As I was flipping through Jamie Oliver’s new cookbook Everyday Superfoods, which Walker gave me for Christmas last year, I came across a recipe for Earl Grey Banana Bread. I thought “OMG, what an amazing idea!” I love the Earl Grey flavour, as you might have noticed from my near-daily London Fog sippin‘, so I whipped up my own version with buckwheat flour and made it gluten-free.
This banana bread was super fluffy and moist, just like my previous recipe for Chocolate Chip Buckwheat Banana Bread. The hint of Earl Grey was such a lovely addition. I think this is my new favourite banana bread – and I’ve got quite a few on Joyous Health.
I normally add maple syrup or coconut sugar, but I decided to let the bananas shine in this recipe. I used some medjool dates as well to add natural sweetness. This loaf was the perfect level of sweetness.
Walker enjoyed it with some goat butter. Yes, I did just say “goat butter.” It’s delicious!! I slathered my slice with coconut butter. I broke the five-day raw food cleanse I’ve been doing, but it was worth it! Raw food cleanse or not, I must taste test my own recipes to make sure they’re good enough for my joyous readers. I made a similar recipe yesterday with quinoa flour and it was a total flop, as you might have seen on Snapchat. It is always a bummer when that happens because I don’t go cheap on ingredients even when I’m testing.
The ingredients are pretty much what you see in this photo. But for more detailed instructions, check out the recipe below.
Here’s the recipe. Do let me know in the comments section if you tried it!
Desserts
Earl Grey Banana Bread
Print
Ingredients
- 1 cup light* buckwheat flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla powder or extract
- 2 eggs, whisked
- 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
- 2 ripe bananas, mashed
- 1/3 cup organic earl grey tea, strongly steeped in hot water*
- 1/3 cup banana chips, crumbled or finely chopped
- 4 medjool dates, pitted and finely chopped
- 1/3 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Grease a loaf pan.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and vanilla powder. If using vanilla extract, combine it with the wet ingredients.
- In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, oil, banana and tea. Combine the wet and dry ingredients until fully combined. Fold in banana chips, dates and pecans.
- Pour batter into loaf pan.
- Bake for 30 minutes. I have a convection oven, which cooks things a little faster, but you'll know it's done when you stick a fork or knife into the center and it comes out clean. If you do not have a convection oven then you may need to add about 10 minutes.
Notes
*Dark buckwheat flour works fine too.
Be sure to use really good quality tea for this recipe. I used the Honest Leaf's organic Earl Grey tea.
I recommend you enjoy this banana bread with some good fat like almond butter, coconut butter or this goat butter. The good fat will turn this banana bread into more of a powersnack because good fats really help to balance your blood sugar. It was my first time trying goat butter and I absolutely loved it. Surprisingly, it wasn’t at all goat-y tasting – not that I would have minded because I love all things goat milk.
As mentioned above, I’m on Snapchat now. My username is joyoushealth. I’ve been snapping up a storm this week! If you have a mobile device you can add the app and follow my snaps!
Have a joyous rest of your week!
Such a great recipe! I love Earl Grey tea as well, so aromatic! Would butter be ok to use instead of coconut oil? I love coconut oil,but it can get expensive, butter is more affordable in that regard. Thanks in advance! :-)
ReplyHi Susan, that should work fine but I'd suggest using organic butter :) Let us know how it turns out! Heather- Joyous Health Team
i use olive oil
Assuming it would be fine to omit the banana chips?
ReplyHey Jody. I say go for it! Heather- Joyous Health Team
I can't wait to try this one! I love your other buckwheat banana bread recipe aswell - it's my go to! Wondering if Walker would ever do a post on some photography tips? I remember from one of your periscopes you saying that Walker takes most of the photos and I think they're awesome! It's not easy taking nice photos like you guys have here. Anyways, just a thought for a future post maybe.. or even some resources that Walker has used to gain his skills could be helpful... Thanks guys! Love all that you do!
ReplyHey Amanda! Thanks for your kind words. We think Walker is pretty darn good at what he does too and what a great idea for a future post! Stay tuned :) Heather- Joyous Health Team
Hi Joy, This recipe looks amazing. Do you think using regular, all purpose gf flour would work? The fact that your quinoa flour batch didn't turn out has me worried. Thanks, Jackie
ReplyI think that should be fine. Give it a whirl and let us know how it turns out! Heather-Joyous Health Team
Hi Jackie, did you end up trying all-purpose flour? If so, how'd it turn out?
Oh my goodness! That looks SO good! :D Can't wait to try it!
ReplyI tried it without banana chips. It was moist and kept well for a couple of days. I love that it's sugar free! I didn't put any fat on it, but that's just me.
ReplyThis sounds delicious! Has anyone tried an egg-free version (flax egg, etc)? I'm wondering if it would work.
ReplyFor the amount of tea, are you talking 1/3 cup of leaves and then brew it, or 1/3 cup of brewed tea (brewed strongly)? I'm thinking the latter. Every recipe I've ever tried is super-joyous. As a matter of fact, I'm having your pesto tonight.
ReplyHey Jeremy, You're correct with the latter! Use 1/3 cup of liquid to brew a really strong cup of tea. Try to match the colour of your tea to the dark liquid in the picture of the ingredients in the post. Enjoy :) Heather- Joyous Health team
This recipe looks terrific, but I'm allergic to eggs. What would be the best egg substitute for this recipe?
ReplyCheck out my egg substitution chart here: http://www.joyoushealth.com/egg-substitution-chart/
How do you feel about Gee? I haven't seen you use it for anything before.
ReplyGhee is great! I think we're just so in love with coconut oil, we often forget about ghee :) Heather- Joyous Heather Team
I just made this recently and my whole family of 5 loved it! I'm just wondering how you store this (or other breads)? I don't want it to get hard but I have yet to find something that works as effectively as plastic wrap. Thanks!
ReplyAwesome! So glad to hear the family enjoyed it :) I typically keep leftovers wrapped in wax paper or in beeswax foods wraps (reusable cloths made with bees wax). Sometimes I will slice leftovers (if there are any;) and store it in a glass tupperware container too. Hopefully that gives you a few options to test out and see which works best for you. Heather- Joyous Health team
Where in Toronto can you buy that goat butter? On their website it's only sold in Quebec.
ReplyHi Ashley! It's available at various stores throughout Toronto including: Whole Foods, Fresh & Wild, Harvest Wagon, Natures Emporium and other select health food stores like Noah's, Organic Garage and Ambrosia. Enjoy :) Heather- Joyous Health Team
Wow, this turned out amazing! I dislike earl grey tea but had some and finally found a use for it. I also used spelt flour instead of buckwheat since it's all I had and I find it works really well. I added dates, prunes and figs in the mix with walnuts and a little sprinkling of ground almonds. I'm just so surprised at how perfectly sweet it is without adding any sugar! Amazed. This is my fave.
ReplySo glad to hear you liked it! Your substitutions sound delicious :) Thanks for sharing. Heather- Joyous Health Team
I baked these this week but found that they could use a liiiiiittle more sweetness ;) How could I throw a little maple syrup in here without compromising the chemistry? :)
ReplyHi Kaila. Try using a bit of coconut sugar or maple syrup (maybe 2-3 tbsp up to 1/4 cup). We've never tried it so it would be an experiment but I think it could work. For some extra sweetness, you could also try topping if with some maple or coconut butter or your favourite jam (available in most health food stores)! Heather- Joyous Health Team
Does regular stone ground Buckwheat flour work too? Mine doesn't say Light or Dark. Sorry if this is a silly question. Thx!
ReplyHey Julia! Yes, it definitely does! Stone ground just means the way it's processed. Usually organic flour is stone ground. It doesn't make any difference to the recipe though. Not a silly question at all! :) Rachel - Joyous Health Team
I've had success making banana bread with spelt flour and quinoa flakes* (rather than quinoa flour)....maybe that could be the difference?? It turns out moist delicious and flavourful every time! Let me know if you try. I am looking forward to making this 😁
ReplyHey Liz! That's amazing! Both definitely work. Sometimes it just comes down to tweaking the amounts of the other ingredients ever so lightly :) Rachel - Joyous Health Team
Hello! I'd love to try out this recipe; however, I don't have buckwheat flour. I have regular flour, wheat flour, coconut flour and gluten free flour. Could I substitute any of these for the buckwheat flour? Thanks!
ReplyHey Kat! Amazing - I think you're going to love this recipe! When swapping flours for gluten-free flours, it's not always an equal equation so we've actually developed this Flour Substitution Chart which you may find helpful. You can download your copy here: https://www.joyoushealth.com/20126-blog-flour-substitution-chart Rachel - Joyous Health Team
HI! I'm planning on making this tomorrow. Is this banana bread ok to keep in the freezer? I plan on baking a couple of loaves. Thanks!
ReplyHey Karen, Yes absolutely :) That's a great idea! Maybe just slice it before freezing it so it's easy to grab and go! Rachel - Joyous Health Team
Hi can you use spelt flour as well .
ReplyYep!
I do not have any buckwheat flour all I have is coconut or brown rice flour will either one of these work and if it will how much would I use? Also, I have a random question I was wondering I have been wanting to work beets into my diet but am not fond of the flavor I just learned about sprouting will I be gaining any of the benefits from beet sprouts that I would from the actual beets. I know not getting all of them but was hoping maybe if I sprouted them I would gain some of their unique properties while trying to work them into my diet. What are your thoughts?
ReplyDo you have my cookbooks? I have a coconut flour-based zucchini banana bread in the Joyous Cookbook that is delicious! Or you could easily turn these coconut flour muffins into a loaf, you'll have to increase the baking time though: https://www.joyoushealth.com/26355-blog-coconut-flour-banana-spice-muffins
If you're pretty new to sprouting, beet microgreens are not the easiest ones to start with. They take up to 12 days to sprout and it's hard to make sure they don't grow mould. However, beets get a little sweeter and less earthy when you bake them. Have you tried this Beet Cashew Dip yet? https://www.joyoushealth.com/25313-blog-beet-cashew-dip-recipe
Mine stuck to pan. I would try parchment next time. I didn’t have banana chips so I substituted with raw sunflower seeds. A tasty bread! Not too sweet.
ReplyGlad you enjoyed it!!
Thanks for posting this great recipe. I was very excited to make this recipe this morning and it turned out to be light, fluffy and delicious. I ended up baking it for an additional 10 minutes even with my convection oven. And I topped it off with lime cashew cream and cacao nibs.
ReplySounds delicious! Sounds like a wonderful topping!