This vegan Chocolate Tahini Banana Bread is decadent, satisfying, and brimming with chocolate chips! Refined sugar-free and whole grain, it's perfect for a snack or indulgent breakfast. I love the sweetness of the bananas in this recipe and how they complement the sweet richness of cocoa powder. The organic black sesame butter adds a rich note to an already delicious recipe.
Banana bread, in one form or another, has always been a favorite in our household. After all, it is easy to make, and we seem to have bananas in various stages of ripening on our kitchen counter.
The idea of this particular banana bread came to me after I bought a jar of organic black sesame butter one day and started thinking about what else I could do with it. When I looked in my kitchen, I found myself staring at all these ripe bananas that were asking to be made into something delicious.
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🥘 Ingredients to make chocolate tahini banana bread
- whole wheat pastry flour
- arrowroot powder or organic cornstarch (optional)
- baking powder
- baking soda
- sea salt
- organic cane sugar
- ground cinnamon
- freshly grated nutmeg
- 4 very ripe bananas, so that they are sweet enough for this recipe
- soy milk or cashew milk
- applesauce
- cashew or soy yogurt, or vegan sour cream, with fresh lemon juice mixed in
- black tahini
- vanilla extract
- vegan chocolate chips - a lot of brands are accidentally vegan. Read the label to ensure it is free of dairy.
What is tahini?
In case you haven't baked or cooked with tahini before, it is ground sesame paste. If you cannot find black tahini, which is ground black sesame seeds, you can use regular tahini, which is yellow.
The black tahini gives this banana bread a slight nuttiness and depth of flavor. If you use regular tahini, this banana bread will not be as dark. Whichever tahini you use, the runnier it is, the better.
Why whole wheat pastry flour?
I usually keep whole wheat pastry flour in the pantry for use in baked goods and pancakes. It's perfect for this vegan chocolate tahini bread. This 100% stone-ground whole wheat pastry flour has a lower protein content which is ideal for whole grain baked goods like this banana bread. The wheat germ contributes to the nutrient density of this bread, so you can feel good about indulging! I say banana bread, but it's more like cake!
Why arrowroot powder?
I added arrowroot powder for additional tenderness and softness to the flour. If you do not have it, you can use organic cornstarch, or you can omit it.
🥣 Instructions on making this vegan Chocolate Tahini Banana Bread
- Start by preheating the oven Grease two 5x9 baking dishes with coconut oil or organic all-vegetable shortening.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
- In a large mixing bowl, mash the very ripe bananas with a large fork or potato masher. Add the wet ingredients. Combine the ingredients with a spatula.
- Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture. Stir and fold the mixture until combined, and stir in a cup of chocolate chips.
- Pour the mixture into the two baking dishes, and top with the rest of the chocolate chips.
- Bake at 350 F for fifty to sixty minutes, checking at fifty minutes if the bread is done. See my tips below.
- Remove the banana bread from the oven and let it cool for at least twenty minutes on a rack before serving.
How to tell when the chocolate tahini banana bread is done
Press the top of the bread gently, and it should spring back. Another way of checking is to put a wooden toothpick into the middle of each loaf. If raw batter comes out with the toothpick, keep baking and check it every five minutes. I usually turn off the oven at this point. The heat inside the oven will continue baking the banana bread for the next five or ten additional minutes if needed.
💭 Top tips
Be sure to use the ripest bananas you can find, the spottier and darker, the better. At this point, the bananas will start to soften inside. These sweet bananas are perfect for this banana bread. It's worth the wait to set some bananas aside until they ripen fully. Once your bananas are ripe, keep them in the fridge while you're waiting for them to turn dark.
Whichever tahini you have on hand is fine, although I recommend runny tahini that is not bitter. Some brands of tahini are stiffer than others. If yours is stiff, mix it with some water to thin a little.
Have the plant-based yogurt, bananas, and applesauce at room temperature or close to it, otherwise it will take longer for the banana bread to bake.
Storage
You can store this bread at room temperature for four days as long as it is wrapped well. Make sure to cool the bread completely before putting it in an airtight container. After four days, freeze any leftover banana bread.
If you wish to freeze it, make sure you cool the bread completely. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and wrap it in aluminum foil or place it a freezer-safe Ziploc bag. If you're not using a Ziploc bag then wrap it again with aluminum foil. Store it in the freezer for up to four months.
Instead of freezing the second loaf, you can freeze individual slices for a ready-to-eat snack or breakfast. Be sure to double wrap or triple the slices since the interior is exposed. This will avoid freezer burn and keep the bread from drying out in the freezer.
More recipes
Looking for more chocolate desserts? Check out my Vegan Chocolate Fig Cupcakes with Irish Cream Frosting.
If you make this Vegan Chocolate Tahini Banana Bread, let me know what you think by ★ star rating it and leaving a comment below. You can follow me on Instagram and share your creation with me! Just tag me @resplendentkitchen and hashtag #resplendentkitchenrecipes.
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Tahini Banana Bread
Equipment
- potato masher or large fork
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 2 tablespoons arrowroot powder or organic cornstarch, optional
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 ¼ cup organic cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 4 very ripe medium bananas spotty are best, almost turning black
- ½ cup soy milk at room temperature or cashew milk
- ⅓ cup applesauce
- 7 ½ oz cashew yogurt with 1 teaspoon lemon juice stirred in soy yogurt, or vegan sour cream, at room temperature
- ⅓ cup black sesame butter/tahini or regular tahini, a runny type is preferred
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups dairy-free chocolate chips divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two 5x9 baking dishes with coconut oil or organic all-vegetable shortening.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, arrowroot powder, baking powder, baking soda, sea salt, cane sugar. cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- In a large mixing bowl, mash the very ripe bananas with a large fork or potato masher. Add soy milk, applesauce, cashew yogurt with lemon juice stirred in, black sesame butter, and vanilla extract. Stir together well with a spatula.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Stir and fold the mixture until combined. Stir in 1 cup of chocolate chips.
- Pour the mixture into the 2 baking dishes. Top with additional ¾ cup of chocolate chips
- Bake in two 9x5 inch loaf pans at 350 F for 50-60 minutes. Check at 50 minutes. Press the top of the bread gently and it should spring back when the bread is done. Also, insert a wooden toothpick into the middle of each bread. The bread is done when moist crumbs or no crumbs come out. If raw batter comes out with the toothpick, keep baking and checking for doneness every 5 minutes.
- Remove the banana bread from the oven and let cool for 20 minutes on a rack before serving. Approximately 16 slices from 2 loaves.
Notes
- Be sure to use the ripest bananas you can find, the spottier and darker, the better. At this point they will start to soften inside. Perfect! Otherwise the banana bread will not be as sweet as it could be. It's worth the wait to set some bananas aside until they ripen fully. Once your banans are ripe, keep them in the fridge while you're waiting for them to turn dark.
- Press the top of the bread gently and it should spring back when the bread is done. Also, insert a wooden toothpick into the middle of each bread. The bread is done when moist crumbs or no crumbs come out. If raw batter comes out with the toothpick, keep baking and checking for doneness every 5 minutes.
- If you wish, you can simply freeze the second loaf. You can store this cake, wrapped well, at room temperature for three days. It can be refrigerated up to five days, or frozen (airtight) for one month.
Nutrition
Recipe adapted from the Easy Vegan Baking cookbook.
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