Jump to Recipe Print Recipe I grew up thinking that banana bread is healthy. After all, everyone called it bread, therefore it had to be healthier than cake. When I became an adult, I became even more confused. Why is banana bread a “bread” and not a “cake”? Banana bread doesn’t have yeast but it has all of the same ingredients as cake–flour, sugar, oil or butter. Then I realized… when you make a cake in a bread pan you can call it bread. This is quintessential 1950’s marketing, Betty Crocker style.
The Healthy Vs. Not-So-Healthy Parts of this Chocolate Banana Bread
First, let’s agree on what’s healthy.
- A typical cake contains oil or butter. This one doesn’t. It utilizes a mixture of ripe bananas and apple sauce to provide moisture, so it gets a healthy check mark.
- Flour is also the main ingredient in cake. This healthier version uses whole wheat flour.
- Our healthy chocolate banana bread has unsweetened cocoa powder, which is a great source of antioxidants and is sugar and fat free. Yep, cocoa powder gets the healthy seal of approval.
- And finally, it’s topped with peanut butter, which is a great source of protein. Check, check, check.
On the “cake” front (meaning the ingredients that aren’t as healthy as steamed broccoli), it has sugar, chocolate chips, and a bit of vodka. But it’s so moist and delicious that it doesn’t need frosting. If you’re willing to agree that this is a healthier version of cake, then it doesn’t matter if we call it healthy chocolate banana bread or almost-healthy chocolate banana cake. Potato, patahto. The point is, in moderation, this cake-bread is downright delicious.
The Dessert Trifecta–Easy, Healthy and Delicious
I love this Healthy Chocolate Banana Bread because it’s a treat I make for my family. I have a host of recipes I make for company–fancy triple layer cakes, individual trifles, perfectly proportioned mini tarts–but this healthy chocolate banana bread is for family. It’s not the prettiest dessert, but it definitely delivers great flavor and is so simple to make.
I dedicate a whole section of my freezer to frozen bananas. I typically buy more bananas than I think we’ll eat and then freeze them when they get overripe. If I’m feeling ambitious, I cut them into 1-inch slices freeze each banana in an individual sandwich bag. If I’m short on time, I throw them in the freezer with the skin on. The skin-on bananas are what I use for baking. I use pre-sliced bananas in protein shakes, or as an ice cream substitute in my Swirlio Frozen Dessert Maker (which I LOVE!). I also use frozen banana slices and as ice cubes in mixed drinks.
When you’re reading the list of ingredients, know that the cinnamon and espresso are there to intensify the flavor of the chocolate. You don’t actually taste the espresso, and the cinnamon is very subtle. The purpose of the vodka is to keep the Healthy Chocolate Banana Bread moist. You don’t taste the vodka, and the alcohol content is negligible on a per-serving basis after it’s baked. I use brown sugar with Stevia when I bake. It’s a tad sweeter than regular brown sugar, so you use less sugar. If you don’t like to use sweeteners, just use all brown sugar. If you think it needs a tad more sweetness, then you can add another tablespoon or two of sugar.
Watch the video below for a 1-minute tutorial.
Healthy Chocolate Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 3 very ripe bananas
- 3/4 cup brown sugar with Stevia
- 4 oz unsweetened applesauce (1 individual serving)
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp vanilla
- 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp. espresso powder
- 2 Tbsp. vodka
- 1/2 cup Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa Powder
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 Tbsp. reduced fat peanut butter, creamy
Instructions
- Put peanut butter into a zip-lock sandwich bag and immerse the baggie in a mug of hot water to soften the peanut butter. Let sit for 5 minutes.
- Mix bananas, brown sugar, applesauce, egg and vanilla together. Mix espresso powder into vodka until dissolved. Add to banana mixture.
- In a separate bowl, sift together all dry ingredients. Then slowly add to banana mixture. Stir in chocolate chips by hand.
- Prepare a loaf pan by lining it with parchment paper and then spraying it with non-stick spray. Pour batter into loaf pan.
- Remove the peanut butter baggie from the hot water. Cut a very small hole in the edge of the baggie and then hold it like a piping bag. Make straight lines of peanut butter across the top of the loaf. Then run a knife through the peanut butter to create a decorative pattern.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 40-55 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes and then remove from pan. Let cool for another 20 minutes on a wire rack before cutting it.
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