Vegan Coconut Banana Loaf

For part of my learning project, I wanted to include a dessert, even though these are almost always vegetarian anyways.  To make it more challenging I chose a vegan recipe.  By looking through a list of banana-related vegan recipes, I came across a banana bread made with coconut frosting!  I knew this would be something I’d enjoy – some people do not like the taste of coconut but I am just the opposite.  I use coconut sugar in my coffee every morning and I frequently use organic coconut oil when baking for a healthier alternative.  I also love using bananas and tend to bake with them quite often.  Bananas also have plenty of health benefits.

I followed the recipe pretty closely this time around – the only adjustment I made was for the coconut frosting.  The recipe has two different options for frosting and I chose Option 1.  However, I did not include stevia in my frosting.  I left this out because I do not usually use stevia and thought the sweetened coconut flakes would make for a sweet enough frosting.

I started by getting out the ingredients I needed for the recipe:

I then started mixing together the dry ingredients.  I also needed to get out the spice grinder, as I only had whole flaxseed at home and the recipe called for ground flaxseed.

I mixed together the wet and dry ingredients, mashed the three bananas, and poured the mixture into the loaf pan (greased with coconut oil).

While the loaf baked in the oven, I made the coconut frosting and let it cool in the fridge.

After 60 minutes in the oven, I pulled the loaf out of the oven and immediately poured some coconut frosting over the top.  The recipe stated to take the loaf out and cool on a rack for 10 minutes prior to frosting, but I decided I would rather have some of the coconut milk soak into the loaf.

After letting the loaf cool for 10-15 minutes, I transferred it to a new plate and poured some more frosting over the top.  I also sprinkled some coconut flakes on the top and then sliced a couple pieces off.  I actually think it looked pretty similar to the original recipe, which made me feel confident I followed the recipe correctly.  A few friends taste-tested the loaf (as well as myself) and it received only positive comments.  I would definitely make this again, even though I found it took a bit longer than some other recipes I am familiar with.  Overall, it was definitely a tasty vegan dessert!