What is the number one thing ALL parents can agree on when it comes to child rearing? We want our kids to eat healthy! We all want our children to eat wholesome, nutritious foods. But what do the kids want? They want sweets, of course! This vegan sweet lemon blueberry loaf will not only provide your children with the sweetness they are craving, it will also provide them with the nutrition that you want.

But what else will this recipe do?

It will teach them a valuable lesson on how we get wholesome, nutritious foods onto our plates. Try making this vegan sweet lemon blueberry loaf today. When the results of the taste test are in, comment below and don’t forget to rate this recipe.

Remember blueberry picking as a child?

Remember the rays of the sun beating down upon your face, feeling droplets of sweat drip down as you crawled into the green bushes full of ripe blueberries, waiting to be picked by you? And the bugs! Eeek! Remember the bugs? All of these obstacles, and yet, it was so much fun!

As an adult, the obstacles that stand in our way of blueberry picking aren’t the same. For adults, we often lack the time and/or money to spend a day blueberry picking…

BUT…

…since blueberry picking offers an opportunity to teach kids about how we get real food onto our tables, I implore you to take the time to bring them on a blueberry picking adventure. Use the blueberries you pick to make some budget friendly recipes that will last you through the next week. This will help you afford the blueberry picking adventure.

Here are my favorite recipes to make with the blueberries: homemade vegan blueberry chia seed jam, open face vegan blueberry pie, healthy blueberry almond granola and this vegan sweet lemon blueberry loaf.

Five Ingredient Lesson on Nutrition Making a Vegan Sweet Lemon Blueberry Loaf:

1. Blueberry – use a blueberry picking adventure to help children understand the labor involved in getting real food onto the table and then use those same blueberries to make this vegan sweet lemon blueberry loaf.
2. Lemon – have your child squeeze the lemon to get the juice from it and use tongs to extract a lemon seed to plant a real lemon tree.
3. Flaxseed – have your kids engage in flaxseed sensory play and have them make the flax eggs.
4. Banana – let them mash the banana themselves and discuss healthy fats.
5. Coconut – get a real coconut for them to explore, crack it open and have them try drinking the milk directly from the coconut, or take the easy (more expensive) route and purchase some of these coconut bowls, like I did!

Blueberry

The blueberries are the main ingredient in this recipe. Feel free to use fresh or frozen blueberries when making this blueberry loaf. The blueberries should be folded into the batter just before pouring it into a lined or greased loaf pan. They make this loaf pop with a vibrant deep purple color (that’s right, blueberries aren’t actually blue)! As I stated above, the best way to teach kids about how we get these juicy, vibrant purple berries while making this recipe is to take them blueberry picking, but if you lack time for that…

You can…

• Take them to a farm or a farmer’s market to find some fresh blueberries.
• Talk to them about fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K and antioxidants, which are all found in blueberries! Here is a great snippet of information on the nutritional value of blueberries.
• Make some homemade jam, pie or granola with the leftover blueberries.
• Go to the library and get some books about blueberries (I will reveal my favorite one below)!

Lemon

When life gives you lemons, make more lemons! Okay, maybe that’s not how the saying goes, but it works well for this lesson on nutrition. The lemons in this recipe create a buttermilk, but here are a few more fun activities that can be done using the lemon as a teaching prop on nutrition:

• Have the kids squeeze the lemons with their hands to get the juice out of the lemon. You can even add a pinch of sugar to any leftover lemon juice to show them how to make lemonade.
• Grab some tongs and have the kids extract the seeds from the juice if they fell in (they always fall in).
• The last activity is to sprout the seeds from the lemon and have them grow their own lemon tree! Here is a great site with a simple tutorial on how to do this.

Flaxseed

Use two flax eggs for this recipe to help bind the batter together. Click here to find a flax egg recipe and to read my post all about flax eggs.

The most obvious lesson here is to teach kids that you don’t need eggs from a chicken to bake yummy treats, but there are a few other lessons, too:

• Buy both whole flaxseeds and ground flaxseeds and pour them into two separate bins with measuring spoons and cups for sensory play. This helps them feel the difference between whole and ground flaxseeds.
• You could also use the whole flaxseed to show the kids how to make ground flaxseed by blending the seeds in a high speed blender.
• Discuss the health benefits of flax. Did you know flax eggs are a great way to get omega-3 fatty acids? Here is an article explaining the possible health benefits of flaxseeds.
• Have them make the flax egg by whisking the flaxseed with water. Don’t forget to show them the difference in consistency after letting the mixture sit for a few minutes.

Banana

The banana in this recipe adds sweetness and replaces oil or butter, making it a bit more healthy. I have not gone banana picking so I have no suggestions here for that. Is that even a thing?

But I do have a few fun suggestions below:

• Simple but fun, have them mash the banana to show how it gets used in place of oil or butter to make a much healthier treat.
• Talk to them about potassium. We all know bananas are loaded with potassium, but what does that mean? Explore the library or do an internet search to find out. Here is what I found on the internet.
• This is also a good time to discuss healthy fats. Some of my favorite healthy fats are: avocado, banana, hummus, nuts and seeds. You will see these used in many of my recipes as substitutions for oil and butter. Make a list of healthy fats versus unhealthy fats with your kids so they have a visual reminder of what is healthy/unhealthy. Have them draw or write this list, depending on their age. Post it where they can see it (maybe on the fridge).

Coconut

I didn’t use an actual coconut for this recipe, but it is still worth exploring an actual coconut, because the coconut sugar in this recipe does come from one. Coconut sugar is often touted as a healthier sugar, but I refrain from calling it healthy. I did use a lot less sugar in this recipe than most that you will find. That is because the blueberries and banana offer a lot of sweetness. If you do decide to explore an actual coconut, here are some things you can do with it:

• Crack it open and drink the coconut milk straight from the coconut. The kids will love this! Here is a great tutorial on how to crack open a coconut!
• Take the easy way out and simply buy a coconut bowl made from an actual coconut, like I did! Here is the link to the bowls I purchased.
• Check your area for a factory tour showing how sugar gets processed. Even if you can’t find one making coconut sugar, I think it would be an interesting trip for the kids.

My Favorite Book to Read When Making this Vegan Sweet Lemon Blueberry Loaf

Remember when I discussed the obstacles of blueberry picking as a kid versus an adult? Here’s the thing I didn’t mention: my first experience blueberry picking was as an adult.

Blueberries for Sal, a book I found at the library, inspired me to take my son on a blueberry picking adventure when he was three. I experienced it with the same kid like innocence as him because the experience was new to both of us. I highly recommend reading this book prior to your adventure, so that you might approach the experience with that same kid like innocence. Here is a link to purchase it on Amazon, though I am sure you can find it for free at your local library.

So…to sum things up…

Read Blueberries for Sal. You can get it at the library or you can buy it here on Amazon. It’s a book worth buying (I own it), go blueberry picking and make this vegan sweet lemon blueberry loaf when you get home!

You can definitely make it with frozen or store bought blueberries, if that is all you have available and I actually urge you to try it that way first so your kids can contrast it with the one that gets made with the fresh blueberries. Then they will notice the difference in taste a fresh blueberry, just plucked from a blueberry bush has to offer this vegan sweet lemon blueberry loaf, helping them learn a lesson on how we get real nutritious food onto our plates!

Vegan Sweet Lemon Blueberry Loaf

Print Recipe

Are you looking for a special treat to make for Easter this year? Look no further! You need to make this vegan sweet lemon blueberry loaf! It is lemony, sweet, super moist and the blueberries pop in your mouth.

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Keyword nutritious, sweet, vegan

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 50 minutes mins

Servings 8

Author Michelle

Ingredients

• 2 flax eggs* 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed combined with 6 tablespoons of water
• 1 1/2 cups spelt flour or use all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup coconut sugar or 3/4 cup if ommitting banana
• 1/3 cup oat milk
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice divided
• 1/ 3 cup mashed banana or 1/4 cup melted vegan butter
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 zest lemon
• 1 cup blueberries

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Grease a loaf pan or line with parchment paper and set aside.
• Make flax eggs and set aside to thicken.
• In a bowl, mix all dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt).
• Make the buttermilk by mixing the oat milk with one tablespoon of lemon juice and set aside.
• Mash the banana and set aside.
• Mix together the flax eggs, buttermilk, mashed banana, vanilla extract, coconut sugar, lemon zest and the two remaining tablespoons of lemon juice.
• Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and gently mix until combined.
• Fold in the blueberries.
• Bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Let cool for at least ten minutes.
• Slice and enjoy your vegan sweet lemon blueberry loaf!

Notes

*Flax egg recipe

This post contains affiliate links. I may earn compensation when you click on the links at no additional cost to you.