Vegan Banana Bread

Publised on 11/09/2022. Last Updated on 11/09/2022 by Richard

My super easy vegan banana bread is a foolproof classic! No weird ingredients and packed with bananas!

Finally, my vegan banana bread recipe! You've waited patiently and I promise this recipe delivers! It's insanely moist but has a crisp Demerara sugar crunch to the top. It's also the easiest vegan banana bread you'll come across, so if this is a last-minute bake, this recipe is the one for you!

 Look, I've always been that guy who waited for something to stop being cool before I got involved, so that's why you're getting this recipe now instead of back when lockdown started and the internet was flooded with banana bread recipes. Think about it this way - I've been working on this recipe for ages to make sure it's perfect rather than rushing it out because it's trendy! Can you tell I feel bad for leaving it this long...?

🍌 Why This Vegan Banana Bread?

A nice, moist vegan banana bread is one thing, but an EASY vegan banana bread is a complete different ball game! This recipe is so easy you'll be laughing all the way to the oven! No fancy ingredients! No complicated methods, just you and a bunch of bananas - a truly spiritual and sensual experience. 

Ahem. Look, If you love banana bread as much as I do, you already know what I'm talking about. That smell that wafts from the oven as it bakes. That feeling of using up all your overripe bananas and skipping out on wastefulness! It's like baking a cake which makes you FEEL like a better person! You deserve this vegan banana bread!

🧈 Vegan Banana Bread Ingredients

Here's everything you need for my vegan banana bread. Nothing crazy - like I said above - just basic vegan ingredients! That's all that stands between you and your dream snack!

🥣 Method

Look, I have to make sure google can actually read this page, so I have to write a bit of boomph before I get to the recipe.

Chances are you clicked that "skip to recipe" button at the top of the page, and you're not even reading this, and that's cool. You can also just scroll to the bottom of the page for the recipe if you're impatient, but if you like dad jokes and photos of the baking process of vegan banana bread, keep reading! 

1. Sift together the dry ingredients. We're first going to combine our dry ingredients. This is just flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon and some salt. I always recommend sifting because it takes no time at all and changes the whole crumb structure of your vegan banana bread (and any cake you make, for that matter). 

2. Mix the wet ingredients! I always recommend using soy milk in baking because it contains lecithin - a naturally occurring emulsifier which helps to hold batters and doughs together. You also find lecithin in eggs, which is why they're good at emulsifying batters too! If you can't use soy, I'd recommend trying this recipe with oat milk instead.

3. Add the mashed bananas! This is, if you ask me, the funnest bit! You get to finally play with your food, the way Mum always used to say not to! Yay! Mash the bananas good but don't give yourself RSI. It's sometimes better to have lumpy batter than smooth, as it results in a taller bake! Once mashed, add them to your wet ingredients and you're almost there.

4. Bake the vegan banana bread! The final step before baking is to top your banana bread with a sliced banana (I do this lengthways) and sprinkle with demerara sugar! If you don't have any demerara you can always just use granulated sugar or golden granulated sugar. Banana bread is very moist so it takes a while to bake. I'd give this loaf 55 minutes in the oven on a low temperature - around 165c. 

🧞‍♂️ Hint

One thing to keep in mind when making your vegan banana bread is not to over-mix your batter. Here's why it's a bad thing to over-mix any cake batter. When you mix any batter containing flour, it activates the gluten. When you over-mix, you make the resulting cake tough and dense. It's best to mix until there are no more lumps of flour, then stop.

Also, I like to bake mine in a loaf tin with these pre-cut loaf liners. It just makes the process much easier! 

🔄 Substitutions

This recipe is simple, but it's also super friendly to a whole bunch of dietary requirements! This recipe is easy to make:

• Gluten Free - Just swap the flour for a gluten free blend. Freee or Bob's Red Mill are my favourite brands, but definitely stick to one you know and love.
• Soy Free - Just replace the soy milk for any other plant milk! Double check your vegan yoghurt for soy products too, I like to use Oatly Greek Style.

Let me know via instagram if you make any swaps or subs! I love this stuff!

🥞 Variations and Toppings

If you wanna take this vegan banana bread further, here's how to elevate it to the next step!

• I love to top my vegan banana bread with a batch of vegan vanilla buttercream! You can get my foolproof recipe here!
• For a little extra chocolate kick, I remove the lid and foil from a jar of Vego, microwave for 20 seconds then drizzle over the top! Mmmmm! Hazelnutty!

🔪 Equipment

Here's all the equipment you'll need to make my vegan banana bread! Again, nothing fancy - just some kitchen basics. Also remember, you'll need to line your loaf tin, so it's helpful to grab some loaf-tin liners too!

• 1 2 lb/900g loaf tin
• oven
• 3 Medium bowls
• 1 Sieve

🤷‍♀️ Vegan Banana Bread FAQs

Vegan Banana Bread

The ultimate vegan banana bread with the dreamiest, moist texture and a caramelised Demerara sugar crust.

5 from 16 votes

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 55 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Servings: 12 portions

Calories: 249kcal

Author: Richard Makin

Equipment

• 1 2 lb/900g loaf tin
• oven
• 3 Medium bowls
• 1 Sieve

Ingredients

• ▢ 275 g plain white flour aka all purpose flour
• ▢ 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ▢ ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda aka baking soda
• ▢ 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
• ▢ 60 g vegan yoghurt unsweetened and unflavoured
• ▢ 2 tablespoon soy milk unsweetened and unflavoured
• ▢ 1 teaspoon white vinegar or lemon juice
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 150 g dark brown soft sugar
• ▢ 130 g sunflower oil or melted vegan butter
• ▢ 3 bananas very ripe, around 300g + 1 extra banana
• ▢ 2 tablespoon demerara sugar

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 175 °C. Grease and line a 2 lb/900g loaf tin with baking parchment or a pre-cut loaf tin liner. 
• In a medium bowl, sieve together the plain white flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, ground cinnamon and salt. Whisk together until well combined.
  275 g plain white flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon salt
• In a separate medium bowl, combine the vegan yoghurt, soy milk, vinegar and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth then add the dark brown sugar & sunflower oil. Whisk until smooth.
  60 g vegan yoghurt, 2 tablespoon soy milk, 1 teaspoon white vinegar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 150 g dark brown soft sugar, 130 g sunflower oil
• In a third medium bowl, mash two of the three bananas as smoothly as possible then add to the bowl with the other wet ingredients. Whisk together until smooth.
  3 bananas
• Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Add the batter to the prepared loaf tin. Peel the final banana and slice in half length-ways. Lay both halves on top of the banana bread batter in the loaf tin and push in gently. Finally, sprinkle the top of the batter and halved banana with the demerara sugar then place in the oven to bake for 55 minutes.
  2 tablespoon demerara sugar
• Remove from the oven and leave to cool to room temperature before slicing and serving. If you have leftovers the next day, slice and toast the banana bread then serve with vegan butter, vegan yoghurt or maple syrup.

Notes

1. Be sure to choose a vegan yoghurt which is unflavoured and unsweetened. Same goes for the soy milk. You don't want anything to take away from that gorgeous banana flavour.

2. Don't worry about mashing your bananas to absolute pure smoothness. I've found that a slightly lumpy banana bread batter actually results in a higher rise but still with a nice even crumb and moist texture.

3. If you don't have demerara sugar you can use granulated sugar instead.

Nutrition

Calories: 249kcal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Sodium: 100mg | Potassium: 181mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 29IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 35mg | Iron: 1mg