This Spelt Flour Banana Bread is the most delicious healthy banana bread you need for breakfast. It’s refined sugar-free, egg-free, dairy-free, and packed with vitamins and fiber from spelt flour.
I love baking my own banana bread, and I have shared countless of recipe for them. Sometimes, I like experimenting with new flour types to make a healthier banana bread like my chickpea flour banana bread.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Today, I grabbed a bag of white spelt flour, and here’s why. Spelt flour can be used in any recipe calling for all-purpose flour in almost identical amounts. But compared to white wheat flour, spelt flour contains more protein, fiber, magnesium, and vitamins.
Spelt flour contains gluten. It’s not gluten-free and unsuitable for people with coeliac disease. However, spelt flour is often easier to digest than wheat flour.
In fact, 100 grams of spelt flour contains 11 grams of fiber, compared to only 2.6 grams of wheat flour. It also has fewer carbs, with 70 grams per 100 grams, while all-purpose contains 76 grams per 100 grams.
It means that spelt flour has a lower glycemic index that impacts your blood sugar level less quickly than all-purpose flour.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Grab a bag of white spelt flour and your riper bananas, and make the most delicious, moist, fluffy banana bread.
- Ripe Bananas – The darker the bananas, the sweeter the banana bread. I like bananas with dark spots on the skins. You can also use less ripe bananas and adjust the sugar in the recipe accordingly. For example, if your banana are very brown, you can even remove the sugar to make a no added sugar spelt banana bread.
- White Spelt Flour – I don’t recommend using whole spelt flour for this recipe, or the bread will come out dry. Eventually, you can swap 1/2 cup of white spelt for the whole spelt to add fiber and keep the banana bread crumb firm and fluffy.
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda – to give the bread some rise.
- Cinnamon – for flavors.
- Vanilla Extract – for even more flavor.
- Melted Coconut Oil, light olive oil, or canola oil. Any light-flavor oil works for this recipe. Even melted plant-based butter will be a great fit.
- Coconut Sugar or brown sugar
If you want to add crunch, or flavors to the banana bread batter try stirring 1/2 cup of the blow ingredients at the end:
- Chocolate Chips
- Chopped Pecans or chopped walnuts
- Unsweetened Shredded Coconut
How To Make Spelt Banana Bread
- Before you start, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a 9-inch x 5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper. Lightly oil the paper with cooking oil spray. Set it aside.
- First, peel the bananas, discard the peel, or keep to make my banana syrup recipe (photo 1).
- Place the bananas on a chopping board or plate, and using a fork, mash until smooth and no lumps of bananas can be seen (photo 2).
- Place the mashed banana in a large mixing bowl with oil, and vanilla extract. Stir to evenly combine the wet ingredients together (photo 3).
- In another bowl, stir the dry ingredients together: spelt flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon (photo 4).
- Finally, fold the dry ingredients into the bowl with the liquid ingredients.
- Use a silicone spatula or wooden spoon, to evenly incorporate both ingredients together. The banana bread batter is thick, dense and that’s normal (photo 5).
- Now, if you like some texture, or extra sweetness, pick one or two of the optional add-ons ingredients above and fold in the batter. Stir to incorporate the 1/2 cup adds-on into the banana bread recipe.
- Pour the banana bread batter into the prepared loaf pan. If you feel like it, decorate the top of the bread by adding a few extra banana slices (photo 6).
- Bake in the center rack of the oven for 45 to 55 minutes at 350°F (180°C). After 40 minutes, or if you see that the top of the bread turns dark too quickly, foil the pan with a large piece of foil.
- Keep baking the banana bread until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool completely at room temperature on a wire rack before slicing.
Serving
Slice the banana bread just before eating. The crumb of the whole bread stays moist. Serve each banana bread slice plain or with some of the delicious matching banana topping below:
- Peanut Butter
- Almond Butter
- Jam or use my baby jam for a healthy alternative.
- Plant-Based Yogurt or vegan custard
Storage Instructions
This banana bread can be stored very well for a few days at room temperature in a cake box if it’s not too hot where you live. Otherwise, store as per the below to keep it fresh for longer.
- In the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Freeze the whole or sliced bread for up to one month and place it in freezer bags or containers. Thaw at room temperature the day before serving.
- Rewarm the banana bread before serving if you like. You can place the banana bread slice in an oven or bread toaster.
Allergy Swaps
Below are some ingredient substitutions if you need to adapt the recipe to some food allergies.
- Gluten-Free – Spelt is not gluten-free. You may be able to achieve a delicious banana bread using all-purpose gluten-free flour instead.
- Sugar-Free – If you used overripe bananas you can skip the sugar in the recipe. You can also use sugar-free crystal sweetener that are 1:1 replacement to sugar or a teaspoon stevia drop.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below are the answers to your most common questions about baking baked goods with spelt flour.
Yes, spelt flour is a healthier alternative to wheat flour in any bread recipe.
It works with a similar ratio, usually requiring a tad more liquids, but overall, the same amount does work.
Spelt bread or baked goods with spelt flour has a nutty, slightly sweet, earthy, delicious flavor.
More Banana Bread Recipes
If you like this recipe, you’ll love these other Banana Bread Recipes:
Did You Like This Recipe?
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Spelt Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cup Spelt Flour - , white spelt, (note 3)
- 2 ¼ teaspoons Baking Powder
- ½ teaspoon Baking Soda
- 2 teaspoons Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 ½ cup Mashed Banana - note 1
- ½ cup Coconut Sugar - or soft brown sugar
- ⅓ cup Melted Coconut Oil - note 2
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Optional
- ½ cup Chopped Walnuts - or Pecans
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a 9-inch x 5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper. Slightly oil the paper and pan with oil spray or coconut oil. Set aside.
- Peel and mash the ripe bananas with a fork on a chopping board. Mash until creamy and smooth, with barely any lumps. Pack into the measuring cups, 1 to measure the amount required by the recipe.
- Place the mashed banana in a large mixing bowl with melted coconut oil and vanilla extract and stir to combine.
- In another bowl, stir white spelt flour, coconut sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.
- Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stir with a spatula until the batter is thick and consistent.
- If you like, add slices of a yellow banana on top of the batter to decorate the bread and add sweetness.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan and bake in the center rack of the oven until a pick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean – about 50 to 55 minutes. You can add a piece of foil on top of the pan after 30 minutes to prevent the banana bread from browning too fast.
- Cool down on a wire rack for 2 hours before slicing.
Storage
- Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or up to 5 days in the fridge in a sealed container. It can be frozen and thaw the day before at room temperature.
This recipe is delicious. I used avocado oil and I added tart cherries. It turned out perfectly with all spelt flour. I will definitely be making this again!