The BEST gluten free and vegan Banana Bread
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I love banana bread and have enjoyed more than my share of banana bread over the years – traditional, vegan and gluten free banana bread. Gluten free bread typically needs more eggs than I like, in order to hold the grain together. Vegan breads typically are not gluten free, because the the gluten is needed to hold things together. This recipe hit the mark. It is an adaptation of a vegan recipe, in which I altered the nut butter, flour and sugar, And to date, it really is the BEST gluten free banana bread.
I usually blend my own flour with a combination of oats, brown rice and almond flours. But in this case, I had some 1:1 gluten free flour blend by King Arthur. I picked this blend because it has the greatest amount of whole grains compared to Bob’s and Pamela’s brands. Tapioca and potato starches are often the first ingredients listed is gluten free flour blends, but in this blend, rice, whole grain brown rice and sorghum flour are listed first.
The potato and tapioca flour/starches used in gluten free flours are simple starches and go into the bloodstream like sugar, quickly raising the blood sugar. Whole grain flours have more fiber and slow that process down so the spike is not as rapid. So I encourage using whole grain flours above processed flours and starches. Many gluten free products are made with high starch concentration resulting in greater impact on blood sugar regulation. So take caution when eating gluten free as it can increase insulin resistance if the majority of products eaten are made with high starch content flours.
The sweeteners in this bread are bananas and just a little maple syrup. The maple syrup can be substituted with honey or another liquid sweetener. Try making a date syrup by blending dates and water.
Tahini is my favorite butter to use in this recipe, but cashew butter is mild as well. Other seed and nut butters can be used, just be mindful of the flavor that comes with it. Peanut butter and almond butter have strong flavors.
The stir ins can be anything you fancy – any nut, seeds, dried fruit or chocolate chunks. Some combinations to consider are: cranberry-walnut, raspberry-white chocolate, chocolate chip-coconut, apricot-coconut, cherry-pumpkin seed and mixed berry-pecan.
The BEST (gluten free and vegan) Banana Bread
Equipment
- mixing bowl
- 4X8 bread pan
Ingredients
- 3 bananas brown
- 1/3 cup tahini or cashew butter almond or peanut butter
- 1/4 cup maple syrup honey or date syrup
- 2 tablespoons flax meal
- 2 tablespoons plant milk almond, oat, coconut
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cup gluten free flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup coconut flakes
- 1/2 cup walnuts chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a mixing bowl. mash the bananas.
- To the bananas, add the wet ingredients and flax meal, mix well.
- In a smaller bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add this to the banana mixture and stir.
- Fold in the walnuts and coconut flakes.
- Transfer to an oiled bread pan and smooth the top.
- Bake for 60 minutes or until knife inserted comes out clean.
Notes