This Chocolate Chip Banana Bread is a deliciously healthy balance between yummy sweet banana flavor and bitter dark chocolate. This recipe uses very ripe bananas and maple syrup as natural sweeteners, Greek yogurt to cut down on oil, and whole wheat flour to make the bread a little more wholesome. The result is moist, crumbly, banana-y and decadent loaf that will have you coming back for seconds. And probably thirds.
Plus this recipe is super easy and quick to whip up and requires just 12 ingredients. It can be made by hand or using a stand mixer.
Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Ingredients
Very Ripe Bananas. The key to good banana bread is super ripe bananas. The best bananas are yellow with a little light spotting. They’ll be naturally sweeter and creamier. Plus they mash easily.
Yogurt (Greek or Plant-Based). Yogurt adds extra moisture to this banana bread and cuts back on the oil needed. We’ve used Greek and coconut milk yogurt and both have turned out deliciously!
Maple Syrup. We opted for natural sweeteners in this recipe. Pure maple syrup is perfect for cutting out refined sugars while lending a light maple flavor. Honey also works wonderfully.
Olive Oil. Olive oil is a slightly healthier option than canola oil and it adds a nice hint of nuttiness to the bread.
Whole Wheat Flour. It’s super easy to sneak in whole wheat flour into baked goods and it works wonderfully in this recipe.
Walnuts & Chocolate Chips. While bananas are the star of the show, chocolate chips and walnuts are definitely crucial players. The chocolate adds to the sweetness of the bread and walnuts give a nice light crunch.
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How to Make Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly mist a loaf pan with cooking spray.
Start with the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Whisk together with a fork. Set aside.
Next, tackle the wet ingredients. Install the whisk attachment on a stand mixer. Add the bananas to the bowl and whisk until pureed. You should yield about 2 cups of mashed banana (about five medium bananas). I generally base my recipe on five bananas and don’t bother with measuring out how many cups that yields, so the recipe varies slightly each batch.
Add the olive oil, maple syrup, Greek yogurt, eggs, and vanilla extract and whisk together on medium speed.
With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients slowly to the bowl. Be careful not to over-mix (there can be a few lumps and white streaks in the batter). Fold in 6 tablespoons of the chocolate chips (reserve 2 tablespoons for the topping) and walnuts.
Spoon the batter into the bread pan, smoothing it out with the back of a spatula. Cook for 60 to 65 minutes. Loosely cover the bread with tin foil for the last 30 minutes of baking in order to prevent the top and sides from burning. After 60 minutes, check that the bread is done by inserting a knife or toothpick into the center of the loaf. It should come out clean. If it doesn’t come out clean, cook for another 5 minutes and check again. Repeat, as needed.
Remove the bread from the oven and cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before cutting. This bread will keep about 2 days at room temperature or 7 days in the refrigerator (if it lasts that long!).
How to Store Banana Bread
This banana bread is really easy to store. Wrap the bread tightly in plastic wrap and the place inside a freezer baggie. Store at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for 7 days (if it lasts that long!).
Let us know what you think about this recipe for Chocolate Chip Banana Bread by dropping a comment and/or rating below!
Check out more of our healthy baked goods:
- Healthy Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Cranberry Dark Chocolate Scones
- Morning Harvest Muffins
- Healthy Apple Cobbler Muffins
- Fluffy Homemade Plain Bagels
- Chai Spiced Scones with Cinnamon Glaze
Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 2 c white whole wheat flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 2 c mashed bananas (about 5 medium bananas)
- ½ c pure maple syrup
- â…“ c extra virgin olive oil
- â…“ c plain Greek, coconut, or almond milk yogurt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ c mini chocolate chips (dark or semi-sweet)
- ½ c walnuts, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly mist a loaf pan with cooking spray.
- Mix dry ingredients: In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Whisk together with a fork. Set aside.
- Install the whisk attachment on a stand mixer. Add the bananas to the bowl and whisk until pureed. You should yield about 2 cups of mashed banana (about 5 medium bananas).
- Add the olive oil, maple syrup, Greek yogurt, eggs, and vanilla extract and whisk together on medium speed.
- With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients slowly to the bowl. Be careful not to overmix (there can be a few lumps and white streaks in the batter). Fold in the chocolate chips and walnuts.
- Spoon the batter into the bread pan, smoothing it out with the back of a spatula. Cook for 60 to 65 minutes. Loosely cover the bread with tin foil for the last 30 minutes of baking in order to prevent the top and sides from burning. After 60 minutes, check that the bread is done by inserting a knife or toothpick into the center of the loaf. It should come out clean.
- Remove the bread from the oven and cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before cutting. This bread will keep about 2 days at room temperature or 7 days in the refrigerator (if it lasts that long!).
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