This Vegan Banana Bread is loaded with dates, almond butter, and a plant-based cream cheese filling that makes it ultra-moist!
I wouldn’t necessarily consider myself a baker, largely because I’m usually too scared of a fabulous flop happening from the time when I put it in the oven to the time I anxiously take it out. But banana bread was always the exception.
With banana bread, I can throw in every overripe banana within reach (regardless of how many bananas the recipe actually calls for) and know it will work.
And the same is true for this vegan banana bread. Okay, there were flops in the beginning. Namely in me trying to nix all the sugar (hint: don’t nix all the sugar).
But once I came back to the understanding that a touch of sugar in banana bread was necessary, this ultra-moist, totally plant-based banana bread was born!
Ingredients for Vegan Banana Bread
So what is this vegan banana bread made of then? Well bananas (duh). But there’s so much more. Soft dates add natural sweetness and keep the bread moist, while almond butter takes the place of some of the oil. No fake eggs or hard to find ingredients. Just real good food that make a real good bread.
And this vegan banana bread has a tasty little secret. Cream. Cheese. Filling. Creamy cashews form the based of a rich sauce which goes smack dab in the middle of this loaf, infusing it with moist, gooey, deliciousness! Or for a more traditional banana bread, just spread the vegan cream cheese frosting on top after it’s baked.
Ingredients
Cream Cheese Filling
- 1 cup cashews 125 g, soaked overnight
- 1/4 cup almond milk 60 mL
- 1/4 cup sugar 50 g
- 1 tsp lemon juice 5 mL
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 2.5 mL
- 1/4 tsp salt
Wets
- 1 cup soft dates 175 g
- 1/4 cup almond milk 60 mL
- 1/4 cup almond butter 60 g
- 1/4 cup vegetable or coconut oil 60 mL
- 1/4 cup brown sugar 50 g
- 1 tsp vanilla extract 5 mL
- 3 large ripe bananas
Dries
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 170 g
- 1 tsp each baking powder and baking soda
- Spices: 2 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground ginger, 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg, 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Filling: Soak cashews in water overnight. Drain and blend with Cream Cheese Filling ingredients until smooth. Set aside.
- Wets: Blend dates with almond milk in a blender or food processor until smooth. In a large bowl, use a potato masher to combine date mixture with all remaining Wet ingredients.
- Dries: Stir together all Dry ingredients, then fold the Dries in with the Wets, just until combined.
- Bake: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a loaf pan with parchment paper. Pour half of the dough into the pan, then spoon on cream cheese filling*. Spread to evenly cover, the spoon the remaining banana bread dough on top. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
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