Protein Banana Bread
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This protein banana bread is moist and fluffy, and it’s made in just one bowl. Each slice packs in 25 grams of protein!
I consider myself an expert on adding protein to baked goods and desserts, and this protein banana bread has been a long time coming. I actually intended to add it to my first cookbook (high-protein desserts, figure), but it wasn’t ready before publishing, so it didn’t make the cut. Since then, I tested this countless times to make sure it looks and tastes like banana bread, but with the addition of protein powder. Even my picky family can’t tell the difference!
Each serving packs 25 grams of protein thanks to the protein powder, enriched flour (higher protein), and almond flour. My partner and I love a warm slice with peanut butter after the gym, but we’ve definitely sneaked them as a last-minute breakfast (they tick all the food groups!).
What readers are saying
★★★★★ – “SO MOIST LOVE IT. I did the tip of adding more protein powder and less flour work perfectly. I love that I can change the protein powder flavor! I also added semi-sweet chocolate chips cause … yum! Love this recipe.” – Gina
Key Ingredients
Here are the main ingredients in my high-protein banana bread. The full list with measurements is in the recipe card.
- Ripe bananas. Overripe bananas are a must- they make the bread extra moist and sweet.
- Vinegar. White or apple cider. This reacts with the self-rising flour, giving the bread some rise and fluffiness.
- Self-rising flour. Skip the expensive pre-made blends and make your own (it’s just all-purpose flour, salt, and baking powder). I tested this recipe with oat flour and found the loaf to be a little too dry for my liking.
- Almond flour. I tested this with blanched almond flour and almond meal, and found that almond flour made a more tender and fluffy loaf.
- Protein powder. I like using vanilla-flavored protein powder, but unflavored works too. I tested this with casein, pea, and brown rice, and they all baked just fine. In terms of brands, I swear by Optimum Nutrition, Dymatize, and Growing Naturals. I really don’t recommend whey protein powder, as it tends to dry out baked goods.
- Sugar or alternative. White, brown, coconut sugar, or sugar-free options, like a brown sugar substitute. I did test it with liquid sweeteners (honey or maple syrup), and it worked fine. Just reduce the amount by half.
How to make protein banana bread
Step 1- In a large bowl, combine the wet ingredients. Next, add the dry ingredients and mix until a smooth batter remains.
Step 2- Transfer the batter to a greased loaf pan and bake for 45-50 minutes or until a skewer comes out mostly clean from the middle.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Do not overbake the banana bread, as it will continue to bake as it cools down. Once a toothpick comes out mostly clean, it’s ready to be removed from the oven. A few moist crumbs are fine.
- If your banana bread browns too quickly, cover the top with tin foil after 15-20 minutes. This might not happen to you; it depends on the brand of protein powder and how your oven bakes. My oven doesn’t need it, but my sister, parents, and tons of my friends who regularly bake this do.
- Make banana protein muffins. Bake it in muffin liners and reduce the cooking time to 18 minutes.
- Feel free to fold through fun mix-ins to change up the texture. Try walnuts, pecans, dark chocolate chips, peanut butter, nut butter, white chocolate chips, or even dried fruit.
Frequently asked questions
No, I don’t recommend it. I tested nearly every kind on the market (whey, casein, brown rice, pea, and blends) and found most worked, except for whey. Whey dries out the baked goods and tends to make the batter sticky. Please don’t say I didn’t warn you!
Like traditional banana bread, if you overmix the batter, you push air into the mixture, which, in turn, yields a dense, rubbery loaf. The key is to mix everything until just combined. If there are a few pockets of flour, don’t stress.
Yes, you can. My initial trials didn’t use protein powder, so I could judge the bake time and texture. If you don’t want to use protein powder, replace it with equal amounts of self-rising flour.
✅ Nutrition reviewed
Nutrition information has been reviewed by registered dietitian Felicia Newell, MScAHN, RD, CPT.
Protein Banana Bread
Video
Ingredients
- 2 medium bananas mashed
- 1 cup milk I used unsweetened almond milk
- 1 tablespoon vinegar apple cider or white
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup self rising flour * See notes
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1 1/4 cups protein powder ** See notes
- 1/2 cup brown sugar substitute or any sweetener of choice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the mashed bananas, milk, vinegar, and vanilla extract and mix until combined. Gently add the self rising flour, almond flour, protein powder, sugar of choice, and mix until smooth.
- Transfer the batter to the lined pan and bake for 45-55 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean from the center.
- Remove the bread from the oven and let it cool completely, before removing from the pan and slicing.
Notes
- Protein content: I used a protein flour, which brought each slice of banana bread to 25 grams of protein per slice.
- Protein powder: I had success with casein, brown rice protein powder, and pea protein powder.
- TO STORE: Leftovers should always be stored in the refrigerator, covered. The banana bread will keep well for up to one week.
- TO FREEZE: Place slices in a ziplock bag and store them in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Nutrition
More baking with protein powder
- Protein brownies
- Protein mug cake
- Protein cookies
- Protein muffins
- Protein donuts
- Protein cupcakes
- Or any of my recipes with protein powder
Originally published February 2022
Is there any better aroma than banana bread in the oven? Yum! I just made these as muffins and they were great! I used 3 bananas, 1/4 cup Swerve sugar-replacement brown sugar, added 1/4 cup chopped walnuts for some texture, and my protein powder was Muscle Milk Vanilla Creme Whey Protein. It made 16 muffins and I baked them for 22 minutes at 375F. They taste great!
Delicious! This will be a new staple in my house!
My changes:
– 2.5 bananas
– sub 1/4 maple syrup for sugar
– only 1.5 cups flour
– add extra 1/2 cup protein powder
I followed the “make your own” self rising flour recipe and it worked great. Went for the full 2.5 cups because I didn’t have almond flour. I know my macros are off now but that’s okay. With that in mind. I did opt for 1 egg for added fluff and protein.
After reading some comments I opted for 3 bananas.
All in all, I know I made some tweaks, but I think the number one thing this baby is missing is salt! All sweet baked goods taste better with some salt. I would have to refer to another recipe to know what is a good amount, my spider senses say 1tsp but don’t quote me. Either way, things worked out. I think next time I’ll try maple syrup as a sweetener for depth.
SO MOIST LOVE IT , did the tip of adding more protein powder and less flour worked perfect and I love that I can change up the protein powder flavor ! I also added semi sweet chocolate chips cause … yum! Love this recipe
I am giving five stars for this recipe acting as a good base for what I created. These are the (many) changes I made:
Subbed milk for
1/2 cup Corepower vanilla protein shake
1/2 cup Fairlife 2% milk
Added 1 egg
Added another banana (3 total)
Added mini chocolate chips to batter and sprinkled on top.
Used whey protein powder (Premier)
Subbed self rising flour – for 2 cups gluten free flour (King Arthur), 1 T baking soda, 1 t salt
I really liked the loaf I created. Despite adding an extra banana, it didn’t have a strong banana flavor and I will try with 4 next time.
Thank you for an excellent base that allowed me to make my own changes as needed!
THESE ARE THE FREAKING BEST. I’m not joking. I’m a 17 year old who trains 5 days a week and loves a sweet treat but also needs to hit my protein goals and I wanna look toned for the summer!! These and many of your other recipes have saved me and my sweet tooth. Even shared it with my friends.
Thanks for the feedback, Grace 🙂
I did not have any almond flour or brown sugar. so i did 2.5 cups (instead of 2) self raising flour. Instead of brown sugar I used about 2 tablespoons of honey and also added 2 tablespoons of peanut butter. I used 3 bananas instead of 2 as they weren’t very ripe and it was a bit too dry.
I used muffin tins instead ( so that i don’t eat it all in one go and it’s easier to freeze and defrost daily). It took approx 15-20 mins to cook and they turned out BLISSSSSSSS!
I want to apologize because before I said one star but I’m just now realizing that I messed up a bunch of things.
So good!!!
Very tasty and lighter than I expected..
I make this protein banana bread EVERY time I have overripe bananas. It’s SO good and super moist.
I made this using Optimum whey and it came out really well (for a whey protein). I’ll try it with casein next time like you suggested 🙂
This I can vary my protein flavour. Amazing. Maybe banana coconut?
I must buy almond flour for this. I never tried in recipes.
Damn good!!!
This is the easiest protein banana bread that tastes like actual banana bread. Wouldn’t know there was so much protein in it.
What protein flour exactly did you use?
I made these and they are delicious- but I get 9 grams of protein when weighing out the ingredients and using a macros calculator. Maybe you have a flour that is much higher in protein? Thanks for the great recipe and help here!
I preapred this banana bread last week and it was much better than my usual bread.