This Gluten-Free Vegan Peanut Butter Banana Bread is moist, fragrant, and covered in a rich peanut butter frosting! It's easily customisable, refined sugar free and great for breakfast, brunch, a snack or dessert!
Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit)
Peel the bananas and place in a wide-bottomed bowl, then use a fork to mash until you get a smooth paste
Place the peanut butter in a separate large bowl and melt over a saucepan of boiling water or in the microwave (skip this step if using any other oil)
Once melted, add the maple syrup to the same bowl along with the vinegar, salt (and cinnamon if using) and ground almonds
Sift in the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda
Add the mashed bananas, and mix well, adding the milk a small amount at a time until you get a loose batter. You may not need to use it all depending on how liquidy your bananas are - you may also need to add a little more milk if your bananas are dry
Transfer the mixture into a loaf tin lined with greased baking paper - I used a one-pound loaf tin
Bake in the oven for around 45 minutes until risen and golden brown and an inserted skewer comes out clean
Once out the oven, transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool completely before frosting
For the peanut butter frosting:
Drain soaked cashews and place in a food processor with the maple syrup and almond milk
Whizz until completely smooth – you might need to mix it around a few times to make sure it blends evenly
Add the peanut butter – the peanut butter needs to be added at this stage not at the beginning, as otherwise the mixture becomes very gloopy and hard to blend
Blend briefly until combined - be careful not to over-blend, as the mixture will become very greasy as the oil will be released from the peanut butter
To frost and decorate:
Use a knife (or palette knife) to spread frosting over the top of the loaf
Sprinkle over chopped peanuts to decorate, if desired
Tastes best when fresh, but keeps covered in the fridge for up to a few days
Notes
*The acidity of the vinegar reacts with the alkali bicarbonate of soda to make the bread fluffy. If you can't get hold of vinegar, substitute it with lemon juice.**You can alternatively use almond flour.This is definitely a sweet banana bread - it's similar to a Banana Cake. To make a no added sugar banana bread, you can omit the maple syrup and omit the frosting.