Prep time: 1 hour Cook time: 40 mins Rest time: 20 mins Total time: 2 hrs
Macronutrients per batch: 152g fat | 128g protein | 261g carbohydrates
Makes: One large loaf
Make it AIP or Dairy-Free: Use animal fat other than ghee or butter
With a base of eggs, pork rinds, and ripe bananas, this animal-based banana bread is moist, dense, and sweetened only with fruit.
What you need to make Animal-Based Banana Bread
Ingredients:
- Pork rinds
- Eggs (ASHLEY20 for 20% off)
- Pitted dates
- Ripe bananas
- Grass-fed ghee (or butter)
- Sea salt (ASHLEYR for 15% off)
Equipment:
Substitutions
You can substitute the ghee for your animal fat of choice, although I do highly recommend ghee with this recipe due to its sweet and buttery flavor. Either Medjool or Deglet dates will work.
How to make Animal-Based Banana Bread
Prep the dates.
Soak the pitted dates for 1-2 hours in a bowl with water.
Make the batter.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
In a blender, grind the pork rinds into a powder and set aside.
Crack all eggs into a mixing bowl. Separate the whites from the yolks.
Beat the egg whites with a hand mixer until the mixture is frothy and foam-like. This should take about a minute.
Place the melted ghee, egg yolks, sea salt, and soaked dates into a blender and blend until smooth.
Fold the egg-ghee-date-salt mixture into the bowl with the egg whites. Mix well by hand (not with a mixer).
Place the ripe bananas in the mixing bowl and mash them while folding the batter. It’s okay if there are chunks of banana left in the batter.
Fold in the pork rind powder. Mix well by hand (not with a mixer).
Bake the Banana Bread.
Line your bread pan with parchment paper and place the batter inside.
Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.
Once the banana bread is done baking, remove it from the oven and allow the pan to cool for at least 10-15 minutes.
Serve and enjoy! Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Tips to make the best Animal-Based Banana Bread
- When making the batter, make sure the ghee is melted and the pork rinds are blended to a fine powder. Otherwise, the bars may bake unevenly with some parts more oily than others and come out with pork rind chunks (which I guess could be cool if you like that sorta thing).
A few of my other favorite sweet eats:
Jumbo Chocolate Cups with Salted Chunky Date Filling
Flourless Lemon Blueberry Muffins
Animal-Based Banana Bread
Animal-Based Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 5 oz pork rinds (pre-ground)
- 3 eggs
- 8 oz pitted dates
- 3 ripe bananas
- 1/2 cup grass-fed ghee (or butter)
- 1/4 tsp sea salt (ASHLEYR for 15% off)
Instructions
- If you’re interested solely in the recipe, skip this bullet point and keep on reading. For those interested in sourcing nutrient-dense food, low-toxic household products, and discounts on brands that may support your AB journey, you may find value in my product guides. Head over to this page if you’d like to check them out. All are free (and always will be).
Prep the dates.
- Soak the pitted dates for 1-2 hours in a bowl with water.
Make the batter.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- In a blender, grind the pork rinds into a powder and set aside.
- Crack all eggs into a mixing bowl. Separate the whites from the yolks.
- Beat the egg whites with a hand mixer until the mixture is frothy and foam-like. This should take about a minute.
- Scoop the ghee into a glass container (or whatever you're using to melt it) on the stovetop. Melt the ghee until it is liquid.
- Note: if you go through tons of salt in your household like we do, check out this salt purchasing hack that will save you money + make things more efficient. We started this last year, and I'm so happy we did!
- Fold the egg-ghee-date-salt mixture into the bowl with the egg whites. Mix well by hand (not with a mixer).
- Place the ripe bananas in the mixing bowl and mash them while folding the batter. It's okay if there are chunks of banana left in the batter.
- Fold in the pork rind powder. Mix well by hand (not with a mixer).
Bake the Banana Bread.
- Line your bread pan with parchment paper and place the batter inside.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.
- Once the banana bread is done baking, remove it from the oven and allow the pan to cool for at least 10-15 minutes.
- Serve and enjoy! Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
What I used for this recipe:
A few of my other favorite sweet eats:
Jumbo Chocolate Cups with Salted Chunky Date Filling
Flourless Lemon Blueberry Muffins
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Ashley Rothstein develops tasty, whole food, animal-based recipes that include a moderate amount of “minimally toxic” plant foods. To fix her own health issues, she bounced around between the carnivore, keto, and paleo diets for a few years. After experiencing and studying each diet philosophy, she learned she feels her best by merging the three and following an animal-based diet. As a glut at heart, she likes to channel her creativity and create meals that are healthy but also satisfy her inner gluttonous spirits.
I can’t thank you enough for this recipe! My allergy toddler can have it with ripe plantain subbed for banana and lamb tallow/avocado oil for ghee. She has so few safe foods that this “cake” is very exciting for us.
Author
That is wonderful to hear. 🙂
Thank you. I believe the Holy Spirit can completely heal your body. Sometimes God uses diet and exercise too. Miracles do happen. Keep the faith.
This recipe is amazing and a staple for my toddler who has many food allergies. Dairy is a no go so we’ve successfully used lamb tallow, lard, avocado oil, or a combo. We also cannot do bananas so have only ever used ripe plantains. I love a good solid recipe that can take some logical substitutions. My little one loves her “cake!” And I love that it’s nutrient dense.
My whole family loves this recipe! Kids toddlers baby and husband approved! Does it freeze well Ashley?
Author
Love to hear that! I haven’t tried freezing it, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t freeze well.
I threw everything in a blender until creamy and fluffed up and it worked great! Loved it so much I tried again and omitted the salt and butter/ghee and still worked great! Can’t believe how this taste exactly like the real thing but so much better and healthier. Thank you!
Do you think you can make this into muffins?
My Hubby LOVES it but i was trying to make it easier to take to work.
Thanks!
Author
Yup! The bake time would probably decrease slightly. Just stick a toothpick in the center of the muffins to make sure they’re done.
Thank you for this!! I’ve been trying a paleo to keto to ketovore diet for my hidradenitis suppurativa for the last couple years and have been trying to find a true balance with food. It’s been a very VERY long and slow journey to find trigger foods, and I always need something like this every now and then. I will be following your creations from now on!!
Can you substitute the dates with either maple syrup or honey? Or are the dates specific for the “batter”
Author
You could. It would likely still hold together due to the pork rinds, but not sure how the texture would turn out
This can be outside of the fridge?
Author
Yes, but if you don’t eat it within a day or two, I’d probably store it in the fridge.