An amazing combination

This lemony banana bread with olive oil and vanilla is my new favourite cake piece for my morning oat lattes. It’s got the perfect sweetness, not too much, but just enough, basically all the sweet notes are coming from the fruits in it. Lemons, over-ripe bananas and then the caramelized pears on top, it combines all very well.

I had way too many lemons in the fridge

So I made some hummus and with the rest of the lemons I was thinking to use them in a banana bread with a fresh, citric touch. The acidity of the lemons gets very well balanced with the over-ripe, super sweet bananas. So it’s not like a lemon cake at all, it’s still more a banana bread, but lighter, fluffier.

The liquid gold

So, living in Spain, why not use some nice high quality, organic Spanish extra virgin olive oil? I usually don’t cook or bake with a lot of oil, but this time I added a good dollop of it, as it combines very well with the other ingredients.

Pears on top

Instead of a sliced banana I put some pear slices on top. And a few crystals of brown or coconut sugar will do to get them caramelized. Of course you can skip this step or replace with any other fruit you have, for example apple slices would work fine, too.

Be patient before slicing

It’s important that you let this lemony banana bread with olive oil and vanilla cool down completely before trying to cut into slices. It really needs this time to settle so you get the perfect slice.

Top with any nut butter, I used cashew butter, or if you’re fancy something more indulgent then drizzle some chocolate sauce on top.

Check out my other banana bread recipes:

• Chocolate Banana Bread with Hazelnuts
• Banana Bread Squares

Print Recipe

Lemony Banana Bread with Olive Oil, Vanilla and Caramelized Pears (vegan)

This incredible lemony olive oil banana bread with vanilla, almonds and caramelized pears on top is the perfect solution if you have too many lemons and over-ripe bananas to use. It’s so amazingly moist and fluffy and has such a delicate nice flavour. It goes perfectly with a cup of tea or coffee and can even be eaten for breakfast, as it’s not too sweet. This recipe is 100% vegan, can be made gluten-free and is kids-friendly.

Prep Time

15 minutes

Cook Time

60 minutes

Servings

loaf

Ingredients

• 100 ml lemon juice about 1-2 lemons
• 200 ml olive oil
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 370 gr bananas over-ripe, mashed (about 4 medium bananas)
• 1 pinch salt
• 150 gr flour
• 200 gr almonds ground
• 2 tbsp chiaseeds
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 pear
• 3-4 pinches coconut sugar or regular brown sugar

Prep Time 15 minutes Cook Time 60 minutes Servings loaf Ingredients 100 ml lemon juice about 1-2 lemons 200 ml olive oil 1/4 cup maple syrup 1 tbsp vanilla extract 370 gr bananas over-ripe, mashed (about 4 medium bananas) 1 pinch salt 150 gr flour 200 gr almonds ground 2 tbsp chiaseeds 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp baking soda 2 tsp apple cider vinegar 1 pear 3-4 pinches coconut sugar or regular brown sugar

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 180ºC
2. Make the chia-egg by mixing the chiaseeds with 9 tbsp of water in a small bowl and set aside.
3. Mix the flour, salt and the ground almonds in a bowl.
4. In a deep dish or bowl, mix the mashed bananas with the lemon juice, maple syrup, olive oil and vanilla extract.

   
5. Add this mixture to the dry ingredients in the bowl and mix through.
6. Add the chia-egg and mix again.
7. Then sprinkle the baking powder and baking soda on top and add the apple cider vinegar. Let it bubble up a bit.
8. Carefully mix everything through until baking powder and soda is well incorporated. Try not to mix too much, just as much as necessary, otherwise the banana bread won't raise in the oven.
9. Transfer the dough into a loaf tin. I usually put some non-stick baking paper in the tin, so I won't have any problems later to get it out.
10. Peel and slice the pear lengthwise and place the slices on top of the loaf. Press them in a bit & sprinkle the coconut sugar on top.

    
11. Bake at 180ºC during a total time of about 60 minutes, depending on your oven. TIP: Check the loaf after about 35-45 minutes. Depending on your oven it might be, that the caramelized pears begin to blacken a bit too much, but the loaf still needs a few minutes more. In that case I recommend covering it with some aluminium foil during the last 10-15 minutes, so the pears stay pretty and the top doesn't get burnt.

Recipe Notes

This loaf can be frozen without any problem. Either the whole loaf, or - what I do - I cut it into slices and freeze them separately. So anytime I feel like a piece of cake, I can defrost one slice in the microwave and within 5 minutes I have something nice and sweet with my coffee.

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MAPLE SYRUP