Strawberry Lemon Banana Bread (Vegan GF)

A light, fluffy, zesty and fruity banana loaf studded with juicy strawberries pieces and finished with a sticky lemon glaze and more fruit. This banana bread is naturally gluten-free and vegan and makes a deliciously simple but impressive bake.

It’s that time of the month when I share my latest banana bread recipe and this Strawberry Lemon Banana Bread is perhaps one of my favourites – although, I do say that about them all. This time say goodbye to the indulgent chocolate recipes as it’s time for something light, summery and gloriously simple. This bake comes together in one bowl in less than 10 minutes, with simple easy-to-find ingredients.

Strawberry Lemon Banana Bread (Vegan GF)

This base if the loaf or cake is plain flour with some bicarbonate of soda for a raising agent and a pinch of salt. The wet ingredients are mashed banana, obviously, melted vegan butter, margarine or coconut oil, some sugar, vanilla essence, plant-based milk and lemon juice. Stir it all together with the zest of one lemon for that zesty kick and fresh chopped strawberries. Dust the strawberries in a little flour to prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the banana bread.

The resulting Strawberry Lemon Banana Bread is light and airy, with a slightly denser crumb but so much moistness and fresh flavour. It pairs perfectly with the lemon-infused glaze – simply stir together icing sugar, water, lemon juice and lemon zest for a refreshing and uplifting laze.

While this Strawberry Lemon Banana Bread is great as it is, I find it even more appealing to pile on lots of fresh berries to decorate the cake – it really is a showstopper. The banana adds a lot of moisture to the cake as well as sweetness, as I’ve reduced the sugar a lot compared to similar cake recipes you’ll find. Still, it’s perfectly balanced and makes a great slice with a cup of tea in the afternoon.

Strawberry Lemon Banana Bread (Vegan GF)

Strawberry Lemon Banana Bread (Vegan GF)

For this recipe shoot, I decided to bake two smaller bread loaves, which equals the same volume as one larger loaf.  The slices are smaller but just as enjoyable and it makes the shoot more fun! You could also use a 20cm round cake tin as this will be similar volume, too. Just be careful about cooking times as mentioned below.

I hope you will love this summery, fresh, vibrant, zingy, sweet and fruity take on the classic banana bread. It is naturally vegan and gluten-free if you’re using GF flour and has so much flavour thanks to the lemon zest and fresh berries. It is light and moist with a delicious texture – which is even better smothered with a zingy sweet glaze.

If you are looking for more banana bread recipes, check out my Sticky Orange Banana Bread, Triple Chocolate Banana Bread, Chocolate Swirl Banana Bread or Biscoff Cookie Banana Bread. Or, for more bakes like my Spiced Apple Cake and Chocolate and Cherry Banana Cake check out my cake section!

Strawberry Lemon Banana Bread (Vegan GF)

• Servings: 10-12
• Time: 50 minutes plus cooling
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

A light, fluffy, zesty and fruity banana loaf studded with juicy strawberries pieces and finished with a sticky lemon glaze and more fruit. This banana bread is naturally gluten-free and vegan and makes a deliciously simple but impressive bake.

Ingredients

• 250g + 1 tsp plain GF or non-GF flour
• ¾ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• A pinch of salt
• 225g ripe banana
• 110g vegan butter/margarine or coconut oil, melted and cooled
• 100g sugar (coconut or caster)
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 60ml plant-based milk
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 lemon, zested
• 175g strawberries, chopped
• To decorate:
• 170g icing sugar
• 1-2 tbsp water
• 1 lemon, zest
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• Fresh berries

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 160Fan/180*C and line a loaf tin (or two smaller loaves or a 20xm round tin) with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl stir together the mashed banana, melted and cooled butter, sugar, vanilla, plant-based milk, lemon juice and zest. When combined, add in the 250g flour, bicarbonate of soda and a pinch of salt and fold together.
3. Add the chopped strawberries to a small bowl with 1 tsp of flour and shake to coat the pieces of fruit. Stir through the strawberries and stir until just combined. Pour into the lined tin or tins and bake for 45-50 minutes for the larger loaf or 35-40 minutes for 2 smaller loaves and the round cake – or until an inserted skewer comes out clean.
4. Allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before removing and cooling fully on a wire rack.
5. Make the frosting by stirring together the icing sugar, milk and lemon zest until smooth and thick. Pour over the cooled cake and decorate with the fresh berries. Store in the fridge for 3 days.

Strawberry Lemon Banana Bread (Vegan GF)

I look forward to hearing what you think of this Strawberry Lemon Banana Bread so please leave your comments below.  Tag me in your bakes, too – I’m @nourishing.amy on Instagram and use the hashtag #nourishingamy. I’m also on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest  – please say hello!

With strawberry lemon love x