Easy healthier banana bread is a win-win recipe. It's quick to make and lower in sugar and fat compared to traditional banana bread. It's the perfect breakfast, snack, or dessert recipe!

Whole Wheat Banana Bread
The key to this easy healthier banana bread is the flours. This recipe uses a combination of white whole wheat flour and almond flour. The white whole wheat flour provides some of the nutrient value that regular whole wheat would provide but without some of the heavy, "wheaty" flavor. The almond flour keeps this banana bread tender and soft.
Since this recipe uses white whole wheat flour in lieu of all-purpose, the banana bread has a little bit more fiber, which will keep us fuller longer. That makes this banana bread a great breakfast (with the addition of some protein like Greek yogurt or a glass of milk), snack, or even dessert!
Healthier Banana Bread Muffins
If you like to grab your breakfast or snack on the way out of the door, you can easily make this recipe into muffins. Simply prepare a muffin tin with muffin liners and spray them with nonstick cooking spray. Equally portion out the batter into the tin and bake at 350 degrees for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Making this recipe into muffins is an easy grab-and-go breakfast you can eat all week!
Ingredient Highlights - Easy Healthier Banana Bread
- Bananas - the key is to use overripe bananas! As bananas age, they produce more sugars and thus become sweeter. This is why it's better to use riper bananas in baked goods! They're also a good source of B vitamins, vitamin C, fiber, and potassium.
- White whole wheat flour - this provides some extra fiber and B vitamins that all-purpose flour wouldn't provide but has less of a "wheaty" taste than regular whole wheat flour. You can sub all-purpose flour here if you'd like.
- Almond flour - almond flour is higher in fat (unsaturated fats!) than regular flour because it's made from almonds. This provides moisture to the banana bread, keeping it soft!
- Avocado oil - you can use any neutral oil here (olive, walnut, canola, vegetable). Avocado oil is primarily monounsaturated fat (and a good source of vitamin E), compared to butter (which is commonly used in banana bread), which is primarily saturated fat!
- Sweetener - I use a combination of molasses and maple syrup or honey in this banana bread recipe. These sugars add different flavors!
- Spices - the spices are what make this banana bread. Cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom give the bread a warm, delicious flavor!
Recipe FAQ
Banana bread can be part of a great breakfast, snack, or dessert. Common recipes include butter and processed sugars, giving banana bread a bad rap. However, this recipe uses white whole wheat flour, less sugar, and avocado oil to improve the nutrient content!
With that being said, you still want to be mindful of how much you're consuming and watch portion sizes 🙂
The key is to include enough fat in the recipe! This easy healthier banana bread calls for avocado oil, eggs, as well as almond flour, which is flour made from almonds (which have a higher fat content than wheat).
Another trick is to not overmix the batter! You want to combine the wet and dry ingredients until they're JUST combined. Overmixing will lead to a tough, dried out bread.
You can add whatever mix-ins sound good! Chocolate chips (dark, milk, or white), a swirl of peanut butter, chopped nuts, banana chunks, dried fruit.. whatever you want! You can either mix these in or sprinkle on top!
Other Recipes You May Like
- Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Muffins
- Espresso Chocolate Chip Protein Muffins
- Pear Crisp with Oats
- Frozen Banana Pudding Bars
- Frozen Chocolate Banana Sandwiches
Rate & Review
If you made my easy healthier banana bread, please rate and review my recipe below! I would love to hear your feedback. Also snap a photo and tag me on insta @theperfectpearr so I can see your creation!
PrintEasy Healthier Banana Bread
Easy healthier banana bread is a win-win recipe. It's quick to make and lower in sugar and fat compared to traditional banana bread. It's the perfect breakfast, snack, or dessert recipe!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 12 slices 1x
- Category: Breakfast, Snacks, Desserts
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup (420g) mashed bananas (~4 large bananas)
- ½ cup (109g) avocado oil (or any neutral oil: olive, walnut, vegetable, canola)
- ⅓ cup (105g) real maple syrup or honey
- 2 large eggs, room temp
- 1 Tbsp blackstrap molasses
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cup (193g) white whole wheat flour
- ¼ cup (30g) almond flour
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- Optional mix-ins/toppings (½ cup): chopped nuts, chocolate chips, dried fruit, etc.!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x5" loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Mash bananas in a large bowl.
- Add oil, maple syrup (or honey), eggs, molasses, and vanilla extract. Whisk until combined.
- In a separate medium bowl, whisk flours, spices, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.
- Once dry ingredients are whisked, add to wet ingredients.
- Stir until just combined (*be careful to not overmix! This will lead to a tough, dry bread).
- Fold in any mix-ins.
- Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and sprinkle any toppings on top, if desired.
- Bake 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean.
- Let cool, slice, and enjoy!
Notes
- Store at room temp in an air-tight container for up to 3 days or keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freeze wrapped in plastic wrap and then foil for up to 2 months.
- Add Greek yogurt, hardboiled eggs, or a glass of milk to make this a balanced breakfast!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 200
- Sugar: 10
- Sodium: 323
- Fat: 11
- Saturated Fat: 1
- Unsaturated Fat: 8
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 23
- Fiber: 3
- Protein: 3
- Cholesterol: 31
Keywords: easy banana bread recipe, healthy banana bread recipe, healthier banana bread, spiced banana bread, banana nut bread, banana nut bread recipe, moist banana bread recipe, quick banana bread recipe, banana bread muffins, banana muffins recipe, healthy breakfast recipe
Amy says
This banana bread is sooo good. I added this recipe to my breakfast rotation. It also freezes so well! Can it be used to make muffins too?
Lauren says
Hey Amy! Great question, I actually just made this recipe as muffins! I was able to make them according to the recipe but poured the batter into a muffin tin (I made 12 muffins) and baked for 18-22 minutes!