Name: Gluten-free Banana Bread {Dairy-free}
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 70 min
Ingredients: 1/2 cup coconut oil; 1/2 cup white sugar; 1/2 cup brown sugar; 3 small ripe bananas, (1 - 1 1/4 cup mashed); 2 eggs; 1 teaspoon vanilla; 1 1/2 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour, (such as Pamela's artisan blend all-purpose flour); 1/2 cup almond flour, (not almond meal); 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1 teaspoon salt

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

The very best gluten-free banana bread should be easy to make, preferably in one bowl, yielding a moist loaf packed with banana flavor! This healthy, dairy-free and gluten-free recipe ticks all the boxes!

A stack of gluten-free banana bread slices.

I don’t know about you but it seems like I always have a few overripe bananas lying around just waiting to become bread (or muffins)! This is why I love having an easy gluten-free (and dairy-free) banana bread recipe in my back pocket. What makes this a go-to for me is that the recipe is:

Simple to make with pantry staples I always have on hand
Uses only one bowl
Works great every time
Moist but not too dense or greasy
Full of banana flavor

This recipe is one I’ve been tinkering with for a while. Making gluten-free banana bread that checks all the above boxes is not necessarily an easy task! Lucky for you, I’ve done all the tinkering and you can just make delicious banana bread!

Simple ingredients

Ingredients for banana bread measured out in bowls.

Gluten-free All-purpose flour: I used Pamela’s artisan flour for this recipe.
Almond flour: I found that adding just the right amount of almond flour was just the secret ingredient I needed to make the perfect loaf!
Coconut Oil: makes the recipe dairy-free but you can swap butter if that’s what you have and don’t need to be dairy-free.
Just-overripe Bananas: I found that bananas that are still yellow with some brown spots are the perfect bananas to use. If they have turned completely black, they can make the bread too moist.
And to round it all out: Eggs, vanilla, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

Making banana bread in one-bowl

You can make this recipe in a stand mixer, with a hand mixer, or by hand. Your choice! The key is mixing well after each addition. See below!

A picture collage demonstrating the mixing steps starting with mashing bananas in the mixer, dumping dry ingredients on top, ending with fully mixed batter.

Step 1: Cream the coconut oil and sugar.
Step 2: Plop the bananas in one at a time, mashing them into the creamed sugar & oil after each addition.
Step 3: Mix in the eggs one at a time, then the vanilla.
Step 4: Dump all the dry ingredients on top of the wet ingredients in the bowl, then mix until well blended.
Step 5: Pour the batter into a loaf pan, spread evenly, and bake!

Pouring and spreading the batter in parchment lined loaf pan.

Hint, hint: this recipe can be made not only with just one bowl but also with one – 1/2 cup measuring cup and one – 1 teaspoon measuring spoon! Hooray for fewer dishes!

Storage

Store this bread, tightly wrapped at room temperature for 3-4 days!

Preventing over-browned quick bread

One of the problems with banana bread recipes is trying to fight over-browning the edges before the center is fully cooked. Here’s what I’ve learned about that in developing this recipe:

Lower the oven temperature. Yes, you’ll have to extend the baking time but the quick part of a good “quick bread” is not necessarily the bake time! Lowering the oven temperature allows for more even cooking.
Use an old-fashioned, light-colored aluminum pan. Dark-colored non-stick pans absorb more heat and glass or ceramic loaf pans insulate the heat, which causes the edges to cook faster than the center.
Cover the top with foil. If you’ve tried the above tips and your bread is still getting too brown, loosely cover with foil.

A loaf of sliced banana bread with butter on one slice.

5 from 1 vote