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.
For a stronger spice flavor, increase the cinnamon and nutmeg by ¼ teaspoon each.
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. They have a stronger and sweeter banana flavor than pure yellow bananas. 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.
Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.
Measure the zucchini before patting it dry. You must pat it dry to remove the excess moisture because that excess moisture will cause the banana bread to collapse while cooling. To pat the zucchini dry, lay a double-thick layer of paper towels onto a cutting board, and arrange the freshly shredded zucchini on top. Place another double-thick layer of paper towels on the zucchini, and firmly press down until the top towel turns completely wet. Set a fresh double-thick layer of paper towels on top, and firmly press down again. (This second set probably won’t turn completely wet like the first!)
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.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, lower sugar}