This healthier Greek Yogurt Banana Bread is made without butter or oil, but so soft and tender that you’d never be able to tell! Naturally sweetened and loaded with banana flavour, it makes a great healthier alternative to a traditional favourite!
I realized an embarrassing thing the other day. Well, two embarrassing things.
The first was that I somehow managed to miss a few patches when I was shaving my right leg. Which wouldn’t have been horrible had I not had someone else point it out to me two days after the fact. Awkward.
The second was that, for how much I adore it, I don’t really have any banana bread recipes here on Spoons. I mean, I do, but I basically posted them as recipes in passing without really giving them the kind of attention they deserved. So it’s time to rectify that mistake…
Banana bread is one of two three sweet treats that hold a special place in my heart — the other two being chocolate chip oatmeal cookies and Black Forest cake. And if you’re wondering what those three things could possibly have in common, the answer is: almost nothing other than the fact that they’re delicious and basically epitomize my childhood. Well, the homemade baked goodie portion of my childhood, anyways.
I’ve been baking for pretty much as long as I can remember, and almost all of those early baking memories involve hanging out in the kitchen and “helping” Mom make one of the aforementioned treats, with cookies being the most common, Black Forest happening for every.single special occasion, and the elusive banana bread making an appearance on the off-chance that we had some ripe bananas lying around… which wasn’t really that often.
I actually remember not believing my mom when she said that we couldn’t make banana bread because the bananas weren’t ripe enough. My little 7 year-old self saw yellow bananas on the counter and couldn’t understand what more my mom wanted from them. Bananas were bananas… weren’t they? It wasn’t until many years later when I realized that there actually was a huge difference in not only the sweetness, but the texture that properly ripe bananas add to whatever you throw them in. Not to mention the increased health benefits.
Anywho, maybe it’s because it was such a rare occurrence, or maybe it’s because it’s just plain delicious, but banana bread secured one of the coveted top 3 spots in my heart, and it continues to hold that spot to this day. Which makes the fact that I couldn’t even remember the last time I had a slice of it that much more embarrassing…
But like I said… it’s been rectified.
I originally posted a slightly modified version of this recipe a couple years ago, but it pretty much got lost in the archives since I wasn’t serious about food blogging at that point, and had no idea about photography, SEO, social media promotion, etc… which is a shame because it’s really kind of amazing. And by “really kind of amazing” I mean it’s easily my favourite recipe for healthy banana bread.
Soft, tender, subtly sweet, and loaded with banana flavour, you’d never be able to tell that this banana bread is made without butter or oil. Instead, it’s got Greek yogurt to keep it moist, with an extra egg and some coconut sugar to help out.
The recipe calls for 1/2 cup, but you’d be fine cutting that down to 1/3 cup if you like your breads a little less sweet. And this is especially true if you were planning on tossing in some chocolate chips. I like my banana bread without any add-ins, so I passed on the chocolate (I know, I know) and played around with the sweetness instead. Both versions were delicious — it really depends on how sweet you like it!
Happy eating!
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Greek Yogurt Banana Bread
- Total Time: 50 mins
- Yield: 12 slices 1x
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (180 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 2 large eggs
- 2 medium-sized ripe bananas (200 g or 1 cup mashed)
- 1/2 cup (115 g) plain or vanilla Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) maple syrup
- 1/4 cup (50 g) brown sugar
- Optional add-ins: 1/2 cup chocolate chips/raisins/nuts
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350ºF (176ºC), and lightly grease a 9 x 5 (23cm x 13cm) loaf pan.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a smaller mixing bowl, lightly beat the eggs until the yolks break apart. Whisk in the mashed bananas, yogurt, maple syrup, and sugar (if using), mixing until smooth.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, mixing gently until just combined. Do not overmix. If you’re adding any mix-ins, fold them in now.
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan, spreading it out evenly, and bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
- Remove the bread from the oven and let it cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring it to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
* You can also use coconut sugar.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 40 mins
Recipe was edited in March 2020 but reverted to original by popular demand.
Looking for more healthy banana recipes? Try one of these!
Banana Oat Greek Yogurt Muffins
Flourless Banana Bread Muffins
Strawberry Banana Oat Bars
Flourless Vegan Banana Muffins
Flourless Chocolate Banana Bread
This banana bread is SO GOOD. Thanks for making a recipe that’s simple AND healthy. I love baking healthy goods but it can be hard to find a recipe that doesn’t call for obscure flours, sugars/sugar substitutes etc. I did 3/4c whole wheat flour and 3/4 c all purpose. I didn’t add the extra brown sugar but did add some dark chocolate chips! This bread was even better the 2nd day– it possibly would be great on the 3rd too but it didn’t last that long!
I’m so glad you like it, Becca! And I always find that banana bread tastes better the longer it sits 🙂
I love your banana bread recipe for the fact that it contains no oil or butter, but I feel that some of the measurements are way off, metric wise. 180 g of flour is NOT 1-1/2 cups. A standard cup of flour is 150 g, therefore 1-1/2 cups in metric should be 225 g. 1/2 cup of yogurt is actually 130 g. Thus, I adjusted the measurements accordingly when making the recipe. I felt that a bit more “oomph” was needed, so I added cinnamon, mixed spice & ground ginger, about a teaspoon of each, as well as some vanilla extract. Would’ve added some orange rind (have a small tub of this freezer) if I remembered; will do that next time. Also included about a teaspoon of baking powder – most other similar recipes call for this essential ingredient unless using self-raising flour. And for added moisture & nutrition, also incorporated a 1/4 cup of oatmeal – ground finely with mortar & pestle – into the flour.
I’m having a couple slices of the result as I type this. Moist & spongy & not dense at all. Perfect for a midday snack, as it’s not too heavy nor too sweet. Probably tastes divine with butter but I like eating it plain. All in all, your recipe is very good, though it could stand more tweaking. Next time when I find bananas going cheap at the greengrocers or market, I’ll be sure to get a bunch to mash up & do this recipe again.
All in all, the recipe i
Thanks for your helpful review, Irene! For the metric conversions for flour, it really depends a lot on the type of flour and the region you live in. Almost all the flour I buy says that 1/4 cup is 30g, so 1 cup comes out to 120. I’ve seen others use 125, but never anything much higher than that. I’m glad your bread worked out, though!
WAY TOO MUCH BAKING SODA. I tried this recipe and use vanilla greek yogurt and to be honest, it was GROSS. The bitterness was so overpowering that you could barely taste the banana, and you couldn’t taste any sweetness at all. I tasted more like medicine than dessert.
A general rule is to use 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda for every 1 cup of flour.
I am currently trying this recipe with half the amount of baking soda in the recipe and more bananas and brown sugar. I’ll post an update when it’s done.
No still not good. The bitterness is gone (yay!!) but the banana bread is still bland. Not much banana flavour and not very sweet.
It taste like bread with a hint of banana…
I would recommend adding more bananas and more sugar to the recipe. IMO, the maple syrup makes no difference (btw I am using the highest quality real maple syrup from Quebec maple trees and it still doesnt taste great). Add more sugar… much more…
Sorry to hear it didn’t work out for you, Nicole. Tonnes of my readers have made and loved this recipe, so I’m not sure why that wasn’t the case for you.
Just made your banana bread and it was amazing. Quick and delicious. Thank you!
This was so good! I used 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and the maple syrup but no brown sugar, and added 1/4 cup of wheat germ. My boys loved it – it barely lasted 1/2 a day. I will be making it again soon!! Thank you so much for a healthy, easy, and delicious recipe! 🙂
Great recipe. I have tried this a few times and added in walnuts, which my family loves. This last time I tried using almond flour and the middle of the cake kinda collapsed. It tasted great but any suggestions on how to prevent this from happening. I made the almond flour at home.
Sorry RB, but I’m not 100% sure since I didn’t make this recipe with almond flour. My first guess would be that there are too many wet ingredients since almond flour isn’t quite as absorbent as wheat flour. You could try replacing the maple syrup with an extra 1/4 cup of brown sugar to reduce some of the liquids.
Hi made it, but forgot the eggs. So it turned out pretty dense. Very moist. Everyone still liked it. B
Several noteworthy things:
1. Yep, I’m a PATCH misser, not just a spot, when shaving my Legs. Lol
2. Coconut Flour is GF. Wonder who it would work? I would think it would give it an amazibg taste, but not sure of the texture…
3. Bananas can be frozen if they’ve became overripe, and one doesn’t have time to make bread that day.
I usually peel and place in a smaller zip tip bag, two or three to a bag, squeeze out the air and seal. I do this for all that have became overripe, unless I am about to use them. I then place in a larger freezer zip top bag, get the air out, seal, and freeze. Voilà, Bananas ready when I am. I also use these for my wet homemade dog food, so I have Zero banana waste except the peeling. 😉
My first banana bread ever and what a success! It’s fluffy and light and I really like it. What a great and simple recipe. I will definitely bake it again.
Definitely plan on making this today! But can I use honey instead of the maple syrup?
That should work fine, Meena! I hope you like it 😀
I made this today Amanda. It really is a lovely recipe. I used less than half a cup of maple syrup and omitted the sugar and it was just right. I added a touch of cinnamon too. Lovely and light and the banana flavour comes through beautifully. Thanks for a great recipe!
I’m so glad that you liked it, Erica! Thank you for taking the time to leave such a lovely comment along with the modification you made 🙂
I made this recipe by replacing the 1 1/2 cups of flour for 1/2/3 cups of light/white spelt flour. I also used full fat plain greek yogurt. It is so delicious. The perfect sweetness, crumb, and banana flavor. Perfect banana bread.
I’m so glad you liked it, Loyda! Thanks so much for letting me know 😀
I’d love to make this. I have so many ripe bananas right now.
Would love to try making muffins so I can make some with nuts for my husband, some plain (son) and some with chocolate chips (for me and daughter). How long should I bake them for if using muffin pan with silicone cups??
For muffins, I would check them at about 18 minutes and watch them from there. They should go anywhere from 18-20 minutes.
Amanda, these banana muffins were the best! I made them into muffins and 18 mins were perfect! They are so moist, light and full of flavor. I didn’t use maple syrup and didn’t miss them. This will be my go to banana bread/muffin recipe from here on out!
I really appreciated the metric weights for this recipe. I can make this in one bowl with my handy scale and not use any measuring cups. So awesome!!
Where have you been all my life??? 😉
Now on to check out your other recipes. Already found you on Facebook and instagram.
Thanks so much for taking the time to leave such a wonderful comment, Susan! I’m so glad you made and enjoyed the recipe 😀
I was so excited when I saw this recipe and decided to give it a crack. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out as well as I expected. I followed this recipe to the T but the banana bread was way too dense and soggy and it took over an hour in the oven for it to actually cook properly. It barely rose at all and doesn’t look nearly as good as the pictures. On the up side, it tastes alright especially since there’s no butter/oil in it. Might give this another crack and add some more baking soda and flour, but bit disappointed at the moment 🙁
The same thing happened to me precisely. Nothing like the picture and took a long time to cook in the oven…still looks soft and uncooked. Let’s see how it’ll taste. Don’t know what I could have done wrong. About an hour in the oven and still looks pale.
Hi,
I used a similar recipe but used 1/2 cup of cornstarch because I didn’t have enough flour. I also used a Greek yogurt ( thicker) and the recipie came out fantastic. But when I tried the recipe again with flour and plain yogurt, the recipient was too dense and didn’t look like it baked all the way through as other readers mentioned. I tried it twice and had to throw it out. Next time I’ll use the cornstarch and thicker yogurt.. Another great suggestion for a taste is to use cream cheese. Good luck!
I have used your recipe twice in the last two weeks. It is really lovely.
Thanks for this.
Carol (from Sunny South Africa)
Hi Loved This! Turned out great! Any idea on the Calories and Nutritional Value!?
Thanks
Stef 🙂
Sorry Stef, but I don’t calculate the nutritional value of my recipes. You can use a calculator like this one to figure it out — http://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/calculator
Pop all the ingredients into my fitness pal!
I have followed this recipe probably half a dozen times now, and overall I still like it… But every time I make this bread the center will sort of bubble up and doesn’t cook all the way through. I can insert a knife all over the bread and it will be cooked except for usually this 2 square inch area. Any idea why this is happening? I would attach a photo if I could.
I just made this recipe yesterday and it was great, the texture is absolutely perfect. However, it actually wasn’t as “banana-y” as I would have liked, but I think I can just tweak a few things here and there. Also, I just found out you’re also from Edmonton! 🙂
Oh that’s so great! I love coming across fellow Edmontonians 😀 Hope you’re enjoying the awesome weather we’ve been having!
Just made this recipe this morning, my family love banana bread but I don’t make often because of the fat content. I left out the brown sugar as the bananas I had were very ripe. I have to say this is absolutely delicious, light and moist and so quick to make. I now have a new recipe and we can have banana bread as often as we like. Thank you for sharing Amanda.
I’m so glad that you and your family liked it, Lynn! Thanks for taking the time to let me know 🙂
Have you ever calculated the calories/nutrition for this?
I tried and got 120 calories per serving.
Hey lady – I haven’t made it yet but I know you’re my kind of gal when it comes to foods, food flavors, cooking, and baking. I knew it from the moment you mentioned the bananas “not being ripe enough”. Most of my family had difficulties with me refusing to eat certain foods due to texture and flavor changes over time, especially with bananas. If I am eating a banana raw, it still has to be slightly green. If it gets “ripe”, it will have to get “just past ripe” to go in a recipe.
With help from a nutritionist, I am incorporating more and more bananas into my diet, so this will be a great new way to use the bananas I won’t eat raw.
Thanks!
Hey Amanda – This bread is deceptively delicious!
I made this today and it came out fantastic!! Such an easy recipe but so delicious. I made it exactly as written and it was perfect. My house smelled so good! My kids were so excited when they walked in the door as they smelled the goodness that had just been in the oven.
I’m so glad you made them and that you and your family liked them, Hollie! Thanks for taking the time to let me know 🙂
Just made with half whole wheat flour and 2 T of smoked brown sugar + walnuts.
Yum!