Blueberry Banana Bread
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This recipe for Blueberry Banana Bread is a classic sweet bread with a healthy twist. It’s the perfect breakfast, snack, or even dessert option and can be frozen for later use!
Why This Bread Is a Go-To Healthy Treat
I’m a big fan of having a stash of healthy baked goods in my freezer, like Banana Pumpkin Bread, Cinnamon Apple Sauce Bread, and Chocolate Sweet Potato Bread. They’re perfect to pull out on busy mornings for a filling, nutritious breakfast. Now I can add Blueberry Banana Bread to my go-list of healthy options!
In addition to being made with 50% whole wheat flour, Blueberry Banana Bread is packed with a tasty superfood: blueberries! The banana provides a natural sweetness (and nutrition) but still lets the blueberries shine. This is one of the many reasons I’m excited to get this recipe in your hands.
What’s in Blueberry Banana Bread?
Here are the ingredients you’ll need on hand:
- Flour – Like many of our baked goods, we use a combo of all-purpose flour and white whole wheat flour. We prefer this specific variety because it yields fluffier baked goods but still provides the nutrition from whole wheat flour.
- Sugar – Consider adding a little more if your banana isn’t very ripe or blueberries aren’t very sweet. For a more all-natural sugar, sub coconut sugar.
- Salt
- Baking powder & baking soda
- Butter – I used unsalted.
- Ripe Banana – This is a great way to use up bananas that have gone past their due date. In fact, overripe bananas are perfect for recipes like this! You can always peel them and toss them in the freezer until you’re ready to bake. Here is more info on how to freeze bananas.
- Blueberries – The star of the party! You can use frozen or fresh, but don’t thaw the frozen ones first.
- Eggs
Tips for Great Blueberry Banana Bread
You know the drill. Mix dry ingredients. Mix wet ingredients. Mix both together. Bake. But…there are a few other tips to keep in mind.
Tip 1: Really Mash Up that Banana!
Since blueberries are the star of the show in this recipe, you want the banana to be hidden backstage.
Take some extra time to really mash that banana up. You could use a fork to do this, but I found a potato masher to be really helpful. Mash mash mash until there are almost no more visible chunks.
This is a great step to have kids help with!
P.S. If you have more overripe bananas than you can use in this recipe, did you know you can freeze them? Here is the best way to freeze bananas for later.
Tip 2: Gently fold in the blueberries. GENTLY.
When using fresh blueberries, you need to mix them in slowly. Don’t use a stand mixer for this! Unless you want purple, tough bread that is.
After you’ve combined the dry & wet ingredients, use a spatula and integrate the blueberries as gently as you can.
Can I Use Frozen Blueberries?
You bet! Although, fresh blueberries are preferable.
If you need to use frozen blueberries, do not thaw, add another 2 tablespoons of flour to the dry ingredients, and extend the bake time. This is because frozen blueberries will bring some additional moisture to the mix.
Can I Freeze Blueberry Banana Bread?
It’s no secret we are big fans of freezer meals around here. In fact, we have 2 freezer meal cookbooks, 1 Hour Freezer Prep Sessions, and even a round-up with 70+ freezer meal recipes that you will love!
So, we definitely have freezer meal instructions for this recipe.
To Freeze
Fully bake, fully cool, and remove the loaf from the pan. Then wrap the loaf in several layers of plastic wrap and then in a layer of foil. Label it with the recipe name and date and freeze.
To Prepare
When you’re ready to enjoy your frozen bread, let it thaw in on the counter, in the fridge, or using the defrost setting on your microwave. Cut a slice and warm it for about 15-20 seconds in the microwave.
Customize It!
While I love this Blueberry Banana Bread as is, you can customize this loaf to add your own touch. Some great additions to this recipe are
- chopped pecans
- lemon or orange zest
- white chocolate chips
- sliced almonds
- powdered sugar (sprinkled right before serving)
You can also top it off with some additional blueberries so they show off on top of the loaf when it’s done.
What Goes Well With Blueberry Banana Bread?
While this recipe can stand alone and leave you feeling full, here are some recipes that would complement it well:
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Want a high protein, low carb, on-the-go breakfast option that will keep you satisfied all morning? These egg bites are the perfect solution for a healthy breakfast on busy weekdays.
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Did you make this? Snap a photo and tag us on Instagram at @thrivinghome so we can see your creations and cheer you on!
Blueberry Banana Bread
This recipe for Blueberry Banana Bread is a classic sweet bread with a healthy twist. In addition to being made with 50% wheat flour, it’s packed with a tasty superfood: blueberries! The banana provides a natural sweetness (and nutrition) but still lets the blueberries shine. It’s the perfect breakfast, snack, or even dessert option and can be frozen for later use!
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup white whole wheat flour
- 3/4 cup sugar (sub: coconut sugar for a healthier alternative)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (if you use salted butter, use a little less salt)
- 1 cup mashed ripe banana (about 2 medium bananas)
- 1 heaping cup of blueberries (see Cooking Notes if using frozen blueberries)
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- Cooking spray
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Instructions
Make It Now:
- Preheat oven to 350°. Coat an 8.5 x 4.5 inch bread loaf pan with cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flours, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Whisk together.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine butter, mashed banana, and eggs.
- Add wet mixture to flour mixture. Stir just until just combined.
- Gently fold in the blueberries.
- Spoon batter into the greased loaf pan (I used a ceramic pan).
- Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. (If using frozen blueberries, see Cooking Notes below.)
- Cool bread in pan for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Then, remove bread from pan, and cool completely on wire rack. (Freezing instructions begin here.)
Freeze For Later: Bake bread as directed in recipe. Let cool completely. Wrap the bread tightly in a few layers of plastic wrap (and place in a freezer bag, too, if you want). Or you can slice the bread and wrap each slice individually. Store for up to 3 months.
Prepare From Frozen: Thaw a whole bread loaf in the fridge. Or, if using just a slice from the freezer, warm in the microwave in 15 second increments.
Notes/Tips
Directions If Using Frozen Blueberries: If you need to use frozen blueberries, do not thaw the berries, add another 2 tablespoons of flour to the dry ingredients, and extend the bake time (bake until toothpick comes out clean). This is because frozen blueberries will bring some additional moisture to the mix.
Baking Time Variance: Keep in mind that the baking time may vary based on the type of loaf pan you use. Dark metal and glass pans cook faster than light colored metal. Also, if you use a wider loaf pan, the baking time will decrease. So start checking on your loaf around the 40 minute mark if using metal or a larger pan. Read this article for more details.
Turned out fabulous. I tried Monk Fruit and white sugar since I didn’t have coconut sugar. This loaf won’t last long 🙂 I have already had two slices. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
★★★★★
Hi Shirlene. Thanks for taking the time to leave a review and let others know what substitutions worked for you!
No hating on grits! Though, if you’ve only had them out of a pouch or at the roadside restaurant with a porch, you haven’t had good grits.
Go grab some STONE GROUND grits (the best ones come in cloth bags and need to be kept in the fridge), and follow Matt & Ted Lee’s recipe for Simple Grits. Sure, it takes almost an hour, but they are AMAZING. Make them on a Saturday morning with scrambled eggs, bacon, and fresh fruit. Or for lunch with fried chicken, the Lee Bros Tuesday Collards and biscuits. Okay, now I’m hungry.
Anyway, here is a link to their recipe that someone posted on her blog. I don’t know about her changes (I haven’t done them that way), but I would add that when you serve them, stick a bit of butter on the top of each serving with the salt & pepper to taste. Oh, and like rice and pasta, you MUST salt the water, otherwise you’ll never get them to taste right…and grits without salt are gross.
http://chamcancook.blogspot.com/2010/03/simple-gritts-by-lee-brothers.html