Healthy Banana Bread!
With this healthy banana bread recipe, you're only a few basic ingredients away from the best banana bread ever! It's made with whole wheat flour and honey.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 29, 2024
Want to make someone’s day? Bake them some banana bread! Just yesterday, I said, “I’m going to bake some banana bread,” and watched a full-grown man’s eyes light up like a kid’s on Christmas morning.
Banana bread is one of those classic, all-American comfort food recipes that fills the whole house with warmth and makes everything better. Banana bread is magic.
I perfected this banana bread recipe for my cookbook and wanted to share with you here. This recipe has all the hallmarks of classic banana bread—it’s fluffy, moist, infused with sweet banana flavor, and beloved by toddlers and adults alike.
Bonus? This recipe requires just one bowl, a few measuring cups and some basic ingredients.
What makes this banana bread healthy?
- This banana bread recipe is made with 100 percent whole wheat flour, unlike traditional banana bread recipes that call for refined flour and lots of processed sugar.
- This banana bread is naturally sweetened with honey or maple syrup, which offer some trace nutrients that white sugar does not.
- Lastly, this recipe calls for a reasonable amount of unrefined oil rather than whole sticks of butter (choose from virgin coconut oil, extra-virgin olive oil or vegetable oil).
As you can see, my homemade banana bread has plenty of redeeming qualities, chief being that it won’t send your blood sugar levels for a loop. You can keep them all to yourself, though. No one will be able to tell that this is healthy banana bread!
Banana Bread Flour Options
This recipe is flexible! Any of the following flours will work well. I love to use white whole wheat flour and whole wheat pastry flour—they offer all the whole wheat nutrients, without the characteristically nutty flavor.
- All-purpose flour
- Gluten-free all-purpose flour blend
- Oat flour*
- Spelt flour
- Whole wheat flour
- Whole wheat pastry flour
- White whole wheat flour
*To substitute oat flour, you’ll need to use 2 1/2 cups, for reasons elaborated in my guide to oat flour.
Want to make your banana bread with almond flour? You sure can, but it’s not a simple substitute, so follow my almond flour-based banana bread recipe instead.
Tip: How to Measure Flour
For best results, it’s important to measure your flour properly. Here’s how to measure flour in cups using the “spoon and swoop” method:
- Gently stir your flour with a large spoon to loosen it up.
- Spoon the flour into your measuring cup (don’t scoop it in!).
- Level off the excess with a butter knife.
Banana Bread Variations
Now that I’ve finally perfected this basic banana bread, feel free to change up this recipe and make it your own. Toss some chopped pecans or walnuts into the batter! Same goes for chocolate chips. You could also add raisins, chopped dried fruit or slices of bananas.
Craving muffins instead? Follow my recipe for healthy banana muffins.
Following a special diet? With a couple of minor tweaks, you can make this bread vegan (so dairy free and egg free, too) or gluten free. Check the recipe notes for details.
Watch How to Make Healthy Banana Bread
Healthy Banana Bread
With this healthy banana bread recipe, you’re only a few simple ingredients away from the best banana bread ever! It’s made with whole wheat flour and naturally sweetened with honey or maple syrup. You can easily make this banana bread vegan or gluten free—check the recipe notes for details. Recipe yields 1 loaf (about 10 slices).
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup (75 grams) melted coconut oil or extra-virgin olive oil or high quality vegetable oil*
- ½ cup honey (168 grams) or maple syrup (155 grams)
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup (225 grams) mashed ripe bananas (about 2 ½ medium or 2 large bananas)
- ¼ cup (56 grams) milk of choice or water
- 1 teaspoon baking soda (NOT baking powder; they aren’t the same!)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus more to swirl on top
- 1 ¾ cups (220 grams) white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour**
- Totally optional: ½ cup mix-ins like chopped walnuts or pecans, chocolate chips, raisins, chopped dried fruit, fresh banana slices…
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (165 degrees Celsius) and grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan.
- In a large bowl, beat the oil and honey together with a whisk. Add the eggs and beat well, then whisk in the mashed bananas and milk. (If your coconut oil solidifies on contact with cold ingredients, simply let the bowl rest in a warm place for a few minutes, like on top of your stove, or warm it for about 10 seconds in the microwave.)
- Add the baking soda, vanilla, salt and cinnamon, and whisk to blend. Lastly, switch to a big spoon and stir in the flour, just until combined. Some lumps are ok! If you’re adding any additional mix-ins, gently fold them in now.
- Pour the batter into your greased loaf pan and sprinkle lightly with cinnamon. If you’d like a pretty swirled effect, run the tip of a knife across the batter in a zig-zag pattern.
- Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (typically, if I haven’t added any mix-ins, my bread is done at 55 minutes; if I have added mix-ins, it needs closer to 60 minutes). Let the bread cool in the loaf pan for at least 10 minutes. You may need to run a butter knife around the edges to loosen the bread from the pan. Carefully transfer the loaf to a wire rack to cool before slicing.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my honey whole wheat banana bread, originally based on All Recipes.
Storage suggestions: This bread is moist, so it will keep for just two or three days at room temperature. Store it in the refrigerator for five to seven days, or in the freezer for up to three months or so. I like to slice the bread before freezing and defrost individual slices, either by letting them rest at room temperature or lightly toasting them.
*Oil options: I love coconut oil here. I used unrefined coconut oil and can hardly taste it in the final product. Olive oil might lend an herbal note to the muffins, if you’re into that (I tested with California Olive Ranch’s “Everyday” variety and couldn’t even taste it). Vegetable oil has a neutral flavor, but the average vegetable/canola oil is highly processed, so I recommend using cold-pressed sunflower oil or grapeseed oil if possible.
**Flour alternatives: In place of the whole wheat flour, you can use an equal amount of all purpose flour, whole wheat pastry flour, spelt flour, or gluten-free all-purpose flour blend. Or, substitute 2 ½ cups oat flour.
Make muffins: Here’s my banana muffin recipe.
Make it vegan: Use maple syrup instead of honey, replace the eggs with flax eggs and choose non-dairy milk (I used almond milk) or water.
Make it dairy free: Choose non-dairy milk (I used almond milk) or water.
Make it egg free: Replace the eggs with flax eggs.
Make it gluten free: Use an equal amount of Bob’s Red Mill’s gluten-free blend or 2 ½ cups certified gluten-free oat flour. Do NOT substitute coconut flour.
Make it lower in fat: I would argue that this bread contains a healthy amount of fat, but you can replace the oil with applesauce if you’re following a low-fat diet.
If you love this recipe: You will also love my banana muffins, banana cake with cream cheese frosting, healthy pumpkin bread and pumpkin muffins. Here are all of my baked goods and banana recipes.
Recommended equipment: I am totally in love with my Fiesta Loaf Pan in Turquoise (affiliate link).
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Hi Kate – Everything I’ve ever made from your site has been amazing. Your apple muffins are my go-to’s….yummy and healthy!
I want to try these banana muffins but only have coconut flour (only kind the store had). I’ve googled the conversion but thought I’d check with you in case you’d tried it to see how much I should use. Also – please let me know if there are any other recipes on your site with coconut or chickpea flour as I’d love to try them but it wouldn’t pull up in search. THANK YOU!
Hi Mina! Thank you! I’m sorry, coconut flour will not work in this recipe. It’s a really tricky flour to use as a substitute, since it absorbs moisture like crazy! The only recipe I have on my site that is specifically designed for coconut flour is this chocolate chip cookie recipe, which also calls for almond flour. For chickpea flour, try socca!
Detoxinista has a great coconut flour banana bread recipe. I tried it out since I had a bunch of leftover coconut flour myself. I’ve tried cookies, brownies, and zucchini bread as well with coconut flour. The only recipes that turned out good were the cookies (also detoxtinista) and the banana bread. So I think coconut flour has limited use for what you can make and it actually turn out good.
Thanks so much, ladies!
Hello Everyone
Let me say this is good to see a recipe that thinks about fiber and nutrition. I would also suggest trying a variety of flours. I use 1/2 cup oat flour, 1/4 cup buckwheat flour and 1/4 cup whole wheat. I also raise the protein/fiber with 1/4th-1/8th cup ground flax seed or raw shelled hemp seed. Try beating the egg whites and adding them last to keep the bread light in texture.
Hi Kate,
This was my first banana bread and it turned out great! Thank you very much for this recipe.
Actually I made three tiny breads as I needed to by a baking form but Amsterdam is completely sold out when it comes to the normal sized form. Everybody seems to be baking banana bread these days.
I have used oat flour as described above. And I would like to share with other Europeans what I have learned doing my research: 2 1/2 cups oat flour are about 250 grams and baking soda is Natron, in Germany mostly sold as Kaiser Natron (green bags).
Ella
Can you use almond flour
Can I use Blue avave instead of the syrup/honey?
Yes, you can!
I’m just here to say that I tried this with chia ‘eggs’ (rationing regular eggs because of shortages) and my bread did not set. It came out *really* strangely. I’ve made a million banana breads and muffins and this has never happened to me before. I might have done the chia eggs wrong, maybe added too much water? They weren’t at all runny, but you never know. It’s possible that someone else’s chia egg attempt would work, but it was a huge fail for me.
Aside from the chia eggs and AP flour I followed the recipe as written. The bread smells wonderful and is baked, the texture is just totally off, like a gooey pudding with crispy edges. I will definitely try again with regular eggs, but just want to give anyone wondering about chia eggs a heads up. I’m bummed but at least I learned something! Can’t wait to have the proper bread another time. :) Thanks Kate!
Hi Gabrielle! Thank you for sharing your results, and I’m sorry chia eggs didn’t work out for you in this recipe! I’ve heard from other commenters who have successfully subbed chia eggs with other alterations. Any chance you left out the baking soda?
I once tried to make an almond flour-based bread with flax eggs and all I got was a weird pudding, so I know what you’re talking about! Not good!
Ohh that’s interesting. No I def used the baking soda and actually the first thing I did when I saw the outcome was test it to see if it was still active, and it was/is. Womp womp. I have some heading-to-overripe bananas now that I’m going to try with again this weekend!
Hey Kate, I tried again today and came up with the same problem. I am *so* confused. This time I used eggs and I triple checked all the measurements, that my baking soda is active and none of my ingredients are expired. I mixed everything in the order you specified (flour last) and was careful not to overmix. The only difference is that I’m using AP flour instead of wheat (I used AP the last time as well).
When I took it out of the oven it had a great dome shape. But it wasn’t long before it flattened and has the same kind of pudding-ish texture from the first try. It’s super moist. Maybe I can send you a picture on instagram. The flavour is great but it’s nothing like a quick bread. I really want to love this and see so many others do, but it’s not working for me. Do you have any other ideas? I’m wondering if maybe it’s somehow my oven, but I’ve made a few batches of cookies recently and they were all fine. >.<
Hi Gabrielle, thanks so much for reporting back! Hmmm, this is quite a conundrum. If you used real eggs and all-purpose flour, I’m really at a loss here! Feel free to email me a picture or send one on Instagram if you haven’t already!
Eureka! I think my problem is with the flour, not the eggs! Wheat flour absorbs a lot more liquid than AP, so a hydration level that produces a moist loaf w/wheat flour will be too much for white. At least, that’s my current reasoning. There hasn’t been any kind of wheat or spelt flour around here in months but next time I’ll try with less honey and maybe only 1 egg? We’ll see.
Hi Kate!
Could you please review the conversion to grams? I thought the batter was very runny and my bread collapsed after taking it out of the oven. I went back over the recipe and I believe the amount of flour in grams should be higher. I’m in the UK so I’m used to work in grams.
Thank you!
Maria
Maria
Hi Maria! I’m sorry you had trouble. I triple-checked my measurements before providing them, and they are correct. When I measure flour, one cup comes to 125 grams. The batter is always runny, but the bread shouldn’t have collapsed. Was it still somewhat wet near the top middle? If so, it probably needed a few more minutes in the oven to fully bake.
Hi Kate,
Have you tried adding peanut butter to this bread? Thanks!
Hey Tanya! I’m sorry, I haven’t tried that. Please report back if you give it a shot!
I made this and it is wonderful. I subbed applesauce for oi,l chia seed eggs, for chicken eggs, and halved the honey (ginger honey). It still came out perfect. Next time I’ll add in some add-ins to make it more interesting. I’ll need to space out my making this since it’s irresistible.
Hi Mac! May I know how much applesauce you used to replace oil in the recipe? Did you use an equal amount? (1/3 cup in this case)
I also substituted applesauce for the oil. You use equal parts. So 1/3 cup of apple sauce will substitute the 1/3 cup of oil.
Taste so so good!
Delicious! Used maple syrup, vegetable oil, and King Arthur un bleached all purpose flour. Have 2 more bananas and want to make the muffins. Thank you!
Hello Kate,
So I tried out the healthy bana bread recipe and it was amazing. Substituted sugar with honey, used egg whites only, milk with cashew milk and for the mix-ins used raisins and cashew nuts, it came out great
Hi Kate,
This is the first time I have baked anything and it turned out amazingly! It was delicious and I was very proud of the results.
I used Spelt flour and Agave syrup and was complimented on the finished look, apparently it would not have looked out of place in a bakery. I have also share the recipe with a number of friends who are as happy as I am.
Many thanks!
Simple, easy and tastes great. Used a store bought gluten free flour mix and added some chocolate chips. Also doubled the recipe, because I knew one loaf was not going to be enough and I was right! Definitely a bookmark worthy recipe.
Hey Kate . I absolutely love this recipe . Wondering if I can add cocoa powder to it and make it chocolate flavoured while keeping everything else same
Plz advice
Thanks
Hi! I believe others have tried it, but I haven’t personally. Adding an ingredient like this may impact the overall result. Let me know how it works for you!
Do we think it’d be possible to leave out the sweetener entirely or would that impact the structure too much?
Hi, the sweetener helps with flavor, but also counts as part of the liquid to help make this bread moist and delicious.
I don’t think you could eliminate the honey, but I halved it and doubled the banana because that’s what I had on hand, and it worked out great!
Hi! Can i use almond flour as an alternative?
Hi Kay! See the post regarding my recommendations for other types of flour. I didn’t find almond flour to work well. I’m actually working on something banana bread-like with almond flour. You have to change several things to make it work. Stay tuned!
I made this recipe using ATK’s Gluten-Free Whole Grain Flour mix and it turned out great! Thank you for the delicious recipe.
This came out absolutely lovely. Easy to make, not too sweet, and great texture.
I’m not sure I’ll ever use dairy in making it again.
Thank you for this wonderful recipe.
It really made my day!
YOu’re welcome, Fay! I’m happy you loved it.
Thank you, Kate! This is a great recipe. I’ve substituted 1 tablespoon flaxseed with 3 tablespoons of water for the two eggs. I mix and refrigerate for about 15 minutes before adding. Has turned out great every time!
Thanks! Can we replace the honey with granulated sweetener?
Hi Ann! Unfortunately, the sweetener it calls for is apart of the liquid element that helps with moisture and to turn out well.
Hey, thanks for your recipe! I made it and it came out good but the bread didn’t really rise. Like it’s flat appearing. If I’m using baking soda, should I add some lemon juice or vinegar? Or if I used baking powder would that be better?
Hi Neha! I’m sorry to hear that. It’s odd it didn’t rise for you. What flour did you use? I wonder if it may have been over stirred
I used white whole wheat flour.
Ah so it wasn’t because of the baking soda then?
Hi Neha, it was likely over stirred. If you try it again, let me know. Sorry it didn’t turn out!
I’ve made this many times and it is the best recipe I’ve found. Love your cookbook :-).
I just adore all your recipes.
I use the really healthy options, the muffins and the banana bread are very
Moreish, everyone loved them.
Congratulations on such lovely products.
I’ve always been a little shy of baking due to the number of disasters I’ve witnessed! I flew solo with this one and…totally delicious, couldn’t believe how simple it is and my family were amazed!
Cheers for the awesome recipe:)
I have been looking for a healthy, dairy free banana bread option for my family (my 1yr old has an issue with dairy) and this is hands down the best recipe I have tried! We used oat milk in this recipe. I’m deleting all other banana bread recipes from my pinterest!! Looking forward to searching your blog for other recipes!
Amazing!! The banana bread was not too sweet and was still moist, even after a few days. It’s the perfect afternoon snack. Highly recommend.
Lovely cake! Moist and flavorful. I just started baking with whole meal flour and was somewhat apprehensive if it would turn out as good as with all purpose flour. It turns out I like it better, it tastes great and I even add less sweetener, used 1/3 cup instead of 1/2 cup. To not mess up the liquid/dry products ratio I just used more milk.
Probably the best banana bread recipe I’ve ever made! Thank you!!
This was delicious, and so easy to make! I used maple syrup and added dark chocolate chips. I really appreciate your including the weights of many ingredients, as that is the most accurate method for measuring!
I made this recipe a few days ago. I would send a picture but it’s 75% gone. I selected your recipe based on the ingredients. I loved your choices to keep what you could from traditional recipes and substitute for more healthy options. I will often do that myself but you did it for me. I used Greek yogurt as a sub for milk (I had no milk on hand). I also used half whole wheat and half oat flour since I ran out of flour. I used coconut extract since I added unsweetened coconut flakes along with toasted walnuts and chopped raisins. I have often used rum extract since it goes so well with banana. Next time I’ll take a picture before my husband cuts into it. Thank you for you recipe. In good health….
Hi Kate
My kids are obsessed with banana bread but I hate buying the store brands full of processed sugar. Made this one today and it’s absolutely delicious!! My 2 little ones absolutely loved it! Your recipes are always fantastic. Thank you!!
Dee
It’s the third time we’re making this recipe with my preschooler and it is a hit each time. We’re now putting 3 large bananas. Lovely, healthy and easy recipe. Thank you!
Hi Kate
Thanks for making things easy with this recipe, tried the healthy banana bread, it was fantastic, made with 80% oat to 20%regular wheat flour.
Liz
Thank you for sharing, Liz! I’m glad it worked well for you.
Thanks for this flexible recipe! So valuable in these times. I had half as much honey as I needed and twice as many bananas, so I figured the extra bananas could make up for the missing liquid and sweetness from the honey. And I was right! Turned out great.
You’re welcome! It was time to test out other options. I’m glad you liked it.
Could I add a box of instant Vanilla pudding to the recipe? If so, will it later the cooking time?
Hi Farah! I have never tried adding pudding mix to this bread, so I’m really not sure how that would turn out. I do know it turns out great as written!
Hi there! I have an 8×5 loaf pan will that affect the cook time/temperature?
Hi there! That should work well for this recipe as written.
Hi Kate,
Thank you so much for the recipe, it was delicious! I used maple syrup, applesauce instead of oil, chia seed eggs and soy milk. It was so moist and yummy! Thanks again!
Chris
First time baking from this recipe, I’m not a baker (it’s lock down) and after reading these comments I must have done something wrong but I couldn’t get it to cook all the way through, still raw. My loaf tin was smaller so I expected a longer bake, 2hr20mins later still gooey. What did I do wrong? Please help.
Ps the crusts taste great.
Hi Cayleigh, I’m sorry to hear that! Did you make any substitutions? Are you sure you used baking soda, not baking powder? You might want to check the expiration date on your baking soda. It’s important for the rise of the bread.
I made this last night, followed your recipe using extra virgin olive oil, maple syrup (scant)and added a few chopped dates for my mix-in. Great recipe, not too sweet, just perfect and moist (even better the next day).
Hi! I made this Healthy Banana Bread yesterday, and it was absolutely great! In fact, it was so great, that my husband and son ate it all in one evening, and I had none to bring to my mother! I will make it again tomorrow, and sneak it out of the house for my mom! It ‘felt healthy’ but in a good way; it was tasty and really delicious. We live in Colorado, over a mile high, but I didn’t change anything in the recipe and it came out amazing! Thank you for this wonderful and tasty banana bread!!
Made this yesterday and it came out beautifully. Used olive oil, maple syrup, and oat milk. Added cacao nibs. It’s so delicious! Thank you!
You’re welcome, Nicole! I appreciate your review.
Made with gluten free Bob’s Red Mill Baking flour and it turned out perfect
Wonderful, Petra!
Hi Kate,
Many thanks for the recipe. I tried this today. I must say I am a rookie with baking. The flavour and the aroma was bang on. The bread rose well in the oven and was firm. However it sinked after a bit while cooling and became cakey. Nevertheless, it tasted amazing!
I’m sorry it sank for you! What flour did you use?
I used whole wheat flour
Hi, I made this recipe exactly as you advised, including with coconut oil. The only difference was using 1/4 cup hemp/flax seed powder in stead of last 1/4 of 1 + 3/4 cups whole wheat flour. I also added cacao nibs and some crushed peanuts. I cooked it at 325F as advised but it was already overcooked at 40 minutes. Not sure why it cooked so much faster than it said it would in the recipe. It’s still edible but a bit dry and edges are singed. Next time I will check it at 30mins.
Your banana muffins, and healthy whole wheat pancakes are already breakfast staples in our house! We have a lot of brown bananas right now, so we are trying the banana bread for breakfast tomorrow!
Just made it in a Bundt pan and came out great! (It took 50 minutes to bake). I used the coconut oil / honey/
water/ walnuts and chocolate chips combination. (Since you gave us so many choices!) Im going to grab another slice.. bye!
I have made this about 4 times in the last month … So good! Love that it uses coconut oil. I have messed around with add ins and it works like a charm . I used regular whole wheat flour once and was not a huge fan. But seriously just follow the recipe as is and you won’t be disappointed!
Wonderful, Sam! Thank you for sharing.
what if i wanted to make this a chocolate banana bread. How much cocoa powder should I add? I’ll add chocolate chips, too.
Hi Maria! I haven’t tried it, sorry. I do know 1/2 cup chocolate chips is delicious though.
Just made
I have just made my very 1st banana bread and it is gorgeous. I can’t wait to try more of your recipes.
Jackie ❤
Absolutely delicious. I only added chopped walnuts as an add in for my first try and they added a nice crunchy texture. Looking forward to making this bread often and with more add ins, such as cranberries, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds etc.
Thank you and other delicious recipe with excellent instructions.
Lesson learned: it is best to scoop flour with a spoon and use a scale to get accurate measure. Should have remembered that from home ec. classes many years ago. :)
I never knew it was so easy to make substitutions!