Delicious, moist and gooey, these Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars are the perfect quick treat to whip up when you have extra bananas! They’re grain and dairy free, gluten free, soy free, and Paleo.
The time finally came – we didn’t finish 40 bananas in a week.
I think it was me slacking but it doesn’t matter because I created an awesome grain-free recipe with 2 over-ripe bananas.
Since we normally go through bananas like water, this was a special occasion and I really didn’t want to screw it up. The pressure was on, and deliver I did on this one!
I didn’t want a regular old banana bread, although I really appreciate a good one. I wanted something a bit different. Gooey, chocolatey and decadent enough to be a real dessert.
Something dense that wouldn’t crumble, but also soft. Anyway, this wound up being it and thank goodness, because I was at high risk for recipe heartbreak and you all know how hard that is for me.
P.S. These didn’t survive long enough to share a couple with Santa (we loved them and devoured) so I tried another recipe for Santa (cookies) that did wind up failing pretty badly.
I mean they were edible, just had an odd taste and too-dry texture. I’d hate to tarnish Santa’s view of healthier treats and paleo in general, but we all agreed we should leave them for him and hopefully he’d be okay with it. Unsweetened almond milk to wash them down.
It’s a miracle he still left my kids anything!
Anyway, because the gooey chocolate chip banana bread squares made me so happy, I didn’t go into full recipe heartbreak mode with that one. Now onto the good stuff!
Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars {Paleo}
Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Squares
Ingredients
- 2 med over-ripe bananas mashed
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup organic coconut sugar
- 1/4 cup coconut oil melted
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups blanched almond flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup Enjoy Life chocolate chips or homemade paleo chocolate chunks*
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line an 8 x 8" baking dish with parchment paper along the bottom and sides
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In a large bowl, whisk together the mashed bananas and 2 eggs.
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Add the coconut sugar, coconut oil, and vanilla and continue to mix until smooth.
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Stir in the almond flour, baking soda and salt and mix until fully combined.
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Last, stir in the chocolate chips or chunks. Transfer the mixture into the prepared baking dish and bake for 25 minutes, or until it is set and lightly browned along the outer edges.
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Let cool completely before cutting into squares to serve. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
*You can use this recipe to make your own paleo chocolate - simply chill the mixture in a parchment lined loaf pan before chopping into chunks.
Nutrition
Do you want to make these yet? I know, I know. It’s hard to wait for the bananas to turn brown. You know I never think to just buy the bananas too ripe to start? What is wrong with me?
There’s always plenty in my store discounted and ready to be turned into some tasty baked good. Always next time 🙂
What’s your favorite thing to make with overripe bananas?
How was your Christmas?
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i may actually have some overripe bananas too on my counter! We didn’t get to eat them all since we were away which means I can make something too! I made two banana recipes recently and, um, I think forgot to write down what I did. Ugh, they were both so good. One was a granola bread.
Ooh that does sound good! I have more uneaten bananas with all the holiday goodies around now, and I’ll probably make some sort of muffins. I always type what I do in my phone so I don’t forget, otherwise it’s lost 🙂
Well, in this case I think it was still a victory, even if you didn’t use all the bananas! I like to freeze my bananas and gnaw on them that way–it’s like a bon bon every time!
I used to freeze them for smoothies in the summer, I should do that again but never think of smoothies when it’s cold. Never thought to just eat them frozen by themselves though, sounds yummy 🙂
I’m pretty sure banana bread with chocolate chips is like….a must! Banana bread should either be untainted with no add-ins, or with chocolate chips, never anything else!
I agree! Funny but I actually don’t like nuts in banana bread. I’m a little picky with nuts! But chocolate chips are so delicious with it 🙂
Banana bread is usually my go-to recipe when I have too many bananas. My Christmas was reallly nice – flew by in a flash. Thanks for the recipe and enjoy your Friday!
So glad you had a wonderful Christmas! I might be making some other banana recipe as my ripe stash is growing 🙂
I can’t wait to make these! The perfect pre run snack!
You will love them! Plus they’re easy and quick 🙂
Freeze the bananas! They’re great for smoothies and baking. Banana bread is my favorite. Of all the muffins I bake, the banana bread muffin always wins. There’s a ton of ways to change up it too. Love your squares!
Do you bake with the frozen ones? I haven’t tried that yet. I was doing smoothies for my kids with frozen bananas over the summer and might do it now since we have a growing ripe stash! Or I might just try out another treat. Tis the season 🙂
Yes!!! Bake with the frozen ones. Take them out first to get sort of room temp while you’re prepping your other items. Then peel them and mash. They will be a bit more watery but you can drain off extra water. Works great. And no waste on bananas!!
i love freezing my ripe bananas and then using them for smoothies – i keep saying that i’m going to make banana ice cream, but we have been slacking on that and buying some almond milk vegan stuff that tastes ridiculously amazing (and was devoured by dairy enthusiasts with great gusto!!!) of course it has more ingredients that i even want to look at, but it’s a yummy treat 🙂
happy friday, Michele!!!
I’m definitely interested in that almond milk ice cream! I actually tried banana ice cream this past summer but couldn’t get the consistency right with my ice cream maker so turned it into a smoothie. I have a hard time with smoothies in the winter, but I think my kids would still go for one 🙂
Yum! I love that you cut them into squares. I feel like I only have over-ripe bananas when I don’t need them yet never have them when I do haha
So true! I also feel like I’m either constantly running out of bananas (when everyone’s in a phase) or buying way too many. We are all or nothing with our bananas apparently. The square definitely made them more fun!
Great recipe! I was getting tired of making the same banana bread! Lol. We go in phases were bananas are all we eat and then we get tired of them. I think my husband does this on person so he gets some form of dessert.. haha!
Yup, same with us! My kids get excited when they see overripe ones because they know it’s time to bake!
These look amazing, Michele! I’d whip some up right now if I wasn’t in the middle of a ripe banana crisis. The winter months are hard on my banana addiction — I can’t get them to ripen fast enough and the stores sell green ones 😡 I should probably just buy way more than I need so that they can ripen at home, but I haven’t figured out how many that’ll take, or what kind of intervals I should buy them in. So complicated 😆
Oh no, banana crisis! I would probably go the over-buying route, knowing you can freeze or bake with the extras. My family eats unpredictable amounts so I’m always guessing 🙂