Low-Carb Banana Bread

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I have been following a low-carb eating plan for almost two years now. If you happen to be doing that too, one thing you know for sure is how challenging it is to enjoy sweet treats while limiting your sugar intake.

One of the things I have really missed is banana bread. I absolutely love banana bread.

The problem with eating it while living low-carb is not only the flour and sugar but also the bananas.

We all know the sugar-laden foods we should avoid if trying to limit our sugar intake, like candy and sugary cereals and soft drinks, but what some people don’t realize is just how high in carbs fruit is.

Now, there are certainly worse sugars you can eat than those that naturally occur in fruit, but still. Sugar is sugar and most fruits have very high carb counts from sugar.

This is problematic because sugar spikes your glucose levels, regardless of the source of the sugar.

Berries are the best fruit choice if you are eating low-carb, and as luck would have it, a banana is one of the worst. 🙁 It has 20g of carbs from sugar, and if you are limiting your daily carb intake, that is a gut buster.

So is there a way to enjoy things like banana bread while limiting your carb and sugar intake?

Kind of. 🙂 I will not lie and tell you that low-carb baking always produces treats that rival the full-carb versions. In my experience, that is just not true.

But, if you manage your expectations a bit, there are low-carb alternatives that can hit the spot when you really want something sweet that reminds you of your old life.

I did find a recipe for banana nut bread on the Wholesome Yum site, which has a wealth of low-carb recipes, including desserts.

I decided to give the banana bread recipe a try. I was curious to see how this would work since we know bananas are so high in carbs.

This recipe uses coconut and almond flour, monk fruit, almond milk, walnuts, and banana extract. No bananas.

Banana extract imparts that wonderful banana flavor without the carbs from using actual bananas.

I made the banana bread according to the recipe, with only the additions of low-carb chocolate chips and a “sugary” topping I sprinkled on top prior to baking, using a mixture of white and brown monk fruit. I like the crunch the topping adds.

The addition of the chocolate chips will add an additional carb per serving, but totally worth it. 🙂

This low-carb banana bread has 224 calories per serving and only 2 net carbs. That is a HUGE improvement over full-carb banana bread, which has around 33g of carbs per serving.

The texture of this low-carb banana bread is different than that of traditional banana bread, but it is not bad. I was worried that the use of almond flour would make it gritty. I am not a big fan of almond flour, but it is everywhere in low-carb baking.

The texture of this bread is not gritty, which is good. It is not quite as “fluffy” as traditional banana bread. It is a bit heavier and more dense.

My husband and daughter both liked this low-carb banana bread. As I said, it is not a perfect substitute for the full-carb version, but it was very flavorful and definitely hits the spot when you are craving something sweet but don’t want to derail your commitment to eating low-carb.

So if you like banana bread, I would encourage you to experiment with ways to still enjoy it without all the carbs from sugar. I’d love to know what you come up with.

And if you have other low-carb treats that you love to make, I want to hear about those too!

And I’d love for you to follow me on Pinterest!