When you put banana on toast you should SMASH! This post explains why banana smash toast is one of my favorite breakfast recipes.
Banana Smash Toast
When you put Banana on toast: smash it!
All over the internet I see photos of toast topped with peanut butter and sliced bananas.
Good…but I have something better for your banana on toast craving.
I like to call this “banana smash toast.”
Smashed bananas have the best texture underneath creamy peanut butter. Add a sprinkle of granola or seeds like hemp, flax, or chia seeds for crunch, and you have a hearty, filling breakfast that checks all the macro boxes.
Why Smash The Banana?
Not only does smashing your banana make this toast slightly easier to eat (no more bananas falling into your lap!) but the smashing breaks down the banana cells in such a way that (in my opinion) it’s sweeter and softer.
Or you could say “fluffier!”
How To smash banana on toast
A lot of people on the internet put their peanut butter down first and put banana slices on top.
But I think the peanut butter gets hidden in there!
So I start my banana smash by literally mashing half a banana into my *very well* toasted toast with a knife.
(Obviously soft bread might tear, but toasty toast stands up well to the smash knife.)
Next comes the peanut butter on top – usually 1.5 tablespoons or so.
This way you get peanut butter flavor to the max.
Next I add something crunchy like chia seeds and coconut flakes. Granola works well too!
And finally a drizzle of something sweet. Honey is the obvious choice, but I used my bourbon maple syrup from Great Harvest and fell out of my chair.
My Favorite Pre-Workout Breakfast
This is my favorite breakfast to have before a workout because it won’t sit too heavy in the stomach unlike smoothies, yogurt, or oatmeal bowls. I can have this before soccer or a run and be digested and ready in an hour. It is very energizing and satisfying to carry me through the workout too.
Smash Toast Nutrition
I plugged it into a recipe calculator and found it to be 330 calories, 12 grams of protein, 10 grams of fiber and 15 grams of sugar (mostly natural from the banana.)
More Epic Toast Recipes:
Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Great Harvest Cinnamon Chip bread, toasted with smashed grilled bananas, peanut butter, and a sprinkle of granola on top. Talk about a fancy piece of toast!
Wheels on the Bus French Toast
Make boring breakfast toast super fun for kids by creating a design with the shapes. For this wheels on the bus theme, I used whole wheat french toast flavored with vanilla and cinnamon and used a bus cookie cutter to cut out the shape. The ends made the road, and fruit became the wheels and students inside. Mazen had a great time eating all the kids!
Challah French Toast
Challah bread soaked in eggs and cream and cooked to perfection. Topped with mashed banana, blueberries, Nuttzo nut butter, chia seeds, and greek yogurt for protein on the sides.
French and Floral
Fancy french toast with grilled, smashed banana, sunflower butter, and granola. Springtime florals on the side!
Banana Smash Toast
Ingredients
- 1 slice whole wheat bread
- 1/2 banana Ripe is best! Green bananas don't smash well.
- 1.5 tbsp peanut butter
- 1/2 tsp chia seeds
- 1/2 tsp unsweetened coconut flakes
- 1/2 tsp maple syrup or honey
Instructions
- Toast bread until nice and crisp.
- Smash banana into bread with knife.
- Top with peanut butter.
- Sprinkle on chia seeds and coconut and drizzle with maple.
- Cut into four pieces to enjoy bite by bite.
More creative breakfast recipes:
Overnight Oats Banana Split
Slice a banana in half and fill it with greek yogurt “ice cream,” chocolate nut butter for sauce, granola sprinkles and a cherry (or three!) on top!
Sheet Pan Pancakes
If you get tired standing at the stove flipping pancakes, this recipe is for you! BAKE your pancakes in a sheet pan and cut them into squares. Feed a crowd or wrap and freeze for a quick weekday breakfast.
Savory Yogurt Bowls
If you don’t care for sweet, try these three yogurt bowls that appeal to the savory side of things.
MY WELLNESS PROGRAM
If you’re interested in learning more about an intuitive eating approach to wellness, check out my wellness program, Bloom. You’ll get 6 weeks of lessons on mindful eating, preparing balanced meals, nutrition foundations, and finding exercise you love. All for just $67!
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog says
Such a simple but great breakfast idea! I love the graphic you made too, so cute. 🙂
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Danielle says
Your graphic of the banana toast is so perfect with the little labels. I really enjoy the visual style of your site as a whole! (It’s one of only 2 blogs that I read!) P.S. I know you have a lot to do already, but I think that you would additionally make an awesome portrait photographer because your photos of people are also always composed very well. 🙂
Kath Younger says
Well thank you so much!
Patricia says
I don’t understand how to spread pb on top of mashed banana?! Love pb and banana together, though.
KathEats says
Gently!
Chef Hannah says
It would seem to be so much easier and less frustrating (especially for a child making this recipe) to put the peanut butter on the bread first, then mash the banana on a paper plate and spoon the banana on top of the peanut butter ! VOILA !!
KathEats says
I think that the peanut butter gets hidden too much. The flavor is there but not the texture. That’s why I put it on top!
Jay says
This might be a weird question, but what’s your “go-to” grocery store bread? From the bakery is the best, but sometimes I just need to quickly grab a loaf from the store and I’m always left standing there debating.
KathEats says
When I can’t get to Great Harvest, we buy Dave’s Killer from Whole Foods. Or there is another Virginia bakery there we get also.
Pat says
Love Dave’s ILLER Bread.
Ttrockwood says
Have you tried Ezekiel breads? They’re best toasted, in the grocery store usually sold frozen, i find the best peice for it at trader joe’s. Really hippie whole grain sprouted stuff ;))
+1 for dave’s killer bread, surprisingly i’ve seen it at target
Lillia says
How tasty! But unless your fork has some serious power, you’re probably not actually breaking down the banana cells…; )
KathEats says
You don’t think? What causes the texture change then?
Lillia says
Well you’ve broken down the starchy flesh a little, but the cells are still intact. : )
KathEats says
Ok!
Kori says
I signed up for The Lucky Kidney Run through my work, and I’ll be attempting a 6K run in a few weeks. Toast with nut butter seems to be the best thing for my stomach (it seemed to work wonders when I ran a 10K in 2016!), so I’ll be making this! Do you ever switch to hot tea instead of coffee so that it doesn’t potentially upset your stomach on a run? I did that as well, and while I cannot narrow down what all helped me, it was the best run I’ve ever had. 🙂
KathEats says
I have a pretty consistent stomach. And the caffeine is a great ergogenic aid! Aka I run faster 😉
Kori says
Haha very true! I know the excitement and adrenaline helped me a ton. But I tend to have a wonky/nervouse stomach sometimes, so I’ll have to play it by ear. But one thing is for sure, I’ll be getting some after the race! We have some amazing local coffee shops downtown where the event is being held. 🙂 Also, I would think smashing the banana would breakdown some of the cellular structure. It would be the same mechanism as chewing in my eyes. Digestion obviously goes deeper, but the act of chewing is part of said digestion process. So I think you’re on the right track.
KathEats says
That’s what I was thinking…!
Rose Mary George says
Love this pre-workout breakfast!
Home Plix says
This banana toast recipe is really amazing. I love this recipe. Thanks for sharing such an awesome post.
Christine Browne says
Seeing this recipe makes me so happy! I’ve been making this for years! When I was working, I used to bring this for my breakfast. I worked an early shift – 6:30am – 3pm so I’d bring toast with peanut butter and smashed banana for our 8am office “coffee break breakfast”. I had a few quizzical looks at first, and then a few girls came around and started eating it with me. We just never gave it such a cool name!! I’m so glad to see such a simple, delicious meal is getting to Shine! Thanks Kath!
Kath Younger says
I love this story! Smash toast for the win.
Laraine says
My Mum used to love mashed banana with orange. It gave the banana (which is a pretty bland fruit, though it was nicer all those years ago when it was available only when in season) so much more flavour.
Katie says
I was looking for a healthy snack for my midnight cravings since I’m trying to change my diet. Mine looked weird and mushy in the not good way (likely due to having a bit of an overripe banana), but the combo has a great flavor and I really liked the dusting of chia on top. Thanks for the recipe.
cyni says
I had this Banana Smash Toast for breakfast today and loved it! I made it on a whole wheat english muffin and used all the ingredients but maple syrup as didn’t want sweet – all the flavours blend together well and taste so good – the mashed banana works really well here – I will be adding this to my breakfast rotation – thanks for the recipe!