Florentine Banana Bread (Vegan GF-Option)

A light and fluffy banana bread filled with all the flavours and textures of the much-love Florentine bite: raisins, chocolate and flaked almonds. Drizzled with melted chocolate and decorated with homemade Chocolate Florentines, this banana bread is a one-bowl vegan recipe with a GF-option, too.

The banana bread of August has arrived: Florentine Banana Bread. The idea behind this one? I love Florentines, the chocolatey and nutty combination with sticky syrup and sweet dried fruits. Now, these aren’t authentic Florentine Biscuits, there’s no pastry or lacy element to them like the ones you see in the shops, but they have all the deliciousness with only a fraction of the effort. Stir toasted flaked almonds and raisins (or other dried fruits) into a sticky mix of coconut oil and maple syrup before setting them in cupcake cases in the fridge. Once set, drizzle with chocolate, set again and remove from the cases: no baking, no messy hands and they make a great chocolate snack.

While the Florentines are great, let’s move on to the main event: the Florentine Banana Bread. This has all the Florentine flavours on its own:

• Flaked almonds: in the batter and scattered on top.
• Raisins: they turn wonderfully soft and plump inside and turn sticky and crisp on top.
• Chocolate: chocolate chips in the batter and on top of the load all drizzled with more chocolate for the “frosting”. While the chocolate is still wet, set a few mini Florentines on top to really finish this loaf off!

As with all my monthly banana breads (take a look here) the banana bread batter recipe is unique every time! I love this part about my 12-month 2020 banana bread challenge, but it can also be tough especially when I know I loved all the previous ones. Constantly trying to top your own recipes is a challenge in itself – but this one really shines!

You only need 9 ingredients and one-bowl to make this easy but delicious, light and fluffy Florentine Banana Bread:

• Bananas: of course! The riper the better, I used ones that were really soft and sweet for the best flavour and texture. I also weigh the bananas as they can vary a lot in size.
• Plant-based milk: another common ingredient in my bakes. I love almond or soya for baking as it’s a reliable option, but coconut, oat or another milk would also work.
• Sunflower oil: or you can use melted coconut oil in its liquid state to bind the batter and add a wonderfully light yet indulgent cake-y texture.
• Coconut sugar: this is always my sugar of choice, not only is it refined sugar free but I love the colour and flavour that it lends to baking. The soft caramel tones really amplify this loaf. To swap, I’d suggest trying golden or regular caster sugar, instead.
• Flour: now here’s the ultimate question, what flour to use! I love baking with spelt flour for the slight nutty flavour, but sometimes good old pain flour is what you want for the lightest and fluffiest loaf. You can also use a GF plain flour blend (as long as there is xanthan gum as a binder).
• Baking powder: this adds the rise and lovely texture.
• The Florentine elements mention above: flaked almonds, raisins and chocolate!

That’s all there is to it! Mash, stir and fold in all the ingredients and bake until golden brown on top and firm to the touch. Wait until the cake is fully cooled before drizzling over the chocolate –  I had a lot of fun doing that part!

Let me know if you make this Florentine Banana Bread, it really is a new favourite of mine (as they all are!) and this one will take us into Autumn/Fall… it is light and fluffy, warmingly fragranced with the flaked almonds and juicy raisins while the melting chocolate chips add a wonderful indulgence to the cake. Slice it thick to serve with tea or smother it with peanut butter and banana for breakfast or an evening snack!

If you are looking for more banana bread inspiration:

• Chocolate Swirl Banana Bread
• Strawberry Lemon Banana Bread
• Coconut Banana Bread
• Sticky Orange Banana Bread
• Triple Chocolate Banana Bread

Easy No-Bake Florentines (Vegan GF)

• Servings: 15 large Florentines (or 20-30 smaller ones)
• Time: 20 minutes plus 45 minutes cooling
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

Simple no-bake Florentine bites made with only 5 ingredients. Quick to make and they are great eaten on their own or served on top of this Florentine Banana Bread.

Ingredients

• 150g sliced almonds
• 100g maple syrup
• 50g coconut oil
• 50g raisins
• 270g chocolate, melted

Directions

1. Roast the almonds at 160Fan/180*C for 8 minutes and shake halfway through.
2. In a saucepan, melt together the maple syrup and coconut oil. Stir in the roasted almonds and raisins. Leave for 2 minutes to cool, shape fill into 15 cupcake cases, pressing down slightly. Freeze for 15 minutes.
3. Pour the melted chocolate over the Florentines and leave in the fridge to set for 20-30 minutes.

Florentine Banana Bread (Vegan GF-Option)

• Servings: 1 loaf, serves 8-10
• Time: 20 minutes plus 2-3 hours chilling
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

A light and fluffy banana bread filled with all the flavours and textures of the much-love Florentine bite: raisins, chocolate and flaked almonds. Drizzled with melted chocolate and decorated with homemade Chocolate Florentines, this banana bread is a one-bowl vegan recipe with a GF-option, too.

Ingredients

• 360g ripe banana (3-4 bananas)
• 60ml almond milk
• 50g sunflower oil or melted coconut oil
• 60g coconut sugar
• 250g spelt, plain or GF plain flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 50g chocolate chips
• 60g flaked almonds
• 60g raisins
• To decorate: 50g melted chocolate

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 160Fan/180*C and line a loaf tin with parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas and whisk in the almond milk, sunflower (or coconut) oil and coconut sugar. Now pour in the flour and baking powder and stir to fully combine, some lumps are ok.
3. Fold through most of the chocolate chips, flaked almonds and raisins, saving some for the top. Pour into the lined tin, smooth over the top and sprinkle over the remaining chocolate chips, flaked almonds and raisins.
4. Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until golden and firm to the touch. An inserted skewer will come out clean – if the raisins and almonds are catching, place some foil over the loaf.
5. Cool in a tin for 10 minutes on a wire rack, carefully remove from the tin and allow to cool fully on a wire rack.
6. Decorate with the melted chocolate and the Florentines (I used the mini ones here). Allow the chocolate to set and store the cake in an airtight container for 3 days or freeze the loaf in slices.

I look forward to hearing what you think of this brand-new recipe for Florentine Banana Bread as part of my 2020 banana bread challenge. Leave a comment below and tag me in your bakes – I’m @nourishing.amy on Instagram and use the hashtag #nourishingamy. I’m also on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest  – please say hello!

With Florentine banana bread love x