Protein Banana Bread
This protein banana bread is a healthy snack that is so easy to make. With protein from greek yogurt, eggs and protein powder, this simple gluten free banana bread is perfect to meal prep for the week!
I’ve been so in love with my protein banana muffins lately so I had to make a bread version! This protein banana bread is so soft and tender, gluten free and has over 10 grams of protein per serving, compared to 2-3 in traditional banana bread.
All you need is one bowl, about 10 minutes of prep time and a few simple, pantry staple ingredients to make this recipe.
It’s perfect for a quick on the go breakfast, post-workout snack or even a healthy dessert. It requires no fancy equipment, just one bowl and a whisk! If you love this recipe, try my chocolate protein cake, breakfast cookies or chickpea cookie dough next!
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Easy- made in one bowl!
- Gluten free
- Dairy free friendly
- 12 grams protein per slice
How to make protein banana bread
Whisk wet ingredients. Whisk together all wet ingredients until smooth. Be sure to puree your banana first, then measure out 1 1/2 cups worth.
Whisk in dry ingredients. Whisk in the dry ingredients, making sure to spoon and level the flours and protein powder, don’t scoop right from the bag.
Add mix-ins. Add in any optional mix ins. I used chocolate chips for this recipe, but you can used chopped walnuts or just leave it plain!
Bake. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean. If you notice the top browning too much, tent it with some foil.
Cool and serve. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before slicing to prevent any crumbling. Enjoy and try my protein waffles or marbled banana bread next!
Key ingredients & substitutions
Banana. Very ripe and spotty brown bananas are what you need for this recipe. The riper the better, which means your bananas will be very sweet.
Greek Yogurt. The greek yogurt will add a lot of moisture to the bread as well as add a lot of protein. You can use dairy free or regular. I do not recommend non-greek yogurt as it is much more watery.
Eggs. You need three large eggs for this recipe, which will add a lot of protein and help this healthy banana bread rise. They also add a really fluffy texture and prevent the bread from getting dense.
Protein powder. Any protein powder you like will work, but I recommend one that is vanilla flavored and ideally stevia sweetened. I used pea protein but you can also use whey protein.
Sugar. I used light brown sugar, but any kind of granulated sugar will do. You can use white sugar to keep it simple, or coconut sugar for a refined sugar free version. If you use coconut sugar this protein banana bread will be much darker than pictured.
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Flour. You need a mix of blanched almond flour and gluten free all purpose flour. If you are not gluten free, you can use regular all purpose flour, but still use the almond flour.
This recipe calls for 1 cup of almond flour, but you can likely sub with equal parts oat flour for a nut free option. I have not tested this protein banana bread without almond flour, but oat flour is generally a safe bet!
Butter or oil. I recommend butter (either dairy free or regular) or coconut oil. To avoid any coconut flavor, be sure to use refined coconut oil.
Can I make it vegan?
Unfortunately, since this recipe calls for 3 whole eggs, I do not recommend subbing for flax eggs or any other egg substitute.
The eggs are really important for the overall texture and structure of the bread, so for best results, please follow the recipe as written! For a vegan option, try my chocolate chip banana bread instead!
How to store
I always find that any recipe made with a lot of banana or apple sauce can get quite mushy if left out at room temperature for too long.
Banana bread can definitely be left at room temperature, but I prefer to store it in the fridge.
Be sure to let it cool completely, then slice and add to a container and keep in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can eat it cold, or warm it up in the microwave for a few seconds so it’s good as new!
Can you use protein powder instead of flour in baked goods?
You can do this in some recipes, but gluten free baking is so tricky that I recommend sticking with a recipe that already calls for protein powder.
Oftentimes you can sub 1/3 cup for every 1 cup of flour for protein powder, but it’s so much easier following a recipe that already calls for it. Same with my banana bread protein cookies!
Protein powder acts similarly to flour in baked goods and helps absorb excess moisture. I don’t find that it gives a grainy texture at all, this banana bread is very soft and fluffy!
How to keep banana bread moist
I promise you will have no issues keeping this bread moist! Be sure you don’t over-bake it as that can easily dry it out. Also make sure you measure the flour properly to prevent a dry loaf.
If you scoop right from the bag, you may end up with more flour than you need, which can lead to dry bread.
More recipes you’ll love!
- Banana Protein Pancakes
- Vegan Banana Bread
- Banana Waffles
- Protein Overnight Oats
- Chocolate Banana Bread
- Almond Flour Banana Muffins
If you want more recipes straight to your inbox, be sure to subscribe to my email list! As always, be sure to tag me on instagram so I can see your creation. Leave a comment and rating below if you try this recipe!
Protein Banana Bread
by: claire cary
Ingredients
Wet
- 1 ½ cups banana puree about 3 large, ripe banans
- ⅓ cup melted butter or coconut oil
- ½ cup granulated sugar of choice light brown, coconut or white all work
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Dry
- 1 cup gluten free all purpose baking flour can sub regular AP flour
- 1 cup blanched almond flour
- ½ cup vanilla protein powder
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup chocolate chips optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Spray and line a 9×5 loaf pan and set aside.
- Puree the bananas and measure out 1 1/2 cups and add to a large mixing bowl.
- Whisk in all remaining wet ingredients until smooth.
- Whisk in the dry ingredients, making sure to spoon and level the flours, don’t scoop right from the bag.
- Whisk until smooth.
- Fold in the chocolate chips if using, you can also used chopped walnuts.
- Transfer to your prepared loaf pan and top with additional chocolate chips if desired.
- Bake for 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Because of the nature of almond flour, you may notice the top browning before the center is done. I usually just leave as is, but you can tent the top with foil if desired.
- Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then carefully lift out from the pan and let cool on a wire rack for at least 1 hour before slicing.
- Slice and enjoy as is or with melted butter or nut butter.
Notes
Comments
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This is the best protein baked good I have ever made.
I hate the vanilla protein powder I have (vanilla plant protein from purely inspired) and have been looking for ways to use it without the awful taste. This hid it so well. I will be using my whole bottle of protein to bulk this recipe and freeze!
Thankyou!
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Thank you, Alexis! So glad you loved it 🙂
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I have a great recipe for banana bread but was looking for one to use with the greek yogurt and protein powder to make it “more”. Mine came out dense and dry. I used the GF flour and almond as you suggested. I would add more banana next time, and reduce the time baked by 5 minutes.
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Absolutely love this recipe! I tried it out last night as I’ve been on the hunt for a good banana bread recipe. I expected this to have that “protein powder” taste to it. After eating it this morning there is none of that at all!!
I used the Oikos pro vanilla yogurt since that was all I had on hand, I also did a combo of brown and white sugar since I didn’t have enough brown sugar on its own.
I added a dash of nutmeg as well as added some extra cinnamon since I really enjoy those flavors!
I will definitely be keeping this recipe and using it whenever I want banana bread in the future!-
Yum, love the addition of the nutmeg! So happy you enjoyed this recipe!
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Wow, so yummy!! I only added 1/2 the amount of sugar and chocolate chips since my protein powder is already slightly sweetened. I also only had all purpose flour. It turned out absolutely delicious ❤️.
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Sounds perfect, thanks Cassandra!
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This recipe just works and it’s delicious!
I made some adjustments like using only 2 eggs and adding a hint of sour cream (full fat Greek yogurt is recommended).
I assumed that the recipe refers to 335 grams of banana, though it requires extra baking time the results is moist and soft (I also suggest to let it completely cool in the warm oven)-
So glad you enjoyed this recipe!
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Fantastic! The whole family loved it. I used whole wheat instead of GF flour and it turned out perfect. This will be my go to for when my bananas go brown. Thanks!
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Sounds perfect! So glad you all enjoyed it.
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I’m really interested in making this banana bread. I’ve just been wondering if you used full fat almond flour as in very finely ground almonds?
Where I live, almond flour is usually ‘defatted’ and is very dry, binding more liquid similar to coconut flour.
Thank you for the inspiration 🙂-
Oh, interesting! Never heard of that. You definitely want the full fat almond flour that is just finely ground almonds.
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This honestly turned out better than the regular banana bread recipe I made recently. I’m shocked. Here I was thinking I’d make a healthier version and just deal with a less tasty banana bread, but it was way better! So moist and delicious! I used coconut oil and 1/2 coconut sugar 1/2 brown sugar. I only had fat free Greek yogurt, so that’s what I used for the yogurt. I also split my batter up between two smaller loaf pans and made one with chocolate chips and the other plain, but topped with pecans and brown sugar. Both loafs are incredible! Definitely saving this recipe- yum!
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Makes me so happy to hear that! Thanks Brette!
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This was soooo good, very moist and filling!!! I added walnuts and it taste like a desert so I save my macros to have this as a treat yummy!!!!
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Love the walnuts! Thanks, Jill!
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I’m excited to try this! Can I sub almond flour for AP flour?
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You can try subbing the 1 cup of almond flour for an additional 1/2 cup of all purpose flour! So 1 1/2 cups total of all purpose flour.
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So I followed the recipe but used 2 bananas instead of 3x, chocolate whey protein instead of vanilla and 1 cup regular all purpose flour instead of GF. But it’s come out very dense and a little tasteless. I’m wondering if I did something wrong here.
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Unfortunately, because you changed three core things about the recipe, it’s not going to turn out as intended. I’d suggest following the recipe as written for best results!
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Great recipe! I only had bread flour at home so I used 1 1/2 cup, omitting the almond flour. I used vanilla whey protein powder with no additives that is usually hard to blend evenly so I was worried how it’s going to mix but it turned out great! I baked for 70min because the batter was a bit on the wet side. Next time I have bananas going bad I’ll make this recipe again.
Bonus points for no creaming butter and complicating things ❤️
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So glad you enjoyed this recipe. Thanks, Anastasiya!
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Absolutely delicious- the best part I can’t taste or smell the protein powder! Moist and smells like chocolate chip cookies.
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Perfect, so happy you enjoyed it!
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Can I omit the alternative flour and use all AP flour instead?
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You can sub the GF all purpose flour for regular all purpose flour, but I don’t recommend subbing the almond flour for all purpose 1:1. You can try subbing the 1 cup of almond flour an additional 1/2 cup of AP flour.
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Really liked it. Cooked it for 55 minutes and it was done! Surprised how heavy the loaf is, however, I found it quite moist and light tasting. Will definitely be making this again!
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Amazing, thanks Sandra!
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The taste is great but mine came out pretty dry, and I only baked for 50 minutes. I’ll try 45 minutes next time. And I think a decimal point was missed in the carbohydrates. Most banana bread is about 30 – 60 per slice. 331 is crazy high.
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The dryness could be because of the specific protein powder you used. Also be sure to measure the flour properly. Glad you still enjoyed it!
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This was so delicious! I only had regular all purpose flour so I used that, and I also used coconut flavoured protein powder instead as that’s what I had on hand, and it was so good! I even halved the sugar as the powder and banana were already sweet. Very moist and would highly recommend 🙂
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Amazing, so happy you enjoyed it!
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