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Healthy Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
If there is one combination I love, it's chocolate and bananas. Here I add chocolate chips to my favorite healthy banana bread (and it makes the bread only better, if you ask me).I always keep a few loaves of this in my freezer to pull out for quick breakfasts and snacks for my banana-loving 3 year old, it's so handy!
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Recipe details
Equipment
- Measuring Jug
- Loaf Pan
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 1.5 cups mashed bananas about 4 ripe medium-sized ones
- ⅓ cup melted butter OR oil
- ½ cup honey
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Dry Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups whole wheat flour
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Mix Ins:
- ½ – 1 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Prep: Heat oven to 360°F. Line and grease a 4×8 OR 5×9 inch loaf pan.
- Make batter: Whisk together all wet ingredients in a large measuring jug. Combine all dry ingredients well in a large mixing bowl. Add the wet to the dry ingredients and fold JUST until combined (use a spatula or wooden spoon, NOT a whisk for combining the batter!). Fold in chocolate chips.
- Bake: Transfer batter to prepared pan. Bake in hot oven for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out just clean. Cool in pan on a cooling rack for 10 minutes, then remove carefully, peel off baking parchment and cool completely on cooling rack.
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Notes
Ingredient Notes:
- Please use very ripe bananas, they lend a lot of sweetness to the recipe.
- Use a neutral vegetable oil or melted coconut oil in place of the melted butter to make this dairy free
- You can use maple syrup in place of the honey
- The recipe works with regular flour in place of whole wheat; just add 1-2 extra tablespoons of the flour as whole wheat tends to soak up more of the liquid in a recipe.
- Readers have successfully made all of my banana bread recipes with cup-for-cup gluten free flour, so it’s definitely worth a try if you need it. Always make sure to check all ingredients for them to be certified gluten free.
- If you don’t have any cornstarch, use an extra 1-2 tablespoons of flour instead. The bread will be more dense.
- Baking powder can be used in place of the baking soda in this recipe.
Baking Tips:
- Spray the measuring cup with nonstick cooking spray before measuring out the honey – way easier to pour the honey out, and not so sticky!
- Please use a spatula when combining the wet and dry ingredients, and ONLY fold until JUST combined. Otherwise your bread will be dense.
- This recipe also works to make healthy banana muffins. Just divide between 12 lined and greased muffin cups and bake for around 18 minutes.
Storage Tips:
I like storing banana bread wrapped in parchment paper on the counter for a couple of days. To keep it fresh for up to 4-5 days, you can wrap it in parchment and store it in the fridge.Freezer Instructions:
Either wrap the entire loaf first in plastic wrap and then in aluminum foil, OR freeze it sliced. To freeze in slices, separate the slices with parchment paper so they don’t stick together – that way you can pull them out one by one! Place in a container suitable for freezing and label with the name and use-by date (freeze for up to 3 months). Place in the freezer. To defrost, leave on a rack on the counter for a few hours. You can also reheat the slices in the oven or microwave if you like.Nutrition
Calories: 229kcalCarbohydrates: 36gProtein: 4gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 33mgSodium: 182mgPotassium: 178mgFiber: 3gSugar: 17gVitamin A: 62IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 14mgIron: 1mg
Nutrition is an estimate.
More recipe information
L Hale says
Can this bread be made without the banana? Or a substitute? maybe applesauce? My family will not eat any baked goods with bananas.
Nora says
I have a child who won’t touch anything with banana, so I often make zucchini bread or applesauce bread instead. The mashed banana does add a very special structure to the batter I don’t think can be easily substituted. Maybe canned pumpkin, but that does yield a completely different taste…
Catherine says
YUM. My preschooler and I just made this recipe as muffins today since he’s been asking for cupcakes. They are SO GOOD! I used white whole wheat flour as that’s what I use in general for flour, and they came out very cupcake-like. Thank you for this recipe, we will definitely be keeping it in our rotation!
Nora says
I’m so glad, Catherine! It’s one of my kids’ favorites, so I’m glad you any your little one enjoyed it.