Avocado Walnut Bread
OK I know this sounds weird. But avocados are fruits… and whatever you can do with a banana, you can pretty much do with an avocado. Avocado shakes, avocado ice cream… even avocado bread! This is a wonderful quick bread recipe, similar to banana nut bread… just with avocados instead of banana.
This avocado bread is really good – sweet (but not too sweet), moist, and something just a little bit different. You can substitute the walnuts with your favorite nut (or leave it out), and you can use pretty much any type of vegetable oil if you don’t have (or care for) walnut oil.
My favorite avocados to use are Hass. These are the standard avocados we have here in California, and I prefer them over other varieties. However, this recipe will work for any variety of avocado – as long as the fruit is ripe and you take into account size variation. (You will need about 1 c. mashed.)
Don’t skip the lemon – that’s what prevents the avocado from turning brown, and keeps the color of the bread a nice even green.
Avocado Walnut Bread:
- 2 ripe Hass avocados (~1 c. mashed)
- 2 c. flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 c. sugar
- 1/2 c. walnut oil (or canola oil)
- 3 T. lemon juice
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1/2 c. chopped walnuts (optional)
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare 3 mini loaf pans or 1 regular loaf pan by spraying with non stick baking spray. Sift the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl. Mash the avocados – you should have about 1 c.
2. Mix the sugar, eggs, oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, and mashed avocado until combined.
3. Pour the avocado mixture into the dry ingredients, and mix until combined.
4. Stir in the walnuts.
5. Pour the batter into the pans, smoothing down the top. Sprinkle with a few reserved chopped walnuts (if desired).
6. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes if using the mini pans, or bake 50 min-1 hour if using the regular loaf pan. Allow to cool on a wire rack completely before slicing.
Yum! They have a lovely subtle green color too. You’re so smart to experiment with avocado like this. I’ll definitely have to try this one.
Thanks Mary!
I am so excited about finding your page. Can’t wait to make this and so many other things featured on your blog. Thanks for sharing!
Dear Leigh,
Thanks! Let me know how it turns out for you!
Hi! ! tried making it and it came out good. The cake has a very slight bitter after taste though. I am not sure if i OVER zested the lemon or the avocados here in the Philippines has bitter undertones when baked. We normally make our avocados into ice cream and frozen dessert only. Thanks for the recipe, this is definitely a keeper.
Hi There! One thing you have to be very careful of is the lemon zest. You only want to get the top most layer of colored lemon peel only… if you get any of the white pith below, it will give a bitter taste to your final product. The yellow uppermost layer of peel is where all the lemon flavor and oils reside… the white part underneath has no redeeming flavor qualities! Also, make sure the baking soda and baking powdered are measured using measuring spoons (teaspoons, not tablespoons) – and level off the top with the flat side of a knife to make sure you are not over adding baking soda or powder. Then, make sure you sift these properly into the flour. Too much baking soda or baking powder can also leave a bitter taste, and if not properly sifted – one bite might end up with a horrid chunk of baking soda that will taste awful. Hope this helps!
I finally tried this recipe this morning. I doubled it and replaced a 1/4 of the regular flour with rice flour. I also added hemp seeds and chia seeds (standard in all my baked goods currently)! The results were yummy and appreciated by my coworkers and boyfriend. Thanks for the great recipe!
Hey Kim! Glad you liked the recipe… I’ll have to try hemp and chia seeds and see how they taste!