Blueberry Banana Buckle

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I never ever thought that I’d make a Blueberry Buckle like this gluten-free Blueberry Banana Buckle. But I’m so glad I did, and I have Maggie (She Let Them Eat Cake) (and also Debi (Hunter’s Lyonesse)—my eat-more-blueberries mentor!) to thank for it. I’ll set the stage first though.

Three dear gluten-free blogging friends came to my house for a little gfe retreat this past weekend. We had a wonderful time together. We did it the gfe way, of course, focusing on foods that were naturally gluten free, enjoying some mainstream products that were gluten free, and also making use of a few gluten-free specialty products. We enjoyed the food and drink, accomplished a lot in less than 48 hours, and still managed to relax quite a bit. It was a really great weekend.

Oh, there were lots of things that went wrong … a left behind camera bag (that sadly contained more than just the camera), a flat tire on a hill at a busy street corner, an overbooked trolley with a malfunctioning air conditioner and a quirky, subpar driver/tour guide, and a broken tooth (beware of date pits in protein bars that contain dates!) … to name just a few. But one of the things that went marvelously well over the weekend was my adaptation of Maggie’s (She Let Them Eat Cake) Blueberry Buckle for our Sunday morning breakfast.

All three of my guests eat gluten free and dairy free and two of them also eat egg free. I had blueberries on hand, so when I saw Maggie’s recipe in her latest post, it seemed like an ideal choice. Every recipe I’ve ever made of Maggie’s has been a hit, so I had no doubts this one would be as well. (Check out my adoption post of Maggie for Adopt a Gluten-Free Blogger in which I share my review of a few of her recipes.)

By the time Sunday morning arrived, we had fewer blueberries than the amount Maggie’s original recipe required. (They had been part of breakfast the previous morning.) As I’m still learning to like blueberries, I didn’t feel that was necessarily a bad thing. As I was contemplating how to compensate for the lesser amount (or if I should compensate at all), I saw the large overripe banana on the counter.

Having sipped on a lovely Blueberry Banana “Foamie” earlier in the week, the blueberry/banana combination seemed like an ideal one to me. Maggie’s recipe called for brown rice flour (or quinoa flour), millet, and arrowroot, none of which I had in my pantry. So I went with my Two-Ingredient Gluten-Free Flour Mix, almond flour, and cornmeal instead.

I often add almond flour for that extra nutritional boost. Plus, I always like the little bit of texture that some cornmeal can give to a sweet baked good and the corn flavor can work well when combined with berries and other sweetness, too. The last change I made was to bake my version in a 9 x 13 pan instead of a springform pan.

The latter was more of a logistical change than anything else as we needed a shorter baking time to ensure folks could meet their train schedule, but the resulting thinner squares of buckle may have been lighter than if baked in a springform pan. That tactic didn’t save us on calories though. I think each time each of us got a square, we didn’t just take one, we took two! We all really loved this gluten-free Blueberry Banana Buckle. Yes, I made a few adjustments, but the main credit goes to Maggie for her wonderful recipe!

Today is the last day of the Savory or Sweet (SOS) Kitchen Challenge, so I’m adding this entry to the roundup of blueberry recipes. There are so many delightful recipes there, two of which have been provided by Ricki herself. Ricki is one of the SOS event founders/hostesses; the other is Kim of Affairs of the Living (this blog is no longer active).

Ricki made Blueberry Cream Danish and Kale and Quinoa Salad with Fresh Blueberry Vinaigrette. But I admit that I’m particularly fond of another, more recent SOS entry—Iris’ stevia-sweetened Mini Red, White, and Blueberry Hand Pies. (Sorry this website is no longer active, but you can get Iris’ free recipe ebook at her new site here.) Iris’ recipe is an adaptation of my Blueberry Honey Pie with Honey Whipped Cream.) These little pies look adorable and, of course, delicious. Overused blogging word or not, that’s usually my favorite description of recipes that I love.

For yet another delicious recipe, here’s my slightly adapted version of Maggie’s Blueberry Buckle. Yes, we all loved this recipe! Enjoy!

Gluten-Free Blueberry Banana Buckle Recipe

Gluten-Free Blueberry Banana Buckle

Author Shirley Braden of Gluten Free Easily

If you've never liked blueberries, this recipe will change your mind. And if you love blueberries, you will absolutely love this recipe!

Ingredients

Buckle Base

½ cup coconut sugar
1 ¼ cup gluten-free flour mix (an all-purpose mix with some starch included will work best)
¼ cup cornmeal
2 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp sea salt
½ cup coconut oil, liquefied
3 tbsp unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla
½ cup almond milk
1 mashed ripe banana (about ¾ cup)
1 cup fresh blueberries

Buckle Topping

¼ to 1/3 cup coconut sugar (if your banana is very ripe, you can most likely go with the lower amount)
1/3 cup almond flour (or other ground or even just finely chopped nuts)
½ tsp cinnamon
3 tbsp coconut oil, liquefied

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9 x 13 baking pan with coconut oil.
Mix dry ingredients in large bowl. (I just used a wooden spoon.) Add liquid ingredients, including banana. Finally, add blueberries. Mix just enough so that all ingredients are incorporated.
Pour batter into prepared baking pan.
Sprinkle topping over batter.
Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes. Cool a few minutes. Cut into squares. Remove squares with a serving spatula or pie server.

Notes

Adapted from Maggie (She Let Them Eat Cake) Remember that one of the benefits of egg-free baking/cooking is that you can sample the mixture for sweetness without any safety concerns regarding raw eggs. Therefore, if you usually like less or more sweet, you can take a little taste of batter before baking. That taste will most likely let you know if you want to adjust the sweetener. If you don’t have coconut sugar, I suggest using another comparable granulated sugar.

Courses Breakfast, Dessert

More Gluten-Free Blueberry Recipes

~ 20 Gluten-Free Blueberry Pie Recipes

~ Blueberry Cobbler

~ Coconut Blueberry Pound Cupcakes

~ Knee-Slappin’ Good Blueberry Muffins

~ Lemon Blueberry Waffles

~ No-Bake Blueberry Pie with Honey Whipped Cream

~ Paleo Orange Blueberry Muffins

Originally published June 30, 2011. Updated June 22, 2017.