The Ultimate Healthy Banana Bread
Yields: 1 loaf, 12 slices
 
This truly is the best banana bread I’ve ever had! It’s so tender and full of bright fruit flavor. It’ll keep for at least one week if stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container or tightly wrapped in plastic wrap (this kind is my favorite!).
  • 2 ¼ cups (270g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
  • 1 ½ tsp baking powder
  • ¾ tsp baking soda
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ½ tbsp (7g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
  • 3 large egg whites, room temperature
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp white vinegar
  • ¼ cup (60g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
  • 1 cup (260g) mashed banana (about 2 medium)
  • 3 tbsp (45mL) pure maple syrup
  • 6 tbsp (90mL) nonfat milk
  1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly coat a 9x5” loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, eggs, vanilla, and vinegar. Mix in the Greek yogurt, stirring until no large lumps remain. Mix in the mashed banana and maple syrup. 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.)
  3. Spread the batter into the prepared pan. Cover the top with foil, and try to push up the foil in the center to ensure it doesn’t touch the batter while baking. Bake covered at 325°F for 35 minutes. Acting very quickly, remove the pan from the oven, and remove the foil. Immediately put the pan back in the oven, and continue baking the banana bread for an additional 28-32 minutes (for a total of 63-67 minutes) or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes: For the gluten-free flour, use as follows: 1 cup (120g) millet flour, ¾ cup (90g) tapioca flour, ½ cup (60g) brown rice flour, and 2 teaspoons xanthan gum. Many store-bought gluten-free flour blends (like this one!) will also work, if measured like this.

Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.

Make sure you measure the flour correctly, using this method or a kitchen scale. (← That's the one I own and love!) Too much flour will make your banana bread turn out dry and bland.

The vinegar reacts with the baking soda to help the banana bread rise and create a more tender texture. Don’t skip it! (And I promise you can’t taste it!)

For best results, use the ripest, darkest, most spottiest bananas you can find! The ones with more brown color than yellow are ideal. (See my photo in the blog post above for reference!) Measure the bananas by cups or grams. Not all “medium” bananas are the same size!

The mashed banana and Greek yogurt combined need to measure 1 ¼ cups. If you have slightly more than 1 cup mashed banana, then reduce the Greek yogurt by the same amount, and vice versa.

Honey or agave may be substituted for the maple syrup.

Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.

For a sweeter-tasting banana bread, substitute 1-3 tablespoons of pure maple syrup for an equal amount of milk.

You must cover the batter with foil during the first stage of baking. This allows the center to cook through without the top turning overly brown or burnt. Work very quickly when removing the foil! If you leave the pan out of the oven for too long, the loaf will start to collapse, and it won’t recover to fully rise properly.

For more information, read the tips in my blog post above and watch my video directly above the recipe!

{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat}
Recipe by Amy's Healthy Baking at https://amyshealthybaking.com/blog/2018/03/26/the-ultimate-healthy-banana-bread/