How to Video
Blueberry Banana Bread
This Healthier Blueberry Banana Bread is perfectly moist, lightly sweetened, and packed with ripe bananas and juicy blueberries. It’s made with simple, wholesome ingredients and feels like a treat while still being nourishing. Perfect for breakfast, snacks, or stocking your freezer.
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
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/3 cup avocado oil (sub: any neutral oil -- canola, vegetable, etc.)
- 3 medium bananas (ripe and mashed; 1-1 1/4 cup per batch)
- 2 large eggs (lightly beaten)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups fresh blueberries (see Cooking Notes if using frozen blueberries)
- Optional: Zest of 1/2 lemon
Instructions
- Preheat: Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat an 8.5 x 4.5-inch bread loaf pan with cooking spray. (I used metal. See Cooking Notes about pans.)
- Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, combine flours, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Whisk together.
- Wet Ingredients: In a medium mixing bowl, combine oil, mashed banana, eggs, and vanilla. (Tip: I often use my blender for wet ingredients instead–making it very smooth.)
- Combine: Add wet mixture to flour mixture. Stir just until combined. Gently fold in the blueberries and lemon zest (if using).
- Bake: Pour batter into the greased loaf pan and spread evenly with a spatula. Bake on the middle rack for 70-80 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (there may be a few crumbs). If the top starts to brown too quickly, loosely tent with aluminum foil.
- Cool: Cool bread in pan for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Then, remove bread from pan and cool completely on wire rack before slicing (see Cooking Notes for why this is important). Follow storage or freezing instructions below for leftovers.
Freezer Instructions
Freeze for Later: Bake bread as directed in the 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 and store in a freezer bag. 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.
Storage Tips: Once cooled, wrap tightly in plastic wrap or keep in an airtight container or Ziploc bag. Store at room temperature for 2-3 days, or in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
Foil Tent: In our tests, we definitely had to tent foil over the bread during the last 20 minutes or so of cook time so it didn’t brown too much. A metal pan will cause more browning all around.
Another way to check doneness: Insert a digital thermometer straight into the center of the loaf, avoiding the pan. For sweet quick breads (banana bread, zucchini bread, pumpkin bread, etc.), the done temperature in the center is 200–205°F. That’s the sweet spot where the crumb is fully set but still moist. So, pull it out of the oven near 200°F. It will continue to rise a few degrees from carryover heat as it rests, usually landing right in that 203–205°F range.
Let Cool Completely: Allow the loaf to cool completely on a wire rack before slicing. This helps the banana bread retain moisture, as slicing too soon allows steam to escape and can result in a drier loaf.
About Your Loaf Pan: Our team tested this several times in an 8.5 x 4.5-inch metal bread loaf pan–regular and non-stick. If your pan is a little larger than the one listed in the recipe, decrease the bake time by 5-10 minutes. Start checking it sooner. If your pan is a little smaller than the one listed in the recipe, you’ll likely need to bake it longer. If you use a glass pan or ceramic pan that’s the same size, check a few minutes later than recipe calls, and consider lowering temp by 25°F.
We updated this recipe in February 2026. If you are looking for the old version, you can download it here.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 slice | Calories: 265 kcal (13%) | Carbohydrates: 44 g (15%) | Protein: 5 g (10%) | Fat: 9 g (14%) | Cholesterol: 37 mg (12%) | Sodium: 218 mg (9%) | Fiber: 3 g (13%) | Sugar: 21 g (23%)
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