Vegan Oatmeal Banana Bread

Flourless Vegan Oatmeal Banana Bread made with basic wholesome ingredients for a moist, delicious, and healthy banana bread recipe. Whip this loaf up on a weekly basis to enjoy whenever the craving strikes. The recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, and refined sugar-free and this post includes plenty of options for customization.

After my Flourless Oatmeal Banana Bread was so well received a couple of years ago, I decided I wanted to make an egg-free version for my friends or are vegan or who have egg allergies.

So here we are!

Enjoying a moist, dense, lovely loaf of egg-free banana bread that has the most glorious burst of banana flavor.

Of course, we add in some chocolate chips, because we know how to party.

Many of the vegan banana bread recipes I’ve seen on the internet include almond butter, peanut butter, or a seed butter. Albeit delicious, I wanted to offer up a nut-free option to those with nut allergies or sensitivities.

While I’ve done a decent amount of vegan baking in my day, I haven’t had great success using flax eggs, aquafaba, chia eggs, or other egg replacers in bread recipes like this. 

For me, they have always turned out very dense, with that raw effect in the center.

Because of my track record with those particular egg replacers, I simply don’t use them in vegan breads and vegan pancakes. 

Instead, I rely on a carefully crafted wet-to-dry ratio, ensure there is enough fat in the recipe, and am always sure to increase the amount of leavening agents for the optimal rise.

In my experience, it can be difficult to create a baked good that is both very low in fat and egg-free and still expect it to taste good.

While I wanted to make this vegan oatmeal banana bread recipe both egg-free and oil-free, I just knew there would be issues with the texture and flavor. 

But lo and behold, the combination of ingredients here results in a delicious quick bread that is just as much a treat as it is good for you! A great source of complex carbs, dietary fiber, and healthy fats, this is a great recipe to have on hand for a quick snack or a grab and go breakfast.

So let us discuss the simple ingredients in detail, as each of them plays an important role in the success of this delicious banana bread recipe.

Ingredients for Vegan Oatmeal Banana Bread:

Rolled Oats: The star of the show here. Old fashioned rolled oats are the base of this flourless banana bread recipe. They take the place of all-purpose flour while adding a nice boost of complex carbohydrates and fiber. I use sprouted gluten-free oats but you can pick your favorite oats. Quick oats will work just fine too.

Ripe Bananas: Use overripe bananas that have plenty of brown spots to maximize the sweetness and the banana flavor. If your ripe bananas are very large, just use two instead of three to keep the moisture content accurate.

Non-Dairy Milk of Choice: I use full-fat canned coconut milk for the milk portion of this recipe, because the fat content adds more moisture and flavor to the loaf. You can use any dairy free milk such as oat milk, almond milk, soy milk, cashew milk, or any milk you enjoy. I do highly recommend going the canned coconut milk route, though to get those moist crumbs and the best results.

Avocado Oil: Ensuring we end up with a delicious moist banana bread, we use a little avocado oil as our moist maker. If you prefer using olive oil, grapeseed oil, almond oil, or melted coconut oil, feel free to make the swap.

Pure Maple Syrup: While the ripe bananas provide a good deal of sweetness, the bread could use a little sweetener. I use pure maple syrup to keep it refined sugar-free.

If you make this bread and you find you want it to be sweeter, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of brown sugar or coconut sugar in addition to the pure maple syrup.

Baking Powder, Baking Soda, and Apple Cider Vinegar: Because we aren’t using eggs in this recipe, we use slightly more leavening agent than we otherwise would if we were using eggs.

Be sure to look at the expiration dates on the packages of baking soda and powder to be sure they aren’t expired. We use the cider vinegar to create the chemical reaction with the baking soda. Substitute it for anything acidic, like lemon juice or rice vinegar.

Vanilla Extract: A splash of vanilla extract brings lovely warmth and depth of flavor to the bread. You can skip it if you don’t have any on hand.

Cinnamon: Ground cinnamon adds warm flavor to banana bread and gives it that iconic coffee shop vibe. 

Sea Salt: Using enough salt is important to ensure all of the flavors of the bread are maximized. We don’t use too much to the point that the bread is salty, but use enough to bring out the flavor of the bananas, the sweetness, and the delicious rich chocolate. 

Chocolate Chips: While chocolate chips are optional, they are actually mandatory. Just kidding. Chocolate chips provide a nice little pop of sweetness and rich chocolatey goodness. Stick with vegan chocolate chips to keep the recipe vegan. Use semi sweet or dark chocolate chips!

Recipe Adaptations:

• If you prefer using gluten-free all-purpose flour instead of oats, make my Vegan Banana Bread recipe, which uses a GF blend.
• Add in ½ to ⅔ cup of chopped walnuts or pecans if you love banana nut bread.
• If you don’t need this recipe to be vegan, just egg-free, you can substitute ¼ cup of melted butter for the avocado oil and use regular milk instead of the non-dairy milk.
• Swap the chocolate chips for dried fruit such as raisins, dried cranberries, or chopped dates.
• If you’d like to add 1 tablespoon of chia seeds to added omega 3s, feel free to do so, and also increase the amount of milk to 1/2 cup.
• Use agave nectar or coconut nectar as a replacement for pure maple syrup.
• Sprinkle a little bit of cacao nibs on top of this delicious loaf before it goes into the oven to add a fun little crunch to the top.
• If you want to add protein powder to this easy banana bread recipe, go for it! If you’re adding more than 2 tablespoons of protein powder, also add equal parts milk.

Now that we’re familiar with the basics, let’s make this delicious healthy oatmeal banana bread recipe.

How to Make Vegan Oatmeal Banana Bread:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a 9” x 5” loaf pan with parchment paper.

Add the rolled oats to a high-powered blender (or food processor) and blend until a flour forms. It’s perfectly fine if the flour is somewhat coarse and not very fine.

Transfer the remaining ingredients (both the wet ingredients and the dry ingredients) to the blender except for the chocolate chips. Blend until a thick, smooth batter forms. You may need to stop the blender once or twice to scrape the sides with a rubber spatula.

Stir the chocolate chips into the batter until they are well-distributed.

Pour the banana bread batter into the prepared loaf pan and spread it into an even layer. If you’d like, top the loaf with more chocolate chips.

Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is golden brown and the bread has risen substantially. I do 40 minutes on the dot.

Remove the bread from the oven and allow it to cool to room temperature before slicing and serving (this ensures the slices hold together nicely).

You can cover the loaf pan in plastic wrap and keep it on the counter for 2 days. Past that, transfer any leftovers to an airtight container or zip lock bag and refrigerate for up to 1 week. You can also freeze this banana bread in a large zip lock or freezer bag for up to 3 months. 

Serve slices of this gluten-free vegan banana bread warm with vegan butter or almond butter or peanut butter smeared on top if you can do nuts.

And that’s it! A cozy banana bread recipe that is just as nourishing as it is delicious!

If you enjoy sweet treats or oatmeal recipes like this delicious gluten-free vegan banana bread, you may also love these recipes as well.

More Vegan Recipes: 

• Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Pancakes
• 4-Ingredient Banana Oatmeal Bars
• Carrot Cake Overnight Oats
• Healthy 6-Ingredient Apple Oatmeal Cookies 
• Strawberry Oatmeal Bars 
• Paleo Cranberry Orange Vegan Scones
• Vegan Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal

The next time you’re craving a hefty slice of banana bread, make this vegan banana bread recipe for a healthy breakfast. Don’t say I didn’t warn you, but I’m betting you’ll want to eat the entire loaf.

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