Summertime is coming, and the days of abundant zucchini won’t be far behind! Zucchini bread can be a great way to use up some of that bounty, but it can be a little bland.  This Gluten Free Banana Zucchini Bread combines the sweetness of banana bread with the flavor, texture and color of zucchini and carrot.  I added golden raisins and unsalted toasted sunflower seeds to mine, but you could use any combination of dried fruits or nuts that you liked.  Zucchini and pine nuts would be a great combination, or walnuts and raisins, or even dried apricots and slivered almonds!  Use your imagination and those leftover veggies to create a great-tasting, healthy quick bread.  It can be a great addition to breakfast or brunch, afternoon tea or midnight snack!

Quick Bread Flour

You can use a pre-packaged all-purpose gluten free flour mix for this, although some brands tend to use bean flours like garbanzo which will make a heavier product.  Not that this is bad, but it will produce a dense, more protein-rich bread.  I like to mix up my own blend of quick bread flour that includes rice flour, tapioca and/or potato flour, and either untoasted buckwheat flour or quinoa flour (or a combination of them both) for the protein component.  The quick bread flour I have mixed up right now is 30% white rice flour, 50% tapioca, and 20% untoasted buckwheat.  (Untoasted buckwheat flour doesn’t have the dark brown color and distinctive flavor of toasted buckwheat, although that wouldn’t be a bad flavor combination with this veggie bread.)

 

Gluten Free Banana Zucchini Bread

1 ½ cup quick bread flour
2 ½ tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. xanthan gum
½ tsp salt
1/3 cup coconut oil
2/3 cup organic brown sugar
2 eggs
1 banana
½ c shredded carrot
½ c shredded zucchini
½ c golden raisins
½ cup toasted unsalted sunflower seeds

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Sift the dry ingredients together.

In a separate bowl, mash the banana, add the eggs and brown sugar and blend until thoroughly combined.
Toss the vegetables, raisins and sunflower seeds or nuts in the flour mixture.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Grease a loaf pan or muffin cups with more coconut oil.  Pour the batter into the loaf pan or portion it out into individual muffin cups.

Bake for 50 – 60 minutes for a loaf, or until the outside is dark and crispy looking.  The inside will be wet, so letting it “overcook” is ok, the rice flour in the quick bread flour creates a crispy outer crust that is chewy and delightful.

 

 

Remove the loaf from the loaf pan and allow to cool on a rack.  Don’t skip this step!  Gluten free breads can become quite gummy inside if you don’t remove them from their baking pan and let them cool properly!

Check out all those beautiful colors! Orange carrots, green zucchini, and golden raisins provide a rich visual and tasty texture to this delightful quick bread!