The Best Easy Vegan Banana Bread Recipe: Wholesome, Moist, & Dairy-Free Delight
Prepare to fall in love with your new favorite go-to treat: this incredibly easy and utterly delicious vegan banana bread recipe! Crafted with wholesome, simple ingredients, it delivers all the comforting flavor and moist texture of classic banana bread, but without any dairy or eggs. Whether you’re a seasoned vegan baker or just looking to enjoy a healthier, plant-based alternative, this recipe is guaranteed to become a staple in your kitchen.
Say goodbye to complicated substitutions and hello to a straightforward baking experience. This recipe proves that you don’t need animal products to achieve a truly exceptional baked good. Perfect for a hearty breakfast, a delightful snack, or a sweet treat anytime, this vegan banana bread is a testament to the fact that deliciousness knows no dietary bounds.
Why You’ll Love This Vegan Banana Bread
I’m always thrilled to share recipes that highlight the incredible versatility and flavor of plant-based ingredients. While I already have several beloved banana bread recipes on this site, this vegan version holds a special place. Many of my recipes naturally lean towards vegan, and I wanted to explicitly demonstrate just how effortlessly you can transform a classic like banana bread into something spectacular, completely free of dairy and eggs.
The beauty of this recipe lies in its simplicity and the intelligent use of natural ingredients to replace traditional binders. My standard banana bread is already dairy-free, so the primary challenge was finding the perfect egg substitute. Vegan baking often presents this hurdle, but with a little creativity, it’s easily overcome.
For this particular loaf, the solution was surprisingly simple and incredibly effective: a clever combination of extra mashed banana and unsweetened applesauce. These two humble ingredients work wonders, providing both the necessary binding properties and an abundance of moisture, resulting in a perfectly tender crumb that will have everyone reaching for a second slice. You won’t miss the eggs, I promise!
Essential Ingredients for Your Vegan Banana Bread
This recipe shines because of its wholesome, accessible ingredients. Here’s a closer look at what makes this loaf so good and why each component is crucial:
- Very Ripe Mashed Bananas: These are the star! The riper your bananas, the sweeter and more flavorful your bread will be. They also contribute significantly to the moist texture and act as a natural binder, replacing some of the egg function. Aim for bananas with plenty of brown spots.
- Whole Wheat Pastry Flour: This is a fantastic choice for a slightly healthier twist without sacrificing texture. It’s lighter than regular whole wheat flour, giving your banana bread a tender crumb, while still offering the nutritional benefits of whole grains. If you don’t have pastry flour, regular all-purpose flour works too, or a 50/50 blend with regular whole wheat flour.
- Unsweetened Applesauce: Our secret weapon! Applesauce is a brilliant fat and egg replacer in vegan baking. It adds moisture, natural sweetness, and helps bind the ingredients together, contributing to that perfect tender crumb.
- Pure Maple Syrup: This liquid sweetener adds a rich, nuanced sweetness and extra moisture. It complements the banana flavor beautifully.
- Pure Cane Sugar: A touch of granulated cane sugar ensures the right level of sweetness and helps achieve a lovely golden crust.
- Baking Soda & Baking Powder: These leavening agents work in harmony to give the bread its rise and fluffy texture. Baking soda reacts with the acidic components (like bananas and applesauce), while baking powder provides an additional lift.
- Salt: A pinch of salt is essential to balance the sweetness and enhance all the other flavors. Don’t skip it!
- Cinnamon: The warm spice of cinnamon perfectly complements the banana, adding a cozy aroma and depth of flavor that makes banana bread irresistible.
- Vanilla Extract: A splash of good quality vanilla extract always elevates baked goods, adding a layer of aromatic sweetness.
With these simple ingredients, you’re well on your way to baking a truly exceptional vegan banana bread!
How to Make the Perfect Vegan Banana Bread
Making this delightful vegan banana bread is surprisingly straightforward. Follow these steps for a perfect loaf every time:
- Prepare Your Dry Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together your whole wheat pastry flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon. Whisking thoroughly ensures all the leavening agents and spices are evenly distributed, which is key for a consistent bake.
- Combine Wet Ingredients: In a separate, medium-sized bowl, beat together the mashed ripe bananas, pure maple syrup, unsweetened applesauce, pure cane sugar, and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined and smooth. The extra mashed banana and applesauce are doing double duty here, adding moisture and acting as a binder instead of eggs.
- Gently Combine Wet and Dry: Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold and stir until *just* combined. The most crucial tip for moist, tender banana bread is to avoid overmixing. Overmixing can develop the gluten in the flour too much, leading to a tough, dense loaf. A few streaks of flour are perfectly fine; they will disappear during baking.
- Prepare the Loaf Pan: Grease a standard loaf pan generously with dairy-free butter or a good quality olive oil cooking spray. This prevents sticking and ensures easy removal of your beautifully baked bread.
- Bake to Perfection: Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan, spreading it evenly. Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F (175°C) for approximately 50-60 minutes. The exact baking time can vary depending on your oven, so start checking around the 50-minute mark. You’ll know it’s done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean, with perhaps a few moist crumbs attached.
- Cooling is Key: Once baked, resist the urge to immediately slice into your delicious creation! Allow the banana bread to cool in the pan for 15-20 minutes. This crucial step allows the bread to set and firm up, preventing it from crumbling when removed. Then, carefully transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely. Slicing into warm banana bread is tempting, but for the best texture, waiting until it’s fully cooled (or at least mostly cooled) is recommended.
- Serve and Enjoy: Serve your vegan banana bread warm or cold. It’s fantastic on its own, but for an extra touch of decadence, add a smear of your favorite vegan butter, a drizzle of maple syrup, or a sprinkle of powdered sugar. Enjoy!
Tips for the Best Vegan Banana Bread
- Use Very Ripe Bananas: This cannot be stressed enough! The brown spots on bananas indicate that their starches have converted to sugar, providing maximum sweetness and a strong banana flavor.
- Don’t Overmix: As mentioned in the instructions, mixing the batter too much will develop the gluten, resulting in a tough, chewy bread instead of a tender, moist one. Mix until just combined.
- Customize with Add-ins: Feel free to get creative! Stir in ½ to 1 cup of vegan chocolate chips, chopped walnuts or pecans, shredded coconut, or dried cranberries for added flavor and texture.
- Check Oven Temperature: Ovens can vary. Using an oven thermometer can help ensure your oven is at the correct temperature for optimal baking.
- Storage: Store leftover banana bread in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3-4 days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week.
- Freezing Instructions: This banana bread freezes beautifully! Once completely cooled, wrap the entire loaf or individual slices tightly in plastic wrap, then aluminum foil. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature or warm slices gently in the microwave or toaster oven.
More Vegan Recipes You Might Like
If you’ve enjoyed the wholesome goodness of this vegan banana bread, you’re in for a treat! There are plenty more delicious plant-based recipes to explore on my site that complement this one perfectly or offer equally satisfying sweet indulgences:
- If you have extra ripe bananas and love portion-sized treats, be sure to also try my vegan banana muffins! They are just as easy to make and perfect for on-the-go breakfasts.
- For those with a serious sweet tooth, these Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies are guaranteed to curb any craving. Just try not to eat all the batter before it makes it to the oven! They’re delightfully chewy and packed with chocolatey goodness.
- And what’s banana bread without a perfect pairing? Be sure to make yourself a glass of instant iced coffee to enjoy with your slice of banana bread. The combination of warm, comforting banana bread and a refreshing iced coffee is truly a match made in heaven for breakfast or an afternoon pick-me-up.
Don’t forget to pin this incredible recipe for later so you can easily find it whenever a banana bread craving strikes! And be sure to follow Build Your Bite on Pinterest for all the latest delicious and wholesome recipes. We’re always sharing new ideas to inspire your plant-based culinary adventures!
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a star rating below and let us know what you thought in the comments!
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Vegan Banana Bread
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Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1 1/2 cups very ripe mashed bananas
- 1/2 cup pure cane sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Instructions
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Add whole wheat pastry flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon to a medium sized mixing bowl. Whisk to combine.
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In a separate bowl, beat together applesauce, maple syrup, bananas, sugar, and vanilla extract until combined
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Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and use a rubber spatula to stir until just combined, and no streaks of flour remain
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Grease a loaf pan with vegan butter or olive oil cooking spray
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Pour in the batter
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Bake at 350 degrees for 50 – 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out mostly clean
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Allow to cool in the pan for 30-45 minutes, then remove from the pan and onto a cooling rack to cool completely
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Serve warm or cold with a smear of your favorite vegan butter!
Nutrition
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