snacked on slices on the boat, proclaiming that it tasted just fine, but I stuck with my Greek yogurt and fresh fruit instead… I just couldn’t wrap my head around the concept of gas station banana bread!
When Mom and Dad recently texted back and forth with Dad’s roommate and wife again, trying to plan another vacation to see them, memories from that trip resurfaced, including that banana bread. Before anyone could drive down to the nearest gas station and see if our California ones carried the same thing…
I baked this homemade Whole Wheat Triple Berry Banana Bread to satisfy our cravings! It’s supremely tender and full of juicy summer berries. And unlike that Wisconsin gas station loaf, this recipe contains no butter, oil, refined flour or sugar—just wholesome, delicious ingredients!
You’ll start with whole wheat flour. Yes, just regular ol’ whole wheat flour! I love Gold Medal whole wheat flour because it’s easy to find in regular grocery stores, and it’s ground finer than other brands. The finer grind gives it a lighter texture and a less “wheat-y” flavor, which is perfect for this banana bread where we really want the fruit flavors to shine!
Note: I’ve also included my preferred gluten-free option underneath the Instructions!
Whereas traditional banana bread recipes depend on ½ cup of oil or more (yikes! I’m cringing just thinking of all those calories…), this healthy one includes absolutely no oil or butter! Instead, it gets its tender texture from two other ingredients. Do you know what they are?
That’s right—mashed banana and Greek yogurt! If you’ve been around AHB for a while, you know how much I love Greek yogurt. It adds the same moisture to your baked goods as extra butter or oil, but for a fraction of the calories, and it also gives them a protein boost too.
As for the bananas, try to use the ripest, darkest, most speckly ones you can find! Those ripe bananas will add the strongest sweet, fruity flavor and make your banana bread exceptionally moist, so you’ll only need to add 2 tablespoons of honey to the batter. I’ve actually waited until my bananas were entirely brown to use them, and those loaves of banana bread turned out the best!
For the berries, I used a combination of fresh strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. It’s currently summer and they’re in season, so those berries are absolutely packed with sweet fruity flavor! Frozen and thawed can be substituted during the winter months, and you can also use any combination of berries that you like. Try swapping in blackberries for a fun twist—that would taste wonderful!
Who wants a slice?? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees that I’ll see the notification from you! ?) I’d love to see your banana bread and feature it in my Sunday Spotlight series!
| Whole Wheat Triple Berry Banana Bread | | Print |
- 2 cups (240g) whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (60g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- ¾ cup (200g) mashed banana (about 2 medium)
- 2 tbsp (30mL) honey
- ¼ cup (60mL) nonfat milk
- ⅓ cup (47g) fresh strawberries, finely diced
- ⅓ cup (47g) fresh raspberries, finely diced
- ⅓ cup (47g) fresh blueberries
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9x5” baking pan with foil, and lightly coat with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and vanilla. Mix in the mashed Greek yogurt, stirring until no large lumps remain. Mix in the mashed banana and honey. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 3 equal parts.) Gently fold in the strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries.
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 350°F for 43-48 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully lifting out the loaf by the foil and transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
For best results, use the ripest, darkest, most spottiest bananas you can find!
The mashed banana and Greek yogurt combined need to measure 1 cup. If you have slightly more than ¾ cup mashed banana, then reduce the Greek yogurt by the same amount, and vice versa.
Pure maple syrup or agave may be substituted for the honey.
Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.
For best results and to ensure the loaf bakes as evenly as possible, cut the strawberries and raspberries to be about the same size as miniature chocolate chips.
Frozen and thawed berries may be substituted for the fresh. The baking time may increase slightly, and the batter may be a slightly different color (especially from the frozen and thawed blueberries!). For the best results, use entirely fresh or entirely frozen and thawed berries; do not use a combination of fresh and frozen.
You can use any combination of berries that you like (including blackberries!), as long as the total amount is 1 cup.
To see how this is made, watch my video here (it’s for a very similar banana bread recipe!).
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
View Nutrition Information
You may like Amy’s other recipes…
♥ Strawberry Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
♥ Chocolate Drizzled Raspberry Banana Bread
♥ Strawberry Blueberry Banana Bread
♥ Chocolate Chip Banana Mini Muffins
♥ Strawberry Banana Bread Oatmeal Cookies
♥ Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Brownies
♥ Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Scones
So, can you come back to WI so we can hang out and eat ALL THE BANANA BREAD? WIth berries please!
YESSSSSSSSS I would SO love that Erin!!! ♥ (Well, as long as the banana bread doesn’t come from a gas station! 😉 ) I’m trying to get to Wisconsin sometime in the next year or two — I’m totally keep you posted!
Hi Amy I LOVE the look of a lot of your recipes but I am unfortunately allergic to milk protein! So greek yoghurt is a no go. Was wondering if there is a healthy alternative I could use in your recipes?
Thanks for your kind words about my recipes Brittiny! In most of my recipes, a non-dairy yogurt alternative (i.e. soy-based yogurt) will work as a substitute for the Greek yogurt. I’m excited to hear what you think of this banana bread and any other recipe you try!
I love that I get the best of all 3 berry worlds in this bread!! 🙂 Your banana breads have been consistently successful for me every time I make them. I also LOVED talking with you on Tuesday! You are such a sweet person on the inside AND out! <3
I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed my banana bread recipes! And talking with you earlier this week has been one of the TOP highlights of my week — I had a smile on my face all evening!! You’re such an amazing lady Marina! ♥
Made these this morning and after I got home this evening the whole loaf was gone! My kids devoured it haha! I didn’t even get a slice – will have to make my own loaf and hide it tomorrow morning!
Oh my goodness, that’s too funny Jean! I’m really glad your kids enjoyed the banana bread. I’d certainly be tempted to bake and hide a second loaf for myself too! 😉 I can’t wait to hear what you think of the banana bread when you get to try a slice!
This is my go to recipe when I have overripe bananas and too many strawberries. Everything was going well this time until I accidentally added a cup of milk instead of a quarter of a cup. I poured out as much as I could and added more flour, though I think the batter might still have a poor consistency. We’ll see when it comes out of the oven.
Oh no!! I hope everything turns out okay Harmony! I’m truly honored that you’d call this your “go to recipe” for overripe bananas and strawberries — that means the world to me!! 🙂
It actually did work out! It ended up being less banana-flavoured, but I managed to get the baking time and quantity of make-up ingredients right. Super delicious with natural peanut butter
Hooray!!!! That’s fabulous news — so happy that it turned out Harmony!! 🙂 I’m a big fan of natural peanut butter too… I eat some just about every day, usually straight from the jar with a spoon! 😉
I tried to make this last week… I don’t know what I did wrong! It took forever to bake to where there was no more runny batter in the middle, it tasted really cardboardy and I couldn’t salvage any good parts 🙁 It seemed like a lot of flour to add when I was doing that part… Maybe I accidentally measured out way too much?!
I want to try again, but I’m not sure what to focus on to correct! I see others here have been more than successful with it! Thanks!
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Allison! I’d love to help you solve those issues so your next loaf turns out better. 🙂 I have multiple questions for you! First, how did you measure the flour? Did you use a kitchen scale or measuring cups? If the latter, can you describe in detail what you did?
Second, how did you measure the banana? Did you use a kitchen scale or measuring cups for that? Also, how ripe were your bananas? Were they exceptionally ripe and spotty, like I recommended in the Notes section? (Bananas that are mostly yellow won’t be nearly as sweet as ones that are mostly brown!)
Third, did you use fresh or frozen fruit?
And finally, did you use a 9×5″ loaf pan? (Not an 8×4″ pan?) And are you baking in °F or °C?
Once I know all of that information, we’ll have a much better idea of what to do differently next time! 🙂
Do you think this would work in mini loaf pans? If so, how long do you think they would need to be baked?
Yes, I think that should work! I’m not entirely sure of the baking time, but I’d recommend checking after 20 minutes. The mini loaves may need a bit more time than that to fully bake through, but it’s much easier to bake them longer than save burnt loaves! 😉 They’ll be done when the tops feel firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few crumbs attached. I can’t wait to hear what you think of this banana bread Leah!
can you make muffins with this recipe?
Absolutely! It should yield 12 standard-sized muffins. I’d recommend baking them at 350°F and checking on them after about 18 minutes. They may need more time to bake, but they’ll be done when the tops feel firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few dry crumbs attached.
I’d love to hear what you think of the muffins if you end up trying that, Bridget!
Hi Amy, absolutely love this recipe! Made it for two of my friends, we’re all trying to eat healthier. I was very leery of it. I love whole wheat flour, but I’ve always added some all purpose white flour to make the end product not so heavy. So, I desperately wanted to tweak the recipe, but I knew that wouldn’t be a fair attempt. I’m so glad I followed it exactly.
We all loved it. I saved a piece for my husband. He loved it, and he isn’t a big fan of quick breads.
Oh my goodness, Mary Ann!! Those are the BEST compliment there are, if you loved this recipe exactly as written without all-purpose flour and your husband enjoyed it too. Thank you for taking the time to let me know — your sweet comment made my day!