Ripe bananas are so naturally sweet I actually use them as the sweetener in some recipes like smoothies and pancakes. Maybe it is my new and improved palate, but I cannot imagine needing a full cup of sugar in addition to three super sweet ripe bananas! Our whole wheat banana bread recipe brings out the best natural flavor the fruit has to offer, packed with nutrition and perfect for making ahead of time. For the version with chocolate chips, make this Chocolate Chip Banana Bread or this Almond Flour Banana Bread!
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Whole Wheat Banana Bread Recipe With no Added Sugar
So here is my version of banana bread, which of course calls for 100% whole-wheat flour and a mere quarter cup of honey. And don’t feel confined to the “loaf” shape…these are great as muffins, mini-muffins, or small loaves as well. Also, feel free get creative with add-ins like nuts, raisins or other dried fruit. Enjoy!
Making Banana Bread With Yogurt
It might sound odd if you haven’t tried it before, but using a banana bread with yogurt recipe yields a wonderfully fluffy and tender loaf that doesn’t rely on processed ingredients for texture or flavor.
If you’ve got a serious sweet tooth, you can make this banana bread with yogurt and applesauce to bring in some extra sweetness without having to resort to using sugar. (Homemade applesauce is a lot easier to make than you think, too!)
Try our Banana Bread Bars as well!
Can You Substitute Honey for Maple Syrup in This Banana Bread Recipe?
Instead of using honey, and of course sugar in conventional banana bread recipes, you can absolutely substitute in favor of maple syrup if you prefer. Thankfully, it’s incredibly easy to make the swap! Maple syrup is typically as sweet as honey and sugar, so you can usually get away with a 1:1 ratio, for this whole wheat banana bread recipe we’d recommend 2 Tbs of syrup in place of honey if you prefer!
Whole-Wheat Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cup whole-wheat flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 bananas (ripe, mashed)
- ¼ cup plain yogurt
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 eggs
- ⅓ cup coconut oil ((or another mild oil of your choice))
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease pan.
- Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
- In a separate bowl mix mashed bananas with yogurt, honey, eggs, oil, and vanilla.
- Fold the banana mixture into the flour mixture until blended. Do not overmix.
- Pour batter into prepared pan.
- Bake large loaf for 40 – 50 minutes or until it comes clean with a toothpick.
Notes
Nutrition Facts
[Entered into Food Renegade's Fight Back Friday]
Tracey says
I used greek yogurt and it turned out fine. I find banana bread in general to be bland (not just this recipe)...even added extra bananas. Maybe i'll add some blueberries or chocolate chips next time. This is a great recipe for a healthier bread and no loss in taste compared to the regular recipes.
Catherine says
Can I use Greek yogurt?
Tracey says
Yes...i used plain greek when i made it a couple days ago.
Karen says
I made muffins and added frozen mixed berries and extra banana. About 18 min of cooking time and they were great!
Nik says
Awesome!!
Stacy says
Nik, how much applesauce did you use to replace the oil and yogurt??
Nik says
I am not a fan of baking with yogurt (let's say a failed attempt has left me leary) so I substituted the oil and yogurt for applesauce. In the oven now. Fingers crossed. I will let you know if this is an epic fail but so far it looks and tastes great (yes, I am a rebel that eats raw egg-filled batter).
Stacy says
How did it come out Nik???
Stacy says
I tried searching through some of the comments....but then I got tired so I'm asking a duplicate question I'm sure. What can I substitute for the yogurt since I only drink soy milk..no cows milk??
Also, it would be awesome if there was a way to search through comments for keywords.....I love reading the comments to get ideas and see if my question has already been asked...but there are often too many comments to read through them all. Just my 2 cents :)
Thanks!
Kate says
I would substitute with soy yogurt! We have lots of friends and family with all sorts of allergies in this house. I'm sure it will turn out fine!
Stacy says
Guess I should have been more clear...what can I substitute for the yogurt in general? As if you don't have any in the house? Regardless if it's cows milk or soy. I'm looking for something non dairy...applesauce? Oil? Butter??
Thanks!
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Stacy. You could try applesauce. ~Amy
Jessica S. says
Is it the same cooking time for muffins as it is for the loaf??
Kate says
I made mine in an 8x8 pan. I just moved and I've been trying to keep the kitchen supplies to a minimum. I believe I set the timer for 25 minutes to check the progress. I added 10 min and it turned out perfectly! Since muffins are obviously smaller I would maybe check them at 10 minutes and go from there? Maybe check them in another 5 min? I miss my muffin pan! In the past I believe all of the muffins/cupcakes I've made are done between 12-18 min.
Jane says
I am working on the gluten free, die free, and Artificial flavoring free diet for my grandson. He has ADHD and Aspergers, and these thing do not help. Are ther any recipes that I could use?. I do make some of our breads. No boxed cakes, I make them all from scratch.
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Jane. This is a really great place for gluten free options: http://deliciouslyorganic.net/ and http://glutenfreegirl.com/. ~Amy
ellie says
hi just wondering what is the nutritional value per slice ? and how many slices are in a loaf ?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Ellie. We do not provide nutrition information as our focus is on cutting out processed foods and not so much on numbers. There are lots of online tools that can calculate those facts for you. I usually slice the loaf into about 10 pieces. ~Amy
meghan says
This may be a silly question, but I am new to the world of substituting coconut oil. I assume you have to heat the coconut oil up to allow it to become a liquid before measuring out the 1/3 cup? Is a loaf pan required or does the consistency of the dough allow for shaping and placement on just a cookie sheet or pan as I would do for meatloaf?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Meghan. You need to use a loaf pan. regarding coconut oil, this will help:https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2012/02/07/how-to-cook-with-coconut-oil/. ~Amy
Anna says
Awesome! Delicious and easy.
Even my non-whole food advocates family thought it was moist and sweet, which is saying a lot because the last "banana bread" they had was out of a box with sugar as the first ingredient, and more PHOs than actual bananas....
Stephanie says
Can the white whole wheat flour be used in this recipe instead of the whole wheat? Would it be a 1:1 substitution? Thank you! Looking forward to trying it!
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Stephanie. Yes and yes. :)
Brenda says
When using coconut oil in recipes, how do you keep it from clumping when adding other ingredients, esp ones that may be cold, like apple juice? It is impossible for me to de-clump, seems like you would have to nuke in the microwave? Thanks!
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Brenda. It helps to bring the other ingredients to room temp before adding the melted coconut oil. ~Amy
Kristin says
FYI, yes, it is your refined palate that does not look for the sugar. My family is currently at the beginning of transitioning to real food. On weekend mornings we eat the box mixes of blueberry muffins, which is basically a dessert cake with fruit. So your recipe at first was a little "healthy" for us. BUT because you mentioned using bananas to sweeten recipes...this morning I used an extra banana and added frozen self-picked blueberries (we picked them last year). My kids devoured them no problem. AND I don't know how you serve them (as dessert, breakfast, etc.), but because this recipe is so "low junk" compared to our box muffins I let my kids eat these as breakfast this morning with fresh fruit on the side and a glass of milk. Compared to how we have been eating, I am pretty proud of our breakfast this morning. (I ate the leftover yogurt from the yogurt cup with fresh fruit and honey...huge leap for me!) Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!!!
Vanessa says
Can I use this recipe for the bread machine too??
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Vanessa. We have not made this in the bread machine. If you do, let us know how it goes. ~Amy
vanessa says
I will!! Thank you very much!!
Crystal says
This may be a silly question but what is vanilla? I'm assuming not vanilla extract? Ground vanilla beans?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hello. It is pure vanilla extract. ~Amy
Vivian says
I made this yesterday for my family, but made one change. I used ground chia seeds bloomed in water instead of the eggs, as I didn't have enough eggs in the house. I can't eat bananas myself, but my hubby tells me that it was very good. Thanks for a great recipe that I can feel good about making for my family!
Kelley says
Vivian, what was your ratio of chia seeds? And did you use all chia seeds or a chia seed/egg combo?
Vivian says
Hi Kelly!
I use 1 TBSP of seeds to 3 TBSP of water. These amounts are per egg, so you can double them if you have 2 eggs called for in the recipe. Let that bloom for about 15 minutes and then use the resulting "goop" (for lack of a better term) as you would the egg. Ground chia blooms even faster. I used all chia seeds. Hope that helps!
Ann says
My son (almost 2 1/2) and I made these today - yummy! Do they need to be stored in the refrigerator?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Ann. We typically freeze them to keep them fresh. The fridge can dry them out. They should be okay in an airtight container on the counter-top for a couple days. ~Amy
Ann says
Thank you! I will remember that for next time. I ended up putting them in the fridge, and could tell a difference this morning.
Brandy says
I love this recipe and have used it several times! I am planning to make it for someone else that doesn't care for wheat. If I were to use all purpose flour, would I need to change any of the other measurements or ingredients? Thanks in advance for the advice!
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Brandy. We've not experimented with that but I think you should try leaving all ingredients the same. ~Amy
Moriah says
I'm new to your site so perhaps you have answered this elsewhere but I'm interested in hearing your thoughts about using other flours like coconut or almond flour? Also what are your thoughts on coconut palm sugar? I like the fact that it may have a lower glycemic index than some other sugars including table sugar, honey and maple sugar. Thanks.
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Moriah. While those are not flours Lisa uses, they are perfectly good whole food choices. Lisa also does not use coconut palm sugar but many readers do. Coconut sugar is my choice for coffee sweetener but I use very little sugar as a rule. ~Amy
Lilly Li says
My very first baking! The bread is in the oven now. Crossing fingerssss :). I chose your recipe to be my very first baking experience because I have all the ingredients on hand! I don't want to buy sugar or white flour so I can't do a lot of other baking recipes. Thanks! Hopefully it will turn out great :)
Lilly Li says
It turned out to be so awesome! Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. I think I will re make this many many more times. Just wondering how long can I keep it in the fridge for? I'm a college student and just cooking and baking for myself. So I won't be done with it within one day for sure. Thanks!
Jennifer Turnbull says
I am in England so converting your measures to british, Am I right in thinking that 1 cup = 150grams?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Jennifer. 1 cup = 200 grams. :)
Amy B. says
This may sound silly, but how do you use coconut oil in solid form? Do you heat it to a liquid first then mix? I haven't baked with coconut oil before so please excuse the ignorance.
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi. Here you go. https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2012/02/07/how-to-cook-with-coconut-oil/.
Beka says
I tried this tonight and it is great! I have been annoyed by the high sugar/oil in most banana bread recipes ... I usually cut the sugar in half anyway. I used white whole wheat flour and added about a teaspoon of cinnamon. Other than that, I followed your recipe exactly and it is yummy!! I love the banana/coconut flavor!!
Beka says
I should add that my (picky!) five year old loves it too and she told me that I make the best desserts in the world. LOL. If she thinks this counts as dessert, I'm okay with that! :D
Renee says
What oil other than Coconut Oil do you recommend for this recipe? Unfortunately we cannot use Coconut Oil due to an allergy in the family. Would Red Palm Oil taste okay? Thanks.
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Renee. Our typical exchange would be butter for coconut oil. ~Amy
Brenda says
How long do you bake if you are making muffins instead? How hot? Thanks.
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Brenda. You won't need to change the temperature but you will need to decrease the time. I would start checking them around 15 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. ~Amy
Kim says
Can I make this using vanilla Greek yogurt. Will it affect the taste a whole lot?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Kim. It should not change the taste too much. ~Amy
Sarah says
Really love this recipe, make it just about every week and have even given it away as gifts! I've had great results cutting out the honey and replacing it with unsweetened applesauce and then cutting the oil back to 1/4 cup. My youngest is 9 months old and is too young for honey, and I've been super happy with no added sweetener! It's still very sweet!
Shae says
Hate to break it to you Preetz, but unless you are using raw honey, it has been heated in pasteurization. There is no clinical evidence and this theory is not supported among mainstream nutritionists. Spreading these types of unfounded rumors is irresponsible.
Lisa says
Has anyone tried baking this in there bread machine, specifically the panasonic? If so what settings donyounuse and time?mthanks
Preetz says
Hi... Love your website and all that it stands for. It is a wonderful inspiration for us to cook and eat healthy. I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude for your work and I am a regular visitor at your site. :) However I do have one question. I see that you use honey in many of the recipes that involve some form of heating. I am not sure if you are aware of this, but according to ancient Ayurveda honey should not be heated and that it becomes toxic when it is heated and increases ama - a toxic byproduct of improper digestion. I have been hearing that since childhood and all Ayurvedic doctors advise the same. According to them it might not show any immediate after effect on your body, but gradually increases the toxins. Maybe maple syrup would be a better option for these recipes.
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Preetz. Thank you for sharing. While aware that the benefits of raw honey are mostly lost when heated to certain temperatures, I'd not heard of this particular principle. Now you've given me something new to research. :) ~Amy
Tami Roth says
I just made this bread tonight however mine stuck in my pan. I am new to eating "real" and I sprayed my pan with olive oil. The old me would have greased with shortening and I am sure it would not have stuck. I looked at the recipe again and it says "a prepared pan" What does that mean exactly?
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Tami. This should help: http://www.preparedpantry.com/Proper-Pan-Preperation.htm. :) ~Amy
MW says
Am I supposed to use liquid coconut oil? Solid oil did not mix very well...
Thanks!
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi there. You need to melt the oil. Here is more info: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2012/02/07/how-to-cook-with-coconut-oil/. ~Amy
Rena says
Made this today and they are great. I followed the recipe except I have Greek yogurt on hand (Not going to the store in a foot of snow) :) And I added pecans amazing! Thanks for all the wonderful information. I'm just getting started in Real Food but everything I've tried has been great.
Salma says
Hi , i,v been following this blog for quite sometime now. I appriciate the idea and efforts you make to motivate healthy eating. Im an Indian and as per ancient indian practices( ayurveda) it is not advisable to heat honey, or mix it to anyhank Youthing that is hot. it loses its beneficial properties. Can you please guide me on this.
Thank You,
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Salma. It is true that some of the beneficial enzymes are broken down when heated. It is not harmful, however, and we greatly prefer it to other forms of sweeteners. If you are adding honey to oatmeal, tea, or coffee, etc., after they have cooled a bit, the enzymes will remain in tact. ~Amy
debbie says
we made these today (we turned them into muffins). We used three bananas, 1/4 cup of Brown Cow maple flavored yogurt, 1/8 cup honey, 1/8 cup maple syrup and a few dark chocolate chips. We just had one problem . . . they were SO good, my family wanted to eat them all in one sitting (including my toddlers). Yummy! And . . . I know you don't count calories Lisa, but I calculated them based on my ingredients and they only came to about 151 calories per muffin. Hard to believe because they are fantastic!
Thank you for another wholesome, healthy, yummy and easy recipe!
Wendy says
Hi- Can I substitute whole wheat flour with Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Flour?
Thanks
Assistant to 100 Days (Amy) says
Hi Wendy. We have not tried using a gluten free blend. Let us know if it works out. ~Amy
Amy says
We had several bananas that were going to have to be tossed if we didn't do something with them tonight, so I checked here first for a recipe and was not disappointed! We thankfully had all of the ingredients on hand (a rarity in this house), so we did a double batch, which made 24 mini-muffins and 12 regular-sized muffins. The best part is they freeze well, making packing our toddler's breakfast just got even more convenient and delicious!
Alice says
Our family loved this bread. We think it's perfectly sweet with just a hint of banana flavor. I used King Arthur's White Whole Wheat Flour. I added ½ teaspoon pumpkin spice. I used 1 cup of really ripe bananas (3 bananas) that I had thawed from the freezer. (They were black.) I used plain Greek yogurt. I used maple syrup (from our own trees!) I used sunflower oil. I added a handful of slice almonds to the batter and sprinkled some on top. I prepared the pan by spraying it with a bit of oil. The bread rose beautifully and had a nice "crumb." I will definitely be making this again. Thanks so much for the recipe. It tastes great toasted and spread with a bit of almond or peanut butter.
Alison says
Love them! I thought they were moist and plenty sweet. I added nuts and a few chocolate chips as an experiment, and they were a big hit!