Meet my new favorite banana bread – Buckwheat Banana Bread!
Nutty, delicious buckwheat flour has been a great addition to my kitchen pantry!
Buckwheat Banana Bread
Since revisiting the Buckwheat Chocolate Waffles, I mentioned I was going to bring more buckwheat recipes to the collection and this is a great start. The recipe is adapted from my classic Banana Bread. It’s been a ‘tried and true’ recipe for years and I had no doubt this new version using buckwheat flour would be just as successful.
At least once a week I bake a loaf of banana bread. Bananas are inexpensive in my area and I always have them on hand in different stages of ripeness. So this was a natural place for me to start subbing in buckwheat flour.
I was able to keep the recipe almost the same, only changing up a few ingredients.
- Usually, I use 4 bananas for my banana tea bread but here I used 5, with good results. You’ll have the option of using 4 or 5, it just really depends on the size of the bananas.
- Also, I used a hazelnut oil I had on hand and it was delicious, pairing well with the nuttiness of the buckwheat flour. Any neutral oil or coconut oil will do.
- I added a nice dose of cinnamon. Use a teaspoon extra if you really want to bring the cinnamon essence forward.
This recipe is extremely simple, with few ingredients. You may even already have on them all on hand!
If you’re a lover of banana bread and buckwheat, you’re going to enjoy this bread immensely!
And if you’ve never tried buckwheat flour, I suggest giving it a try for yourself to see if it’s a new must have flour to keep stocked in the pantry. Happy buckwheat loving my friends!
FYI: I just updated this Vegetable Frittata and Garden Quinoa Salad + Garlic Dressing, they’re both delicious as ever!
Buckwheat Flour – Gluten-Free & Grain-Free
Buckwheat is not wheat at all, but is in fact a seed, making it a wonderful gluten-free flour option for baking. Its flour is very distinct. The dark buckwheat flour you see here has been ground from the whole seed retaining all of its nutrition. I find it’s slightly grainier than other flours but not in a bad way (it’s only very slight). If this is new to you, you may find you need a few bites to adapt, but once you do, you’ll be a believer in this highly nutritious flour.
You can swap buckwheat flour 1 – 1 for other flours, but if you prefer you can mix other flours with it in whatever ratio you like. Sometimes I’ll mix spelt and buckwheat flour together with delicious results.
The nutritional profile of buckwheat is excellent. For every 1 cup of flour there is approx. 402 calories, 15 grams of protein, 12 grams of fiber and 3.7 grams of fat. It’s a good source of vitamin B6, thiamin and niacin, and is rich in trace minerals such as magnesium, manganese, iron, phosphorus and folate. It’s a great addition to your healthy kitchen!
Dark, nutty and delicious!
More Banana Bread Inspiration
Banana quick breads are so easy to make, and they’re affordable too! Take a look at these other banana bread recipes, you just may find a new favorite!
- Vegan Banana Bread
- Healthy Blueberry Banana Oat Bread
- Carrot Banana Bread
- Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins (can be made in a loaf pan)
BUCKWHEAT BANANA BREAD
Buckwheat, a nutty flavored and highly nutritious flour, makes a great replacement for white flours. It works perfectly in this banana bread recipe!
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 50 min
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: Makes 8 - 10 slices
- Category: Quick Bread
- Cuisine: Gluten-Free, Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups (245 g) buckwheat flour
- 1/3 cup (75 g) pure cane or coconut sugar (or maple syrup)
- 2 heaping teaspoons cinnamon
- 2 heaping teaspoons baking powder
- pinch of mineral salt
- 4 large, very ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 3/4 (410 g))
- 1/3 cup (75 ml) light flavored olive oil, coconut oil (in liquid form) or hazelnut oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium/large mixing bowl, combine the buckwheat flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder and salt, mix well. Add the mashed bananas, oil and vanilla, mix to combine. Place batter in a lightly greased 9×5 loaf pan and bake on the middle rack for 50 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool about 10 minutes and enjoy.
Pairs wonderfully with a little homemade almond butter!
Store covered on the counter for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator up to 1 week. Keep in the freezer for up to 3 months – place completely cooled loaves in freezer containers or bags. Thaw the wrapped loaves overnight in the refrigerator.
Makes 8 – 10 slices.
NOTES:
I used and loved hazelnut oil here. Another oil to consider would be walnut oil.
Add 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts to the batter or sprinkle some on top for extra texture and nutrition.
If you’re used to baking with baking soda, feel free to add 1/2 teaspoon in addition to the baking powder. Baking powder contains baking soda which is why I don’t include it here and use a little extra.
Julie says
Could avocado oil in place of the other oils or will it change the texture?
Julie | The Simple Veganista says
Hi Julie, you can use avocado oil in place of other oils with good results. Would love to know how it goes!
Emily says
is there anything i can replace the oil with?
Julie | The Simple Veganista says
Great question! I suggest using unsweetened applesauce in place of oil, using a 1 – 1 ratio.
Francine says
Thank you for this recipe I love the taste of buckwheat, so I tried with sunflower oil and added 1 egg, It taste great although I found it quite heavy do you have a suggestion to lighten it up?
Julie | The Simple Veganista says
Hmm, maybe the egg was a little too much moisture, making it heavy. Next time, reduce the oil to 1/4 cup and see if that helps.
Francine says
Thank you for replying promptly, I will try this recipe again.
Ashley Mondor says
I made this last night and it was lovely! definitely will make again! plus, the kids love it! Thank you for sharing!
Louise says
Excellent recipe, it’s the 1st batch my husband has commented on as having great texture and taste! I added some flaxseed and walnuts. Thanks for posting.
Genevieve Dunne says
I’m making it now…a bit concerned about the 350 degrees F for 50 minutes EEEEEk!
Sharon says
Hi.. i made it to the recipe and the texture is good.. but it just tastes to me of baking powder… should i just use less next time?
Julie | The Simple Veganista says
Yes, you can try reducing the baking powder to 1 heaping teaspoon and add 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda. That should work well.
Cali says
Oh, I just want to thank you so much for this recipe! We’re currently on an allergy healing diet and I’ve found it next to impossible to find recipes that my kiddos love. But they LOVED this recipe and it’s so quick and easy!
Thank you! Definitely a keeper.
Stephanie says
I made the banana bread exactly as indicated and it was SUPER DELICIOUS. Will definitely make again. Thank you!
Pooja says
Julie – thank you for the great recipe. I had bought a bag of buckwheat flour for another recipe and was looking for recipes where I could use this flour (rather than plain flour). Your instructions were simple to follow (and only required one bowl for washing up as a bonus!), the baking time was accurate and the bread came smoothly out of the loaf tin.
The banana bread tasted delicious (I ate two thick slices in a go) and was soft and moist on the inside but still well baked. The outside was a perfect texture too though I will try and get some walnuts for next time as you suggest.
In case helpful for others:
– I didn’t use sugar but 65g of maple syrup and the results came out with a perfect amount of sweetness for me.
– The olive oil I have does not seem lightly flavoured so I wasn’t sure whether to use it or not so I ended up using sunflower oil.
– I felt that the top might be browning too fast so I moved it to a lower shelf near the end of the baking time and reduced the temperature to 150C.
Thank you for the great blog and I’m looking forward to trying out your other recipes, especially the banana and oat bites.
Kate says
This recipe is fantastic! I turn it into mini muffins for my 2 y.o. daughter who has multiple fiod allergies. This is the obe of the only baked good recipes I have found that she can and will eat! Thank you!!!