Protein Banana Nut Bread

It’s been a minute since I developed a quick bread recipe, so I figure it’s time to share my high-protein banana bread recipe!

Also, it’s almost a rite of passage for my blogs. Each of my food blogs - with the exception of Low Carb Hoser (for obvious reasons!) - has at least one banana bread recipe.

It all started out with my Easy Banana Bread Recipe, and from there went on to include recipes for Peanut Butter Banana Bread, Blueberry Banana Bread, Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Bread, Gluten Free Banana Bread, and even an Eggless Banana Bread - which uses extra bananas in place of the egg.

I’ve even got one on our camping blog - Campfire Banana Bread!

What can I say, banana bread is one of the easiest ways to have several days worth of a healthy snack on hand.

... and really, what’s better than a warm slice of homemade banana bread, maybe with a smear of cream cheese, or a dollop of peanut butter?

How about that same comforting afternoon snack, just with a healthy twist?

This healthy banana bread recipe is basically a riff on my gluten-free banana bread, just with a big extra protein boost - 21 grams worth per slice, to be exact!

It’s a great recipe - this turns out a moist banana bread with a nice texture, and a little crunch coming from either walnuts, pecans, or peanuts.

The texture is only slightly different from my regular banana bread - in no way will it feel like you’re getting the great dose of extra protein that you are.

I love it when increasing my protein intake feels like a treat, don’t you?

Anyway, let’s look at what you’ll need for this recipe...

Ingredients

This high protein banana bread recipe uses pretty simple ingredients - you shouldn’t have any trouble finding everything you need at any grocery store.

As always, I have a few ingredient notes for when it comes to the most important ingredients...

Overripe Bananas

Use VERY ripe bananas. They’re sweeter, mash down better, and have a more intense banana flavour than less-ripe bananas.

If you have bananas that are perfectly (over!) ripe for banana bread, but need to hold off on actually making it… just toss them in the freezer for a few hours.

The peel will go black, but inside, the bananas will be perfect!

Flour Mixture

While my regular banana bread - like most traditional banana bread recipes - uses all purpose flour - I designed this protein-packed banana bread to be gluten free.

In place of the regular flour, I use a mix of Light Buckwheat Flour, Sorghum Flour, and Coconut Flour.

In the proportions used, they make for a fantastic taste and texture. I would not recommend substituting any “all purpose” gluten-free flour, as they aren’t likely to work the same.

That said, you can substitute 1 ½ cups of regular flour for these 3 flours. If you want to use any whole wheat flour, you can do 1 cup of all-purpose flour, and ½ cup of whole wheat flour.

Vanilla Flavored Protein Powder

The bulk of the protein content of this recipe comes from the use of Vanilla Flavored Whey Protein Powder.

Personally, I keep a big canister of Revolution Nutrition's High Whey in Vanilla Cake on hand at all times, and use it in a TON of my recipe - baked goods, beverages, etc.

Use whatever vanilla protein powder that you like to drink, and fits your macros. If you don’t like to drink it, there’s a good chance you won’t like to bake with it - IMHO.

Everything Else

Rounding out this recipe, you will need:

Chopped Walnuts or Pecans
Plain Greek Yogurt
Brown Sugar (Can use white sugar)
Large Egg
Vanilla Extract
Baking Soda
Salt

... I just don’t have anything to add, as far as these last few ingredients go. Pretty basic ones!

How to Make High Protein Banana Nut Bread

The full recipe is in the printable recipe card at the end of this post, here is a pictorial walk through:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease 1 regular/large loaf pan, or line with parchment paper.

In a large mixing bowl, mash together bananas and brown sugar until relatively smooth.

Add the Greek yogurt, egg, and vanilla to the mashed bananas, whisk to combine.

In a separate bowl, combine protein powder, flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. (Sometimes I’m lazy and will just measure the dry ingredients right into the same bowl!)

Add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl of wet ingredients, along with the nuts and/or raisins, if using.

Use a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to stir just until combined, with no obvious streaks of flour in the batter.

Pour batter into the greased loaf pan.

Bake for about 1 hour, or until crust is a rich golden brown, and knife inserted into middle of loaf comes out clean.

Once fully cooked, remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 15-20 minutes before cutting - if you’ve got that kind of patience!

Leftovers

Leftovers can be cooled to room temperature, and stored in the fridge for up to a week.

You can wrap the whole thing in plastic wrap or keep it in an airtight container (we’ll usually keep it in a large freezer baggie), or wrap individual slices for convenience later.

Best served at room temperature or warmer.

More Protein Powder Breakfast Recipes!

Looking for more protein packed breakfast recipes? I’ve got you covered! (And hey, many are low carb, also!)

Apple Cinnamon Protein Pancakes
Camping Pancake Mix
Cranberry Orange High Protein Overnight Oats
Blueberry Protein Pancakes
High Protein Overnight Oats
Pumpkin Protein Pancakes
Raspberry Protein Pancakes
Strawberry Protein Pancakes