Foolproof Vegan Banana Bread (Ultra-Moist!)
This vegan banana bread is soft, tender, and packed with banana flavor—no eggs or dairy needed. An easy, one-bowl recipe perfect for using up ripe bananas!
Servings: 8 slices
Ingredients
- 5 Tbsp hot water 75 mL
- 2 Tbsp flaxseed meal 11 g
- ½ cup unsalted vegan butter room temperature, 113 g
- ¾ cup packed light or dark brown sugar 150 g
- ⅓ cup vegan yogurt room temperature, 80 g
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups mashed ripe bananas 3 to 4 bananas, 315 to 345 g
- 2 cups all-purpose flour 250 g
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp iodized salt
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease or line a standard loaf pan (8×4 or 9×5 inches) with parchment paper.
- Flax Egg: In a small bowl, stir together 5 Tbsp hot water and 2 Tbsp flaxseed meal. Let sit for 5 to 10 minutes, until thickened.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat ½ cup unsalted vegan butter (room temp) and ¾ cup packed light or dark brown sugar on medium-high speed with a hand mixer for 2 to 3 minutes, until well combined and slightly lightened.
- Add Wet Ingredients: Add the flax egg and beat with until smooth, then add ⅓ cup vegan yogurt (room temp) and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Continue beating until smooth and cohesive, about 1 minute.
- Add Bananas: Mash the bananas with a fork in a separate bowl until mostly smooth. Measure out 1 ½ cups mashed ripe bananas. Stir them into the batter.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tsp baking soda, ½ tsp ground cinnamon, and ¼ tsp iodized salt.
- Fold: Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients with a spoon just until combined. Do not over mix.
- Bake: Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top. Bake for 60 to 65 minutes, loosely tenting with foil if the top begins to brown too quickly. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean with some moist crumbs.
- Cool: Let the loaf cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.
Video
Notes
Use very ripe bananas with plenty of brown spots for the best flavor and sweetness.
Store banana bread in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or refrigerate for up to 5 days. Banana bread can be frozen for up to 3 months (reheat in the toaster or air fryer).
Overmixing: This can result in a very dense and gummy bread. You should only mix until just combined. There will likely still be streaks of flour, but these will be absorbed without further mixing after a few minutes.
Variations and Mix-ins: This is a thicker batter, so it works well for adding in mixins. But avoid overmixing! You can add chocolate chips or nuts, but I recommend adding them with the wet ingredients so you only mix once.
Refined Sugar Free: Coconut sugar works well in place of brown sugar.
Can this be gluten-free? It definitely can, but it hasn't been tested. In general, oat flour and a 1:1 gluten-free flour work best in place of all-purpose flour. I prefer oat flour in most quick breads because it results in a moist banana bread with no eggs, but not gummy. If you need a gluten-free option, I'd make my white chocoalte chickpea blondies that are naturally gluten-free.
Are there alternatives to yogurt? Any plant-based yogurt will work (or regular greek yogurt if you're not vegan), but I do not recommend plant-based milk or buttermilk. In our testing of this banana bread with vegan yogurt, milk resulted in a much denser, gummy bread. If you can, I would stick to making this banana bread without milk or eggs.
