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This easy, healthy banana bread with chia seeds is nutritious, super flavorful and uses wholesome ingredients like white whole wheat flour, chia seeds and Greek yogurt. Your whole family will love this nutrient-packed banana bread
There’s really nothing better than a freshly baked warm banana bread. My favorite part is that it’s so easy to bake up a banana bread that’s made with nutritious ingredients, too (try my Kodiak Banana Bread next!).
This chia banana bread is nutrient-packed, full of sweet banana flavor, and perfectly moist.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Whole grains. Made with 100% whole wheat flour!
- Protein and fiber. One slice is packed with 5 grams of protein and 5 grams of fiber!
- Chia boost. It’s packed with nutrient-dense chia seeds. They’re a great source of fiber, healthy fats and protein.
- Moist and sweet. It has all of the classic banana bread flavor you love with the perfect amount of sweetness!
- Super easy. It only takes a few minutes to mix up before baking in the oven.
I love a baked good that has the best of both worlds: classic flavor and a nutrition boost! If you love this one you have to try my Cottage Cheese Banana Muffins and Chocolate Zucchini Bread next!
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- White whole wheat flour: White whole wheat flour has all of the benefits of whole wheat but it’s lighter and less dense. King Arthur “Golden Wheat” is my favorite!
- Chia seeds: Chia seeds add healthy fats, fiber and protein to the bread.
- Baking powder + salt: For lift and balancing the flavor.
- Cinnamon: Just the right amount of warm cinnamon flavor.
Wet Ingredients
- Overripe bananas: Use bananas that overripe. You want them to be brown and spotty for the best results. Underripe bananas will make a bread that isn’t as sweet or moist.
- Brown sugar: Brown sugar for sweetness. Dark brown sugar or light brown sugar both work.
- Eggs: Essential for a soft moist texture.
- Plain Greek yogurt: Adds moistness and a boost of protein
- Oil: Any neutral cooking oil will work. My favorite is avocado oil but canola oil or vegetable oil works too.
- Vanilla extract: For warm vanilla flavor.
Variations:
- Chocolate chips. Add a 1/2 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, or white chocolate chips to the batter.
- Go nuts. Add a 1/2 cup of chopped pecans or walnuts to the batter.
- Make it fancy. Peel a whole banana and slice it into very thin, long slices. Before baking, top your banana bread with one or two of the thin slices for a fancy bakery style look.
- Muffins instead. Make banana bread muffins by following the same recipe and baking in a muffin pan for 20-25 minutes.
How To Make Banana Bread With Chia Seeds
- Mix dry ingredients. Add all dry ingredients to a large bowl. Whisk to evenly combine.
- Mix wet ingredients + batter. In a separate medium bowl whisk all wet ingredients. Pour wet ingredients into dry, stir gently to combine. Avoid over mixing.
- Pour + bake. Transfer batter to prepared loaf pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out just clean.
- Cool. Cool for 10 minutes, remove from pan and cool on a wire rack before slicing.
How can I store my banana bread?
Store your banana banana bread right on your counter in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days or in the fridge for about a week. It’s delicious as is, but leftovers are even better warmed up!
You can also freeze in individual slices in a freezer safe bag or container and enjoy for up to 2 months from the freezer.
Recipe Tips for Success
Don’t skip these tips to make sure your chia seed banana bread recipe comes out perfect every time!
- Use extra ripe bananas. You need spotty, brown bananas. The riper the banana, the sweeter and more moist it will make the bread. Under-ripe or yellow bananas just don’t perform the same way.
- Don’t over-mix the batter. Over-mixed batter can produce tough and dense baked goods. We don’t want that, especially since the high fiber ingredients in this recipe already produce a bit of a denser loaf.
- Don’t pack the flour. when you’re measuring. It’s important to either sift the flour or at least “fluff it up” before putting into the measuring cup. It should be light and fluffy cups of flour, not packed ones.
Recipe FAQ
I personally love white whole flour (my favorite is King Arthur Golden Wheat) because it has all of the benefits of whole wheat flour but performs closer to a white all purpose flour. You can also use whole wheat pastry flour or half white flour and half regular whole wheat flour.
To ripen bananas quickly, put them inside a brown paper bag. If you have an apple, throw it in there to help it ripen even faster. The ethylene gas from the fruit will help speed up the process.
If you’re in a major rush, you can “ripen” your bananas in the oven at 350 for about 20 minutes on a baking sheet. When they’re done (they’ll turn black), scoop out the inside and let them cool before using to bake. I only recommend using this as a last resort, because they don’t produce the same moistness or sweetness as naturally ripened bananas.
Yes! Use the same amount of ground flax seed in place of chia seeds.
If you’ve made and loved this Banana Bread with Chia Seeds or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and comments below!
More Healthy Baked Goods
- Chocolate Veggie Muffins
- Healthy Lemon Chia Seed Muffins
- Spinach Banana Muffins
- Blueberry Yogurt Muffins
Banana Bread with Chia Seeds
Ingredients
Dry ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups white whole wheat flour, spooned and leveled, not packed
- 1/4 cup chia seeds
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
Wet ingredients
- 1 1/3 cup mashed banana, about 3 bananas, very brown and spotty
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, light or dark, packed
- 1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1/3 cup avocado oil, or any neutral oil
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Prepare a 9×5” loaf pan (I recommend metal) by lining with parchment paper or lightly coating with oil or non-stick cooking spray.
- Add all dry ingredients to a large bowl. Whisk to evenly combine.
- In a separate medium bowl whisk all wet ingredients.
- Pour wet ingredients into dry, stir gently to combine. Avoid over mixing. Fold in chocolate chips if desired.
- Transfer batter to prepared loaf pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out just clean. Note: Baking time will vary depending on your oven, so watch closely and add additional minutes if needed.
- Cool for 10 minutes, remove from pan and cool on a wire rack before slicing.
Notes
- Metal loaf pans typically cook more evenly than silicone loaf pans, so keep that in mind if you choose to use a silicone loaf pan. Use a 9×5 inch loaf pan.
- Make sure to use very ripe bananas for a moist, perfectly sweet banana bread. Underripe bananas will produce a less sweet, more dry banana bread.
- Cook time will vary based on your oven and pan. Be sure to start checking on your banana bread when it gets close to the end of the cooking time and test for doneness.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should only be used as an estimate.
Sugar is listed in the ingredients but isn’t part of the instructions. Honey is listed in the instructions, but not the ingredients. You may want to fix this discrepancies in this recipe!
Good catch! I updated this recipe recently and switched from honey to sugar 🙂
Hi, the recipe sounds really good but what should I use 1 1/2 tbsp. baking powder or 1 1/2 tbsp baking soda? Thank you.
Baking powder 🙂
It’s teaspoons not table spoons
Shouldn’t you hydrate the chia seeds first?
You don’t have to! They become more hydrated as they’re in the batter.