This nutritious banana bread is protein rich, fibre rich and is 100 % gluten free. It made with besan/gram/chickpea flour, is aromatic with ghee & green cardamom and has a double dose of chocolate. It is nut free (though you can add nuts), eggless and one bowl. Perfect for breakfast or snack any time of the day.
Banana bread is a favorite in our house and since the kids love sweet breakfast,I make it every other week. There is always a peace of mind when there is banana bread in the fridge especially during weekdays when the morning rush is a real thing!
Chickpea flour or besan is one of the most loved flour in north indian homes, second only to whole wheat flour. It is versatile, and perfect for both sweet and savory dishes. Chickpea flour is high in soluble fiber which makes it nutritious. I make nankhatais with chickpea flour all the time but this was the first time I baked a cake with it. And it was surprising as to how well this loaf came out.
It took me few attempts to get this recipe right. I went through inspiration from the internet but ultimately came up with measurements and swapped ingredients suited to the tastes of my family. The bread isn’t overly sweet and has an amazing texture. As with banana breads, it tastes better the next day.
Now the question ringing in your mind ever since you started reading 🙂 How does it compare to regular banana bread made with all purpose flour? The answer – Quite well! It does taste different, but only slightly. Not bad at all! There is an aftertaste of besan but its very nutty & pleasing. I am a convert! I would pick this wholesome recipe over a regular banana bread made with regular flour especially since the kids often consume it as first meal of the day.The husband who isn’t a big fan of alternative flour baking, LOVED it.
You can easily make this recipe vegan but substituting neutral oil in place of ghee and using plant milk instead of dairy milk. The addition of cardamom and ghee together makes it taste like indian mithai (sweets) and we love it. However good quality vanilla or cinnamon will work great as well. A very doable, make ahead breakfast recipe for next morning while you are making dinner in the evening. It is one bowl and the ingredients are easy to find and few.
Gram Flour Chocolate Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 450 g mashed bananas , from about 3 large very ripe bananas
- 90 g raw sugar
- 1/4 cup melted ghee
- 1/3 cup whole milk
- 3/4 tsp cardamom powder
- 175 g besan(gram flour /chickpea flour) use superfine variety
- 1/3 cup unsweetened dark cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3-4 tbsp baking chocolate chunks I used 70% dark chocolate chunks or use chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. I used a 8 inch by 5 inch nonstick loaf pan to bake this bread, since my pan was nonstick I did not need to spray or line it with parchment paper. If you are using a regular loaf pan, line it with parchment paper with bit of an overhang so that the loaf is easy to take out.
- In a large bowl, add the bananas, raw sugar, ghee and milk. Whisk very well for 2-3 minutes until you all the raw sugar granules have dissolved.
- Place a sieve on top of the bowl and add besan, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Sift the flour mixture over the wet ingredinets. Do not skip sifting coz besan is usually lumpy and it will make the bread batter lumpy.
- Add the cardamom powder. If using nuts, add them right now. Using a soft spatula, gently fold and mix everyrhing together until its cocoa color. Dont over mix.
- Transfer the batter to the loaf pan and smoothen the top using a flat spatula. Scatter chocolate chunks on top.
- Bake for 44-49 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. I baked mine for 45 minutes. Note that the baking times will differ depending on the size of baking pan as well as oven.
- Once baked, let the loaf cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Pull out of the pan and transfer to a cooling rack and let cool down completely.
- Slice using a sharp knife and enjoy. You can store leftovers in fridge for 2 days or freeze upto 3 months.
Notes
- You canned chopped walnuts or almonds to the batter.Â
- Use very ripe and sweet mashed bananas, else your bread wont be as sweet.
- Instead of cardamom, you can use cinnamon as well.Â
- If you are making for kids and arent a fan of dark chocolate, use regular cocoa powder and chocolate chips in the recipe.Â
- You can make easily make it vegan by substituting neutral oil and plant based milk.Â
Looks so rich and delicious!
Love the texture and the dark colour of the banana bread. Looks healthy as it is made from chickpea flour. Great recipe Tanvi
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