Hello, hello!
Today I have what’s quickly becoming a new favorite recipe of mine to share with you guys, so let’s dive right into it!
Banana bread is one of my favorite ways to use ripe bananas, and I’m sure a lot of you would agree with me on that! There’s just something so comforting and yummy about a banana bread fresh out of the oven. I like to eat a slice with a cup of hot tea.
Today’s recipe takes a twist on banana bread – a cinnamon apple twist, because hello October! This is my last recipe creation using the fruit from my apple picking excursion in Julian. There’s been lots of apple eating and baking in my kitchen over the past month! 
I decided to nix the flour with this banana bread and instead use oats for a hearty, gluten-free version. The bread doesn’t rise as much as it would with whole wheat flour, but man, it is tasty!
I also decided at the last minute to throw chocolate chips into the batter, but they’re totally an optional add-in. I’ve made this bread both with and without them, and either way has gotten thumbs up all around. I’m in the camp that believes that chocolate chips make (almost) everything better, but it’s up to you if you want to include them in the recipe or not. 
I’m currently staying at my parents’ house on the east coast, and last week I made this bread when it was just my parents and me home. We had all already eaten dinner, and I baked the banana bread as we were sipping on glasses of wine…
….Fast forward to three hours later, and the banana bread was completely gone. The three of us polished off the entire loaf while hanging out at 10 pm! Whoopsies. I hope that you enjoy this banana bread recipe as much as we did!
Apple Pie Banana Bread {vegan + gf}
Ingredients
- 2 cups dry rolled oats
- 2 cups apple peeled & chopped
- 3 ripe bananas
- 1/2 cup apple sauce
- 1/4 cup Earth Balance buttery spread**
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup + 1/2 TBSP white sugar divided
- 1 1/4 TSP cinnamon divided
- 1/4 cup almond milk**
- 1 TSP apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup vegan dark chocolate chips, optional
- 1/2 TBSP vanilla extract
- 1 TSP baking powder
- 1/2 TSP salt
- 1/2 TSP baking soda
Instructions
- Combine the almond milk and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x5 loaf pan with cooking spray.
- Make the oats into flour by placing the 2 cups of dry oats in a food processor with the salt and 1 TSP of cinnamon. Pulse until oats are mostly ground.
- Mash the bananas and place in a mixing bowl. Add in Earth Balance, 1/4 cup of each sugar, apple sauce, vanilla, & milk + vinegar mixture, and mix either with a whisk or an electric mixer.
- Add in the oat flour, and mix until combined well. Mix in the baking powder and soda.
- Toss the chopped apples in a bowl with the remaining sugar and cinnamon.
- Add the apples to the banana bread batter. Add in chocolate chips if using.
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan, and bake for 1 hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Slightly cool before enjoying!
Notes
Nutrition
Looking for other healthy apple recipes? Check out these posts:
- Pumpkin Apple Banana Muffins
- Cinnamon Apple & Sage Goat Cheese Crostini
- Apple Pie Autumn Granola
- Cinnamon Apple & Peanut Butter Oatmeal
- Pear, Apple & Cinnamon Cleansing Green Juice
- Baked Maple Cinnamon Apples & Sweet Potatoes
Tell me… Have you made any stand-out apple recipes lately? What’s one baked good you can’t resist?
This banana bread looks so so good! I’ll be trying out your recipe this weekend!
I hope that you enjoyed this banana bread, Jennifer!
Combining apple pie with banana bread can make it better! This looks so wholesome and delicious, Nicole!
Thanks, Marcie! I think I might bake another one of these tomorrow 🙂
I love the oat flour in this one! Banana bread just so happens to be one of my all-time favorite breads. But then the apples in there make this one (even more) perfect for the season! Plus, oats in bread are an amazing invention…they bring such a wonderful flavor. I might leave out the chocolate chips in mine, but I can assure you this loaf will still disappear in under 3 hours. Hope you’re having fun here on the east coast! 🙂
You and me both, banana bread is my go-to when I have a few overripe bananas to use up! And I agree, I love using oats in baked goods like this. It makes the bread nice & hearty!
I could easily polish off a few of pieces of this with a glass of wine, too! It looks amazing. 🙂
I hope you’re having a nice time on the east coast with your family. I bet the changing leaves are gorgeous right now!
Thanks, Sarah! I have a bunch of bananas getting ripe in my fruit basket at the moment… so I’m thinking that I’ll freeze a few for smoothies, and use the rest to make another batch of this banana bread!
Oh yes this sounds amazing! I’ve only recently started baking breads but I love it so much. I’ve been sticking to zucchini bread and banana bread but I am definitely going to have to give this one a try! 🙂 🙂 Would you believe that it is nearly impossible to buy chocolate chips here? I don’t know why but they don’t really exist. So weird!
That’s interesting! Chocolate chips are completely optional for this, so I’d suggest trying it without em 🙂 I haven’t made zucchini bread in awhile, and I totally should whip one up soon!
I agree with you – banana bread is the best! And I LOVE this fall spin! I also love that you all polished this off in one night – totally awesome 🙂
Oh yea, we don’t play in my parents’ house… We polish off wine & food like it’s our job! 😉 After all, we’re New Jersey people with Italian ancestry. I’m sure you can relate having family in the area too!