This moist banana date bread is delicious with bites of dates, nuts, oats and even banana chunks in it.
Course Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword banana and date loaf, date banana bread
Prep Time 20 minutesminutes
Cook Time 1 hourhour
Total Time 1 hourhour20 minutesminutes
Servings 12
Calories 359kcal
Author Robin Gagnon
Equipment
Loaf pan (preferably 9x5 inch)
baking sheet
Parchment paper
nonstick cooking spray
Ingredients
2cupsmashed ripe bananasapproximately 2 medium bananas + 1 medium whole banana
2cupsall purpose flour
⅔cuppacked brown sugar
1teaspoonvanilla extract
⅓cupmolasses ***
½cupolive oil,avocado oil or melted coconut oil
½cupwhole milk
¾cupold fashioned oats
½cupchopped dates
½+ ⅛ cup chopped walnutspecans can be used if preferred
2eggs
1teaspoonbaking powder
½teaspoonbaking soda
½teaspoonsalt
1teaspoonground cinnamon
½teaspoonnutmeg
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°f. (177°c)
Spread oats onto a baking sheet covered in parchment paper and bake for 6-8 minutes, or until light golden color. Set aside.
In a medium size bowl, combine sugar, oil, milk, eggs and vanilla.
Mix in oil and molasses (if using).
Blend in mashed bananas. Remember, 1 whole banana is reserved.
Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir to combine.
Chop walnuts and add ½ cup to the banana mixture. Reserve ⅛th cup walnuts for topping the bread before baking.
Chop dates. If you bought pitted dates then it's super easy to dice up. Stir the dates into the mixture.
Blend in ½ cup of the toasted oats and reserve ¼ cup for topping the bread before baking.
Line pan with parchment paper and oil spray or greasing and flouring pan. Fill your prepared loaf pan with the banana bread mixture.
Carefully slice banana lengthwise as thin as possible without breaking the slice. If it does break,
it's ok, it will still work.
Place your banana slices along the top sides of the loaf. Sprinkle the remaining toasted oats and chopped walnuts around the banana slices.
Bake for 60 minutes and start checking at 50 minutes by inserting a cake tester or toothpick into the center of the bread. When it is done, the tester/toothpick will come out clean.
Allow banana bread to cool 10 minutes, then remove loaf to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Notes
***Molasses may be omitted, by increasing the packed brown sugar to 1 cup.