I like the flavor and texture of flaxseed almost as much as its nutritional stats, so I'm always trying to fit it into recipes. Flaxseed Banana Bread is the latest, and while it is a little crumblier than other banana breads, it still holds together when sliced and has good flavor. You can make it as one large loaf in a 9x5 inch pan, or if you are short on bananas you can halve it and make it in a small 8x4 inch pan.
Flaxseed Meal
The banana bread in the photo was made with regular ground flaxseed meal. Since making this, I've changed over to Bob's Red Mill golden flaxseed meal. It's a lot lighter and makes fluffier baked goods. It's also less intrusive when used to make flax eggs for vegan cookies.
Flaxseed Banana Bread Baking Time
Thanks to Suzanne for her helpful notes! Her baking time was less than 45 minutes, while mine was 50 minutes. For now, be careful and check at 35 no matter what size pan you are using.
Recipe
Flaxseed Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour (220 grams)
- ¾ cup flaxseed meal (70 grams)
- ¾ cup sugar (150 grams)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 6 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups mashed bananas or about 3 (12 oz)
- ⅓ cup finely chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350°F. Grease a 9x5 or an 8 ½ by 4 ½ inch loaf pan and line bottom of pan with a strip of parchment paper.
- Thoroughly whisk together flour, flax, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil and vanilla.
- Add the bananas and flour mixture alternately to the egg mixture, stirring until blended. It will be very thick. Stir in the nuts.
- The bake time might vary a bit between ovens and loaf pans. Check your bread as early as 35 minutes. The bread may take up to 60 depending on your loaf pan size, oven and the temperature of the batter. My original bake time was 55 to 60 minutes.
- Let cool for about 20 minutes before loosening from pan. Remove from pan and let cool completely before slicing.
Sandra says
Great recipe, thank you! It takes 55-60 minutes in my oven. I’ve made this several times and the last time I added a dallop of almond milk yogurt. It makes it more moist!
Anna says
Thanks for the review, Suzanne! I really appreciate those detailed notes and will add a note to check at 30 to 35 minutes. I usually use an 8 1/2 by 4 1/2 inch loaf pan, so mine might have taken longer because it was a deeper loaf.
Suzanne W. says
Great recipe and directions! Only change was cooking time, 30-35 minutes would have been perfect for the bread and muffins. But being a novice baker I was unsure and let them go until 45 and they are a little firm on top. I made one batch for banana bread w/ walnuts vs pecans because it’s what I had on hand, and followed directions…second batch was for muffins and I poured the egg & vanilla mixture over the dry in a mindless moment and it was able to be salvaged ! I added dark chocolate chips to muffins and they turned out great too.
I’m a Dietitian and always looking for ways to add in more fiber and heart healthy fats, like flaxseed.
Thank you!
Anna says
Helena, thanks for sharing those modifications. I love it when people share their changes, and yours were so interesting and helpful. Next time I make this (hopefully soon), I'll try your protein powder version.
Helena says
I was looking for a banana bread recipe that I could add protein powder to, so I riffed on this one because I loved the texture with the flax seeds in the cross section image. (warning: I made a lot of modifications and upgrades)
I swapped 40g of plant protein powder for the same amount of flour, reduced egg to 1, swapped 50g of brown sugar for the same amount of white sugar, swapped coconut oil for the vegetable oil, and added about a cup of oat milk because the protein powder is more absorbent than flour. Added a dash of cinnamon and 15 minutes to the bake time, and the bread came out light and delicious! I might reduce the sugar to 120g next time. Thanks for the solid base recipe!
Madeline Twooney says
I just made this recipe and it turned out beautifully! My batter was very sticky, but maybe that was because l sweetened with honey instead of sugar. My baking time was also 30 minutes, but l know that is due to the make of my oven. I will definitely make this recipe again! Thanks for posting!