How do you make banana bread without any of the high-carb bananas? Pure keto magic! One bite and you will swear you are eating the real deal. It tastes just like it, smells just like it, and has the same wonderful moist texture.
It took me a while to perfect this Keto Banana Bread, but it was definitely worth the effort. After all, banana bread is very possibly the most comforting of baked goods. Who among us hasn’t had a grandmother or caring friend make us a loaf as a sign of their deepest affection?
Making this low carb sweet bread is definitely an act of love. All the more so because it won’t raise the blood sugar of you or your loved ones. Along with recipes like keto chocolate chip cookies and sugar free hot chocolate mix, baking up some Keto Banana Bread shows just how wonderful and caring you are.
Even if you plan to keep it all for yourself. After all, self-care is extremely important!
What readers are saying
“Made this yesterday and, WOW, I love it!! I followed the recipe exactly and am so happy with the flavor and texture, especially the outside has a bit of a sweeter taste and crust. Thanks, Carolyn!” — Karen
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Updated recipe! I created a low carb banana bread recipe back in 2014. But this updated version is easier to make and even lower in carbs.
- Classic flavor: A little banana extract gives this bread just the right flavor.
- Perfect texture: I have a special trick that adds the same moisture and tenderness as real bananas!
- Make ahead recipe: You can make a loaf or two and freeze for later.
- Keto and gluten-free: Made with almond flour and coconut flour, it’s grain-free and keto-friendly.
Ingredient Notes
- Chia seed: This is the magic ingredient that gives the bread the ideal banana bread texture.
- Keto flours: I use a combination of almond flour and coconut flour to keep the carbs low.
- Sweetener: I recommend a brown sugar replacement for classic banana bread flavor. See the Tips for Success for more information about sweeteners.
- Protein powder: The addition of a dry protein like whey protein powder helps keto baked goods rise properly and hold their shape. You can also use egg white protein powder.
- Banana flavor: I recommend a natural banana extract rather than an imitation flavoring.
- Chocolate chips: I love the addition of keto chocolate chips in my banana bread but you can also mix in chopped walnuts, shredded coconut or blueberries.
- Pantry staples: Baking powder, vanilla extract and salt.
How to Make Keto Banana Bread
- Prepare the chia seeds: Grind in a coffee grinder or food processor, then stir in the water.
- Combine the dry ingredients: Whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, protein powder, coconut flour, baking powder and salt.
- Add the wet ingredients: Stir in the eggs, melted butter, chia seed mixture, banana extract, and vanilla extract. Stir in the water to thin the mixture to a scoopable consistency.
- Add the mix-ins: Stir in the chocolate chips or nuts, if using. Reserve some for the top of the bread.
- Bake the bread: Spread the batter in a loaf pan and bake until golden brown and just firm to the touch. Let cool in the pan.
Tips for Success
There really is no good substitute for the chia seed. You can omit it but you will need to add additional liquid to the batter and the texture of the bread won’t be the same.
How much additional liquid you need depends on the chia gel, as well as other ingredients like the coconut flour. If the batter is overly thick, add water a little at a time until it has a scoopable consistency. It should not be pourable.
Brands of banana extract differ in strength. I like the Native Vanilla brand and find 1 1/2 teaspoons to be right for a good banana flavor. Some baking emulsions or artificial flavors may be stronger, so stick with about 1 teaspoon.
Sweetener Options:
This keto banana bread recipe works best with erythritol-based sweeteners. Allulose tends to brown very quickly and cause the parts of the bread against the hot pan to become very dark and taste burnt. If you can’t tolerate erythritol, you could try this in a silicone loaf pan, but the baking time may change.
You could also try a mix of sweeteners, such as erythritol and some liquid stevia or monk fruit extract. That can help reduce the erythritol and minimize any aftertaste you may experience from either sweetener.
Keto Banana Bread Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup (42.5 g) chia seed
- 2/3 cup (157.73 g) water
- 1 3/4 cups (175 g) almond flour
- 2/3 cup (121.33 g) Swerve Sweetener
- 1/3 cup (36 g) unflavoured whey protein powder
- 1/4 cup (27 g) coconut flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1/2 cup (113.5 g) melted butter
- 1 1/2 tsp banana extract, (imitation would also be fine)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (118.29 g) water
- 1/3 cup (60 g) dark chocolate chips, sugar-free
Instructions
Banana Bread:
- Preheat oven to 350F and grease an 8×4 inch loaf pan very well (you can also use 9×5 but your bread will bake faster). If your pan isn't very non-stick, you may want to line the pan with parchment, and grease the parchment.
- Grind the chia seed in a coffee grinder or food processor. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the water. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, protein powder, coconut flour, baking powder and salt.
- Stir in the eggs, melted butter, chia seed mixture, banana extract, and vanilla extract, until thoroughly combined. Stir in the water to thin the mixture to a scoopable consistency. If it's still very thick, add more water, 1 tbsp at a time.
- Stir in the chocolate chips, if using, saving a few for the top of the bread. Spread the batter in the prepared pan and sprinkle the top with the remaining chocolate chips.
- Bake 60 to 75 minutes or until golden brown and the top is just firm to the touch. Let cool in pan 20 minutes, then run a sharp knife around the edges to loosen. Continue to let it sit in the pan until cool, about 20 minutes more.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Frequently Asked Questions
While real bananas are not recommended on keto, you can still enjoy some treats and baked goods that have the same flavor. This keto banana bread recipe uses chia seed for texture and banana extract for flavor. And many readers swear you can’t tell it’s not the real thing.
Conventional banana bread recipes can have upwards of 40g per slice. But this keto banana bread has only 7g of carbs and 4.5g of fiber per serving. That comes to 3.5g net carbs per slice.
This delicious bread freezes very well. Just wrap it tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil . You can also leave it on the counter, covered or wrapped up, for 3 days. Refrigerate if you think it will be around longer.
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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Hi Carolyn, are the macros correct? The net carb count remains the same with or without the icing? I assumed the addition of cream cheese and shipping cream would add carbs.
Yes, they’re correct. The icing isn’t enough to change it that much and these calculations were done on software that doesn’t do decimal points, so…
I made this today. Minus the icing because it’s so good on it’s own! Who knew you could friggin have banana bread without bananas! Thank you for a great recipe. Turned out fantastic and I now have to try not to eat it all. In one day lol.
I notice you use Unflavored Whey Protein Powder in a few of your recipes.
Whey is known to spike insulin which makes it unfriendly for low-carb lifestyles.
1. I use only 1/4 or 1/3 cup per recipe, simply to replace the protein from gluten and help the baked good rise. Spread over 12 to 16 servings, this amounts to very little in each serving so it is NOTHING to concern people.
2. You should read this article: http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/82/1/69.full
3. You are free to use any protein powder you like, including egg white protein.
I saw this recipe and knew I had to make it. I couldn’t find Caramel Flavour anywhere so just used vanilla in place of it. I will probably order it online. My husband who won’t eat any of my healthy recipes (he can eat whatever he wants and never gain..hate him), told me I won’t have to worry about sharing because he knows by reading the ingredients he isn’t going to like it and he stated neither will the kids. Well so I made it and it came out exactly like the picture with one exception. My frosting didn’t smear as beautifully as yours did in the picture. Well as it sat there I took a piece and gobbled it up and I nearly fell on the floor. It was sooo good I felt like shoving the whole loaf in my mouth! My kids heard me moan how good it was and came running and wanted to try it and so I gave them a piece and they too were making the same sounds. So here comes my husband wanting to know what all the fuss was about. So he decided to try it. And to his surprise he loved it! He nearly took a bigger piece but I had to take some away because after all this was my cake!!!
Oh my gosh, I love this. Love this! Thanks for sharing, I am so pleased we won everybody over!
I know that it would change the texture a little, but what can I replace the chia seed flour with? I have almond flour, coconut flour, and physillium husk? I prefer to use all almond flour if I can. This cake looks awesome. Thanks for your dedication and hard work in helping people with yummy recipes. -Christy
If you just want almond flour bread with some banana flavouring, use this recipe and don’t do almond extract or the almond on the outside. Add the banana extract instead. https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/2012/01/almond-crusted-butter-cake-low-carb-and-gluten-free.html
Hi there! I’m getting currently getting my weekend baking goals in order, and as part of that, I plan on giving this recipe a try since my T1D hubby and I have absolutely loved all of the recipes that we’ve tried from your site so far. However, I haven’t made anything with that has called for unflavored whey so far for fear of dry baked goods. May I ask if you still prefer Tera’s unflavored whey? Thank you!
Tera’s whey works well in my recipes. It’s a good one and I like to get the grassfed version.
Was wondering if you thought Quest banana cream protein powder would work in this recipe instead of the plain whey powder?
Sounds like a good idea to me!
Have you tried freezing a unfrosted loaf? I love this recipe and have company coming and was wondering about cooking a few loaves up ahead Iof time for the freezer. What do you think?
I am sure it would freeze well. I’ve frozen similar cakes and muffins.
Where and what protein powder do you use please ?
I’ve seen it used in a few recipes, but have no idea where to buy and what it exaclty is ?
This was the most INCREDIBLE banana bread ever!! I have to make another tonite, we devoured it in my house.
Hello,
I would love to try this recipe but I don’t have any chai seed or flour. Is there a substtittue you can recommend? I do have golden flax flour if you think that would work or just more almond flour.
Thanks in advance!
I’d do the flax, probably.
hello Carolyn
I am from Australia and have had a few problems finding some of the ingredients for this recipe. Firstly, Swerve doesn’t seem to be available in this country, so i tried using Stevia instead, but this tends to leave a bit of an after-taste which i don’t particularly like. Could i rather substitute with Coconut sugar – this has a much more natural sweet flavour i think.
Also I could only find Almond meal/ground almonds which the lady assured me was the same as Almond flour but i see one of your comments says it is definitely different. I have read your explanation on Almond Flour and see that the difference is in how much finer ‘flour’ is than ‘meal’. Is there any way of grinding Almond meal finer to make it into flour as there doesn’t seem to be anywhere here to actually buy the flour??
I also couldn’t find any Stevia extract or Banana extract. I will have to keep looking but wondered if i could just add a bit more coconut sugar instead of the Stevia?
I am quite new at this game as you can probably see! 🙂
Thanks
Well, coconut sugar has carbs so if you’re low carb, I would choose something else, like regular erythritol or xylitol. I have plenty of Australian readers who use these things. You could try grinding the almond meal further in a coffee grinder. You can add more of another sweetener in place of the stevia extract.
I make this bread all the time and it’s awesome and I can’t thank you enough for it.
I just tried it with corn extract instead of banana and it’s good! Doesn’t taste like cornbread plain, but with butter on it it is just like corn bread!!
Have you tried making this with the THM Baking Blend? And, if so, how much would I sub (assuming i would sub for the almond & coconut flours & the whey)?
Sorry, I haven’t tried it with that yet and can’t really give you any guidance.
Just made this today. Love it. So good, I feel guilty for eating it…NOT! Would love to add some walnuts or pecans next time!
Just made this to have take along breakfast to eat at work. But could not wait, had to have a slice.
Absolutely wonderful. The ground chia seeds are genius. They really do mimic the texture of mashed banana in the bread.
I did add two handfuls of roughly chopped walnuts as that is they way I used to make my banana bread pre low carb. Just great.
I also browned my butter before adding to give it another layer of toasty flavor. I think it worked well.
Thanks Carolyn. Can’t imagine doing low carb without the wonderful baked goods you have give us all.
Made this yesterday, and it was a total winner!! Taste, texture, everything. Instead of Swerve in the frosting I used some Torani sugar free salted caramel syrup and a few drops of liquid sucralose. Can’t thank you enough – I really missed banana bread!!!
So glad you liked it!