Chocolate Tahini Banana Bread (vegan)

This vegan Chocolate Tahini Banana Bread is decadent, satisfying, and brimming with chocolate chips! Refined sugar-free and whole grain, this vegan version is 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.

Making this delicious banana bread with melty chocolate chips is a great way to use up spotty bananas! Ripe large bananas have a natural sweetness which is perfect for making a lot of banana bread.

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!

For more recipes using ripe or overripe bananas, try my Easy Vegan Banana Oat Pancakes, Dragon Fruit Smoothie Bowl, Vegan Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins, and last but not least, these Vegan Buckwheat Banana Waffles.

Looking for more chocolate desserts? Check out my Vegan Chocolate Fig Cupcakes with Irish Cream Frosting.

Ingredients

• Very ripe bananas - brown and spotty, so that they are sweet enough for this recipe. They are the key ingredient.
• Whole wheat pastry flour - this flour is perfect for banana bread.
• 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.
• Cashew or soy yogurt, or vegan sour cream, with fresh lemon juice mixed in
• Black tahini - a good quality tahini with a more liquid consistency is better. I like Eden brand's black tahini.
• Vegan chocolate chips - a lot of brands are accidentally vegan. Read the label to ensure it is free of dairy.
• Organic cane sugar - this is vegan.
• Spices - cinnamon and nutmeg for additional flavor.
• Organic soy milk - I like to use Edensoy or Westsoy. Use an unflavored, unsweetened plant milk.
• Applesauce - this works well as an egg replacement in this recipe.
• Cashew yogurt with lemon juice for acidity.

What is tahini?

It is ground sesame paste, if you haven't baked or cooked with tahini before. The texture is like a smooth paste. If you cannot find black tahini, ground black sesame seeds, you can use regular tahini.

Tahini is made from untoasted and sometimes lightly toasted white sesame seeds and has a nutty, slightly bitter flavor.

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!

How to make vegan chocolate tahini banana bread

Start by preheating the oven to 350°F. Grease two 5x9 baking dishes with coconut oil or organic all-vegetable shortening.

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
2. 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.
3. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture. Stir and fold the mixture until combined, and stir in a cup of chocolate chips.
4. Pour the mixture into the two baking dishes, and top with the rest of the chocolate chips.
5. Bake for fifty to sixty minutes, checking at fifty minutes if the bread is done. See my tips below.
6. Remove the banana bread from the oven and let it cool for at least twenty minutes on a wire 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.

Expert 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.

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Recipe

Chocolate Tahini Banana Bread

Emily Miller

This vegan chocolate tahini banana bread is easy to make. Deliciously moist and rich in flavor, it makes a perfect snack.

5 from 82 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 mins

Cook Time 1 hr

Cooling time 20 mins

Total Time 1 hr 40 mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 2 loaves

Calories 253 kcal

Equipment

• large mixing bowl
• medium mixing bowl
• Spatula
• two 9x5-inch baking dishes
• potato masher or large fork

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 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°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

Serving: 1sliceCalories: 253kcalCarbohydrates: 38gProtein: 5gFat: 9.5gSaturated Fat: 4.4gSodium: 177mgFiber: 5gSugar: 17.5g

Keyword breakfast, dairy-free, refined sugar free, snack, vegan, whole grain

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Resplendent Kitchen offers nutritional information for recipes contained on this site as a courtesy. Although resplendentkitchen.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information from online calculators, these figures are estimates.