Irresistible Moist Gluten Free Banana Bars

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Got a ripe banana or two sitting around? These Gluten Free Banana Bars are a delicious banana filled healthy snack!

Raise your hand if you love banana desserts! You may also know this combination of flavors as monkey bars…that name also works because we go bananas for treats. If you love bananas, you will want to try all of my gluten free banana recipes.

These easy banana chocolate chip bars are sure to please even the pickiest dessert lover. They are moist and so sweet. I even have a dairy-free option for this gluten free cookie bar recipe. You only need to use dairy-free chips!

(If you want even more banana deliciousness, try these Gluten Free Grilled Banana Whoopie Pies or these Gluten Free Banana Oat Muffins!)

It is confession time. When my husband goes out of town, bananas hang out on my counter and get ripe. It isn’t that I don’t like bananas, it is just that Mr. Fearless Dining eats a lot of bananas. Bananas are high in potassium, which is helpful on workout days.”

I need to get better at using bananas before they turn to mush on my counter, and I have to make something fast with these. We just had a delicious gluten free banana bread, so I really wanted to create a new recipe.

Thinking along the lines of ripe banana recipes, there are many other ingredients that could be fun to play with. I have some Meyer’s Dark Rum in the cabinet, that flavor would work with the bananas in a cookie bar. I used Meyer’s Dark Rum in these Gluten Free French Apple Cakes Recipe and it adds great flavor!

Tips to ripen bananas:

If your bananas are not ripe enough, don’t worry. Try one of these ideas to ripen your bananas:

1. Place your bananas on a baking sheet and bake at 225 for 20 minutes.
2. If you aren’t in a hurry, you can put your bananas in a brown paper bag and let them sit on the counter. (Don’t forget to close the bag!)

Chocolate is a must. This is a big rule my kids are trying to push on me. Other requirements…these cookie bars need to be gluten free, dairy-free, and the recipe must use coconut sugar for a low glycemic sweetener. (No need to have sugar buzzed kids running around!)

Mix-in ideas:

• Chocolate chips. Chocolate is made to go with bananas! You can use bittersweet, dark, or milk chocolate!
• Nuts like pecan, walnut, or even almond!
• Caramel chips. Did you know that caramel brings out the flavors in this banana bar recipe?
• To make this banana bar recipe dairy-free, use chips by Enjoy Life. Their chips are vegan and melt really well in recipes.

We hope you enjoy this recipe. These gluten free monkey bars are moist and delicious. You may also want to try this delicious gluten free banana bread pudding too! Are you ready to make them?

When you are mixing up this easy banana bar recipe, there are several ways to puree the bananas. I like my bananas mashed so there are some chunky banana bits in my baking, but if you like your banana bar recipe to be smooth, puree the bananas until silky smooth.

Add your dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk to blend.

I have tested two gluten free flour blends in this recipe. I liked King Arthur Gluten Free Measure for Measure and Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten Free Flour Blend. This doesn’t mean other blends won’t work, I just haven’t tested any others. Try to avoid flour blends that are high in starch.

As always, if your blend does not contain Xanthan Gum, you will need to add 1 teaspoon.

Add your wet ingredients to a smaller bowl and whisk to blend.

Add your bananas to a bowl and use a fork to mash them into a puree. Add to the wet ingredients and mix well.

Easy ways to mash bananas:

• Place the ripe bananas into a bowl and mash them with a fork. This is easy to do :-).
• Use a blender (like a Vitamix) to puree the bananas.
• I love to use this Cuisinart Immersion Blender with the mini food processor attachment. This tool is my favorite kitchen tool. It saves me so much time with all of its handy attachments.
• A mixer will also do the job quickly, and you have the added bonus that you can just add in all of the ingredients into the mixer after you mash the bananas.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and add chocolate chips or mix-ins.

What size pan do you bake these bars in?

Add the batter to a greased 8×8 baking pan. I use a metal non-stick baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes, or until done. Allow to cool, then slice.

How can you tell when these bars are done baking?

It can be difficult to tell when something is done baking by just looking at it. I like to use a toothpick test to see if baked goods are done baking. Insert a toothpick into the center of these bars. If the toothpick comes back clean, your bars are finished baking. If you see batter or crumbs, they need to bake a little longer.

Can you make these nut-free?

You can easily make these banana bars nut-free by omitting the almond flour. Add 1/4 cup additional gluten free flour blend.

More delicious gluten free recipes to try:

• If you love lemon, these grain-free Paleo Lemon Bars make a great dessert.
• Here is another gluten free banana recipe to try. This Gluten Free Banana Sesame Bread is a fun take on banana bread.

Tools you need to make this recipe:

1. Mixing bowls. When mashing bananas, it is no fun when you bowl slides all over the place. I really love this rubber bottom mixing bowl.
2. 8×8 baking dish. This is the perfect size pan for making these monkey bars 🙂
3. Almond flour. The best way to hide protein in your kids’ snacks…and Anthony’s is certified gluten free.

Continue to Content

Gluten Free Monkey Bars

Yield: 12 bars

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Easy gluten free banana cake bars, aka monkey bars recipe.

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Ingredients

• 1 cup gluten free flour blend
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup coconut sugar
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1 1/2 cups smashed bananas
• 2 tablespoons dark rum
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup raisins or chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup almond flour

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Use coconut oil spray to cover an 8x8 baking pan.
3. In a small bowl put mashed bananas, dark rum, coconut sugar, melted coconut oil, vanilla, and eggs. Mix well.
4. In a large mixing bowl add all dry ingredients and whisk thoroughly to blend.
5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients.
6. Add in the raisins or chocolate chips (depending on how much sugar you want in these.)
7. Pour mixture into baking pan.
8. Bake for 30 minutes, or until done.

Notes

Make sure to use very ripe bananas if you want a sweet banana flavor. If your gluten free flour blend doesn't contain Xanthan Gum, add 1 teaspoon.

Recommended Products

There are affiliate links in my posts. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

• 
  Almond Flour Blanched, Anthony's 4lb Bag, Batch Tested Gluten-Free
• 
  Big Tree Farms Organic Brown Coconut Sugar, Non-GMO, Gluten Free, Vegan, Fair Trade, Natural Sweetener, 5 Pound (Packaging May Vary)
• 
  King Arthur Flour, Measure for Measure Flour, Gluten Free, 3 Pound

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 268Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 31mgSodium: 108mgCarbohydrates: 34gFiber: 2gSugar: 21gProtein: 4g

Please note this nutrition information is calculated by a recipe plugin and is an estimate based on the ingredients used in this recipe.

(*Photos updated from the original 9/2015 post date.)

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