Carob Chip Banana Bread

This banana bread swaps out all the usual suspects. No eggs, no butter, no refined sugar, no chocolate chips. Instead you get whole wheat pastry flour, sucanat for a deep molasses-like sweetness, ripe mashed bananas, and pockets of melty carob chips in every slice.

It’s a naturally vegan banana bread that doesn’t sacrifice moisture or flavor.

The recipe makes two loaves, which is smart because the first one will disappear faster than you think.

Wrap the second loaf tightly and freeze it for later, or share it with a neighbor who needs a pick-me-up.

Kitchen Tips

• The riper the bananas, the better. Brown-spotted, almost-black bananas have the most sugar and moisture. If yours aren’t ripe enough, roast them in their peels for 15 minutes to speed things along.
• Sucanat keeps things wholesome. It’s unrefined cane sugar with the molasses still intact. Brown sugar works as a substitute but the flavor won’t be quite as complex.
• Don’t skip the carob chips. They melt into soft, sweet pockets that give the bread its character. Chocolate chips work too if carob isn’t your thing.