Banana bread is the all time favourite classic bread in our household. I tried many recipes and all of them gave the perfect result. This one doesn’t contain sugar, it is sweetened with dates and bananas. It’s moist, delicious, also gluten-free and sweet enough without sugar. It’s also crisp because of the toasted sunflower- and pumpkin seeds on top. It’s perfect and wonderful for an afternoon tea/coffee session or for breakfast (toasted).
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Date Olive Oil Banana Bread
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
This one doesn’t contain sugar, it is sweetened with dates and bananas. It’s moist, delicious and also gluten-free.
Ingredients
- – 1 cup (240 ml) dates (about 9 pieces), pitted, chopped
- – 2 tbsp (30 ml) boiling water
- – 1 tsp baking soda
- – 1 and 1/2 cups (360 ml) brown rice flour
- – 1/2 cup (120 ml) millet flour
- – 2 tsp baking powder
- – 3 bananas, peeled and mashed with a fork
- – 1/2 cup (120 ml) extra virgin olive oil
- – 2 organic or free-range eggs
- – 1 vanilla bean, split and seeded
- – grated zest of 1 lemon
- – sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds
Instructions
- In a small bowl mix together chopped dates with baking soda and boiling water. Set aside. Line a 23 cm (9 inch) long loaf pan with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 180C (356F).
- In a bowl combine the dry ingredients: rice flour, millet flour, baking powder. In another bowl mix together the wet ingredients: mashed bananas, olive oil, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients mixture into the dry one, stirring until just combined. Fold dates, hot water and baking soda in.
- Pour the mixture into the loaf pan, sprinkle the top with sunflower- and pumpkin seeds and bake it on 180C (356F) for about 60 minutes. It’s ready when the cake tester (or toothpick) comes out clean.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 210
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why are the dates mixed with baking soda and boiling water before being added to the batter?
Soaking the chopped dates in 2 tbsp of boiling water with 1 tsp baking soda softens the dates quickly and helps them break down into the batter more evenly, while the alkaline soda deepens their caramel-like flavor.
Is this bread actually sweet enough without any added sugar?
Yes — the recipe relies entirely on 1 cup of dates and 3 mashed bananas for sweetness, and the article describes the result as “sweet enough without sugar” and “delicious.” The dates’ natural sugars are concentrated and contribute more sweetness per gram than granulated sugar. 
What makes this bread gluten-free, and can I substitute regular flour?
The recipe uses 1 1/2 cups of brown rice flour plus 1/2 cup of millet flour in place of wheat flour. Swapping these for all-purpose wheat flour would work but the bread would no longer be gluten-free and the texture would be denser.
