Last Updated on October 18, 2021 by Chenée Lewis
This is the best dairy free banana bread recipe! So moist and can even be converted into dairy free banana muffins! You’ll love this easy dairy free banana bread! For more delicious banana recipes, try my Banana Blondies with Brown Butter Frosting, my Fluffy Banana Pancakes with Pecans and Maple Brown Butter Glaze, and my Pineapple Banana Bread!
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Best Dairy Free Banana Bread Recipe
I love this banana bread recipe! It's so moist and tender, with lots of amazing banana flavor and a great crunch from plenty of walnuts! It's the perfect treat for breakfast, an afternoon snack, or even dessert! I personally love it with a little salted butter and a drizzle of honey! Best of all, this is a dairy free banana bread recipe, so it's great for anyone with dairy allergies or who is avoiding dairy for any reason. Plus, this dairy free banana bread is so easy to make! You don't need a mixer or anything, and it all comes together in one bowl. You're just a few steps and a few ingredients from an amazing banana nut bread!
This banana bread is based on my pineapple banana bread recipe, which is one of the top recipes I've shared! I've been meaning to share a more classic banana bread recipe, and I'm excited to provide one that's dairy free!
Does banana bread contain dairy?
Typical banana bread does contain dairy, in the form of butter or maybe sour cream or milk. But this dairy free banana bread skips the butter in favor of vegetable oil, and swaps out milk or sour cream for dairy-free yogurt! It's a really easy alternative, and the vegetable oil keeps it nice and moist.
How to Make Dairy Free Banana Bread
- vegetable oil - using vegetable oil instead of butter keeps this a dairy free banana bread recipe, and it also keeps it moist! I like to use canola oil, but any vegetable oil you like would work well too.
- granulated sugar & light brown sugar - I like this blend of sugars because it adds keeps this banana bread light, slightly sweet, and moist. If your bananas aren't very overripe, you may want to add an additional 2 tablespoon of brown sugar.
- eggs - make sure your eggs are room temperature. This helps your banana bread to bake evenly.
- bananas - I like to let bananas sit until they're very dark, with lots of large brown/black spots. They should be dark and mushy on the inside as well.
- vanilla - be sure to use a high-quality pure vanilla extract. Or better yet, check out my post on how to make vanilla extract at home with just 2 ingredients!
- dairy-free yogurt - I used Forager plain yogurt, but you can use your favorite nondairy yogurt, or a non-dairy sour cream alternative.
- all-purpose flour - be sure to use a kitchen scale to measure by weight, or use the spoon-and-level method to measure by volume.
- baking soda - interacts with the acid and moisture in other ingredients to give our banana bread a nice lift.
- salt - to bring out all these flavors.
- Optional add-ins: I added a little cinnamon and a big handful of chopped walnuts to add some flavor and texture!
Can I turn this recipe into dairy free banana muffins?
Yes you can! Prepare your batter as written in the recipe card below, and fill your muffin cups ¾ of the way full. Then just bake your muffins for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick in one of the muffins come out clean.
Equipment
This is a classic easy banana bread recipe, so you'll only need a few kitchen tools! First of all, I made this dairy free banana bread with an 8.5 x 4.5-inch loaf pan. If you only have a 9x5-inch loaf pan, that will work too, but your loaf will have less rise and will bake a bit faster. Here are a few more tools I used:
Tips and F.A.Q.
In this dairy free banana bread, we're using dairy free Greek yogurt to give us the same tart flavor and moist texture that we would get from regular yogurt or sour cream. The yogurt helps to lift the loaf a bit and adds moisture.
Store your banana bread, once it has cooled completely, at room temperature in an airtight container or wrapped well in plastic wrap for up to four days.
This dairy free banana bread also freezes so well! Just let it cool completely, and wrap the loaf or slices in foil and place in a zipper freezer bag. Then freeze for up to 2 months!
If you have a hard time finding a Greek yogurt for this recipe, you can definitely leave it out -- I like the added moisture that we get from Greek yogurt in this recipe, but it'll still be delicious without it!
For this recipe, you need overripe bananas — that is, bananas with lots of dark spots and bruising. The more brownness on your banana, the sweeter they’ll be when you add them to the recipe. And pro-tip: if you have bananas that aren’t quite at that point yet, there are a few shortcuts to get them to ripen in just minutes!
More Recipes You'll Love
- Sour Cream Pumpkin Bread with Maple Brown Butter Glaze
- Banana Bread French Toast
- Vegan Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies with Banana and Cacao
- Almond Flour Peanut Butter Cookies
- Banana Pudding Cheesecake Squares
Equipment you may need
Ingredients
- baking spray
- ½ cup (109 g) vegetable oil
- ⅓ cup (67 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (110 g) light brown sugar - packed
- 2 large eggs - room temperature
- 1½ teaspoon (7 ml) pure vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (50 g) dairy-free Greek yogurt - room temperature
- 3 large overripe bananas - mashed
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon (3 g) baking soda
- ½ teaspoon (3 g) salt
- ½ teaspoon (1 g) ground cinnamon - optional
- ⅔ cup (78 g) chopped walnuts - optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Spray an 8.5 x 4.5-inch loaf pan with baking spray and line with parchment paper.baking spray
- In a large bowl, whisk together oil and sugars until well-combined.½ cup vegetable oil, ½ cup light brown sugar, ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- Add eggs one at at time, followed by vanilla, Greek yogurt, and mashed bananas. Stir until smooth.2 large eggs, 1½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract, ¼ cup dairy-free Greek yogurt, 3 large overripe bananas
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon (if using).2 cups all-purpose flour, ¾ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon salt
- Fold flour mixture and walnuts gently into wet ingredients until just combined.⅔ cup chopped walnuts
- Pour mixture into prepared loaf pan and smooth evenly.
- Bake in preheated oven for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick entered in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
- Cool at least 15 minutes before slicing. Serve warm or room temperature.
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Notes
Nutrition
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Amy Bloodworth
I Love having a dairy-free alternative for banana bread! It was moist and soft and delicious.
Chenée Lewis
Wonderful! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Lori | The Kitchen Whisperer
Oh wow, such a beautiful bread! I love that this is dairy-free yet it looks so moist and delicious! Thank you so much for sharing!
Chenée Lewis
Thank you so much! The oil makes it even more moist than typical banana bread!
Julia
I've never thought to sub the butter for greek yogurt! Not only is this dairy free but it feels much much lighter. I make banana bread for my husband all the time and I do feel bad sometimes because I know it's definitely NOT the healthier. This alternative is a great fix.
Chenée Lewis
Thank you! I love making this banana bread!
silvia
Banana bread is one of those comforting dishes that are so convenient, easy to make and delicious and this one fits the bit. I had a little problem finding the dairy free greek yogurt, but I got it.
Chenée Lewis
Thank you so much! I'm glad it worked out for you!
Amy Liu Dong
This banana bread look so delicious and look so easy to make. I am sure my kids will love this. Thanks for sharing!
Chenée Lewis
It's so good! Hope you enjoy!
Ramona
I love making banana bread and I love how this is dairy-free, it makes it so much better! I will definitely be trying this out, thank you for sharing this recipe!
Chenée Lewis
You're welcome! Enjoy!
veenaazmanov
Perfect for some Tea Time Treat. Looks soft and delicious. I just want to give this a try.
Chenée Lewis
Thanks! It's so good 🙂
Kayla DiMaggio
Love this dairy-free banana bread! It was so soft and fluffy and delicious!
Chenée Lewis
Thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed!
Kathryn
This banana bread is so moist, flavorful and delicious! The yogurt make such a big difference and I won't make banana bread without it after trying your recipe, thank you!! 🙂
Chenée Lewis
Thanks! So glad you liked it!
Anna
It was so easy, quick and fun to make! My other half, who is allergic to dairy loved this banana bread! Thanks so much for sharing this recipe, I'm definitely adding this to my regular bakes!
Chenée Lewis
Wonderful! I'm glad it was a hit!
Amanda Dixon
This bread came out fantastic! It's super moist with the perfect explosion of banana flavor. Definitely a must make for banana lovers!
Chenée Lewis
Thank you! I definitely agree!