Gluten-free Lemon Banana Bread with Poppy Seeds, Paleo, Dairy-free

This lemon banana bread is a satisfying grain-free, dairy-free, gluten-free, and Paleo banana bread seasoned with lemon juice, lemon zest, and poppyseeds and slathered in a lemon glaze. It is made with almond flour, coconut flour, and tapioca flour.

The flavor of lemon poppy seed is so fresh. We love it in Lemon Poppy Seed Coffee Cake, Lemon Poppyseed Pancakes, and now in banana bread form. This lemon poppyseed banana bread tastes like a classic banana bread, but with a refreshing hint of lemon juice and zest AND with a burst of lemon flavor in the glaze.

It is a satisfying twist on banana bread and we are here for it!

Why this recipe works

• It is made with lighter ingredients like almond flour, olive oil, and coconut sugar.
• It works for those following a Paleo, Dairy-free, Gluten-free diet.
• It is allergy friendly. It is soy-free, peanut-free, dairy-free, and grain-free.
• It is a fun way to bake with lemon poppyseed flavors.

Recipe ingredients

• Olive oil– any kind of olive oil works in this recipe.
• Coconut sugar– this type of sugar has a lower glycemic index than other sugars.
• Eggs– these help bind the bread together.
• Lemon juice and lemon zest– this gives a great flavor.
• Bananas– make sure your bananas are ripe.
• Almond flour– use blanched almond flour because it is more refined in texture.
• Tapioca flour– this helps give the bread a good texture.
• Coconut flour– this also gives good texture to the bread.
• Baking soda– this helps the banana bread rise.
• Poppy seeds– buy good quality organic poppy seeds for our favorite flavor.
• Powdered maple sugar or organic powdered sugar– these are used to make the glaze. If you want to keep this recipe strictly Paleo, use maple sugar instead of powdered sugar.

See recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.

Additions/ Substitutions

• Instead of olive oil, you can use avocado oil.
• Instead of coconut sugar, you can use maple sugar. You can also use brown sugar, just know that the recipe will no longer be Paleo.
• Instead of tapioca flour, you can use arrowroot powder.

Step by step instructions

Step 1

Step 1: Make the banana bread batter.

Mix the olive oil, coconut sugar, eggs, vanilla, mashed bananas, lemon juice and lemon zest together.

In another bowl, mix the almond flour, tapioca flour, coconut flour, baking soda, salt, and poppyseeds together.

Then, pour the bowl of dry ingredients into the bowl of wet ingredients and mix again.

Step 2

Step 2: Pour the banana bread batter into a pan.

Step 3

Step 3: Bake!

Step 4

Step 4: Make the glaze and pour it in top of your banana bread.

To make the glaze, simply mix the powdered sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest together. Then pour it ALL over your banana bread.

Expert tips

• Use light olive oil.
  • Make sure that you use a light flavored olive oil. We like using light colored extra virgin olive oil in our baking.
• Use a lemon zester.
  • Make sure to use a zester to really get ALL of the lemon zest from your lemon. We have made the mistake of not doing this and it results in less lemon flavor. We use a Deiss lemon zester and love it!
• Use ripe Bananas.
  • For our favorite banana flavor, make sure your bananas are ripe. As in lots of spots on the banana, ready to be made into banana bread ripe.
• Don’t use too many poppyseeds
  • Otherwise your banana bread will be crunchy
• Let the banana bread batter sit.
  • Before putting the banana bread batter into the pan, make sure to let the batter sit for a few minutes. 2-3 minutes is enough. This lets the coconut flour absorb some of the extra liquid.
• Keep an eye on your banana bread.
  • Start to watch it around the 40 minute mark. Our oven tends to be hot and the banana bread was done in 45 minutes, but it can take up to 55 minutes. Your banana bread will be golden and will feel hard when you touch the top of it.