Delicious and healthy Banana Date Bread. Made with whole wheat flour, it's naturally sweetened, easy to make, really moist and perfectly sweet even without added sugar. Perfect for brunch or snacks!
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By popular demand, a banana bread recipe with no added sugar, that is easy to make, perfectly sweet, full of flavour, and really delicious!
This simple and healthy Banana Date Bread is made with whole wheat flour and naturally sweetened with Medjool dates, which give it a delicious caramel flavour that works so well with the banana. Some extra virgin olive oil is also coming along to the party because dates and extra virgin olive oil are amazing together!
I tested this recipe upwards of 15 times. It wasn't an easy one because there is so much moisture and no sugar. If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen some of my disastrous attempts in my stories! 🤭
Finally, though, I got to a point where I was happy, and that's the Banana Date Bread I'm sharing with you today. It has a good structure (which isn't easy without sugar), great flavour, and despite being made with wholewheat flour, it's not heavy.
I love to enjoy a big slice with a generous smear of almond butter or vegan butter with my morning coffee!
Mel x
P.S. Love banana bread? Be sure to give my Tahini Banana Bread, Spelt Banana Bread, Choc & Nut Banana Bread, and Vegan Chocolate Coconut Banana Bread a try!
Ingredients
Here is what you need at a glance, along with some important ingredient notes & substitution ideas:
- Bananas - These must be very ripe and spotty. This is for flavour, sweetness, and moisture. If they aren't ripe and spotty (at least as ripe as the ones in my pic above), then they won't have a high enough moisture content.
- Whole wheat flour - This is a healthy banana date bread so naturally, whole wheat flour is a good option. You could use spelt flour or all-purpose flour instead if you want to, but if you do, I strongly recommend using the weight measurements and not cups because one cup of spelt flour or one cup of all-purpose flour weighs a different amount to 1 cup of whole wheat flour.
- Medjool dates - This recipe has only been tested with Medjool dates. Other varieties of similar dates will probably work just as well, but I haven't personally tried it.
- Dairy-free milk - Any unsweetened and unflavoured dairy-free milk, such as oat milk, almond milk or soy milk, is fine.
- Extra virgin olive oil - Chosen very purposefully because dates and extra virgin olive oil are a match made in heaven. It adds a lovely layer of flavour to this bread. Regular olive oil or any other liquid oil will technically work, though.
- Baking powder & baking soda - With whole wheat flour and no added sugar, this bread needs both leaveners for a good texture. The bonus baking soda reacts with the slightly acidic bananas and dates to boost the ooomph from the baking powder.
- Cinnamon - Perfect with the dates and banana, although instead you could use pumpkin spice, apple pie spice, or mixed spice (if you're in the UK).
Before You Start
So you make an informed decision when making this recipe, the batter for the banana date bread in the pictures and video was made fully in my food processor. This makes it really quick and easy. However, the crumb/texture is slightly better when the batter is mixed by hand. That's because food processors are powerful, and even on low speeds, the batter gets slightly overmixed. When mixing by hand, the batter is treated much more gently, which is why it turns out slightly better. I've included directions for making it both ways so you can decide which fits your life/needs best!
Let's Make Banana Date Bread!
Can't wait to make it? The full printable recipe is below, but first, let me walk you through the steps to set you up for success in your kitchen. I recommend watching my recipe video if you're more of a visual learner:
Soak the dates in hot water, then drain and blend them up (or mash by hand) before adding the bananas, other wet ingredients, and spices.
Add the flour and leaveners and mix or blend to form a thick batter. Then stir or pulse through the chopped dates.
Spoon into a loaf pan, then bake.
Leave in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes, then remove and cool on a wire rack.
Recipe FAQs
I highly recommend using it for the very best flavour. Dates and extra virgin olive oil are a match made in heaven, and it adds such a lovely layer of flavour. However, if it's not something you keep at home, you could use any other liquid oil or melted coconut oil instead. It will technically work in the same way, you'll just lose that layer of flavour.
I have not tested this recipe oil-free. This was a really difficult recipe to get right, and I made it a ridiculous number of times to get a good texture with no added sugar and all the moisture. I don't have it in me to start testing it again without oil, and to be honest, because it's whole wheat, contains no added sugar, and is full of moisture, I think, from experience, that the crumb would end up gummy if the oil were to be removed (or reduced). I also wouldn't want to recommend a substitute that would make my well-tested recipe less than perfect. To cut a long story short, not every recipe is for everyone, and if you don't want to use oil, this isn't really the recipe for you.
I have not tested this recipe gluten-free. It was really difficult to get right with whole wheat flour, and given the nature of the recipe, and the fact that it contains no added sugar (which would usually help to add structure in a gluten-free recipe), my guess is it wouldn't work well with gluten-free flour. Let me know in the comments if you try it, though. I'd love to know how it turns out!
Recipe
Banana Date Bread
Author:WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (230 grams) stoned medjool dates , divided (about 17 large dates)
- boiling water
- 3 medium 7 to 8 inch (370 grams) bananas
- ¼ cup (60 ml) extra virgin olive oil
- ⅓ cup (80 ml) dairy-free milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2¼ cups (295 grams) whole wheat flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
INSTRUCTIONS
- Put one cup (155 grams or about 12) of the stoned dates into a small bowl. Pour plenty of boiling water over them, cover with a lid or a plate, and leave to soak for at least 15 minutes. Longer is fine if you forget about them.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and grease and line a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan.
- Chop the remaining ½ cup (75 grams) of dates into small pieces. Set aside.
- Drain the soaked dates and add them to a mixing bowl or the bowl of a food processor. If in a food processor, process until smoothish. If in a mixing bowl, mash them really well. I find it easier to start with a knife and fork. Chop them up into little pieces, then start mashing with the fork. They won't become completely smooth, but you should be able to get them smushed up pretty well.
- Now add the bananas to the dates and mash or process them up into a puree too.
- Add the extra virgin olive oil, milk, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon and mix/process to combine. If you are using a food processor and it is big (holds at least 14 cups) and is relatively powerful, you can continue with the next steps in the machine. If not, scrape it out and into a large mixing bowl.
- To the wet mixture, add the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Mix gently to combine, then add the chopped dates (break clumps up with your fingers as you add them) and fold them through the batter.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared loaf pan, even the top with a spatula, and bake for about 55 minutes or until well risen, starting to come away from the sides, and a toothpick or skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. In a dark pan, it will be ready a little quicker so check at 50 mins.
- Leave in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes, then remove and cool on a wire rack.
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Nancy Bazzell says
Delicious!!!!