Makes 12 slices
I was sooo totally kidding when I tweeted that I was working on a book called “Vegan Loafs Gone Wild”, and yet here I am with another lower-fat loaf! I don’t know, something about the ease of the loaf pan, the leisurely cooking time, and just the absolute loafiness of it.
Here we’ve got something that reminds me of pressing my face against the glass dessert case at my neighborhood Jewish bakery. Marbled treats were a childhood fascination and they still hold some of that “How did you do that?” wonder. What can I say, swirls of cocoa are an impressive feat!
It takes a little extra work, and a few extra mixing bowl, but isn’t it worth it to awaken that childhood intrigue? This banana bread is perfectly banana-y, and not too sweet. The outside of the loaf is a little crunchy after being baked, but if you leave it in Tupperware or plastic wrap at room temp overnight, it gets very moist. It tastes great both ways!
1 cup mashed very ripe banana
3/4 cups sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons canola oil
1/3 cup almond milk (or your preferred non-dairy milk)
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
6 tablespoons boiling water, divided
Prepare boiling water, no need to measure yet. Also, preheat oven to 350 F.
Mash the banana in a large mixing bowl until relatively smooth. It should take 3 average sized ones, but spoon the mashed ‘nanas into a measuring cup to make sure, then return to the mixing bowl. Beat in the sugar, canola oil, milk and vanilla.
Now add the flour, baking soda and salt and gently mix just to incorporate. It’s okay if there is some flour still visible, just be careful not to overmix at this point.
Scoop one cup of the batter up and transfer it to a separate mixing bowl. Now, in a small tea cup mix the cocoa powder with 3 tablespoons boiling water and stir vigorously with a fork until the chocolate is dissolved. Add this chocolate mixture to the one cup of banana and mix until the chocolate is thoroughly smooth and incorporated.
Now back to the original plain banana batter; add 3 tablespoons of boiling water and mix the batter just until relatively smooth.
Here comes the fun part, it’s time to marble! Lightly grease an 8×4 loaf pan. Scoop alternate 1/2 cupfuls of chocolate/banana batter into the loaf pan. Nothing has to be precise here, in fact, the more random, the better. Once all of the batter is in, take a butter knife and swirl it through the batter in circular directions for about 10 seconds.
Bake for 55 minutes. Use a butter knife to test for doneness. Let cool and enjoy!
Made this yesterday: AMAZING!
Srsly, when is the vegan loaf book coming out? Consider it already pre-ordered.
Maybe I have figured out the flat thing: is it because I used Dutch-process cocoa and not the regular acidic kind, therefore less leavening action?
I don’t think so, because the banana part has no cocoa at all…
I wondered if the people who had the “flatness” problem were in the UK? I am an American living in Ireland, and the baking powder here is single action, as far as I can tell. So a lot of American recipes I use end up flat!
This tasted brilliant! Thanks a lot 😀
This was amazing! Everybody loved it!
But it didn’t grow properly, and I swear I didn’t open the oven too soon. Any ideas of what I could have done wrong?
well… I could have done many things wrong, actually.
My doubt was: any ideas of what did I do wrong?
I thought this might help others understand why their bread went flat when other’s did not… (from About.com)
Baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate. When baking soda is combined with moisture and an acidic ingredient (e.g., yogurt, chocolate, buttermilk, honey), the resulting chemical reaction produces bubbles of carbon dioxide that expand under oven temperatures, causing baked goods to rise. The reaction begins immediately upon mixing the ingredients, so you need to bake recipes which call for baking soda immediately, or else they will fall flat!
Love this! My toddler and I made this together this morning, and it was lovely. She’s currently devouring it! It was her second foray into baking, after trying the Pumpkin Loaf together a few weeks ago. Thank you for the lovely recipes!
I tried your recipe & it came out good. Thank you!
This is a fabulous recipe and turned out amazing. LOVE. This will definitely become a staple. I didn’t have cocoa powder, just dark chocolate chips, which i tossed in (and also tossed in some slivered almonds). Awesome!
Pretty much loved this recipe. I have made it twice for my family. I added some walnuts…which I guess makes it not low-fat. Thanks for the great bread!
Decreased the sugar/Increased the cocoa a bit, muffin-style with a lil PEANUT BUTTER in the middle. yummm!
Simply AMAZING, the best banana bread ever! It turns out beautiful every time (and I’ve made it several times now, as my family can’t stay away from it!) I have used 1/2 whole wheat pastry flour (also white whole wheat flour) with 1/2 whole spelt flour and a hefty tablespoon of chickpea flour just to make it healthier, and it still comes out fabulouse!
This is happening. Right now.
It’s in the oven!
Made this for Thanksgiving and it was a HUGE hit! No one believed that it was vegan, and it was so delicious. One minor change, I used hot cocoa mix instead of unsweetened cocoa powder, worked really well!
This was absolutely the best banana bread I have ever made; nonetheless, ever tasted! So thankful for you, Isa!! 😀
I made it with baking powder instead of baking soda and it was flat (yet still tasty) I tried again, realizing the mistake, and it was wonderful. Great recipe, and pretty easy.
SIMPLY MAHRBELOUS!!! Yum!! I confess I added some chocolate chips to the chocolate swirly part. Whirly swirly. Oh yeah. Go Isa. …LOAF BOOK! LOAF BOOK! (C’mon y’all, chant with me!)
I made these in muffin form. Same thing basically, but cooked at 350 for about 20 minutes. NOMZ.
Just about 10 minutes to go for my first loaf of this. It even looked pretty going *into* the oven! Can’t wait to share it tomorrow with my pals!!
in the oven, looking fabulous!!! can’t wait to have a bite!
I didn’t have bananas available so I criss-crossed the Super Moist Pumpkin Bread, Best Pumpkin Muffins Ever!, and this Marbled Banana Bread into muffins O~~O They’re in the oven now and I have to say this is the best tasting batter I’ve made yet!~ Oh and when I prepared the melty chocolate I put the vanilla extract in there :O So hopefully the swirls will have a pop!
How would I modify this recipe if I wanted to make mini loaves as gifts?
Just a shorter baking time. I dunno, 20 minutes or so?
This is an amazing, good-looking and delicious loaf!
I would love this recipe even more if it made a larger amount to fit a bigger loaf pan: 9 x 5 x 3 inches. How could I adjust the measurements for that?
Absolutely DELISH! I changed a few things and this recipe adapts well.
Used 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 splenda; changed the oil to applesauce.
So good! Was gone too quickly. Need to make more!
This is very delicious! I made it yesterday, and everyone who tried it loved it. I used applesauce instead of the oil. I think I might add some vegan chocolate chips to this recipe the next time I make it. 🙂
Made this last week and it was wonderful! Going to make again tonight, only I am going to double up the chocolate and make it ALL chocolate not marbled – and tell the kids it is chocolate cake! They will never know it is good for them:) Mwah ha ha ha…..
I’ve made this a few time and it is fantastic. A big hit wonderful moist and the marbled look is great.
Forgot to give my report back on this yummy banana bread. It turned out perfectly, soft with a great texture, definitely not dry at all. It makes a perfect afternoon tea loaf as it’s not too indulgent…although the suggestion in the comments of adding some choc chips to the choc part does sound pretty good 🙂
This is my all-time favorite banana bread recipe! I have made it a hundred times since it first posted and it is foolproof…… I have added a cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips to the batter (before incorporating the cocoa) for a decadent, dessert-type version… and it is absolutely delicious. Thanks Isa for all of your wonderful recipes & inspiration!
.. A “hundred times” is a bit of an exaggeration I admit…..but I was won over from the start -it is so good….:)
so, call me weird, but i made this with 1/2 cup mashed bananas and 1/2 cup mashed sweet potatoes. because, well – its what i had on hand i also cut the sugar in half and added a crumb topping instead. IT WAS AWESOME!
Made this… Loved this… So good 🙂
I just made this and it was a hit, I used whole wheat pastry flour instead of all purpose. It turned out amazing. It was a hit even with the non-vegan people. I am going to make this again right away.
Made this today. We are not vegan so I added an egg as well as 1 T. of flax seeds – I like my baked goods fluffy. Delicious. Thanks for another winner.
This banana was so so good and obviously so fun to look at. I followed the reciepe but instead of using butter subsituted the 2 tablespoons of oil for 2 tablespoons of applesauce and it turned out awesome. I also cooked it an extra 10 min, the applesauce usually adds on a couple minute but yayyy this stuff is great!!!
Could I use coconut oil instead of canola? The only reason I ask is because I thought about adding shredded coconut to my loaf.
Yes of course!
Doubled the recipe and made it into a layer cake with vegan buttercream frosting…bake the two round cake layers for about 30 minutes…topped the icing with crushed walnuts…delicious!
I made this last night and it came out beautifully! The marble effect was awesome, the texture was moist and just a little crumbly =P It wasn’t too sweet also, which I appreciated. My boyfriend and I gobbled it up promptly ~ Thanks for the great recipe!
This is very moist and delicious Banana Bread. I will be sharing it with my readers too 🙂
I hope i didn’t miss this somewhere, but any recommendations for bake times/temps for muffins with this recipe?
Jenna- someone mentioned up there ^ that they baked 12 muffins for 18 minutes.
I just made this and it was great! It didn’t rise anywhere near as much as yours did though; yours looks so pretty! Mine’s about 2 1/2 inches high. I don’t know why some of us are getting flat loaves, but at least they still taste good!
Made this for the second time in two weeks, it’s amazing and great for serving to company because it looks impressive! But it’s so easy. And thanks for the tip about the hot water, it has made it really light and fluffy!
This would have to be the BEST banana bread I have ever made (I have made a lot). I love how dense and moist it is. I have also made it without the cocoa and added a little more banana…worked perfectly every time!