I tampered with veganism in 2017, thanks to my 7-year-old son, who refused to eat meat, almost from the time he could talk. One day he asked me:
“Why, if there are so many plants, vegetables and fruits in the world, that we have to eat animals? Don’t they deserve to live?”
So, instead of forcing him to eat meat, I started the road to veganism (I stay away from dairy anyway because I struggle to digest it) and, bar a few slip-ups, I became a full vegan during Veganuary (Vegan January) 2018. I haven’t looked back since! I feel lighter, stronger, and my insides feel better.
It has been a slow change, but I have now successfully replaced our normal dairy butter, milk and yoghurt for the dairy-free versions and, the cheeseburger, fish fingers and other meat favourites with vegan or veggie alternatives. Luckily, my boys eat everything, but my husband and 5-year-old remain unconvinced about turning vegan, so I’ve chosen not to force them. It’s their body, so it’s their choice. However, as I’m the chef in the house, I get the full reign on what is being cooked/baked in the house and I choose to not cook anything with meat or dairy. The boys are fine with this and, in return, I turn a blind eye to what they eat outside of the home. So, from now on, you’ll only see vegan versions of everything on Five for a Fiver.
So, let’s start with the 5-ingredient Vegan Banana Bread!
Banana bread is a frequent alternative to our regular wholemeal bread breakfast staple in our house. The boys love the subtle sweetness and the surprise optional ingredients because I get quite creative with this recipe. Not much has changed since turning vegan if I’m honest. I never added eggs to my banana bread anyway, so the only change has been the dairy-free butter. Otherwise, it’s a pretty vegan recipe. I used to add chocolate chips, sultanas, or other yummy punnets that I get from Graze. But, I included mixed nuts and raisins because that’s what we had in the house. This is only an option. The banana bread tastes delicious with nothing added to it, so feel free to keep it pretty basic – or, if you’re anything like me, throw in whatever you have in the pantry – it almost always works!
How delicious does this banana bread look?
I’m not a photographer and I only have a smartphone, but I hope you can see the spongy, light texture with the optional mixed nuts and raisins popping through. I love banana bread at breakfast time, with a cup of tea (with Almond Milk) or as a snack in-between meals. But, the emphasis is on how versatile and delicious this banana bread is. And, it’s not too sweet, so feel free to add your favourite topping, like jam, peanut butter, or Marmite (have you tried Marmite and banana together? Try it!)
It’s so easy to make and only contains 5-ingredients (hence why I’ve published this recipe on Five for a Fiver and not Motherhood Diaries!). Below are the only items that you’ll need:
And you’ll end up with this:
So, let’s get to the recipe and see whether we can make this recipe less than a fiver to make (spoiler alert, we can!).
Grab your loaf tin and let’s get started!
5-Ingredient Vegan Banana Bread
4-6
servings10
minutes50
minutes1
hour10
minutesA delicious 5-ingredient vegan banana bread that is so versatile that you can add pretty much anything to it – even Marmite!
Ingredients
250g / 2 cups of Self-Raising Flour
2 heaped teaspoons of baking powder
3 Capfuls of Maple Syrup (about 3 tablespoons)
3 large ripe bananas
75g / 1/3 cup of dairy-free butter
(Optional ingredient) Mixed nuts and raisins
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 200C / 392F / Gas Mark 6
- Prepare your loaf tin by greasing the tin first in oil or butter (I used coconut oil spray) then line with parchment paper, which you then grease again. It just helps to slip the bread out of the loaf tin afterwards and then peel the bread from the parchment paper.
- Add in this order and keep the mixer on a low setting as you add them (leave a few minutes in between each ingredient): self-raising flour, baking powder, bananas, butter, maple syrup, then your additional ingredients.
- Bake in the loaf tin for approximately 50 minutes, or until a fork poked through the bread comes out clean. If the top browns before the whole loaf has baked fully, then cover with tin foil and continue to bake until cooked through.
Notes
- Go wholemeal with the flour for an extra health boost.
- 3 capfuls equate to about 3 tablespoons of Maple Syrup – add more or less, depending on how sweet you want it, but I found 3 capfuls to be the happy medium
- The riper you go with the bananas (so super black ones) the sweeter this banana bread will be
- Leave plenty of air when you mix the ingredients together – I used a mixer on the lowest setting to ensure plenty of air was left into the mix – this helps the texture to stay light and spongy
- You can use sunflower oil if you prefer but use sparingly as the mixture may end up too liquid-y. You want to get a nice sticky and gooey texture before you add it to the loaf tin.
- My favourite dairy-free butter is Vitalite, which I found worked perfectly in this recipe.
- This banana bread tastes even better the next day!
Enjoy!
If you’re ready to create your recipe, just click on the button below and head on over to mySupermarket to buy your ingredients in the cheapest possible way.
Price for ingredients from Lidl – £4.36 (as at 03/02/2018) Prices may vary after this date
