Vegan Banana Coffee Cake

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One bowl, one hour and 10 ingredients to make this ultra decadent but super healthy vegan banana coffee cake. 

This vegan banana coffee cake recipe is so easy to make and whips up in almost no time. 

Additionally, like all of my recipes, this vegan banana coffee cake is refined sugar-free, vegan and super healthy. No seriously, it’s packed with vitamins, nutrients and minerals. Making it the perfect breakfast cake to fuel you throughout your day! 

 I love having this in the morning with a smear of cream cheese on top. It’s truly the best banana coffee cake! 

Ok, onto the recipe! 

Vegan Banana Coffee Cake Ingredients

Here’s exactly what you’ll need to make this ultra decadent but healthy banana coffee cake. Keep in mind that that full list of ingredients with measurements is in the recipe card below. 

Here’s your grocery list. Although hopefully you already have these ingredients on hand 🙂

• Bananas – Make sure that you’re using super overripe bananas for best results! 
• Spelt flour
• Coconut sugar
• Tahini – Make sure that the tahini you use is runny and not thick. 
• Cashew milk – Linking my cashew milk recipe here, but any plant milk will work. 
• Vanilla extract
• Ceylon Cinnamon 
• Leaveners – Both baking powder and baking soda. 
• Lemon juice
• Salt

How to Make Banana Coffee Cake 

1. Preheat your oven to 350° and grease your loaf pan with cooking spray. I recommend lining the pan with parchment paper, but this is optional if you’re using a non-stick pan. 
2. Begin by making the streusel. In a bowl, add in the spelt flour, coconut sugar, salt and cinnamon. Whisk together. 
3. Next pour in the tahini and using your hands, mix the tahini into the flour mixture until it resembles wet sand. It should begin to clump and form clusters. If the streusel seems too dry, add ½ tsp of water at a time until it reaches a wet but loose crumbly texture. 
4. Onto making the batter. In a large mixing bowl, add in the 3 bananas and mash until no lumps remain. I like using a potato masher, but a fork also works well. 
5. Next, pour in the coconut sugar, tahini, milk, vanilla extract and lemon juice. Whisk together well until the batter looks homogenous. 
6. Sprinkle in the cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt and whisk until combined. 
7. Finally, add in the spelt flour and fold into the batter using a rubber spatula. Mix the batter until the streaks of flour have disappeared — remember that over mixing the batter will make the banana cake turn out rubbery! 
8. Pour half the batter into the prepared loaf pan and shake gently to even out the batter. Sprinkle the half of the streusel topping and then pour the remaining batter on top. Finally, sprinkle on the remaining streusel. 
9. Pop the bread into the oven and bake for 45 minutes. At this point, check if the loaf is done by inserting a cake tester into the center, if it comes out clean it’s done. If not, continue to bake the loaf for another 10 minutes. Additionally, the loaf should be a dark brown and have a large crack in the middle. 
10. Once done baking, let the bread cool in the pan for 1 hour. Once the hour is up, remove from the pan and slice into the loaf. 
11. To store the bread, simply wrap it in plastic wrap or foil and store on the counter for up to 3 days or 5 days in the fridge.  

Expert Tips 

• Make the streusel first: I recommend making the streusel first. That way as soon as your done making the batter you can pop on the streusel and bake the loaf. 
• Don’t over-mix: The more you mix the batter, the more gluten will develop. Gluten development will make your loaf rubbery and chewy in all the wrong ways. Just mix the batter until all the streaks of flour have disappeared. 
• Use good quality cinnamon: Since this recipe relies heavily on cinnamon for flavor, using a good quality cinnamon is key. I recommend using Ceylon cinnamon as the flavor is impeccable and tastes rich and warm in baked goods. 
• Overripe bananas are key: This recipe relies heavily on bananas as a natural sweetener, so make sure you’re using overripe bananas. They should have large black spots and smell super sweet. 
• Let the loaf rest for at least 1 hour: yeah, i know it’s torture just staring at the loaf on your counter. But if you cut into the coffee cake too early, it’ll affect the final crumb of the loaf. 

Frequently Asked Questions 

Can I make this gluten-free? 

Ummmm, you can absolutely make this into a vegan gluten-free banana coffee cake loaf. I recommend using a GF flour blend — Bob’s Red Mill and King Arthur both make amazing GF flour blends. 

Will frozen bananas work in this recipe? 

Definitely, simply thaw the bananas in a bowl for about 30 minutes so you can easily mash them. Additionally, it’s important that you bring the bananas to room temp so that they don’t react with the other ingredients. 

On that note, make sure your ingredients are all room temp, with the exception of the cashew milk! 

What can I substitute the tahini for? 

While I don’t recommend swapping ingredients as it almost never turns out the same, you can use a runny nut or seed butter as a replacement. Something like sunflower butter or a runny peanut butter should work well. If your nut butter is on the thicker side, you may need to add extra cashew milk to thin out the batter. 

What size pan should I use? 

Here’s the exact pan I used for this recipe. It’s smaller than your standard loaf pan, so that the loaf can rise and get that classic dome top! Truly adore this loaf pan!

How do I know the banana coffee cake is done? 

The first indicator to use is your nose! Trust me on this, if the coffee cake is starting to smell when it’s baking, it means it’s almost done. Another great indicator is the crack in the middle. The dome on the loaf will split in half and turn a nice dark brown color. And lastly, when you insert a toothpick in the middle, it should come out clean. 

More Easy Vegan Banana Desserts 

• Vanilla Bean Nice Cream 
• Chocolate Nice Cream 
• Gingerbread Mug Cake

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