Gluten free and low FODMAP banana bread! Because I was clearly v. slow at jumping on the bandwagon the first time round and because every lockdown may as well be the same at this point, here’s my take on the delicious loaf.
It’s got a crunchy demerara sugar crust and a hit of cinnamon and vanilla. Just two tablespoons of yogurt help make the loaf really moist and you’d never even think about it being gluten free. I often make this recipe with FREEE’s gluten free plain flour (my favourite blend) but I’ve also tried it with half FREEE’s plain flour blend and half Allinson’s gluten free teff flour blend and it was also delicious, just with a slightly nuttier tang.
With everything mixed in one bowl, there’s minimal washing up and it’s the perfect base recipe to make your own. Dark chocolate chips, nuts (just be mindful of FODMAP portion sizes if you need to) or ginger would be delicious additions.
Low FODMAP banana bread recipe notes:
- Although almost every banana bread recipe I’ve come across says you can only use really ripe bananas, I’ve made this with just-ripe bananas and it still worked really well. Monash class 100g of unripe banana as low FODMAP or 35g (about 1/3) of a ripe banana low FODMAP. Across 10 slices, you could use ripe bananas and this recipe would be low FODMAP, but you can also experiment with less ripe bananas!
- I haven’t tried this recipe with vegan yogurt but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work – if you do, please comment below
- If you didn’t want to do the demerara sugar crust, you can just grease and line your tin with baking parchment
- I still stand by the chocolate chip banana bread loaf in my cookbook too, if you’d like a recipe with maple syrup instead of brown sugar
Ingredients
For the sugar crust:
Softened butter to grease the tin
40g demerara sugar
For the banana bread:
3 large eggs
140g light brown sugar
115g oil, such as vegetable, olive oil or melted coconut oil (the latter two will just bring a slightly different flavour – equally as delicious!)
3 ripe bananas, roughly 300g
2 tablespoons Greek yogurt, lactose free if needed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
200g gluten free plain flour (I love FREEE)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarb soda
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
Method
Preheat your oven to 180C, 160C fan, gas mark 4. Grease a 2lb loaf tin with softened butter and liberally sprinkle it with the demerara sugar, reserving a little for the top. Move the sugar around in the pan so that it covers all the sides in a thin layer, then tap out any excess and put the prepared tin to one side.
Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl and add the light brown sugar. Whisk them together using an electric whisk or a hand held whisk (I often use this to save more washing up) for a good couple of minutes, until well combined, lighter in colour and a little air has been incorporated. Slowly stream in the oil, whisking as you go.
Peel and roughly mash the bananas and add them to the bowl along with the yogurt and vanilla extract. Whisk to combine. Sift over the flour, baking powder, bicarb, cinnamon and sea salt and whisk gently once more to combine, until no streaks of flour remain.
Pour the batter into your prepared tin and sprinkle with the remaining demerara sugar. Place on the middle shelf in your oven and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean and the banana bread springs back when you touch it. Allow to cool in the tin for a few minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
The banana bread will keep for up to 5 days in an airtight container.
