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This EASY Healthy Banana Bread recipe is made with low sugar, no oil and is just over 100 calories per slice. It yields incredibly moist, perfectly sweet, and delicious bread!
Looking for more bread recipes? Try my Lemon Poppy Seed Bread, Artisan No Knead Bread, or Skillet Cornbread!
What I love about the recipe:
- Normal Ingredients – No artificial sweeteners or anything out of the ordinary here. I use basic pantry ingredients you already have.
- Healthy – No oil, low sugar, FOUR bananas, and around 100 calories per slice!
- Tastes Amazing – When baked goods are labeled “healthy” they often don't taste great, but I promise you no one would ever guess that this banana bread is any different! It is still just as moist, sweet, and scrumptious as traditional banana bread!
How to make Healthy Banana Bread:
Grease a standard 9×5” loaf pan (I also like to line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper to make sure the loaf doesn't stick).
Mash bananas in a mixing bowl. Add egg, vanilla, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and cinnamon and stir well to combine.
Stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl. Add to banana mixture and stir to combine. Stir in melted butter.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool in the pan for 5-10 few minutes before inverting onto a wire cooling rack.
Pro Tips:
- Use very ripe bananas. The riper the banana, the sweeter it is, the easier it is to mash, and the more sweetness it adds to the bread.
- Trick to ripen bananas quickly: Place the bananas (peel on) on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for about 6-8 minutes. until the outer peel is dark.
Storing and Freezing Instructions:
To Store: Banana bread will keep at room temperature for 3-5 days.
To Freeze: Cool completely and then store in an airtight container or freezer safe bag for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw to room temperature before serving.
Recipe Variations:
- Healthy Banana Muffins: Follow my instructions HERE!
- Mix-Ins: Feel free to stir in ¾ cup of you favorite chopped nuts, chocolate chips, or raisins, at the end, before adding the batter to the pan.
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Healthy Banana Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 bananas, , about 1 ⅓ cups, mashed (320 g)
- 1 large egg
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract, (15 ml)
- 3 Tablespoons light brown sugar, (38 g)
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, (25 g)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, (2.6 g)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder, (4 g)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda, (5 g)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, (2.5 g)
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, (white or white-whole wheat) (180 g)
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, , melted (or substitute applesauce) (28 g butter or 30 g applesauce)
Instructions
- Grease a standard 9×5” loaf pan (I also like to line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper to make sure the loaf doesn't stick).
- Mash bananas in a mixing bowl. Add egg, vanilla, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and cinnamon and stir well to combine.
- In a separate small bowl stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add to banana mixture and stir to combine.
- Gently stir in melted butter. Bake at 350 degrees F. for 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Allow to cool in the pan for 5-10 few minutes before inverting onto a wire cooling rack.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I originally shared this recipe January 2017. Updated January 2021 and January 2022.
Process photos by Nikole from The Travel Palate
Delicious!I have made it 4 times in 3 days! We just can’t get enough!!!
I absolutely LOVE this recipe!!! I make it as muffins and I add walnuts. I make this EVERY weekend so we have them for lunches for the week. My whole family LOVES them!
Hi, did you add applesauce as listed in the ingredients list?
How long did you bake the muffins?
I don’t see applesauce in the ingredient list
This was amazing! Don’t even miss the sugar!
I made this recipe for banana bread this morning and it turned out amazing!
Just came here to say this is a great recipe, and quite forgiving as well. Pretty sure I used fewer bananas but it still came out wonderful. I love the small amount of sugar and oil and I wouldn’t change a thing except for maybe add some nutmeg in place of some of the cinnamon.
Thank you!!
Tips: I followed recipe exactly. Added half cup of chopped pecans and half cup of chopped chocolate chips. I used a glass loaf pan. Bread is still cooling but looks amazing. My tip is to have your oven rack at the highest setting and still fitting the bread in. Mine is the second slot from the top. This allows the bread to cook through without burning. Also measure out your mashed bananas I had regular sized very ripe bananas and used three and had the amount the recipe calls for. I set timer for 35 minutes and it needed about 8 more minutes after that. I can’t wait to try this bread. Thanks for the recipe!
Love this banana bread! I’ve made it a few times, definitely my go to recipe. Thanks Lauren ❤
This is by far the best low-fat, low sugar Banana Bread I’ve ever found. No one will ever suspect that it’s actually half-way Healthy, as Sweets go.
The texture was good but the flavor of the rising agents overpowered everything else, including the banana. I wouldn’t make this again as written.
Great recipe! How could I alter cooking time if I were to triple recipe for a healthier bundt?
This recipe is awesome!! I did use the Apple sauce instead of butter. I hav a fabulous banana bread recipe of my own but looking for lower calories. This delicious!!
I’m not a very good cook but I’m trying to learn healthy recipes. Can you please tell me how much applesauce you used instead of the butter please? For the banana bread? Thank you. I don’t know how to cook without using measuring cups and measuring spoons, pam
Pam, oil can be exchanged for applesauce 1:1.
Therefore based on the recipe above you would use two (2) Tablespoons of applesauce.
Crappy recipe
I followed the recipe to a T and the bread remained raw in the center while the edges burned. I used the size pan and temp recommended.
You sub the apple sauce for butter 1:1. So, if there are two tablespoons butter, you should use two tablespoons applesauce. Hope that helps!
Very delicious! Even my husband that doesn’t like banana bread likes this!
Because my pantry was lacking, I baked this with a few adjustments, and it it truly the best banana bread my family and I have ever had! I only had 3 ripe bananas, so I added 1/2 cup of oat milk, omitted the granulated sugar and only added around 3-3.5 tbsp of brown sugar, then only 1 tbsp of melted coconut oil. Everything else was the same, except I used whole wheat flour and sprinkled slices almonds on top. It was much more moist than I expected but I loved that (I could have baked it longer than 45 minutes but I didn’t really want to)! Pro tip: add peanut/nut butter to your slice – you won’t regret it!