Healthy Chocolate Banana Bread
This breakfast quick bread is a chocolate lover’s dream! It’s supremely moist and tender. Every bite is full of rich chocolate flavor (similar to 72% dark chocolate!), with the banana sweetness shining through at the end. With lots of mini chocolate chips sprinkled throughout and the chocolate drizzle on top, it’s always a huge hit at my house. It’s the best chocolate banana bread I’ve ever had! Leftovers will keep for at least five days (if not longer!) if stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container or tightly sealed in plastic wrap (← that’s my favorite kind!).
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (180g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- ¾ cup (60g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 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 liquid stevia (see Notes!)
- 2 tbsp (18g) confectioners' style erythritol (see Notes!)
- ¼ cup (60g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 1 cup (260g) mashed banana (about 2 medium – see Notes!)
- 1 tbsp (15mL) distilled white vinegar
- 6 tbsp (90mL) nonfat milk
- ¼ cup (56g) miniature chocolate chips, divided
- optional: chocolate drizzle, for serving (see Notes!)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9x5” loaf pan with foil, and coat the foil with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg whites, vanilla extract, and liquid stevia. Stir in the erythritol. Add in the Greek yogurt, stirring until no large lumps remain. Stir in the mashed banana. Stir in the vinegar. 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 4 equal parts.) Gently fold in 3 ½ tablespoons of miniature chocolate chips.
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan. Gently press the remaining miniature chocolate chips into the top. Cover the top with foil, crimping the edges around the pan’s rim to seal, and try to push up the foil in the center to ensure it doesn’t touch the batter while baking. Bake covered at 350°F for 35 minutes. Acting very quickly, remove the pan from the oven, and carefully remove the foil. Immediately put the pan back in the oven, and continue baking the banana bread for an additional 30-35 minutes (for a total of 65-70 minutes) or until the top feels firm to the touch and looks golden or a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few crumbs attached. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully lifting out and transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Once completely cool, top with the chocolate drizzle, if using.
Notes
IMPORTANT MEASURING NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: It's very important measure the flour and cocoa powder with this method or a kitchen scale. (← That’s the one I own and love!) Too much of either will make your banana bread dry, and too much cocoa powder will make your banana bread taste bitter, instead of rich and chocolaty.
IMPORTANT BANANA NOTES – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: For best results, use the ripest, darkest, most spottiest bananas you have! The ones that are purely brown are ideal. They have a stronger and sweeter banana flavor than pure yellow bananas.
Measure the bananas by cups or grams, not by “two medium bananas.” Not all “medium” bananas are the same size, which affects the taste and texture of your banana bread!
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.
IMPORTANT FLAVOR NOTES – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: For a stronger banana flavor, use 1 ¾ cups (210g) of flour and ½ cup (40g) of unsweetened cocoa powder. For a stronger chocolate flavor, use 1 ¼ cups (150g) of flour and 1 cup (80g) of unsweetened cocoa powder.
IMPORTANT MIXING NOTES – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: Do not use a stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer! Use a whisk where explicitly instructed, and use a fork for everything else.
IMPORTANT BAKING NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: 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.
FLOUR ALTERNATIVES: Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.
COCOA POWDER NOTES: Regular unsweetened cocoa powder (I use this one!) works best. Dutched or special dark cocoa powder have a different acidity level, and substituting those often affects the taste and texture. They also taste more muted and dull in this recipe.
EGG WHITES NOTE: This banana bread requires 3 full egg whites. The whites contain the majority of the protein in eggs, and that protein is required to ensure the banana bread maintains its shape and texture while cooling. If you prefer to use whole eggs, use 3 large eggs AND reduce the milk by 1 tablespoon to compensate for the added liquid volume from the yolks.
STEVIA NOTES + ALTERNATIVES: I highly recommend using the liquid stevia! It’s one of my favorite ingredients, and you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine too. Many stevia brands and products have different sweetness levels, so they're not necessarily 1-for-1 substitutes for each other. For the best results, I recommend using the same one I do. I buy it online here because that’s the cheapest price I’ve found.
However, if you really prefer to omit the liquid stevia from the banana bread, substitute 6 tablespoons (72g) of coconut sugar, brown sugar, or granulated sugar AND reduce the milk to 3 tablespoons (45mL). Alternatively, substitute 6 tablespoons (90mL) of pure maple syrup, honey, or agave AND omit the milk. The baking time may vary slightly with any of these substitutions.
ERYTHRITOL NOTES + ALTERNATIVES: I buy my confectioners’ style erythritol online here. If you prefer not to use it, then substitute coconut sugar, brown sugar, or granulated sugar instead. (You can also substitute granulated sucralose for a different no-calorie sweetener.)
VINEGAR NOTES + ALTERNATIVE: Do not omit the vinegar! You can’t taste it in the finished banana bread — I promise! The vinegar reacts with the baking soda to help the banana bread rise and give it a more tender texture.
If you don't have distilled white vinegar, then substitute freshly squeezed lemon juice. (It has a similar pH, so your banana bread should have the same texture!) I haven't tried using other vinegars, so I'm not sure how they'll turn out.
MILK ALTERNATIVES: Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.
GLUTEN-FREE OPTION: For the gluten-free flour, use as follows: ¾ cup (90g) millet flour, ½ cup (60g) tapioca flour, ¼ cup (30g) brown rice flour, and 1 ½ teaspoons xanthan gum. Many store-bought gluten-free flour blends (I like this one from Bob's Red Mill) will also work, if measured like this.
OPTIONAL CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE: Stir together 2 tablespoons (10g) unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup (or honey or agave), and 2 ¾ teaspoons of milk (any kind!) in a small bowl. Transfer to a zip-topped bag, cut off a tiny piece of one corner, and drizzle over the fully cooled banana bread.
HOW TO STORE: Store leftover banana bread in the refrigerator tightly wrapped in plastic wrap (I love this one because it seals more tightly than other brands!) or inside of an airtight container. It should keep for at least five days, if not a week or longer.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low sugar}
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?I'd love to hear what you think of it in a comment below! If you take a picture, tag @amys.healthy.baking on Instagram or use the hashtag #amyshealthybaking.