Vegan Banana Bread with Maple Syrup

Vegan Banana Bread with Maple Syrup is that long hug needed after an extremely intense week. If you're looking for a comforting treat to team with a lovely warm cuppa and a good book at the weekend, this is it.

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• Ingredients
• Instructions
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I make banana bread a lot - with a family of six we buy a lot of bananas, and you know what children are like, one week they eat them all and the next they leave them all! So we sometimes have a few ripe bananas to use up. I had the idea to mix up the recipe a little and use maple syrup instead of sugar as a sweetener and flavour source and this recipe for banana bread with maple syrup was born. I was a little unsure how it would go. Would the maple syrup overpower the bread? Would the banana bread be too sweet? Is maple syrup even vegan?

After doing some research, I found that these questions were quite common in the vegan community. For starters, there are over 100 different brands of maple syrups on the market, and although many claim to be 100% pure, some manufacturers use dairy products or lard during the production process so you need to read labels to ensure the syrup that you use is vegan. As far as the sweet factor, maple syrup doesn't overpower the flavour of the bread. In fact, you might want to use a little maple extract instead of vanilla to increase the maple flavor. Different quality maple syrup also has different flavours and strengths so this may make a difference to the flavour of your bread. Also many people opt to bake banana bread with maple syrup instead of sugar because of the health benefits.

Now, I know what you're thinking, no sugar banana bread? Yep! This recipe contains no refined sugar and maple syrup provides flavour and natural sweetness and the mashed bananas add a sweetness too! There's no lack in flavour, has a soft bite, and makes for a delicious and healthy banana bread recipe that you won't have to bribe the kids into eating.

The ground flaxseeds replace the egg in this recipe - they are my favourite egg replacer in cakes. Ground flaxseeds have omega-3 fatty acids and give the bread a fatty richness while still being good for you. Bonus, flaxseeds are high in fibre.

Plant-based butter, on the other hand, gives the bread the hug you were looking for. Depending on which one you choose, the oils from the butter blended in the warm bath of vanilla and syrup provides the loaf with a solid weight and that heavenly aftertaste that I undeniably love. For baking recipes like this, I prefer to use Flora Plant block butter.

And speaking of heavenly taste, we cannot leave the walnuts out of the equation. Banana bread with maple syrup and walnuts beats other banana bread recipes. It's simply unmatched! The walnuts add just a touch of nuttiness without you going nutty with the flavour. I thought about adding them to my Vegan Chocolate Chip Banana Bread recipe too - I might try it and see.

Walnuts have a long list of health benefits, and should you have found yourself a bit sluggish lately, walnuts are a quick energy booster! You can pair this vegan banana and maple bread with your morning coffee or afternoon tea for an energy boost without the crash.

But should you be looking to ditch the coffee fix altogether, then try our Vegan Coffee Energy Balls recipe- you won't be disappointed.

Now, similar to my Vegan Chocolate Chip Banana Bread recipe, I went with my silicone bread mould to keep the ingredients in place (click on the recipe to learn why I chose this method).

If you are wondering if you need to allow the mixed ingredients to rest first before placing the loaf into the oven, the answer is no. There's no yeast in this banana bread recipe, plus the baking powder and bicarbonate soda are powerful rising agents that get the job done.

Top Tip

The only worry needed is the soaking of the ground flaxseeds. You want to make sure that this is done before adding the flaxseeds to the bread. It will only take a couple of minutes and can be done while you are mashing the bananas.

Soaking the flaxseeds softens them a bit and creates that stickiness that helps to bind the mixture together.

Ingredients

• Plain flour (all purpose flour)
• Ground flaxseeds
• water
• plant based butter (melted)
• pure maple syrup
• vanilla extract
• baking powder (baking soda)
• bicarbonate of soda
• chopped walnuts
• bananas
• plant based milk

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Grease and line a 2 lb loaf tin.

In a small bowl add mix the ground flaxseeds with the water and leave to sit for 5 minutes. Mix the mashed banana with the maple syrup, vanilla extract, melted butter and milk and add the ground flaxseed mixture.

Sift the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda together in a separate bowl or bowl of a stand mixer. Add the dry ingredients (except the walnuts) to the wet ingredients mixture and mix to combine.

Stir in half of the chopped walnuts.

Place the mixture in a lined 2 lb standard loaf pan. Sprinkle the other half of the chopped walnuts on top. 

Place in the oven and bake for 60 minutes or until cooked through - test with a skewer or knife and if it comes out clean it is done. If you notice the top starting to brown too much or the walnut topping burning you can loosely cover it with foil when it's baking.

Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out on a wire rack to cool completely.

Should you be pressed for time to bake this bread (or you can't find ripe bananas at the grocery store), a quick tip is to hop over to your local farmer's market or gas station. Both are treasure troves of expiring foods due to the atmosphere and organic approach and allow you to skip the long process of waiting for your bananas to brown. Should this not be an option, then taking your bananas and placing them in a brown bag in a heat-concentrated area will speed up the process as well- you're welcome.

Whether you choose this no-sugar banana bread as an on-the-go snack, after-dinner treat, or workout meal, it's filling and has enough weight to get you by throughout a hectic day - it really is the best banana bread.

Substitutions

If you want to increase the intensity of the maple flavour you could swap the vanilla extract for maple extract. I would probably decrease the amount slightly so use ¼ of a teaspoon.

This recipe is naturally dairy free, egg free, soya free and vegan. You could make it gluten free by using a gluten free flour blend but I haven't tried it myself. If you do, let me know how you get on.

Equipment

You don't really need any specific equipment to make this, I use an electric stand mixer but you can easily mix this batter by hand. place.

I do like to use a silicone loaf tin though - I find it so much easier than lining a regular loaf tin and much more sustainable.

Storage

This cake is lovely served warm with a dollop of vegan greek yogurt but will keep for 3-4 days in an airtight container at room temperature or in a cool, dry place.

Top tip

Find mashing bananas arduous? You can use the electric mixer to beat them into mush!

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📖 Recipe

Five stars for having easy-to-find ingredients, quick prep time, and being a long-lasting treat, pair this vegan banana and maple syrup bread alongside our Chia Blackberry Jam or Quick and Delicious Vegan Chocolate Protein Shake for a guilt-free top to your week.

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