Vegan Chocolate {Chocolate Chip} Banana Bread

A few weeks ago I was having a pretty mean chocolate craving and I wanted something baked.  I also happened to have a bunch of very ripe bananas and some cocoa we picked up while in Mexico earlier this year... This all led me to a delicious experiment.

I've been tweaking this recipe over the last month, trying to figure out the best way to keep it moist and yummy, without all the fat and cholesterol that come with adding eggs and butter.

In truth, it's really difficult to mess this up.  I've made it 3 or 4 times now and made little changes each time with good results.  This most recent time I decided to add the Almond Butter IN the recipe, but it can easily be left out and added AFTER the recipe on a slice to enjoy.  Peanut butter also works too for a good Choco-Peanut-Butter combo. YUM!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
• 1 1/2 Cup Ripe Bananas    {Around 3 Bananas}
• 1 Cup Raw Sugar
• 1/2 Cup Cashew Meal     {Check the tips for more info}
• 1/3 Cup Applesauce
• 1/3 Cup Cocoa Powder
• 1/4 Cup Almond Butter*
• 1/2 Cup Vegan Chocolate Chips     {Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Mini Chocolate Chips}
• 2 Tbsp Egg Replacer*      {Bob's Red Mill Vegetarian Egg Replacer}
• 1/3 Cup Apple Juice*
• 1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 Tsp Salt
• 3/4 Tsp Baking Soda

Directions:

Combine bananas, sugar, cashew meal, applesauce, almond butter, vegan eggs, and vanilla in mixer until even consistency.

Stir in dry ingredients mix until evenly combined.  I usually combine these ahead of time in a separate bowl and then slowly mix into the wet ingredients. 

Add chocolate chips last.

Then pour into a 9" Bread Pan lined with Parchment Paper. 

Bake at 350°F for 1 hour, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Tips:

For Vegan Eggs: 

2 Tbsp of Flax Meal mixed with 1/3 cup Apple Juice (water can be used instead)

OR

2 Tbsp Egg Replacer mixed with 1/3 cup Apple Juice or Water

To make Cashew Meal from scratch: Grind up a little less than 1/2 cup raw cashews. 

* For nut free alternative, just increase the Whole Wheat flour to 2 cups and omit the Almond butter by increasing applesauce to 1/2 cup.

Based on the recipe serving 18 {roughly 1/2" slices}, there are 151 calories in each serving.

If you substitute the almond butter with applesauce you will reduce the fat and calorie content further.

I have not experimented with reducing the sugar, because I was looking for a sweet recipe, but if you come up with a good sugar swap let me know! :)