Who doesn’t love a good gingerbread loaf for the holidays?! I already now that this grain-free, paleo-friendly banana bread is going to be one of my favorite healthy recipes this month…
A Healthier Gingerbread Loaf!
I woke up one day to find myself craving gingerbread like it was going out of style. I don’t know if it was the snow we had last week, decorating our Christmas tree, or the lit pine tree-scented candle on the kitchen table BUT nothing sounded better to me!
Naturally, I tore the kitchen apart trying to scrounge up random ingredients together to bake up a loaf… AND IT WORKED! So I couldn’t resist sharing this one. It was so easy to make, and made with only the ingredients that I already had on hand. I have a whole page dedicated to my pantry staples: just click on the link below!
I feel like there’s sooo many variations on banana bread that came out of 2020, and I’m sure a gingerbread chocolate chip banana bread recipe exists out there. With that said, its so much more fun to intuitively bake according to what I have… lol. There’s nothing more frustrating than being in the mood to bake but not having the ingredients on hand!
My Favorite Paleo Banana Bread Add-In’s
Finding healthier, paleo-friendly alternatives to traditional banana bread add-in’s and toppings is wayyy harder than it sounds…
When I first started following the Specific Carbohydrate Diet to help manage my IBD symptoms, I didn’t even know where to start when it came to finding delicious, SCD-compliant toppings and decorations for desserts. Although I’ve been able to expand my list of favorites beyond the realms of only “SCD legal” foods, everything is still 100% paleo and very minimally processed.
I can sincerely say that eating minimally processed, anti-inflammatory foods has totally transformed my gut health! My short & sweet list of favorites is below:
- coconut butter: my favorite icing replacement! I just scoop some into a microwave-safe dish and microwave for 30 seconds to melt it. Once it’s melted, it tastes SO good on my recipe for paleo cinnamon buns, my paleo pumpkin breakfast cookies, and my paleo zucchini crumb cake!
- 100% dark chocolate chips
- Pepitas (raw pumpkin seeds)
- Nut butters
- Hemp hearts
And I’m sure I’m even forgetting to mention a few! But this list includes the most frequented ingredients.
How to Make a Paleo Gingerbread Loaf
Step 1: Combine the almond flour, coconut flour, tapioca flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
Step 2: Beat together the eggs, mashed banana, molasses (or honey), almond milk, melted coconut oil, and vanilla until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
Step 3: Combine the flour mixture with the banana mixture and beat again until a cohesive dough forms.
Step 4: Transfer the dough into a lightly greased loaf tin and top with Paleo-friendly dark chocolate chips.
Step 5: Bake and let cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing.
Decorate with a coconut butter or almond butter drizzle and enjoy!
My Other Favorite SCD-Friendly Bread Recipes:
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Paleo Gingerbread Banana Bread
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 12 slices 1x
Description
A grain-free, paleo banana bread with a festive gingerbread twist! This healthier loaf is fluffy, sweet, and full of warm holiday spices.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups blanched almond flour
- 1/2 cup coconut flour
- 3 tbsp. tapioca flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup almond milk
- 1‘4 cup backstrap molasses (or honey)
- 1 mashed banana
- 1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 tsp. ground ginger
- 2 tsp. cinnamon
- 2 tsp. ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375F and lightly grease a 9″x5″ loaf tin with cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the almond flour, coconut flour, tapioca flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir until well combined.
- In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, almond milk, molasses, banana, melted coconut oil, & vanilla extract until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
- Add the almond flour mixture into the banana mixture and beat again until a cohesive dough forms.
- Transfer the dough into the greased loaf tin, smoothing the top out with a spatula.
- (Optional) Sprinkle chocolate chips over the top of the dough, or stir them in.
- Bake for 50- 55 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center. Let cool 30 minutes before turning out of the tin and slicing.
Notes
Make it SCD: sub in honey for molasses and 1/4 cup coconut flour for the tapioca flour.
- Category: something sweet, breakfast
- Method: bake
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 220
- Sugar: 8
- Fat: 16
- Carbohydrates: 15
- Fiber: 4
- Protein: 6
Keywords: specific carbohydrate diet, healthy banana bread, gingerbread, paleo bread, almond flour recipe, grain-free baking, healthy breakfast, holiday baking
