A few years back, I shared this incredible almond flour banana bread, and it got TONS of rave reviews from AK readers. After that, I figured it was time to try another version that was just as unbelievably delicious. So I set out on a quest to make a banana bread that tasted exactly like a fudgy brownie. It turned out even better than I could’ve imagined and has quickly become one of the most popular quick breads on Ambitious Kitchen!
That’s right, this healthy chocolate banana bread truly tastes just like a fudgy brownie, and you’re going to want to bake it up ASAP. I was blown away the first time I had a slice, and then immediately ate another one topped with peanut butter + a sprinkle of sea salt.
Yep, it’s that good.
What makes this chocolate banana bread better for you?
Traditional chocolate banana breads tend to be packed with oil and refined sugars, making them almost like a rich cake. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good slice of cake, but I wanted to lighten up this chocolate banana bread to make it a wonderful snack, easy breakfast, or even a healthier dessert. What makes this bread more nutritious? It’s:
- Oil-free: that’s right, this healthy chocolate banana bread is deliciously moist without having any excess oil.
- Naturally sweetened: with just ripe bananas and pure maple syrup. Dark chocolate chips add an extra touch of sweetness — feel free to use whatever brand you like.
- Gluten, grain & dairy free (and paleo-friendly): because this bread just uses almond flour + cocoa powder as the dry ingredients and zero butter or other types of dairy.
- Filled with healthy fats: almond flour also provides a good amount of healthy fats to keep you feeling satisfied when you enjoy the bread for breakfast or as a snack.
Ingredients in healthy chocolate banana bread
This incredible grain & gluten-free chocolate banana bread recipe is naturally sweetened, lower in carbs, and made with healthy fats. Here’s what you’ll need to make it:
- Overripe bananas: make sure to use bananas that have lots of brown spots on them. This will give the bread a natural sweetness.
- Eggs: the eggs keep this chocolate banana bread super moist and fluffy.
- Pure maple syrup: you’ll just need a bit of maple syrup so that the bread is perfectly sweet. Date syrup would also work well. I would not recommend using honey as it could cause the bread to burn.
- Almond flour: we’re using fine, blanched almond flour in this recipe to keep it gluten & grain free.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder: this gives the bread that rich chocolate flavor.
- Baking staples: gotta have baking soda, salt, and vanilla extract.
- Dark chocolate chips: is there anything better than bites of chocolate in every slice? Feel free to use dairy free chocolate chips, too.
- Fancy sea salt: I love sprinkling a little fancy sea salt on top of each slice. Optional, but so delicious!
Can I use a different flour?
Unfortunately, no, I can’t recommend an alternative flour in this bread recipe as the flavor and texture will turn out much differently.
Can I make it vegan?
I haven’t tried it with flax eggs, but let me know in the comments if you give it a shot! Then be sure to use dairy-free chocolate chips.
Tips for making this chocolate banana bread
Here are some of my best tips for ensuring your bread comes out perfect:
- Follow the recipe. The best way to ensure the success of this healthy chocolate banana bread is to follow the recipe and use the exact ingredients as written.
- Use overripe bananas. Using bananas that have LOTS AND LOTS of brown spots and are very soft will help keep this banana bread both sweet, perfectly moist, and delicious. Trust me.
- Use fresh baking soda. If your baking soda is older than 3 months, I suggest grabbing a new one for the best baking results.
- Enjoy it the next day. Banana bread is always best the day after it’s baked. As the sugars are released, the bread gets sweeter!
- Add your fav mix-ins. Feel free to add 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans for additional healthy fats!
Turn it into muffins
You can absolutely turn this gluten free chocolate banana bread recipe into muffins! Here’s how to do it:
- Line a 12 cup muffin tin with muffin liners and spray the insides with nonstick cooking spray.
- Prepare the batter as directed, then divide evenly between liners.
- Bake for 18-23 minutes at 350 degrees F or until a tester comes out clean.
Storing & freezing tips
- To store: this healthy chocolate banana bread should be kept well-covered in foil or plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 3 days, then I recommend transferring it to the fridge or freezer.
- To freeze: simply wrap in plastic, then tightly in foil, and finally place in a freezer-friendly bag for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature once you are ready to eat. You can also feel free to freeze individual slices for a quick on-the-go treat.
Tools you’ll need
Get all of our go-to kitchen essentials here!
More ways to use ripe bananas
- Best Ever Healthy Banana Bread Recipe
- Chia Banana Bread Energy Bites
- Healthy Peanut Butter Banana Muffins (dairy free + gluten free)
- Peanut Butter Lover’s Banana Bread
- Cottage Cheese Banana Oatmeal Protein Pancakes
Get all of my recipes using ripe bananas here!
If you make this healthy chocolate banana bread recipe, be sure to leave a comment below and rate the recipe! You can also snap and picture and post it on Instagram using the hashtag #ambitiouskitchen. xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
Healthy Chocolate Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 3 very ripe medium bananas (ones with LOTS of brown spots), mashed (1 ¼ cups mashed banana)
- 3 eggs
- ¼ cup (78g) pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups (280g) packed fine blanched almond flour
- ½ cup (40g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (90g) dark chocolate chips (dairy free if desired), plus 2 tablespoons extra chocolate chips for sprinkling on top
- Fancy sea salt, for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8 ½ x 4 ½ inch loaf pan with parchment paper. Spray the pan with nonstick cooking spray to prevent sticking.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the mashed bananas, eggs, pure maple syrup and vanilla extract until well combined. Add in the almond flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Use a wooden spoon to combine. Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Pour batter into prepared loaf pan, smoothing the top with a spatula. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of chocolate chips on top. Bake for 50 minutes-65 minutes or until the tester comes out almost clean in the middle of the bread. Cool bread for 10 minutes in the pan, then remove and transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling completely. Once cool, cut into 12 slices. The bread is best the next day (as are all banana breads!) Top with your favorite nut butter or butter and sprinkle with a little sea salt. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
This post was originally published on June 9th, 2020, republished on January 22nd, 2023, and republished on February 18th, 2026.
Everyone I’ve retted this it’s funny thick and not soft and moist like the photos. I’ve wasted so much product trying this recipe. Don’t recommend. I filled to a t the first time. The second time was better(I added extra maple syrup for moisture and sweetness, and it’s still pretty bitter and dense.
Sorry to hear that! I’ve never run into the issue of it being bitter and dense. Were your bananas SUPER ripe? That’s what will give the bread its natural sweetness.
It’s delicious. Sweet but not too sweet. Intense chocolate flavor. I followed the recipe exactly. I only substituted honey for the maple syrup.
Perfect! So glad you enjoyed!
I have been experimenting with this recipe over the past month+ It is dangerous(ly)- good! Warning After you make them once you’ll keep revisiting this recipe -often! I made them into muffins recently but couldn’t get the unsweetened chocolate chips(Pascha) to stay on top even melted they were still tasty but didn’t quit have the high muffin tops I hoped for any suggestions?
These won’t bake up super high like bakery-style muffins because almond flour doesn’t have any gluten! I’m not sure why the chocolate chips on top were sinking – did that happen when you topped the loaf originally?
This is one of my favourites I make this on repeat.
Love it!!
Omg these are amazing. So light, not overly sweet, and such a nice texture despite them being made with almond flour. So good!
The perfect snack or treat!
This banana bread is so good and so moist. My husband and toddler are obsessed. This will be going in our snack rotation.
So happy to hear that! One of our favs, too 🙂
I was a little skeptical with there being no oil in this recipe but I was wrong. It fluffed up so beautifully, is healthy and delicious.
It’s magic! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
This recipe was seriously so delicious. I cannot believe how simple the ingredients are and how delicious it is. The texture and the crumb is perfect. Thanks for putting it on Instagram and enticing me to make it!
Absolutely! Glad you loved it!
This healthy chocolate brownie banana bread is amazing! I followed the recipe and it turned out absolutely delicious. It’s dangerously good for people who love chocolate! I love the chocolatey brownie flavor while still having healthy ingredients. Love this recipe so much and it will definitely get added into my banana bread rotation!
So good! Glad you loved it!
This is a keeper! Loved this bread. It has such a nice flavor.
So glad you loved it!
Loved this recipe! It was so easy to make (I’m a sucker for a one bowl recipe) and it is so delicious!! I skipped the parchment paper and the bottom got stuck in the pan 💔 so don’t skip that step and you won’t be disappointed!!!
So glad you enjoyed! And yes, be sure to line parchment paper next time to prevent that 🙂
Almond flour sub suggestions? Thanks!
I can’t recommend a substitute here – sorry!
I use ambitious kitchen Recipe for all her baked goods once a week! They are the best ones online and so easy to follow and come out so super delicious! I love the almond flour chocolate chip banana bread! I make that on repeat. I also love the chocolate chip raspberry banana bread! So delicious. My family and I can’t make it last more than the day. Oh and I can’t forget about the oatmeal bakes, every flavor is so yummy and great for grab and go breakfast! If you’re looking for a really delicious dessert, muffin banana bread check out all of ambitious kitchen recipes!
So happy to hear that! I’m glad you’ve been loving the recipes here 🙂
I actually used this recipe as a smash cake for my son’s first birthday and it was perfect! He loved it. I searched the internet up and down for a healthy chocolate smash cake recipe that didn’t sound weird or gross but couldn’t find one. This one met all my requirements! It filled 4 4in spring form pans, took about 30 mins to bake, and I frosted it with unsweetened whipped cream. I left out the chocolate chips in order to minimize added sugar. Thank you for the healthy guilt-free recipe that let my little one have his first taste of chocolate! His older brothers fought over the leftovers 🙂
Amazing! So glad that worked out well!
So happy to have found this recipe! I used to make banana bread quite often, but since giving up refined sugars and flour,I haven’t come across a recipe that could replace my old ones until now! I adjusted the recipe using ChatGPT for the amount of almond flour I had left and am I glad that the last of it went toward this recipe. I used unsweetened chocolate chips a bit less than the recipe called for and it was still sweet enough.I can’t wait to try making muffins next time!
Perfect! So glad you found this one!