Healthy Oatmeal Zucchini Banana Bread made with rolled oats, no added sweetener, and no oil! This moist and delicious zucchini banana bread is an amazing snack or breakfast.
Combining two of my favorite recipes – The Best Gluten-Free Banana Bread with The Best Gluten-Free Zucchini Bread – generates an ultra classic loaf that everyone can be excited about!
This healthy zucchini bread recipe is sweetened entirely with banana, requires no oil, and is naturally gluten-free.
Made with rolled oats, this delicious bread is a good source of whole grains and complex carbohydrates, ideal for a pre-workout or post-workout treat to replenish glycogen.
In addition, because we’re using a great deal of banana for both sweetness and moisture, we don’t need to use oil and the banana bread is still moist.
Recipe Highlights:
- Flourless and Gluten-Free
- Oil-Free
- Dairy-Free
- No added sweetener
- Great source of complex carbohydrates
Rolled oats get blended into a flour in your blender, then everything gets mixed together in a mixing bowl.
This healthy zucchini oatmeal banana bread is very lightly sweet, so if you like your breads on the sweeter end, feel free to add anywhere between two tablespoons and half a cup of your favorite granulated sweetener, such as coconut sugar, maple sugar, regular cane sugar, or sugar-free sweetener.
If you’re adding pure maple syrup, I wouldn’t recommend adding more than a couple of tablespoons as other adjustments would need to be made to the recipe to offset the added moisture.
Let’s discuss the simple ingredients for this banana zucchini bread.
Ingredients for Healthy Oatmeal Zucchini Banana Bread:
Rolled Oats: Used in place of flour, we blend up rolled oats to create the base for this banana bread. All you need to do is buzz old fashioned oats up in a high-powered blender until it resembles the consistency of flour.
If you don’t have oats on hand, use 1 ⅔ cups of gluten-free all-purpose flour.
I use gluten-free sprouted rolled oats, which are also glyphosate-free.
Ripe Bananas: Use overripe bananas with plenty of brown spots for the best results. Because we’re using bananas as the majority of the sweetener, we want them to be nice and sweet, so the more ripe, the better.
Zucchini: Grated zucchini brings that unique earthy flavor to the zucchini bread. A perfect use for an abundance of fresh zucchini from the garden.
Eggs: A couple of large eggs helps to fluff up the bread and make it nice and fluffy. I haven’t tested the recipe using an egg substitute like flax egg for a vegan zucchini bread so I’m not sure what other adjustments (if any) would be needed.
Vanilla Extract: While vanilla extract is optional, it adds a nice warm flavor to the bread to help round out the flavor palate.
Baking Soda: Used as the leavening agent, baking soda helps the bread rise and keeps it held together nicely.
Lemon Juice: Lemon juice is added to react with the baking soda. Anything acidic works here, like cider vinegar, rice vinegar, etc.
Cinnamon: Bringing warmth to this inviting quick bread, ground cinnamon is an absolute must in my opinion. It also helps the bread taste sweeter without the need for added sugar.
Sea Salt: Salt enhances all of the individual flavors in the bread and brings out the natural sweetness.
Optional Additions:
For a sweeter banana bread, add anywhere from 2 tablespoons to ½ cup of coconut sugar, maple sugar, white sugar, or brown sugar.
In order to make chocolate chip zucchini banana bread, add 1 cup of chocolate chips.
Add ⅔ cup of chopped walnuts or pecans if you like them.
Because this bread is not very sweet, choose your additions based on your sweet tooth.
Now that we’ve covered the simple ingredients, let’s bake a loaf!
How to Make Oatmeal Zucchini Banana Bread:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a 9” x 5” loaf pan with parchment paper.
Transfer the oats to a high-powered blender or food processor and blend on medium to high speed until a flour forms. This only takes about 20 to 30 seconds. It is fine if the flour is a little bit gritty…you just want all of the big chunks of oats to be pulverized.
Use a box grater to grate the zucchini and measure out 1 cup.
Mash the bananas in a separate mixing bowl then whisk in the grated zucchini, eggs, vanilla extract and lemon juice (the wet ingredients).
Note: there’s no need to drain the shredded zucchini of excess moisture, as I have compensated for the moisture with the flour content.
Add the dry ingredients (oat flour, baking soda, sea salt, and cinnamon) into the bowl with the wet ingredients and stir until everything is combined.
Transfer the banana bread batter to the prepared pan and smooth it into an even layer.
Bake for 40 minutes, then cover with foil and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until the bread tests clean.
Remove from the oven and allow the bread to cool for at least 30 minutes. Lift up on the parchment paper and place the loaf on a cutting board. Cut thick slices and enjoy!
Leave the leftovers in the loaf pan and wrap it tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and store it on the counter for up to 3 days. You can also store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
You can also slice the remainder of the loaf into individual slices and store it in freezer bags in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Enjoy this healthy zucchini banana bread recipe! It’s a great recipe for an afternoon snack, especially with melted butter on top of the bread. This moist bread is the perfect way of using up summer zucchini and brown bananas, and it may just be your new favorite banana bread recipe.
If you love classic quick breads, also try out these delicious gluten-free delights!
More Healthy Quick Bread Recipes:
- Paleo Morning Glory Quick Bread
- Keto Cinnamon Swirl Bread
- Grain-Free Hummingbird Bread
- Paleo Pumpkin Banana Bread with Coconut Flour
- Low-Carb Carrot Cake Bread
- Gluten-Free Apple Cinnamon Bread
Enjoy this fresh and tasty loaf!
Healthy Oatmeal Zucchini Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 3 large ripe bananas mashed (about 1.5 cups)
- 1 cup grated zucchini
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract optional
- 1 tsp lemon juice*
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a 9” x 5” loaf pan with parchment paper.
- Transfer the oats to a high-powered blender or food processor and blend on medium to high speed until a flour forms. This only takes about 20 to 30 seconds. It is fine if the flour is a little bit gritty…you just want all of the big chunks of oats to be pulverized.
- Use a box grater to grate the zucchini and measure out 1 cup.
- Mash the bananas in a mixing bowl.
- Whisk in the grated zucchini, eggs, vanilla extract and lemon juice (the wet ingredients). Note: there's no need to drain the shredded zucchini of excess moisture, as I have compensated for the moisture with the flour content.
- Add the dry ingredients (oat flour, baking soda, sea salt, and cinnamon) into the bowl with the wet ingredients and stir until everything is combined.
- Transfer the banana bread batter to the prepared pan and smooth it into an even layer.
- Bake for 40 minutes, then cover with foil and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until the bread tests clean.
- Remove from the oven and allow the bread to cool for at least 30 minutes. Tug on the edges of the parchment paper to lift the loaf out of the pan and place it on a cutting board. Cut thick slices and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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This looks perfect! I have oat flour on hand and would like to use it for this recipe. How much flour would be equivalent to 2 cups rolled oats?
@Jeannette, 1 1/2 cups oat flour
Hi Jeannette! If you haven’t tried it yet, I would use 1 1/2 cups of oat flour and adjust as needed if the batter seems too thin. If it looks like the consistency is thin, add 2 to 8 more tablespoons, a little at a time, until the consistency resembles regular banana bread. Hope this helps! xoxo
@Julia, thank you, I was wondering the same thing. I made this banana bread as instructed and it was the most moist banana bread I’ve ever had, even considering there was no flour in it! This will now be on my regular rotation 🙂
I’m so thrilled you enjoy it, Carrie! We’ve been making it over and over again! Can’t get enough. 🙂 xo
Mine is in the oven. I added raisins for some sweetness
Hi Linda! Thanks so much for sharing! Thrilled you made the bread, and I hope you enjoy it! xoxo
Yum! Do you think this could work as muffins?
Hi Jennifer! I haven’t tested the recipes as muffins yet, but I imagine they would work. My only worry is that because the bread doesn’t contain oil, the muffins may stick to muffin papers or the sides of the muffin tray. Nevertheless, they may work like a charm and I can update the post as soon as I have a chance to test it myself. I would do 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes (or until they test clean), and I would allow them to cool completely to room temperature before trying to peel off the muffin papers. Let me know if you try it! xoxo
@Julia, I made them as muffins and coated the muffin pan with coconut oil and they didn’t stick at all!
Yaaay! That’s great news! Thanks so much for sharing, Allie! xo
Will 2 flax eggs work in place of 2 eggs?
Hi Sydney!
I haven’t tested the recipe using flax eggs yet, so I can’t say firsthand whether or not it would work. Because the oats aren’t very starchy, my gut feeling it the structure of the bread may end up pretty dense and not rise very much. If you’re alright with this, it may be worth the try, but I can’t guarantee the texture will fluff up without regular eggs. Hope this helps! Let me know if you try it! xoxo
Never made banana bread using rolled oats. Must try this sounds like a healthier way.
Let me know if you try it! This is my preferred method for making banana bread now 🙂 xoxo
Very nice recipe chef 👍👌👏. Thank you for your effort 🌞😎
My pleasure! So happy you like it, Jasson! xoxo
Hello again! I made this yesterday and it turned out great! It was quite easy and quick to make. It was a big hit around here and yes, it is going fast!
I didn’t have any parchment paper so I just sprayed the loaf pan and it worked fine. Only had cinnamon in a jar of middle eastern 7 spice so…..I used it instead and it worked fine. Added some brown sugar as suggested.
Anyway, it tastes delicious, is nicely moist, and is a great solution to aging bananas and zucchini surplus this time of year. Thanks for another top notch recipe!
I’m so happy you’re enjoying the bread! We’ve been baking loaf after loaf to keep it on hand! Also great to know that the recipe works out with a sprayed pan, as I hadn’t tested that myself yet! This is so helpful. Also love the idea of adding Middle Eastern 7 spice…must be delicious!! xoxo
I just made this today. I think I would’ve preferred it a little drier but it tastes amazing. Will definitely try this again.
So happy to hear it, Jessica! You could bake the bread a little longer if it seems like it isn’t testing clean. Bananas can vary in their moisture content, so sometimes the bread will end up just right and sometimes it will seem a little too moist. xoxo
Haven’t made it yet, but love recipes with no added sugar. My son has Diabetes. I will make this for him. I may at a little stevia for sweetness, or Swerve.
I love the idea of adding some sugar-free sweetener! Great way to boost the deliciousness without adding excess sugar. xo
Thanks for the recipe. Not too bad for being sugar free. I added 2 Tbsp of date syrup.
Love that! I’ll have to try it with date syrup as well…sounds great! xo
Made two loaves yesterday – one with nuts, chocolate chips and raisins, and one with nuts and chocolate chips for my raisin-hating child. It’s easy, delicious and I didn’t feel a bit guilty eating it for breakfast this morning! Question – could I add protein powder to the batter? Would it need extra moisture, say from a bit more zucchini?
Ooh, that sounds fantastic! I think you could get away with adding up to 3 tablespoons of protein powder without having to add additional liquid. Any more than that and I would probably add more zucchini or a little avocado oil. Hope that helps!
I’ve been making zucchini bread AND banana bread over the last couple of weeks, in part to prove to my daughter that she would like zucchini bread. What a great idea to combine both, as there’s a similarity to both breads. I’m gonna try this!
I hope you and your daughter love it, Kayla!! xoxox
Could I use quick oats instead for this recipe?
Hi Daisy! Quick oats will work! I’ve found they sometimes condense down more than rolled oats, so if you don’t get about 2 cups of “flour” from the oats, I would blend up a little more before proceeding. Hope this helps! xo
What’s the *, next to the lemon juice, for?
Hi Ellen! The * is to signify you can replace the lemon juice with any type of vinegar – Seems as though I neglected to actually put that note in the recipe card. Thanks for catching this! I added the note 🙂 I hope you enjoy the bread!
Fantastic oil, gluten, sugar free recipe! I added walnuts, flax seed, cacao nibs, and a grated apple along with this recipe as written. Delicious nutritious and
comes together quickly. Thanks for a great foundational recipe.
I will have fun adapting with a variety of add ins.
Wahoo! I love hearing that! Thanks so much for sharing, Anna!
This looks delicious! Will make this tonight. Thanks so much for sharing this. Love your recipe instructions and variations!
My pleasure, Susan! I hope you enjoy the bread! xo
Absolutely love this bread! I did add the dark chocolate chips but there is no sugar besides them! Wanted to add a picture of slice and loaf but did not see how?
Ah yaay! I’m happy you enjoy it, Linda!! I wish WordPress allowed people to add photos to their comments, but to my knowledge this isn’t available yet. I appreciate the thought, though! Some of my Facebook followers like to add photos to their comments on recipes, so that would be an option if you wanted to do the same 🙂
Thank you for this recipe. Its so hard to find one that is healthy with out any kind of nuts. My husband is allergic to tree nuts and coconut, its very hard to find healthy that does not use almond flour or coconut or any other nut type in the recipe. Thank you! I am going to look over your other recipies to see if you have more with out nuts.
I’m so happy to hear you like the idea of the recipe and that it will work for your husband! I have quite a few nut-free recipes that don’t contain coconut, so I hope you find some good ones you enjoy. Let me know if there is anything specific you are looking for and I can send some links your way 🙂 xoxo
Hi! Am trying thus today, and I’m about 1/4 cup shy of the 1.5 needed of bananas. Was going to add applesauce to make up the difference. Thoughts? Has anyone else used a substitute for lack of the full amount in the recipe? Thanks. Sounds wonderful!
Hi Betsy! Applesauce works great to make up the difference! I used applesauce and bananas interchangeably a lot in baked goods. 🙂 Hope you enjoy the bread! xo
Hello, is it OK to use frozen bananas
Hi Teresa! You can use frozen bananas but just be sure to thaw them completely before using them. 🙂 Hope you enjoy the bread! xo
Sounds delicious! I’ll be adding dark chocolate chips, chia seeds and walnuts…and vanilla protein powder…
Oooh, what a combination! I love it! I hope you enjoy the bread, Iris! xo
Love this. I’ve made it now two weeks in a row for my breakfast before work. Easy to take along in the car. The first time I didn’t add any sugar and that was a mistake so the second time around added 1/2 cup brown sugar and it’s perfect.
I’m so thrilled to hear you enjoy the bread, Bailey! Thanks so much for sharing your experience! xo