Banana Bread with Greek Yogurt

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This is the best! Banana Bread With Greek Yogurt is bursting with flavor and made with tons of healthy ingredients. This recipe can be made with or without chocolate chips and/or nuts.

Looking for more healthy bread recipes? Check out this Healthy Zucchini Bread, this Healthy Pumpkin Bread, or this Healthy Applesauce Bread.

A slice of warm, healthy banana bread ready to be enjoyed.

Banana Bread With Greek Yogurt

This simple and healthy banana bread recipe has quickly become one of my favorites. My kids and husband are obsessed with it and it’s received dozens of rave reviews. If you’re looking to make healthy banana bread muffins, be sure to check out these Flourless Banana Muffins or this Chocolate Banana Muffin recipe (both on the healthier side)!

While this banana bread does still have refined sugar, it swaps out tons of unhealthy ingredients typically found in banana bread for much healthier, wholesome ones. The sugar is minimal, compared to most banana bread recipes. The oats, Greek yogurt, egg, honey, banana (of course), coconut oil, white wheat flour, and cinnamon are all good-for-you ingredients you’ll find in this bread recipe!

Ingredients used in the recipe for banana bread with greek yogurt.

What makes this healthy?*

  • Oats: Rich in antioxidants and contain powerful soluble fiber.
  • Greek Yogurt: High in protein and packed with probiotics, potassium, and calcium.
  • Coconut Oil: High in healthy saturated fats which can boost fat burning and provide your brain and body with quick energy. Also raises HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol) in your blood, which is linked to reduced heart disease risk.
  • Egg: Good source of protein, vitamins, and minerals.
  • Bananas: Loaded with many essential nutrients and helps improve your digestive health.
  • Cinnamon: One of the healthiest spices on the planet! It can lower blood sugar levels and reduce heart disease risk factors.
  • White whole wheat flour: A healthy alternative to white flour. Read more here.

*While I have my background in Exercise and Wellness (B.S.), all the content in this post is for informational purposes only. Please consult a doctor or dietician for any specific dietary needs/questions.

Mixing wet ingredients together.

How to make Banana Bread With Greek Yogurt

  • This easy and healthy banana bread recipe is pretty straightforward — mix wet ingredients together, mix dry ingredients together, and then combine the two!
  • My top tip for success: Use good quality ingredients! I love LouAna’s® coconut oil (make sure to measure AFTER it’s melted, not before), and Greek Gods® Honey Vanilla Yogurt. None of these products are sponsored on this website, but I have found them to make the BEST healthy Banana Bread! Do not try to use low-fat Greek yogurt or plain (non-Greek) yogurt in this bread. They won’t yield the same result. 
  • Banana ripeness matters!! The riper the banana, the sweeter the bread. Check out the ingredient picture (second photo in post) for the ripeness degree I like to use.
  • To add chocolate chips or not: If you want to add dark chocolate chips, you’ll still keep this banana loaf on the healthier side — dark chocolate has healthy fats and plenty of antioxidants. You can also add chopped nuts to this healthy banana nut bread. Add 1/2 to 3/4 cup of either and mix them with dry ingredients first to get an even dispersion into the loaf.
  • Don’t overmix: If you overmix the batter, you’ll end up with a dense loaf of banana bread. Mix until ingredients are just combined and then pop it in the oven! I like to grease the bread pan with nonstick spray and lightly dust with flour. That way, this healthy Banana Bread comes out like a breeze (let it cool 10 minutes before removing it from the pan).

QUICK TIP

If you’re bananas aren’t overripe (as required in this recipe), you can speed along that process. Bake unpeeled bananas on a baking sheet for 15 minutes at 325 F. Turn the bananas halfway through the process so that the skins turn completely black. Let them cool, then remove the banana from the peel and mash it. These oven-ripened bananas have the same flavor and texture as naturally ripened fruit. You can also microwave underripe bananas, but the flavor will still taste like underripe bananas.

Mixing dry ingredients together and adding to the wet ingredients for the recipe.

How to make oat flour

Oat flour adds more moisture than wheat flour, and it also adds in some extra flavor. That’s exactly what we want in this recipe! Making oat flour at home is easy; here’s how:

  1. Place the oats (you can use old-fashioned or quick oats) into the bowl of a food processor or small blender jar.
  2. Pulse the oats until they are ground into a powder-like consistency resembling flour.
    • Depending on the speed and power of your food processor or blender, this takes 60 seconds or less.
  3. Stir the oats around if needed to ensure that all the oats have been finely ground. (See photo below)
  4. Make sure to measure your oat flour measurement for this recipe after it’s been turned to flour, and not in the whole-oat form.

Making homemade oat flour by pulsing old-fashioned oats.

Banana Bread With Greek Yogurt FAQs

How many calories are in this recipe?

One slice has 182 calories. While not super-low in calories, remember that most of the ingredients are real foods that are good for your body.

How long will banana bread last?

Banana Bread With Yogurt lasts 2-3 days at normal room temperature (wrapped tightly and stored in an airtight container). After 3-4 days, this bread is more prone to molding because of its moistness and the ingredients used.

Do I need to refrigerate this bread?

After being out at room temperature for a day, I recommend refrigerating it and warming individual slices in the microwave for 5-10 seconds. While it’s not necessary to refrigerate the bread, it will keep it fresher for longer.

Can I freeze this banana bread?

Yes! Freeze the freshest bread you have. If you just baked it, allow the bread to cool completely before freezing, to avoid soggy bread or mold.

To freeze: Freeze individual slices of bread, each one completely wrapped in plastic wrap and then stored in a large freezer-safe bag or container. Bread freezes safely for 3 months. Individual slices of this healthy Banana Bread defrost in under 10 minutes at room temperature and take slightly longer in the refrigerator.

Bowl of banana bread batter and batter in a baking pan.

Several slices of healthy banana bread with greek yogurt, scrumptious and ready to enjoy.

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Banana Bread with Greek Yogurt

4.93 from 13 votes
This is the best! Banana Bread With Greek Yogurt is bursting with flavor and made with tons of healthy ingredients. This recipe can be made with or without chocolate chips and/or nuts.
Several slices of healthy banana bread with greek yogurt, scrumptious and ready to enjoy.
Print Recipe

Banana Bread with Greek Yogurt

Several slices of healthy banana bread with greek yogurt, scrumptious and ready to enjoy.
4.93 from 13 votes
This is the best! Banana Bread With Greek Yogurt is bursting with flavor and made with tons of healthy ingredients. This recipe can be made with or without chocolate chips and/or nuts.
Course Breakfast, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Keyword banana bread with Greek yogurt
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Cooling Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 10 thick slices of bread
Chelsea Lords
Calories 182kcal
Cost $4.25

Ingredients

  • 2-3 very ripe bananas, (1 cup mashed banana)
  • 1/2 cup vanilla-flavored Greek yogurt
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 and 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 5 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
  • 2 heaping tablespoons honey
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 cup flour, white or white-whole wheat (Note 1)
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1/3 cup oat flour blend regular oats in the blender

Instructions

  • PREP: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a bread pan; set aside. I use an 8x4-inch bread pan. Remove the skins and then mash the bananas with a fork.
  • WET INGREDIENTS: In a large bowl, stir together the mashed bananas, Greek yogurt, egg, vanilla, coconut oil (measure in melted form), honey, and brown sugar until well combined.
  • FLOUR: From your 1 cup of flour, remove 1 tablespoon and replace it with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch (this makes a lighter, cake-like flour). Stir.
  • DRY INGREDIENTS: In another bowl, stir together the baking soda, salt, cinnamon, flour/ cornstarch mixture, and oat flour (measure oat flour after blending the oats. To make oat flour, put old-fashioned or quick oats in a blender and pulse them until they resemble flour).
  • COMBINE: Mix the wet and dry ingredients together until just combined (over-mixing will yield a dense bread).
  • BAKE: Pour into the prepared bread pan. If desired, sprinkle 1-2 tablespoons brown sugar on top of the bread for a nice crust. Bake for 45-65 minutes or until a fork comes out clean when inserted into the center, or the bread starts to pull away from the edges. If needed, tent the top with foil if the top of the bread is baking faster than the rest.
  • STORAGE: Store in an airtight container in the fridge. (Microwave a piece for 5-10 seconds before enjoying.) Bread is best eaten within 2-3 days. Otherwise, tightly wrap individual pieces and freeze.

Video

Recipe Notes

Note 1: Flour: If using whole wheat flour, the bread will be much denser. I recommend using only white whole-wheat flour or plain white.

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 10servings | Calories: 182kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 2.8g | Fat: 7.5g | Cholesterol: 19mg | Sodium: 199.3mg | Fiber: 1.1g | Sugar: 12.4g

We do our best to provide accurate nutritional analysis for our recipes. Our nutritional data is calculated using a third-party algorithm and may vary, based on individual cooking styles, measurements, and ingredient sizes. Please use this information for comparison purposes and consult a health professional for nutrition guidance as needed.

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?

I love hearing from you when you've made one of my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @ChelseasMessyApron or leave me a comment below.

 

This is the best healthy banana bread is bursting with flavor and made with tons of healthy ingredient swaps. This healthy banana bread with yogurt can be made with or without chocolate chips and/or nuts! via chelseasmessyapron.com #healthy #banana #bread #easy #quick #calorie #kidfriendly #best #ever #recipe #greek #yogurt #delicious
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Recipe Rating




56 Comments

    1. It’s freezing here too!! For some reason banana bread totally equals cold weather comfort food to me too 🙂

  1. Haha so fun! My kids would have a blast if we did a family egg drop 🙂 Love that you made a healthier banana bread! It looks so moist and delicious!

  2. 5 stars
    I love your healthier take on all these baked goods. Thank you for experimenting and giving us what works. I want to make this today but I have a question for you. What if I try it without the sugar at all and just increase the amount of bananas? Will it still be moist and sweet?

    Thank you in advance.

    1. You are so sweet to thank me, I appreciate it! 🙂 I worry if you increase the bananas too much it will be too wet and too moist. You can absolutely reduce the sugar if you are used to extremely healthy baked goods, but I probably wouldn’t increase the bananas much if at all.

  3. This is my new go to recipe for banana bread! I just tried it today and it is amazing! I must be weird, but I don’t love an overly sweet banana bread and this bread has just the perfect amount of sweetness. Thank you!!

  4. 5 stars
    Chelsea,
    I just found our blog and LOVE that your healthy take on traditional recipes actually tastes good! For this recipe, could I add chocolate chips without changing anything else? (ie, bake time, etc.)

    1. Hi Alice! That makes me so happy to hear that! 🙂 Yes you absolutely can! I love adding chocolate chips to banana bread and have tried that in this recipe — it’s delicious :). I would toss the chocolate chips with the flour first to get them to be more evenly distributed throughout the bread and not change anything else. Hope you love it! 🙂

  5. 5 stars
    I made this banana bread last night. I only had coconut flour, so I had to add an extra banana and one more egg, When I put the batter in the loaf pans (I doubled the recipe) it was thick like cookie dough. I wanted to cry! I always under bake because it always continues to cook when i remove from my oven. So, when it came out of the oven, I had to taste a corner. HEAVENLY!!! everyone in this house loves it. It was very moist and flavorful. I could taste the bananas and I was happy! Guess what, the next day it was even more moist and flavorful!!! Thank you, Chelsea, your recipes are always awesome!

    1. You are so sweet to say that, I appreciate it so much! I am thrilled you loved this bread and it was so good and flavorful! Thank you for the comment!

  6. 4 stars
    This is my third attempt to write a review! (???)
    I made this scrumptious reciepe and it was superb! I only had coconut flour, so I added an extra egg and another banana. When I put it in the oven it was thick like cookie dough. I wanted to cry since I doubled the recipe. It was sooo good, I had to force stop.
    Thank you for another awesome recipe, Chealsey. ?

    1. Oh man I’m so sorry my comment section is giving you problems, I so appreciate you giving a review on this bread and sharing what you tried! 🙂 I’m thrilled you loved it! Thank you so much Gayle! <3

  7. 5 stars
    This recipe is fantastic, definitely will be my go-to recipe for banana bread! The bread came out so moist and light and flavoursome! I added chopped walnuts to the batter.

    1. So happy to hear that you loved this bread and it will be your new go-to! 🙂 I love hearing that! Thanks for the comment! 🙂

  8. Also I used buckwheat instead of oat flour and wholewheat flour mixed with spelt flour. It is perfect! You know the recipe is good when the uncooked batter is good enough to eat with a spoon.

  9. 5 stars
    My husband’s favorite banana bread is the one with cinnamon sugar smothered throughout (yum!) and I was about to make it but decided to try to find a recipe I’d feel good about my little girl eating, and came across your recipe! My whole family loved it — and I couldn’t believe my husband enjoyed it!

    1. I’m so thrilled to hear your whole family (even your husband!) enjoyed this bread! 🙂 Thanks for the comment Caitlin!

  10. Is there a way to use plain greek yogurt?? Ha im poor and don’t want to buy more. Like could I maybe just add more sugar or something? Or is that too risky?

    1. Plain will work fine, I just prefer the flavor of vanilla 🙂 I’d just add a teaspoon more of vanilla! Enjoy!

  11. 5 stars
    I love this recipe. Made my whole house smell good. I am always looking for ways to make food healthier. My husband & 4 boys tore thru this bread and requested more. Excellent recipe. Thank you for sharing.

    1. Thank you so much Elizabeth! I’m so thrilled it was a hit and requested make-again 🙂

  12. 5 stars
    My daughter and I had a wonderful time making this bread this morning! It felt good to teach that healthy alternatives can create just as wonderful a bread, if not better!! It is so moist and flavorful. We did add a few chopped walnuts to the brown sugar crust for crunch and texture. Thanks Chelsea for this and all your delectable recipes!!

    1. That is so wonderful to hear you both had such a great experience with this bread. I’m so thrilled it was well enjoyed!! And the walnut addition sounds delicious! Thanks for the comment Amy 🙂

    2. This is great recipe. Can I use canola /olive oil instead of coconut? I don’t have coconut oil?

  13. Could plain regular (not Greek yogurt) work instead of the Greek yogurt or would that just be a runny mess? Thanks in advance!?

  14. I’m confused by the first ingredient. Is it supposed to be 2/3 cup banana? or 2 to 3 cups banana? And if so, 2-3 cups is a bit vague. The list says bananas, plural… then it says (~1). I’m interested to make it but want to understand the ingredients first! Thanks!

    1. Thank you for bringing that to my attention; it looks like the recipe formatting got off a little. It’s fixed; enjoy! 🙂

  15. This looks so yummy, and the ingredients are what I was going for. I was thinking about making muffins prior to stumbling upon this recipe … Could I do this as muffins instead, and if so, would you say liners or no?
    Thanks!

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