If you’ve ever wanted to bake an easy and healthy treat that’ll smell like heaven, you’ve come to the right place.
This moist and tender sugar-free banana bread with a colorful raspberry swirl is perfect for a weekend breakfast or brunch, as a snack or dessert!
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Recreate wonderful childhood memories with this healthier vegan banana bread that’s sweetened only with fruit. It’s so rewarding to make and takes only 10 minutes of hands-on time!
We decided to go with a homemade raspberry chia jam swirl for a little twist— however, you can omit this component and make traditional banana bread instead.
For more baked goodness, check out our blueberry muffins, fruity vegan flapjacks or these healthy oat bars.
Why you’ll love it
- Kids and adults alike love it
- Very simple to follow
- Moist, sweet and satisfying
- Gluten-free, sugar-free & oil-free
- Spotted with crunchy walnuts
- Fruity, sourish raspberry touch
Everyone we’ve served this banana bread to so far has loved it – nobody thought that something was missing.
So, if you have a skeptical or picky eater around you, try serving them this banana bread. Kids especially will be quick to devour this sweet goodness!
Ingredients needed
- Oats – make it chewy, whole grain and gluten-free all in one step
- Ripe bananas – that probably didn’t come as a surprise
- Dates – our favorite whole food sweetener!
- Soy milk & lemon juice – quick and healthy vegan buttermilk substitute
- Cinnamon – to add to that divine, homey baking smell
- Crushed walnuts – yessss, please!
- Raspberry jam swirl – consisting of raspberries, chia seeds and water.
Using bananas in baking is a great way to replace sugar, butter and eggs while creating a gooey and moist texture!
In terms of kitchen equipment, you’ll need a loaf pan, blender, large mixing bowl, small mixing bowl and measuring equipment.
How to make sugar-free banana bread
- Preheat your oven to 350° F (180° C) and get a loaf pan.
- Process oats into flour if you don’t have any oat flour on hand.
- Make raspberry chia jam by mixing 3 ingredients in a small bowl. Smash with a fork, mix well and then set aside.
- Add wet ingredients for the banana bread into a blender jar and blend until smooth.
- Add dry ingredients to a big bowl and mix with a spoon to combine. Pour in the wet mixture from your blender and stir until you create a homogenous batter.
- Fold in crushed walnuts with a spoon, then pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan.
- Make raspberry swirls out of your jam throughout the banana bread using a fork — don’t overmix! If desired, arrange an additional sliced banana on top of the batter.
- Bake for 60 minutes in the preheated oven or until cooked through and firm on the outside.
- Let it cool for 20 minutes before slicing or you run into the risk of gooey, undercooked slices!
Storage & serving
This sugar-free banana bread tastes best fresh out of the oven! Any leftovers can be cooled and stored in an airtight container or bag at room temperature.
It keeps well for around 4 days and even longer in the fridge!
Enjoy it on its own, with a dollop of almond butter, date caramel, vegan yogurt, sweet spread or vegan butter! We love to pair it with a cup of coffee, too.
Tips & FAQs
Suggested swaps
If you don’t have access to them, you can omit the dates and use more ripe bananas for this recipe.
Make your banana bread sweeter by adding a touch of brown sugar or maple syrup!
Soy milk can be replaced with almond milk, oat milk or coconut milk.
You can use all-purpose or whole wheat flour instead of oat flour. We suggest adding some type of fat to batter in this case, though!
Make it higher in calories and fat by adding a few tablespoons of neutral oil to the batter!
If you’re looking for a more traditional sugar-free banana bread, feel free to omit the raspberry swirl entirely.
Delicious flavors & add-ins
- Chocolate chips
- Blueberries
- Peanut butter
- Espresso
- Lemon glaze
- Cocoa powder
- Pumpkin puree
- Applesauce
How to ripen bananas quickly
If you don’t have ripe bananas on hand, place your unpeeled and unripe on a lined baking sheet.
Bake for about 20 minutes at 350 °F until they have blackened or microwave the bananas for 30 seconds!
How to freeze banana bread
Cut into slices, and wrap them individually. Place the banana bread into a freezer-friendly container and freeze for 3-5 months! Reheat in the oven at your convenience.
You can also place the slices on a cookie sheet and freeze them overnight before transferring them into your container! This way, you can take out individual slices more easily.
Can I turn this into muffins?
Sure, just fill your muffin tin with the banana bread batter and sprinkle with crushed nuts if wanted!
Bake for 25 minutes at 350°F or until firm on the outside.
More healthy treats
Try these whole food plant-based recipes next!
Did you make our sugar-free banana bread and like it? Be sure to comment and rate below. You can also Pin it here!
Ingredients
- 2 cups oat flour 220 g
- 3 medium-sized ripe bananas mashed
- 1 cup soft dates pitted (120 g)
- ¼-½ cup soy milk 60-120 ml
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup walnuts crushed (60 g)
Raspberry Swirl
- 1 cup raspberries fresh or frozen & defrosted (125 g)
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
- 1 tbsp water
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350° F (180° C) and prepare an 8.5 x 4.5 x 2.75 loaf pan.
- Combine ingredients for raspberry jam in a medium-sized bowl. Mash slightly with a spoon and mix until well combined, then set aside.
- Process oats into flour if you don’t have any oat flour on hand.
- Add wet ingredients for the banana bread into a blender jar and blend until smooth.
- Add dry ingredients to a big bowl and mix with a spoon to combine. Pour in the wet mixture from your blender and stir until well combined.
- Fold in crushed walnuts with a spoon, then pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan.
- Make raspberry swirls out of your jam throughout the banana bread using a fork — don’t overmix!
- If desired, arrange an additional sliced banana on top of the batter!
- Bake for 60 minutes in the preheated oven or until cooked through and firm on the outside.
- Let it cool for 15-20 minutes before slicing! Enjoy.
Notes
- Instead of soy milk, you can use any other plant-based milk like almond or oat.
- If you don't have any walnuts, replace them with other nuts of choice or simply omit.
- No need to add the raspberry swirl if you just want traditional banana bread.
- If you don't let your banana bread cool before slicing, you run into the risk of gooey, undercooked slices!
Alena Schowalter is a Certified Vegan Nutritionist who has been a vegetarian since childhood and vegan since 2012. Together with her husband, she founded nutriciously in 2015 and has been guiding thousands of people through different transition stages towards a healthy plant-based diet. She’s received training in the fields of nutrition, music therapy and social work. Alena enjoys discussions around vegan ethics, walks through nature and creating new recipes.
This sugar-free banana bread is moist, flavorful and so comforting! Using only a handful of easy and healthy ingredients, this delicious treat is a must-try recipe.