Does the world need another banana bread recipe? May be not!
But this particular Banana Nut Bread is ultra special to me more than anything baked. In several ways.
The very first thing that I baked ever was this easy-peasy, always comes out great, foolproof Egg-less Whole Wheat Banana Nut Bread.
I’ve been baking this recipe for 10 years now since my very first baking days in Houston.
And it effortlessly turns out well and pleases people, every single time. Even Banana haters for that matter.
And you get the additional satisfaction of saving bananas on the brink of spoilage.
Total win-win for summers when we have brown over-ripe bananas sitting on the counter staring at us almost every now and then.
I am sharing with you this awesome Eggless Whole Wheat Banana Walnut Bread recipe that never fails. The name pretty much says it all.
- it is eggless
- it has a slightly dense texture as I use whole wheat flour. But we totally love it this way. There’s no guilt as there’s NO Maida (all purpose flour)
- it has no refined sugar as I use jaggery powder for sweetener
- it is ever acommodating with numerous variation possibilities and forgiving recipe for beginners and amateurs alike
- 100% kids approved
- No waste as it uses over-ripe Bananas
Nobody really needs a reason to bake a good Banana bread.
Whether you are just looking to satisfy a sweet tooth craving, for evening tea time or after school snack or even for a celebration when you have little time to bake, this Eggless Whole Wheat Banana Walnut Bread is the perfect choice
If you love Banana flavor with a cardamom laced South Indian twist, you might also consider this awesome Banana Coconut Saffron Muffins
Variations
This recipe is super versatile. I’ve baked it in innumerable variations – with dry fruits and nuts (cashews, almonds in place of walnuts) and even with tutti-fruti
with jaggery, with brown sugar, with cane sugar
With local cultivars of yelakki banana, Rasa baale as well as Paccha Baale banana, which in my opinion is the best suited because of its texture and sweet taste.
If using the smaller varieties of banana, double the quantity based on the size of the bananas.
Yelakki bananas are slightly tangy compared to Robusta. So you might have to add more jaggery when using them
Pan sizes
The recipe can be made either in any of these:
one 8½ x 5 x 2½ pan
2 small 4½ x 6 x 2 pans
8 inches round pan
12 bundt-let pan
Tips
Preferably, use aluminum free baking powder in all your baking. If you’d like your baked goods to NOT taste like aluminium
Why would I want aluminium in my food anyways, right? You can read more here
- 4 medium size over-ripe Robusta Bananas Paccha baale (with brown spots, not spoiled)
- 100 gm unsalted butter or 6-8 tbsp scooped out or use tbsp markings on the butter paper if available (do not go below 75 gm)
- 1/2 cup 125 ml milk at room temp
- 1/2 cup jaggery powder
- 1-1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract or paste
- butter or oil for greasing the pan
- 1½ cup whole wheat flour or chapathi atta 180 gm
- 1 tsp aluminium-free baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup walnuts finely chopped
- 1/4 cup candied papaya (tutti fruiti) finely chopped to make it extra special - optional
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Grease cake pan with oil or butter and keep aside. Cut out rectangular parchment strips to line the baking pans slightly longer than the pan. This is to help lift the bread easily from the pans, when hot
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To bring butter to room temperature, let sit on the counter for 10-15 mins until just soft.
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Preheat the oven to 350ºF or 180ºC (set to 20 mins if there is no auto timer)
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In a mixing bowl, sift all the dry ingredients - whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt for thorough mixing. Do not skip the sifting as we don't want lumps of baking soda or salt hiding somewhere in one spot.
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Mash the over ripe bananas using a fork or potato masher to a smooth paste. Avoid using a blender
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In another bowl, beat jaggery and softened butter with a whisk until fluffy and creamy. Brown color of the jaggery would have turned brownish white by now. This is an imp step
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To this add milk at room temp, mashed banana and whisk together. Finally whisk in the vanilla extract/paste.
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Now, add in the dry flour mix and fold gently using a spatula until just combined. Do not over mix. If you are using candied papaya bits, fold it in the end gently
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Pour the batter into the prepared pans only up to half level to give enough room for the banana bread to rise or else when the batter rises, it might spill out during baking. Same applies to bundt-let tray also
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Garnish with chopped walnuts. Quickly pat them down so they'll stick in the batter.
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Drop a few butter scrapings on the top of the batter for a crisp buttery top.
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Place the pans on a baking tray in the middle rack of the oven. with at least 2-3 inches between them if using 2 pans as well as with the inside of the oven for even hot air circulation. Bake for 30-35 mins or until a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Check at 30 mins for done-ness. Avoid over-baking or it will become dry.
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Bake for few 10 more mins if the toothpick doesn't come out clean.
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Once baked, remove the pans and let cool immediately on a wire rack.
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After a few mins, lift the cake using the parchment ends and allow to cool off completely.
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Slice and Serve warm or at room temp as is or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream
Do not open the oven door during the first 15 mins as it causes the rising dough to collapse.
Do not forget or delay cooling the cake on a wire rack right after pulling out of the oven.
Otherwise, due to the retained heat, cake start to sweat inside and end up soggy instead of fluffy.
If you happen to use the smaller variety of Banana, do double the quantity. 2 smaller Bananas (yelakki type) = 1 Robusta (Paccha Baale)
Brown sugar or cane sugar can be use in place of Jaggery powder.
leftovers can be stored in an airtight box in the refrigerator.
Looks delicious! 😍
Thank you! Hope you’ll give it a try sometime