Hi babes! Here with my super easy Gluten AND Dairy-Free Banana Bread, which I choose to add nuts to, but you can add virtually anything. I’ve tried this recipe with walnuts, candied maple pecans, chocolate chips, blueberries…you name it. They all tasted great and gave the bread a different spin. I normally bake 2 batches, because it literally goes so within a day. I kid you not. It is extremely moist and you would never believe its Gluten AND Dairy-Free.
My secret to the bread being so soft on the outside, and not hard and crunchy like other gluten-free breads, is the honey I brush on immediately after it comes out of the oven. I allow that honey to really soak into the bread overnight, which is a complete game changer. Without this, the bread will have a crunchy exterior, similar to other gluten free breads. This gives it a plush, soft texture that you will absolutely love.
You don’t need many ingredients. The ingredients below are for 1 loaf of Banana Bread, so if you want to make 2 loaves, etc, just double the ingredients and split them between 2 loaf pans.
Ingredients
- 1 to 1 Baking Flour (I like to use Bob’s Red Mill, but you can use whichever is your favorite. I’ve used others and the recipe still came out delicious)
- 3 to 4 VERY RIPE mashed bananas (you want them to be ripe so that your bread comes out nice and sweet; the riper the banana, the sweeter the banana, hence your bread coming out sweeter … which I love!!!)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- your favorite honey (make sure you have a new bottle or a decent amount of honey because you will be using it to smother on EVERY SIDE of the banana bread loaf; I do not have this measured because I just eye it and brush the honey on every single part of the bread making sure nothing is left dry).
- 1/2 cup Country Crock margarine (it is dairy-free, but not vegan, so feel free to use any vegan butter or margarine) I tend to leave out the stick for a bit so that it sits at room temperature. It makes it easier to cream together with the sugar.
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons of oat milk (I use Califia Farms Vanilla Oat Milk, but you can use any brand. I personally do not like using almond milk because its consistency isn’t creamy enough.)
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract (I use McCormick)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2- 1 cup of walnuts, pecans, chocolate chips (I normally use candied, maple pecans)
Instructions for Gluten and Dairy Free Banana Bread
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan with the margarine or vegan butter of your choice. Make sure to grease ALL sides of the pan generously, so that the bread does not stick, and comes out of the loaf pan seamlessly.
For reference, I love Wilton products, especially their loaf pans for baking this bread. You can use any loaf pan though that you have. Here is a link to the loaf pans that I use to make this super moist bread:
Wilton® Premium Nonstick 9.25- Inch Loaf Pan | Bed Bath & Beyond (bedbathandbeyond.com).
3. Combine the following ingredients in a large bowl and set aside: baking flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
4. In a separate large bowl, cream together the margarine and sugar. Creaming together simply means mixing it,but making sure that the margarine isn’t melted and still has some form. The texture should be creamy once mixed together.
5. Stir the 2 eggs, oat milk, vanilla extract, and mashed bananas until the batter is blended well.
6. Stir in the walnuts or whatever you chose as your filling.
7. Pour this banana mixture into the flour mixture that was set aside earlier. Mix it enough where it is well moistened, but do not over mix. Pour your batter into the greased loaf pan that you already have prepared.
8. You are now going to bake your banana bread in the preheated oven for 50 to 55 minutes. Listen to me carefully. EVERY OVEN IS DIFFERENT. I have a gas oven and this is the time that works for me. But the banana bread is done when you can successfully insert a toothpick into the center of the banana bread loaf and the toothpick comes out clean.
9. Once the banana bread loaf is ready, take it out of the oven and let it cool in the loaf pan for 15 minutes.
10. After the bread has cooled, turn the loaf pan out onto a wire rack (like the one pictured above).
11. Take a basting brush (I like to use a silicone one) and brush every single side of this bread with honey. Yes, this gets a bit messy, but, trust me, it is worth it. I like to start with the bottom of the bread and get it out of the way. Yes, it will be sticky on the bottom so make sure you have a pan, like the one pictured above, under the wire rack so that it can collect whatever honey drips off the bread.) Once you do the bottom of the banana bread, turn it right-side up and proceed to brush the other 3 sides of the loaf.
12. Let the banana bread soak in the honey overnight. The longer it sits with the honey, the moister the bread is. Lol, resist the temptation to eat it! I know the house smells good, but resist!! Hide it from the family and let it sit in that honey. You won’t regret it. This is the secret to this recipe.
13. Slice and warm up. I like to add a sliver of margarine to the top of my slice after warming it up in the microwave for like 10 seconds. Enjoy!
I hope you enjoy this easy gluten dairy free banana bread recipe! Make sure to tag me on Instagram, @realdenisewilliams, so I can see how it turned out! Can’t wait to see babes!
