The Best Gluten Free (+vegan) Banana Bread
The ritual of baking calls for attentiveness and patience— perfect for these long winter days. It’s a practice requiring faith in our mindful measuring and mixing, in our pouring and our waiting. And when everything goes well, we’re graciously rewarded with deliciousness at the end!
The smell of this long-baking banana bread is one that wafts through the entire house making everyone breathe in a little more deeply and gather around the table waiting for the loaf to cool. It’s moist and crumbly, sweet and delicious— such a favorite in our home.
Ingredients:
4 cups gluten-free flour*
1 cup organic brown cane sugar
⅓ cup organic turbinado sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon whole chia seeds
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4–5 large bananas mashed thoroughly
1½ cups non-dairy milk
1 cup oil**
½ cup applesauce
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Cinnamon-sugar blend
*I used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free All-purpose Baking Flour (a mix of garbanzo bean flour, potato starch, tapioca flour, whole grain sorghum flour and fava bean flour) in this recipe but feel free to try others!
**This recipe uses a combo of organic coconut and olive oils, but I have used each on its own with success.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Combine all dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Whisk wet ingredients together and combine with dry ingredients. If desired, fold in fresh or frozen fruit at this step.
Spray three bread pans with a non-hydrogenated, nonstick cooking spray (coconut oil spray works great). Divide batter evenly between the three bread pans. Sprinkle cinnamon-sugar blend over the entire top of all three loaves and arrange them on the middle oven rack.
Bake for 45–55 minutes. Bread is done when a knife or toothpick inserted deep into the center comes out clean. NOTE: These loaves were baked in a convection oven; if using a conventional oven, be sure to rotate loaves halfway through and adjust bake time (slightly longer) or temperature (slightly higher at 350).
Originally Published in Edible Western NY.
