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.
I’ve made this many times now…I hate that I can’t tolerate banana, but my family loves it.so thank you!
Love this recipe! Came out so yummy and my family loves it! Thank you :)
The best out there, really :) It’s my go-to recipe for more than 3 years and no other has beaten it so far. Thank you!
I’ve recently started making it with buttermilk instead of milk and it comes out even more moist and fluffy – hence I’ve got a question. Have you/ has anyone out here tried making it with cocoa or 50/50 (cocoa/no cocoa)?
So good! Made it exactly as listed with maple syrup and almond milk and it was delicious!
How do i double or triple this recipe. Could I scale everything up or should the volumes be different
Hi, scale would be the same. I would be sure to bake in loaf pans though.
Thanks. This recipe is my go to recipe for banana bread and turns out wonderfully every time for a beginner baker.
I am trying to triple the quantity. Will update how it goes.
This was a huge success with my co – workers. My students throw away so many bananas all the time, that I started to take them home, I was giving them to neighbors and family members but soon I just had too many. I found this recipe and decided to try it. I used a bourbon aged maple syrup and mixed in dark chocolate chips. It came out amazing! Will definitely be making this often, and it is so easy to bake!
That’s great! Thank you for sharing.
I used tequila instead of vanilla. Might as well.
I don’t know what went wrong mine was super thick and had no flavor! Even when done and baking all the way through it was still glue like… I even added extra oat milk
I’m sorry to hear that! How did you measure your flour? If it wasn’t spooned and leveled, you can get too much to make it thick.
Hi, I’m hoping to make this as I have a whole lot of ripe bananas, but I don’t have any baking soda and can’t buy it also, can I know if it would be ok to substitute baking powder instead?
Hi, Sorry you won’t get the same results.
I have tried many of healthy banana bread recipes but never been so close to regular version! This recipe is fabulous! It’s one of the best banana breads I have ever eaten. Exactly like in Australian cafes (where I have eaten a lot of them). Plus a healthier version – the best thing ever. I used wholemeal spelt flour and it’s awsome. Thank you! :-)
You’re welcome, Kate! I’m happy it turned out for you.
For anyone who’s interested, I made this measure-for-measure using Bob’s Red Mill Paleo Baking Flour and it was without a doubt the best banana bread I’ve ever had, healthy or otherwise. I also put chocolate chunks in it (making it significantly less paleo) but I still feel great about the fact that it’s gluten-free and sweetened with honey.
Everyone who tasted it said it was delicious, too. I used to make my banana bread with a recipe that used all almond flour, but this blows that out of the water. Needless to say, this is going to be my go-to from now on.
anyone used water instead of milk? wondering if it will affect the taste?
Water can work here too.
If there was an award to who has made this the most, I would win. My fav recipe of Cookie and Kate BY FAR! So yummy.
A great favorite to have. Thank you for your review!
Thank you Kate. This the easiest and yummiest banana loaf I have made ever. Really loved it. :)
You’re welcome! Thank you for your review.
I think this could be the best banana bread I have ever tasted. My family loves it. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
I’m happy to hear that, Pam! Thank you for sharing.
I made this today with wheat flour and syrup instead of honey. I added chocolate chips and this is my favorite banana bread recipe. Next time I will try using Walden farms zero calorie syrup to make it even more calorie friendly. Very good recipe. Thank you.
This banana bread is so moist and yummy! I used half maple syrup and half honey, and added mini chocolate chips. I’ve tried MANY banana bread recipes and none even come close to how delicious this recipe is. Thank you so much for sharing!!
I’m happy you enjoyed it, Jacquees! Thank you for your review.
This bread is so tasty! So pleased! It was my first time using white whole wheat flour and I love the texture and benefit of the whole grains.
I made this bread primarily vegan by using Just Egg egg replacer and barista-style oat milk. I used 1/2 honey and 1/2 maple syrup. Even my boyfriend, who is not vegan or health conscious loved this bread. A keeper recipe for sure! Thank you!
Hi Kate
Luv your cookbook and blog with all your delicious recipes! You have helped transform my diet & made it so easy and fun!
I had a quick question. My banana bread isn’t rising like yours. My baking soda is new & I’m using applesauce instead of oil with 1T olive oil.
Is there anything I can do to optimize the rising level of my banana bread?
Thanks so much!
Elaine
Hi Eliane, changing the oil amount with the combination of the applesauce is likely causing your issues.
Hi Kate
Had ripe bananas I didn’t know what to do with, then I came across your healthy version of banana bread, OMG delicious, thank you for sharing
Barbara
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
My family loves this banana bread recipe. We’ve made it twice this week, and many times over the last year. I’m not a great baker, but this recipe is foolproof! The muffins are great too.
This recipe is spot on! Great texture and not too sweet either. The top of banana bread cracked beautifully too! Thanks Kate!
Looking forward to checking out more of your healthy bakes recipe :)
I added 1 tsp of banana extract and loved the extra flavor!! Also made my own granola and sprinkled on top. I have celiac disease, so often cook with recipes made specifically for using GF flour. Because I try to use natural ingredients in my banana bread (like honey as opposed to sugar), I have stuck with this “mainstream” recipe and use for both muffins and bread.
I know I am a bit late but can anyone tell me that at which degree do we need to bake the cake for 55-60 minutes
Hi Meeta! The oven temp is in the first step. I hope you enjoy it!
I’ve made this banana bread so many times now! Each time it comes out flawless!! And I feel like I can have it guilt-free!
I’ve tried it as it is and with some variations too.
I needed to make an eggless version. So one batch I made with flax seed egg. That turned out a little dense but yummy nevertheless.
In the next batch I just decided to omit the egg (of both kinds) since I read online that bananas themselves are a good substitute for eggs. And I swapped the oil for 1/4 cup butter and some oil (made total 1/3 cup as per your recipe) + swapped milk for buttermilk. And it turned out to be mindddblowwwing! Soft, fluffy, beautiful.i usually am very scared of replacing stuff but am so glad this experiment turned out well. This is another reason why your recipe is amazing! It never fails!
I’m glad you love it, Kanika! Thanks for sharing your approach.
Made this banana bread with buckwheat flour, used sparkling water instead of milk, and i did without any additional add ins even though i had chocolate chips staring me in the face. Turned out really really lovely. Thanks for the recipe Kate! The metric measurements sure helped because im so bad at spooning and levelling.
I am really bad at baking but sweet cravings led me to look for some healthy recipes. This recipe came out perfectly on the first try, i cant thank you enough. Satisfies my cravings and is as healthy as it can possibly be. I will probably teach this to my kids. Going to add dates & walnuts to it next week.
This is the first time I’ve made banana bread (I’m not a regular baker) and it was amazing! Definitely my go to from now on whenever I need to bring a dish! I added walnuts and dark chocolate chips, and used almond milk and honey.
Hello, i was wondering if i could use an air fryer instead of an oven because i dont have an oven at the place i stay. And if yes is there any temp or time adjustments that need to be made
Hi Sandra, I don’t think this will turnout in an air fryer, sorry!
Hi Kate!
I was going to make this recipe for the first time today and was wondering if you had the nutritional information for this recipe.
Thank you so much!
Hi Heather! Sorry for my delay. All the nutritional information is below the notes section of the recipes. You will need to click to expand.
This came out great! I made one batch with walnuts and another with dark chocolate gems. Both came out great and I love that they’re pretty guilt free. I will definitely be making this again!
Just made these on a whim, was planning on making something else but missing ingredients but has everything for this! Wow, so delicious and moist. Very very good!!! Thank you!
Just made these on a whim, was planning on making something else but missing ingredients but has everything for this! Wow, so delicious and moist. I replaced the oil with unsweetened applesauce and suggest using a little less than what it calls for oil, and sweetened if you are into that. Very very good!!! Thank you!
This recipe is absolutely beautiful! Best banana bread ever! I have made it a few times and it’s always amazing but this time I swapped out the oil for melted butter :-), used maple syrup for the sweetness, plain gluten free flour and oat milk for the milk selection. Truly – best banana bread ever. Thank you so much! And the smell while baking…. Oh my goodness…. :-)
This is my go to recipe now, little kids love it in NZ :-)
LOVED this recipe. I added some chocolate chips and it was outstanding honestly. SO moist omg
My gosh, this banana bread is SO GOOD!!!!!!!!! I make it all the time for guests and it is gone in 10 minutes. I have to make double batches when there’s lots of us to avoid civil wars in my house! The soft, fluffiness of this thing is irresistible and how it is sweet, but not overpowering is really amazing. I know a lot of people who have a bucketlist. My advice: add “Make this banana bread recipe” to it now. You need to make this, you need to. Plus it is so easy! One bowl, one whisk, no mess. I am all for healthy baking (last week I threw out most packets of refined sugar) and I love that this is super healthy but tastes soooooooooooo good. It’s not the best HEALTHY banana bread I’ve ever had; it’s just the BEST banana bread I’ve ever had in my life (and believe me, I’ve had more that my fair share of different banana breads!)! Thank you so much Kate for an AMAZING recipe.
I’m excited you’re excited about it, Joelle! Thank you for sharing your experience and review.
My family is a pretty tough audience and they have raved about this banana bread. I made it with the coconut oil and maple syrup. It’s perfect. Thank you for a wonderful recipe.
I made the recipe as you mentioned, exactly step by step. I used raw organic honey and extra virgin olive oil with whole wheat flour. I baked at 325F for 55 mins. My God, the cake was awesome and my family too liked it. This will become my go to banana bread now. Much healthier option than I used to bake with traditional ingredients. Thanks for the recipe!!
Great to hear, Suvo! Thank you for your review.
Thank you so much Kate I have never cooked banana bread before.
Yay 1st go it turned out great thankyou so much for sharing this recipe.
Also, for giving me the confidence to have a go.
Wonderful, Helen! Thank you for your review.
Whats the nutritional facts on this?
Hi Diana, the nutritional information is below the recipe in the notes section.
This bread is super delicious!!! I tweaked the recipe a bit, used jaggery powder instead of honey, added half a cup of chocolate chips, cut down the quantity of wheat flour and replaced it with almond flour, added 2 tbsp unsweetened desiccated coconut. Thank you so much for the recipe! It was a refreshing and easy breakfast for us! Normally our breakfast requires waking up as early as 4am. So a banana bread was surely a healthy and tasty change for us. Greetings from India !!
I don’t usually leave comments, but I’m here getting this recipe because I got a new phone and my screenshots are all gone lol. I’ve been making this recipe (in muffin format) for almost 6 years! My kids love it. It’s so easy to adapt too. Sometimes I’ll omit 1/4 flour at the end and add cacao powder and chocolate chips for a double chocolate chip muffin. And in the fall we love to do 1/2 cup of pumpkin purée instead of banana, use maple syrup in place of the honey and use pumpkin pie spice instead of cinnamon and it’s the perfect pumpkin muffin! This recipe was the best find. ❤️
I’m so happy you left a comments and love this recipe!
Full of information, thank you for sharing hug from Indonesia
This is the ONLY Banana Bread recipe for me! Have tried several recipes over my 61 years and this one wins for taste and good health.
The banana muffins with oats are also a regular in my family. Thank you from Australia!
That’s great, Jarit! Thank you for your review.
I’ve made this recipe so many times and it’s by far our family’s favorite! I make it as is and it comes out perfectly. Thank you for an amazing banana bread recipe!
This is the best and the most healthy banana bread I’ve baked. The moistness, fluffyness and the softness got me hooked onto this. This is the HG recipe for banana bread. Thank you so much dear!
This is such a great recipe! A total hit among my friends! I have made this bread at least 7 times just this year! I can’t get my bread from cracking in the middle though when baking. Is there a way around this?
Hi! It can crack sometimes. How long are you baking it? What type of pan are you using?
I am baking it for 55 mins in a nonstick steal loaf pan
The steal loaf pan may be making it cook slightly faster. You could try decreasing the time some to see what it does.
Love this recipe, how many sunset on slimming world do you think this would be??
Thank You Kate .. we love your Healthy Banana Bread recipe.. yum! My 5 and 7 yo grand children are very fussy with their Banana Bread.. Your Recipe is a winner!
I add Raspberries to it and have made it with Oat and Spelt Flour! Delicious.. Thanks again
Wonderful, Susie! Thanks for your review.
Hi! May I ask, does adding in Honey cause the banana bread to burn easily? Thank you! :)
Hi Lim, I don’t find that it does. Did you have issues?
I made my first ever banana bread using your recipe which was very easy to follow. It turned out delicious and moist and now looking forward to baking my second one very soon.
I substituted a pinch of nutmeg for the cinnamon, and that worked extremely well too.
I can’t bear the smell or taste of cinnamon unfortunately, it’s my only food fussiness.
Loved the underlying flavour of maple syrup, so much better than sugar and the olive oil meant it wasn’t overwhelmingly buttery as some cakes can be. Ten of ten from me!
I’m glad you were able to adjust it to your tastes. Thanks for your review.