Gluten-Free Coconut Banana Bread

I’m home sweet home today. I got out of Colorado just as the snow started falling yesterday morning! I’m still on Mountain Time and didn’t wake up until 10:00AM, but it still feels really nice to be home with Isaac and Olive. I’m going to do a little recap about my trip soon, but in the meantime here’s a recipe for ya.

I’ve been doing the gluten-free thing for a few months now and it’s getting easier every day. Of course there are a few foods that I miss, but it hasn’t been too hard to find substitutes for almost everything. Earlier this month I still had a few things left on my list, including a good gluten-free naan (or flat-bread) recipe and a healthy and tasty gluten-free banana bread recipe.

I’m still working on the naan, but I’m crossing banana bread off the list with this gluten-free chocolate chip coconut banana bread…

Holy moly, this bread is so good you guys. Maybe even better than my best banana bread recipe?!?

This banana bread is not only gluten-free, but it’s also grain-free, dairy-free, and paleo. It’s flavorful and moist with a semi-crisp exterior and it’s easy to cut without being overly crumbly and falling apart.

For what it’s worth, all of my taste testers (even those that aren’t gluten-free) agreed that it was delicious.

Unlike other gluten-free quick-bread recipes I’ve seen it doesn’t have a ton of different flours or starches. All you really need are bananas, almond butter, coconut oil, coconut flour and a few pantry staples. Oh and there’s no added sugar either. The bananas and chocolate chips give it plenty of sweetness.

To keep the bread moist (and load it with healthy fats) I used almond butter and extra virgin coconut oil. Vita Coco sent me their new 100% raw, organic cold-pressed coconut oil to try out and it worked like a charm in this recipe. Since I was using the coconut oil I decided to increase the coconut flavor a bit with the use of coconut flour and coconut flakes as well. I’m glad I did because banana, coconut and chocolate is quite an amazing combo.

As I’m sure you all know, coconut oil is one of my favorite oils and I use it whenever possible — in recipes and for beauty purposes. If you’re new to coconut oil, here’s a little recap of what coconut oil is said to do for the body:

Boost energy
Promote a lean body and aid in weight loss. Because of the medium chain of fatty acids, the oil is easily digested and immediately burned as energy by your liver -– unlike the longer chains present in other oils which take longer to digest and therefore are often stored as fat
Remove stress from the pancreas, which increases metabolism
Support a healthy immune system and improve heart health
Slow down the digestion of food, which helps you feel fuller and prevent blood sugar fluctuations after a meal
Help your body fight bacteria, fungi or parasites that can cause indigestion. This is caused by the anti-microbial properties of the saturated fats

The Vita Coco coconut oil is unrefined so it has a great coconut smell and flavor, which I love. It works wonderfully for baking but I also like using it for roasting veggies, stir-frys, cooking eggs, pancakes, etc. Basically anything that most people use butter for, I use coconut oil.

We’ve been eating this banana bread for breakfast, as a snack or as an after-dinner dessert. Isaac loves it warm (I pop it in the toaster oven for a few minutes to reheat), but I think it’s delicious at room temperature. I like that it’s portable as well — just last week I cut off a big chunk of the loaf and took it with me as a travel snack. Honestly, I was trying to save a slice to share with my friend, but I ended up eating it all while on the plane. Oops!

Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Coconut Banana Bread
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Prep time 15 mins
Cook time 40 mins
Total time 55 mins
Adapted from my Flourless Pumpkin Spice Muffins.
Author: Brittany Mullins Serves: 12 slices
Ingredients

1 cup bananas, mashed (about 3 bananas)
3 eggs
½ cup almond butter
¼ cup coconut oil, melted
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla
¼ cup coconut flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon sea salt
⅛ cup dairy-free mini chocolate chips
Topping
2 Tablespoons unsweetened coconut flakes
½ teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

Pre-heat oven to 350°.
Prep a loaf pan by greasing it with coconut oil or lining it with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl stir together the mashed bananas, eggs, almond butter, coconut oil and vanilla.
Once wet ingredients are combined add in dry ingredients (coconut flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and sea salt). Stir until combined. Gently stir in chocolate chips.
Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
In a small bowl stir coconut flakes and cinnamon together. Sprinkle mixture over the bread batter.
Bake for 40-45 minutes or until bread is golden in color and a toothpick comes out clean.
Remove from oven and let cool for a bit on a wire rack before removing from the pan to cool completely. It should come out really easily if you greased the pan properly or used parchment paper. Slice the loaf (a bread knife works best), serve and enjoy.
Store any leftovers in a sealed container at room temperature for a couple days. To keep it longer, store in the fridge or freezer.

Nutrition Information Serving size: 1 slice Calories: 184 Fat: 14g Carbohydrates: 12g Sugar: 5g Fiber: 2g Protein: 4g
3.2.2925
This post is sponsored by Vita Coco Coconut Oil, but as always opinions are my own.

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