What’s better than banana bread? CHOCOLATE banana bread! This vegan version is loaded with flavor and bursting with rich dark chocolate chips and walnuts.
Chocolate is my love language. I’m a firm believer that it makes nearly everything better. If it can possibly be added to a recipe, it should be added.
My vegan banana bread is one of my most popular recipes on this site, so I got to thinking, could I add chocolate to it? I certainly could. And so I did, and my vegan chocolate banana bread turned out to be my new favorite sweet treat.
Choosing Bananas
I get a lot of questions on this topic, so pay attention if you’re new to banana bread baking.
Your bananas need to be overripe. This is non-negotiable. Using bananas that aren’t ripe enough will result in banana bread that’s not only lacking in flavor and sweetness, but that’s also overly dry and has a terrible texture.
Make sure your bananas have lots of brown spots. At least a third of the skin should be covered in them.
You’ll also want to use bananas that are medium in size. A medium-sized overripe banana weighs about 5 ounces (or 140 grams).
Ingredients
- Bananas. Again, they should be overripe and medium in size.
- Sugar. Make sure it’s organic if you’re buying it in the United States. Using sugar that’s organic keeps the recipe vegan.
- Brown sugar. Again, use organic.
- Canola oil. Feel free to substitute your favorite baking oil.
- Vanilla extract.
- Flour. We’re using plain old all-purpose wheat flour. Other types of wheat flour may work, but I haven’t tested the recipe with any.
- Cocoa powder. Make sure it’s the unsweetened variety.
- Baking soda.
- Cinnamon. You can leave this out if you like, but it really enhances the chocolate and banana flavors.
- Salt.
- Vegan chocolate chips. I use Enjoy Life brand.
- Chopped walnuts. Feel free to sub another type of nut, like pecans, or leave them out altogether.
How to Make Vegan Chocolate Banana Bread
The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll down if you’d like to skip right to the recipe!
- Peel and place your bananas into a large mixing bowl, then mash them up with a fork or potato masher.
- Add the sugars, oil and vanilla.
- Stir until everything is evenly mixed.
- Add your flour to the bowl, then sprinkle the cocoa powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt over the flour before stirring it in.
- Stir everything together just until fully mixed. Don’t overmix the batter.
- Fold in the chocolate chips and nuts.
- Spread the batter into an oiled loaf pan, smoothing the top out with a spoon.
- Evenly sprinkle a layer of brown sugar over the top of the loaf before popping it into the oven. This will form a delicious crust when it bakes! You can also garnish the top with a few extra chocolate chips if you like.
- Bake your loaf until it’s fully set, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (just make sure you’re not inserting it into a chocolate chip, or it will definitely come out covered in melted chocolate).
- Let your loaf cool a bit before removing it from the pan and slicing it. It will fall apart if you slice it too early!
Vegan Chocolate Banana Bread Tips & FAQ
- Can this recipe be made gluten-free? I’m really not sure. It might work with an all-purpose gluten-free blend, but I haven’t tested this.
- Shelf-life & storage: Once cool, wrap your banana bread in plastic or seal it in a zippy bag. It will keep at room temperature for about 3 days, or in the freezer for about 3 months.
- Can I use whole wheat flour? I haven’t tried, so I’m not sure. If you’d like to give it a try, I’d recommend starting with a 50/50 blend of whole wheat and all-purpose flour, and using whole wheat pastry flour if possible.
- My banana bread isn’t rising. Why not? Usually old baking soda is the cause of this. Test yours by sprinkling a small amount in a glass of vinegar. It should fizz. If not, it’s time to replace it.
- Can this recipe be made into muffins? Probably! The bake time will be less, but I haven’t tried, so I can’t say exactly how much. Start checking them at around 20 minutes.
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Vegan Chocolate Banana Bread
What's better than banana bread? CHOCOLATE banana bread! This vegan version is loaded with flavor and bursting with rich dark chocolate chips and walnuts.
Ingredients
- 3 medium overripe bananas
- 1/3 cup organic granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup organic brown sugar, plus 2 tablespoons for topping
- 1/3 cup canola oil (or your favorite baking oil)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup vegan chocolate chips, plus a few extra for topping
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 350°F and lightly oil a 9-inch loaf pan.
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Peel the bananas and place them into a large mixing bowl. Mash them well with a fork or potato masher.
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Stir the sugar, brown sugar, oil, and vanilla into the mashed bananas.
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Add the flour and cocoa powder to the bowl, then sprinkle the baking soda, cinnamon, and salt on top.
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Stir everything together just until thoroughly blended. Don't overmix. The batter will be very thick.
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Fold in the chocolate chips and walnuts.
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Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top out with a spoon.
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Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of brown sugar evenly over the batter, and optionally sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips on top.
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Bake the loaf until set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. (If the toothpick goes into a chip and comes out covered in melted chocolate, try inserting a clean one at another location).
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Place the loaf pan on a cooling rack to cool. Let the loaf cool for at least 25 minutes before removing it from the pan.
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Slice and serve.
Yum! The family kept calling them brownies. Unsweetened applesauce in place of oil worked perfectly fine. Thank you!
I loved it! Such a delicious bread for breakfast. So easy to make, Thanks for sharing your beautiful idea.