Fat free banana bread that does not taste fat-free.
It is so soft and buttery.
I’m trying really hard not to say “moist” because I know everyone hates that word!
This bread actually wasn’t supposed to be fat-free. In fact, I was quite upset upon discovering—midway through preparing the recipe—only about a teaspoon’s worth of coconut oil lingered in my sad little jar. (Note to self: gather all ingredients before starting to cook a recipe. Will I ever learn?)
Since I’d already begun, I wasn’t going to put the recipe on hold; my heart stomach was set on banana bread! Option one was to use olive oil. However, I worried the oil’s strong flavor might affect the taste of my not-yet-tested banana bread recipe.
Option two was to make a Single-Serving Banana Bread.
But I really wanted a whole loaf. And I also wanted a new recipe so I could post about it, which is always more exciting than when I post about a recipe I’ve already published. Many lovely bloggers and readers assured me on twitter that fat-free would be fine. So I made a few changes and hoped for the best… I never imagined the results would be so good!
For maximum enjoyment: Eat this for breakfast, while still in your pjs!
Fat Free Banana Bread
(Makes 10-12 slices)
- 2 c spelt, white, or arrowhead mills gf flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/3 c milk of choice OR oil
- 1 and 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup, agave, or honey (Or, here’s a Sugar-Free Version.)
- 1 and 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
- pinch uncut stevia OR 1 tbsp additional agave/maple syrup
- 1 and 2/3 c tightly-packed, mashed banana (measured after mashing)
- 1/3 cup berries of choice, or more banana (I actually used 1 full cup of sliced strawberries. The resulting bread was extremely gooey, but I loved it that way!)
Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine dry ingredients, and mix well. In a separate bowl, combine wet ingredients and mix into dry. (Mix by hand, and don’t overmix.) Pour into a greased loaf pan and cook for 35-50 minutes, depending on how gooey you want it. (Tip: If the top is cooked but the inside is still gooey, put tin foil over the top and continue to cook.) After removing from the oven, let cool for ten minutes before slicing. After the first day, this bread is best stored in the fridge. Or cut into slices and freeze for later.
Nutrition Information at a Glance:
- 130 calories
- 0 grams of fat
- 0 mg cholesterol
- Fiber depends on the flour you use
Add around 20 extra calories for the Polka-Dot Banana Bread.
Question of the Day:
Do you ever lower the fat in a recipe or substitute applesauce for the oil?
I know many people are conscious of fat, so I try to offer lower-fat options whenever possible in my recipes. Yet, my own diet is actually pretty high in fat. I think “fat” has gotten a bad name. It sounds so negative, and society likens it to the devil. But, especially if you’re young and healthy, cutting out healthy fats (such as oils and nuts) can wreak havoc on your organs, skin, and hair.
As for this particular banana bread? It really does taste wonderful on its own. However, my slice didn’t stay fat-free for long. I painted that baby in a nice, thick coat of peanut butter. It was delicious!
This is such a good recipe. Thank you so much for this!
This banana bread is soooo good! What a fantastic idea to add strawberries. I actually used a mixture of strawberries and raspberries for the extra 1/3 cup of fruit and it is delicious. Thank you!
Oh Katie.. I really hate going on your blog because everytime I do I end up spending 10 hours on it, reading a post and clicking on links that link to another post, which of course contains more links that link to yet another post, and then bookmarking everything, and realizing I’d already bookmarked said posts that I wanted to bookmark… Like today for instance, I’ve been on your blog for 2 hours already and i still have approx 20 tabs opened.. KATIE I HAVE WORK TO DO T_T
What ingredient makes this banana bread so gooey compared to other banana breads that are more fluffy and cake-like?
I think it was a little too gooey for me, and the flavor was not like traditional banana bread. It doesn’t taste fat-free though! Also, I didn’t have spelt flour so I subbed oat flour as another reader tried and commented. Would all-purpose flour have been a better sub for spelt? My baking soda was old too, so that could have contributed to less-than-stellar results.
Oat flour is not listed in the recipe. If you want the results of a recipe to turn out well, it is always best to follow the directions listed in the recipe at least the first time. Oat flour would contribute to your gummy texture.
Excellent Recipe, very delicious.
mmmm….I love banana recipes I always buy the brown ones on sale:) I added 1/2 t ground ginger and 3/4 c blueberries!!!!
Is the lemon juice strong in it? Because I am not a huge lemon fan. If I skipped that ingredient would it still be okay?
Not strong at all. It helps the bread rise and the texture taste less dense. You can sub vinegar if you wish.
Thanks for posting low fat recipes. We’ve been eating ‘no added fat or oil’ a la Esselstyn, McDougall, etc. It’s good for keeping cholesterol down and healthy arteries. This is how we would eat in the wild, refined oil is hard to find in nature 🙂 And it’s easy to overdo it. My skin is baby soft and we’ve lost fat, even my wife who was already under 120 lbs. I’m going to stick to this at least until I get to a low body fat 10-12%. Most fruit and veggies average around 10% fat so it’s not like there isn’t any fat in the diet.
Can we sub pumpkin puree for the banana to make it a pumpkin bread?
I’d think you would have to add some extra sugar.
I was wondering if maybe I can sub the banana for pumpkin and make a pumpkin bread! Of course I’d add pumpkin pie spice and maybe some nuts. Also wondering if I could do half whole wheat flour and half oat flour? I’m trying to use the ingredients I have in my pantry haha