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.
My coworker and I both follow your blog. Today she brought in banana bread and said she used this recipe. Very tasty!
Love, love this recipe! I may have already commented on it, but is that good ;)
Love this recipe! I have been looking for a healthy recipe for quite some time but, that also tastes delicious. I added walnuts and used local honey and almond milk. Thank you : )
I followed this recipe and I was able to bake the perfect banana cake for the first time. I am in love with it and it was baked perfectly . I am gonna use this recipe again and again . Thank you so much for this .
First time making this today and it’s tasty! I added chocolate chips. My bread kind of fell apart on the bottom taking it out of the pan after cooling. Any suggestions on how to prevent that from happening? Maybe I undercooked a bit but the toothpick came out clean after 65 minutes.
Turned out horrible for me! I don’t know if it’s because I subbed gluten free flour, but it was horribly gooey after 60 minutes in the oven, so I did another 20-25 minutes longer and figured I had to take it out at that point. Within a few minutes, the loaf completely sunk in the middle and it’s inedible and underdone. Double checked all the ingredients just to make sure I didn’t miss anything, but everything out. Super bummed!
Oh no! I’m sorry to hear that, Meghan. What type of bread pan did you use?
9×5-inch loaf pan as advised in the recipe.
Love this recipe- I used the coconut oil, cashew milk and switched the flour to oat flour- doubled the cinnamon and added walnuts. Also – I added a little more banana because I didn’t want to throw the rest away :) Turned out amazing- and I tried to make extra to freeze but it got eaten in a day.
I made this last night and it was the first time I was fully satisfied with a banana bread recipe(even after trying a few big name chefs recipes)
My sister had made chunks of this bread and when I tried it the texture and flavour were honestly perfect. She only used the whole wheat flour and I loved it. Perfect amount of sweetness-I did a half-half blend of honey and maple syrup, used soy milk and 1 cup whole wheat 3/4 cup unbleached all purpose. My version tasted pretty much the same.
I made this with almond flour. It was delicious. Doubled the recipe. Used walnuts in both loaves and added sugar free dark chocolate chips in one. They taste great.
I’ve made this recipe a LOT of times. I always use avocado oil. We prefer maple syrup. A couple of variations I have tried…half oat flour/half bob’s red mill. I have also made it with spelt. The most recent substitution I made was with sprouted wheat. The first day with the spouted wheat the bread is a bit dry but a day or two later the bread is great! We also liked it with allspice instead of cinnamon. Thanks so much for this recipe!!
I made this banana bread with just a feeew substitutions. I was out of baking soda so I just used triple the amount of baking powder (worked just fine). I used coconut oil and a little vegetable oil as well. I used 1.5 cups of whole wheat flour and almost a half cup of all purpose. For add ins, I used craisins and flax seed. What an amazing recipe! Oh! I also added one table spoon of organic cane sugar just to add some extra sweet ;). I doubt it made a huge difference. But the outcome was PERFECT! I will be keeping this recipe for in the future! SO Tasty!! Thanks so much for sharing, I think this is probably one of the best banana breads I have ever had. There’s like a small layer of mushy banana towards the top of the loaf that tastes delicious! I left mine in for about 56 or 57 minutes, tested, and was perfect. The hardest part was waiting for it to cool…haha! Thanks again!
I have been making this banana bread for 2 years,I eat it every
morning for breakfast switching it with healthy zucchini bread.
how should I adjust this for high altitude? We are at about 6,000 ft.
I’m not sure, sorry! I would suggest looking at other commenters suggestions since this has been made a lot!
Thank your Kate for this simple and amazing recipe. I used it to bake banana bread for the first time in my life. I followed exact same recipe, same quantity of everything. I used maple syrup and sunflower oil in the optional sections. And added walnuts and chocolate chip as well. Everything went perfectly, the the bread was fluffy and the tasted great. But then the next morning I ate again and the bread tasted bitter :(
Since I am new to baking tried to read more about it, but still not sure what could have caused my bread to taste bitter next morning. My guess is that with baking soda I should have used honey instead of maple syrup to neutralize the effect of baking soda. Or is there a possibility the baking soda did not mix well. If you have have any suggestions for that please let me know so I am able to bake a butter bread next time.
Thank you
You’re welcome, Khushi!
The best banana bread recipe! I made some tweaks to the flour and sugar – use 1 cup of oatmeal flour + 3/4 cup of wholemeal flour, and 1/4 cup of maple syrup + 2 tsp of natvia. I also cut down the fats to 1/4 cup of coconut oil and the banana bread still came out moist and delicious. Thanks so much for the recipe!
Hooray! Thanks for your review, Joy.
I love this. I needed a recipe that did not have sugar or fake sugar but was not dry or lacking in flavor. 10/10 would recommend. I followed the recipe almost exactly and used vegetable oil as my oil. The only change I made was I used about 3.5-4 bananas for added flavor but it took my banana bread longer to cook from doing that. Super moist, does not miss any flavor and you cannot beat how healthy it is compared to recipes that have sugar. Plus there are alternatives given if you need to change an ingredient. Love love love!
Thanks for the 10/10! I appreciate your rave review.
I’ve now made this for a second time. I live at altitude so cranked the oven up to 350 and just because I hate over done goodies I put the time at 50 minutes. Don’t get me wrong, it was delicious, just a bit dry.
Second time making it, I dropped the oven back to 325 and checked the loaf at 40 minutes and it was already finished! Haven’t yet cut into it (as they are for a company breakfast).
Love the fact that this recipe is very versatile and adjustable to preferences!
Thanks for sharing how this worked for you!
Is there a way to make a hybrid pumpkin banana bread?! I love this recipe just wondering if it’s possible to sneak in some pumpkin for the fall!
I have a great pumpkin bread recipe! https://capital-balance.pro/healthy-pumpkin-bread-recipe/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Hello!
Do you happen to know the carb count for this Banana Bread loaf? The nutritional value section won’t show up, I’m diabetic so it would be great to know this info.
Also, I loovveeee your recipes and that you provide a Dairy Free alternative when possible!
Thanks :-)
Hi Nadia! I’m sorry you are having issues seeing the information. Make sure you allow cookies in your browser. I hope this helps in the meantime:
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 slice
Serves 10
Amount Per Serving
Calories 233
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 8.9g 14%
Saturated Fat 6.5g
Trans Fat 0g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.6g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.9g 0%
Cholesterol 37.7mg 13%
Sodium 260.6mg 11%
Total Carbohydrate 36.3g 12%
Dietary Fiber 3.1g 12%
Sugars 18g
Protein 4.6g 9%
Vitamin A1%Vitamin C4%Calcium2%Iron6%Vitamin D4%Magnesium10%Potassium6%Zinc5%Phosphorus11%Thiamin (B1)8%Riboflavin (B2)7%Niacin (B3)6%Vitamin B611%Folic Acid (B9)5%Vitamin B122%Vitamin E1%Vitamin K
I can see it for other recipes you have so I’m not sure what happened with this one! Thanks for the info :-)
The best banana bread recipe I’ve ever made- this one’s a keeper. I made 2 loaves with the idea of freezing one but there’s no way that second one is going to last long enough to get to the freezer- delicious!
Hi there! I am thinking about making this recipe, but would like to know the nutrition information. I noticed that not all of your muffin or loaf recipes have this, although there is a link at the bottom of each recipe. If you are able to update those without the nutritional information, it would be really helpful when deciding what recipes to try. I made your healthy Blueberry and maple sweetened banana muffins and they were delicious!
Hi Trisha! They all have nutritional information. Sometimes it can take a second to load, but it sounds like to have cookies allowed so it should be working. Here it is. Let me know if you are still having issues!
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 slice
Serves 10
Amount Per Serving
Calories 233
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 8.9g 14%
Saturated Fat 6.5g
Trans Fat 0g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.6g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.9g 0%
Cholesterol 37.7mg 13%
Sodium 260.6mg 11%
Total Carbohydrate 36.3g 12%
Dietary Fiber 3.1g 12%
Sugars 18g
Protein 4.6g 9%
Vitamin A1%Vitamin C4%Calcium2%Iron6%Vitamin D4%Magnesium10%Potassium6%Zinc5%Phosphorus11%Thiamin (B1)8%Riboflavin (B2)7%Niacin (B3)6%Vitamin B611%Folic Acid (B9)5%Vitamin B122%Vitamin E1%Vitamin K1%
Loved this recipe! It was so easy to make and tasted great! Everyone loved it, from toddlers to adults! This will be my go-to banana bread from now on, no need to keep searching for recipes! Thanks for another lovely recipe xx
I am so grateful for your recipes. This banana cake is my staple and really helped me when I had to go gluten, dairy and refined sugar free whilst breastfeeding my daughter who has food allergies. Since then I’ve continued to eat this way and your cake is my favourite treat. We make it at least once a week and it’s helped me adapt other recipes to make them fit our dietary requirements too. So thank you! I send your recipe to people all the time who don’t believe the cake I brought was healthy as it tasted so good.
I’m glad you love them, Bec! Thanks for your review and comment.
After trying this recipe today, couldnt stop myself coming back and dropping down a thank you message. The banana bread came out real soft, moist and tasty. My girls loved it. Such a healthy thing to be given to kiddos for the snack to school. Thanks again.
Hooray!
This was AWESOME. Made for breakfast for the family today. Made a loaf for our neighbors too, who are dairy-free, so I opted for water instead of milk. I’ll definitely be making again. Delicious!
REALLY good! Will be making this again and again and again. Thank you, Kate, for your fabulous recipes!!! I make your recipes several times a week and they never disappoint :-)
You’re welcome, Deanna!
Thank you for sharing this lovey recipe, Kate. I made a few small amendments because I was aiming to use ingredients already in the house but it has turned out beautifully! I even added my own homemade chocolate nut butter frosting to top it with. It’s delicious. I’m sure my work colleagues will enjoy it as much as I do. Thank you again!
Made this 4 times now and everybody loves it every time always delicious
I love to hear that, Sarah!
Hi, if I want to omit egg, can I just add more bananas? I don’t have flaxseed egg with me. And can I use airfryer to bake it? Thanks!
Hi Karen, you will need and egg or egg substitute here to help bind it, sorry! I’m not sure on an air fryer as this was created for an oven.
Made it,came out excellent
Great to hear!
Hi Kate! I wanted to leave a review because I already made this bread twice and my family loves it!!! It is truly the best banana cake I ever tried and it will definitely be on repeat! Just for information for others: I used olive oil, regular white sugar instead of honey, almond milk, as a mix-in I threw in fresh banana pieces (1 banana for the recipe), and I also spiced it up with about 1/3 tsp of nutmeg. Love it! Thank you so much for the recipe!
I’m so glad you all love it! Thanks so much for sharing, Maria.
I’ve made this so many times. It’s my go to for life! Thank you for a healthy and delicious banana bread :)
I LOVED this recipe! It is SO GOOD! I didn’t have the right loaf pan. I used a 8.5x 4.5inch. After 55min in the oven at 325F it wasn’t quite right so I baked it 5 more minutes at 350F. It came out beautiful. I will definitely do this recipe again.
Amazing! I made this yesterday and it was so good! It will be a staple in my house!
I replaced part of the honey with brown sugar and part of the flour with oats, and the result was great. I had only less than a quarter left when I got to this Comments section, so unfortunately no nice picture for Instagram…
Hey Kate!
Love so many of your amazing recipes ❤️
If I double the banana bread recipe and bake both at the same time, how would I adjust the cook time?
You rock!
Thanks
Laura
Hi Laura! Start with the suggested baking time. I have found it varies by oven. Increase the time as necessary. Sometimes you don’t need anymore time and others it will take a few more minutes. Let me know how it goes!
This is hands down one of the best healthy banana bread recipes I’ve ever made! It’s delicious and soft. I used a maple honey I picked up at a local Farmer’s Market and of course I added a few chocolate chips. This one is going into my recipe book for sure!!
This turned out great. Loved that it didn’t need added sugar. Mine took 50 minutes. Thanks!
Can I sub almond flour equally?
It hasn’t worked well for me. A GF flour blend works really well to make it gluten free!
I tried first time baking. Its taste delicious!!
Thank you so much for such an easy recipe :)
You’re welcome!
Great recipe. Nice and moist and good texture. I used 1 cup organic white and 3/4 cup organic whole wheat.
Love this recipe I’ve made it many times and everyone thinks it’s delicious!
Best banana bread ever
Simple but absolutely delicious.
Thank you, Kristy!
Can I use a bunt pan for a banana cake?
You could try this recipe: https://capital-balance.pro/favorite-banana-cake-recipe/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Absolutely devine! I added an extra small banana and used half the prescribed honey because the bananas were already sweet. Completely forgot to add the milk but still turned out perfect. Will be making this regularly.
Delicious! This is the best banana bread recipe I’ve ever made. And so easy and healthier. Winner!!
Thank you, Katie!
Okay this recipe is delicious! I love to eat baked goods but finding a healthy recipe that is ACTUALLY tasty is very challenging! I just made this one and am definitely keeping it to make again, and sometime soon!
I added a few things to it: I had chocolate covered almonds that I cut up and added to the batter. Also substituted the 2 eggs for 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce and smashed up an extra banana to sprinkle on the top along with some cinnamon :)
So good! Thank you and I’ll be on the lookout for your other recipes!
I have made this recipe several times plus the muffins and zucchini bread. I loved them all. The healthy alternatives did not take away from the deliciousness at all!
I’m happy you loved it, Kathy!
Wow wow wow my mouth waters as I eat the banana bread for breakfast and I literally can’t stop eating it this is an amazing recipe Kate thank you so much for making my life complete with your banana bread! It’s amazing that it so good and so healthy!
Thank you!
Just made this and added pecan nuts, so so so yummy! Seriously the best recipe to date – I won’t be looking elsewhere again, thank you!! x