This paleo almond coconut banana bread is incredibly moist and just slightly sweet without any traditional flours or sweetener.
I didn’t title it as such, but this is a paleo bread. At least I think it is.
Can we discuss this whole paleo thing for a moment? So, the premise is to eat “like a caveman would”. Ok, I get that. But I have a really hard time distinguishing between eating the foods a caveman would’ve been able to eat versus the methods a caveman would’ve had at his disposal.
Baking just seems completely counterintuitive to the whole paleo thing. I mean, did cavemen have ovens? Baking soda? No.
And then there’s the whole bean thing. Beans were definitely around back then, why aren’t they included on the “ok” list?
So, no beans, but bread’s ok.
Um, I can’t be the only one confused by this.
And let me just disclose that I’m totally no paleo expert (as if that weren’t already apparent). I’ve done a bit of online browsing and read a decent amount of other people’s posts on the diet. That’s it.
What I’ve basically realized after wasting my time reading far too many articles about it is that maple syrup falls in the (quite large) gray area.
This almond coconut banana bread has a tablespoon of it. I’ll leave the determination up to you.
I had no intention of specifically making a paleo bread, I just wanted a higher protein one with no traditional flours or sweetener.
Had I judged the outcome based on what the dough looked like, this would’ve been inedible. The dough was incredibly thick and I didn’t think there was any way it would rise at all or turn out to be anything other than rock hard.
I was totally wrong. One of the few times in life I’m happy about that.
It’s just perfectly sweet enough from the banana and it’s so incredibly moist. If I could describe my perfect bread texture, this would be it.
I was floored.
Maybe those cavemen were on to something. You know, with their ovens and all.
But not that jelly! That’s just me being controversial.
Looking for more banana bread recipes? Try one of these:
Pumpkin Banana Chocolate Chip Bread
Cinnamon Sugar Banana Pecan Bread with Raspberry Butter
Almond Coconut Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1/2 cup coconut flour
- 1/4 cup flax seed meal
- 11/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 eggs
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large ripe banana, mashed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 2 small loaf pans (5 3/4" x 3 1/2").
- Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
- Combine wet ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together.
- Pour wet into dry ingredients and mix until fully incorporated.
- Divide evenly (dough will be thick) into loaf pans and smooth the tops.
- Bake for about 35 minutes.
- Remove loaves from oven, let cool in pans for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
Mine didn’t turn out well at all! I thought the batter was dry so I put extra banana in but it was still crumbly. It was also VERY baking soda-y, although I did only put in 1.5 tsp. I don’t know where I went wrong!!
I made this today, and mine came out with a wonderful texture. Like you, though, I found it way too salty. I think next time I’ll try making it with a half teaspoon of salt, rather than a full teaspoon.
I don’t know what I did wrong. Mine turned out really crumbly… maybe I used too much banana. I also used honey instead of maple. The banana makes it pretty sweet as is, and the honey just complements it well, as I’m sure maple syrup does. Due to medical reasons, I try to stay away from processed sugar or high sugar content in general (besides fruits). Real maple syrup clocks in at around 50g of sugar per serving and honey at around 16g of sugar. Distributed throughout the loaves, the sugar content would be significantly less, but the honey worked out just fine!
So I took the crumbly banana bread and put butter and a little honey and some cinnamon on top and served it in a saucer of almond milk. Delicious!
I’m surprised yours turned out crumbly b/c each time I’ve made it, it’s been far from a crumbly texture, but I’m glad you enjoyed it anyway! That sounds like a delicious breakfast or snack to me!
I just wanted to comment on the paleo thing bc most people dont do the right kind of research and dont know any better, so here is my two cents…. The whole non grain idea is from what i understand for 2 reasons 1: phytate or phytic acid which pulls nutrients from our bodies, and that grains are all omega 6 there is no omega 3 . Now saying that, the phytic acid can be reduced in beans by soaking then so if you are going to eat beans soak them first. I am in the process of baking the bread looking good so far! Thanks for the recipe!
I’m allergic to egg, and typically replace an egg with a banana or the egg replacer. Any idea if that would work?
I honestly don’t know with this one because of how many eggs are in this recipe. If you try it, I wouldn’t do one or the other, I’d increase the bananas and do the egg replacer. Sorry, I’m just not sure and haven’t tested it without. Let me know if you do try it though, I’m curious to hear!
Do you think I could use honey instead of maple syrup?
The “paleo diet” is not really about eating like a cavemen although that’s a simplified way of understanding it, so people use it. It’s about putting through our gut the foods that we evolved well to eat. That would mean that in most populations that you would avoid foods that stimulated an immune response (however minor). Paleo does not suggest beans because of the substances they contain which cause auto-immune issues. Legumes are toxic without cooking and most grains are inedible without cooking for long time. If you have autoimmune issues that are ruining aspects of your life the diet will choose you, you don’t have to choose it. :)
I used 3 bananas and can just get a faint banana flavor, strange. I added some walnuts for an extra boost of texture. For those of you who need just a little extra sweet, I topped a piece with some honey. Yummy and healthy too. It is moist for sure. I will try it again. thanks
Well, to answer my own question, the coconut flower does not impart any coconut flavor at all, thankfully for us. The bread was a great texture but did not taste like banana, imo. I think adding dried fruit or using more banana (less egg? I don’t know) might work for me. But once I put on some butter or jelly, it was pretty good. When you are avoiding grains, this would be a great stand-in.
Sorry Maggie, I haven’t had much access to internet this weekend so I apologize for my delayed response. As you found out the flour is probably the least flavorful of the coconut “products”. I’m surprised you didn’t taste the banana in it. our was very much banana flavored, the two times I’ve made it so far. I think you could definitely increase the banana to 2 mashed and probably take out an egg for a more distinct flavor. Glad you liked the texture at least.
My husband hates the taste of coconut oil, coconut amines and coconut milk, so I can’t used them. Does the coconut flour impart a coconutty flavor or is it pretty flavor-neutral?
Also, a paleo lifestyle does not mean you eat like a caveman, just that you try to maximize the foods that were always available to humans, and minimize other foods. So many people are intolerant of gluten and grain, lactose or casein and processed foods; artificial sweeteners and sugar wreak havoc on our system; legumes (which I personally love) contain toxins that even our extensive soaking and boiling can’t get rid of. Think of it as a whole foods diet – lots of meat, fish, healthy fats, eggs and vegetables, and then fruit and nuts in moderation. Maple syrup is not 100% strict paleo, but no one follows only those restrictive guidelines all the time, and it’s better than many other sweeteners, so you’ll find it in many paleo “small cheat” recipes.
Maggie thank you for giving some background on to what the paleo lifestyle is. I find it funny that people who know nothing about it are hating on it. It works for a reason. I just made this recipe into muffins and doubled the bananas and my kids loved them. Thanks for a great recipe. Do you mind if I blog about it giving you full credit for the recipe? Thanks!
I don’t mind at all if you blog about it. I would prefer however, if you link to the recipe rather than writing it out fully. Glad you all liked it!
This sounds delicious! You are so creative. I wish I could “whip things up” and have them turn out so yummy!