Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Loaf

This dense, moist quick bread is loaded with chocolate chips and banana flavor. It has hints of vanilla and cinnamon and is sweetened with maple syrup. It’s a healthier option as it contains no oil or butter.

Bonus – This spectacular bread is made completely dairy and gluten-free! It is perfect for breakfast, or an afternoon snack with a steaming hot cup of coffee.

Recipe adapted from Gluten Free Dairy Free Cookbook by Danielle Fahrenkrug, Page 24

About a year ago, I had some health issues that forced me to look differently at my diet. I, unfortunately, had to change some of the things I was eating and some of the things I was cooking and baking. Living a gluten and dairy-free lifestyle is somewhat easier to adapt from a cooking standpoint but not nearly as easy and forgiving from a baking perspective. I love baked goods. I especially love muffins, scones, and quick breads. I always feel sorry for the poor soul that gets stuck behind me in line at the coffee shop. I hold up the line every time while I stop to stare into the glass case and drool over all the beautiful baked goods – that I can’t have.

I am happy to say that after doing my homework, I finally found a spectacular gluten and dairy-free banana bread recipe that will fool any member of your family. This recipe swaps out the traditional butter or vegetable oil for plain, non-dairy yogurt. The yogurt, along with three mashed bananas, adds tons of moisture. For the flour, I am using a one-to-one gluten-free baking flour. It is a blend that consists of sweet rice flour, brown rice flour, potato starch, sorghum flour, and tapioca flour. The one I am using already contains xanthan gum. This is a key ingredient for gluten-free baking. Xanthan gum is fermented sugar powder derived from corn that acts as a thickening agent. It replaces the “wheat gluten” in gluten-free baked good recipes.

This recipe makes one large loaf of banana bread. Be sure to give this bread a lot of time to cool before wrapping and placing it in the refrigerator. I let mine sit on the cooling rack for about 5-6 hours. Once the chocolate chips have firmed up, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and store it in the fridge. I love serving this bread cold with a schmear of dairy-free cream cheese (I like Vivo Life Just Like Cream Cheese Original) and a hot cup of coffee. You can also warm it in the microwave for 5-10 seconds just before serving.

Let’s get cooking!

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Ingredients

• 3 ripe bananas

• 2 cups of all-purpose gluten-free flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free 1-1 Baking Flour)

• 1 tablespoon of baking powder

• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon

• 1/2 teaspoon of salt

• 2 eggs

• 2/3 cup of maple syrup

• 1/2 cup of non-dairy yogurt (I used Kite Hill Greek Style Vanilla Unsweetened)

• 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract

• 1 cup of dairy-free mini chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life Mini Chips, Semi-sweet)

• 1/2 cup of toasted chopped pecans, optional

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How to make:

Please be sure to reference: Gluten Free Dairy Free Cookbook by Danielle Fahrenkrug, page 24.

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Line a 9-inch bread loaf pan with parchment paper. Be sure there is an overhang on the two long sides.

3. In a small bowl, mash the bananas with a fork until well blended

4. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.

5. In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs, maple syrup, yogurt, and vanilla on medium speed until blended. Add the mashed banana until combined.

6. On low speed, add the flour mixture. Beat until just combined. Do not overmix.

7. Fold in 3/4 cup of chocolate chips and pecans (if using).

8. Sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips on top.

9. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes then remove from the pan by lifting the sides of parchment paper.

10. Let cool completely.

11. Wrap with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight before slicing.

12. Cut into 3/4 inches slices. You should get about 12 slices.

13. Enjoy!

14. Please scroll to the bottom to share your comments and feedback.

Pro tips:

Be careful not to over mix this bread! You only want to beat in the flour mixture until it is just combined. Overmixing will result in a loaf of tough banana bread. Nobody wants that!

This bread needs to sit in the fridge overnight before slicing. Do not skip this step! There are a ton of chocolate chips in this bread. If you slice it while it is still warm, it will be an ooey-gooey mess.