This Chocolate Banana Bread uses coconut oil and honey in place of butter and sugar, for a super moist and healthier version of indulgent chocolate bread.
This chocolate banana bread sweetened with honey and coconut oil has immediately become one of our favorite dessert breads, along with our favorite sun dried tomato basil dinner bread.
It is incredibly simple to make, moist, and absolutely delicious!
It's made using just one bowl for easy cleanup and bakes for just 15 minutes.
This is a "healthier" chocolate banana bread that uses pure local honey instead of processed white sugar.
And coconut oil instead of butter, to give it a subtle hint of coconut taste.
While you can make one large bread loaf, this recipe is based on making mini-muffin sized bread bites. (I'll give you instructions for how to make 1 loaf, too).
For easy portion control.
And to make a fun snack for lunch boxes and grab and go days!
Chocolate banana bread bites are a kid-friendly sweet treat, perfect for little hands to pick up. They make perfect snack sized portions not just for kids, but for parents too.
You may be wondering, how are bread bites different than muffins?
These chocolate banana bread bites will not rise like muffins do, nor will they be as crumby as muffins.
When turned into bread bites using mini muffin tins, it cooks in just 15 minutes.
Ingredients
To make chocolate banana bread, you will need:
- honey (local, organic preferred)
- overly ripe bananas
- coconut oil (raw, organic preferred)
- milk chocolate or dark chocolate chips
- sour cream (optional)
- all purpose flour
- baking powder
- cocoa powder (unsweetened)
- vanilla extract
- eggs
It's important to make sure you are using unsweetened baking cocoa powder and very very ripe bananas who's skins are nearly or entirely brown. These bananas will give you the best flavor.
I made the first batch of chocolate banana bread using milk chocolate chips and the second with dark chocolate chips. Neither was preferred over the other.
When substituting a fat in baking, you can generally go with a 1:1 ratio. So if my recipe called for ½ cup of butter, I can replace it with ½ cup of coconut oil.
While coconut oil is a versatile environment-friendly oil, it is higher in saturated fat than olive oil, making it similar to butter.
The coconut oil gives this chocolate banana bread a subtle hint of coconut, which makes it taste that much better. I choose coconut oil in baking mainly for the subtle coconut flavor.
But if you are not a big fan of coconut, use butter or olive oil for a neutral taste.
When using honey instead of sugar in any recipe, the rule of thumb is to use ½ to ⅔ cup of honey for every 1 cup of sugar.
Plus, for every 1 cup of honey, always reduce another liquid by ¼ cup. This is because honey has a high water content and if you don't reduce other liquids, your bread will not cook properly.
While refined white sugar provides no nutrients for the human body, honey is full of antioxidants, which are linked to a healthy heart and low cholesterol. Make sure to use pure honey, preferably locally sourced to ensure you're getting real honey.
Sour cream adds moisture to breads, muffins, and other baked goods.
This chocolate banana bread turned our super moist and delicious with the combination of sour cream, honey, and coconut oil.
If you don't have sour cream or don't want to use it, simply leave it out. There is no need to alter other ingredients or substitute anything else for it.
Step-By-Step Directions
To make chocolate banana bread bites, follow these easy steps:
Preheat the oven and grease mini muffin tins with cooking spray. You'll need at least 36 muffin cups if making the full recipe.
Then in a large bowl, cream the oil and honey with a fork. Add the eggs, vanilla extract and bananas and mix until well combined. Next add baking powder, flour, and cocoa powder and mix. Now add the sour cream and blend well. Last, fold in the chocolate chips. This entire process takes just 5 minutes.
The batter will be very thick, almost like pudding. Scoop it into the muffin cups, filling them nearly to the top. They will not rise like muffins, so don't worry about them overflowing or being shaped funny.
Bake for 15 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
Enjoy!
Making it in a Loaf Pan
If you prefer to skip the bread bites and make one loaf of bread, bake it at 350 degrees for 60-75 minutes.
Begin checking with a toothpick after the 60 minute mark. It will come out clean when done.
Recipe
Chocolate Banana Bread Bites
Ingredients
- ⅜ cup coconut oil
- ½ cup honey
- 2 eggs
- 3 ripe bananas, mashed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ⅛ cup cocoa powder
- 1 ½ cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup sour cream
- ½ cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375° and spray a mini muffin tin with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, cream the oil and honey. Add the eggs, vanilla, and bananas, beating until combined. Add baking powder, cocoa powder, and flour and beat until combined.
- Add sour cream and mix until distributed.
- Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Fill muffin cups to the top with batter. Bake for 15 minutes. °
Notes
Nutrition
🍞 Storing
Chocolate banana bread will keep well for roughly 3 days in an airtight container at room temperature.
Freezer: cut a full loaf into slices first and seal in plastic baggies for up to 6 months.
Defrost: defrost individual slices at room temperature at least one hour before eating.
I hope you enjoy this recipe! Please let me know how it turned out in the comments below.
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