Banana bread is one of my favourite treats, especially a nice homemade one, still warm from the oven, smothered in melting butter and a drizzle of honey! Yum! Banana bread is a quick bread made with mashed (over) ripe bananas which help keep the bread moist in addition to adding the amazing aroma and flavour of bananas to the bread! A quick bread is a bread that is made with baking soda and/or baking powder instead of yeast so it’s super easy to make with no kneading or waiting for anything to rise! You simply mix the wet ingredients into the mixture of the dry ingredients, pour the batter into a loaf pan and bake! I am a fan of the basic banana bread but it’s also nice to add chopped nuts, and/or chocolate chips or raisins, etc. The next time that you are looking for something special for breakfast or a treat, instead of running out to your favourite bakery or cafe, make this banana bread at home!
Banana Bread
The best banana bread recipe! This banana bread, made with mashed bananas, is so easy to make and so nice and moist and tender!
ingredients
- 3 overripe bananas, mashed
- 1/2 cup butter, melted
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup sour cream (or yogurt)
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
directions
- Mix the bananas, butter, brown sugar, sour cream, eggs and vanilla extract before mixing in the mixture of the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
- Pour the batter into a greased 9×5 inch loaf pan and bake in a preheated 350F/180C oven until golden brown on top and a toothpick pushed into the center comes out clean, about 60 minutes.
- Let cool a bit before slicing and enjoying!
Option: Add 1 cup chopped nuts.
Option: Add 1 cup chocolate chips (or peanut butter chips, butterscotch chips, toffee chips, etc.)
Option: Top with sliced bananas!
Option: Use a cake pan and make a banana cake instead!
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You can always wrap up the bananas or keep them in a dark corner to accelerate it’s ripening 😛 ….hahhaha
Woooo yes….aromatic…thereupatic
I share your love of banana bread, it’s easy and it’s good for breakfast, a snack or to offer if someone drops by.
Nothing quite like the aroma of baking wafting through the house 🙂 Walnuts make a good addition to banana bread, and/or sultanas/raisins/dried fruit. You can also soak some raisins in rum overnight and add that for a bit of kick!
Looks great Kevin! All your variations sound great too!
I have plenty of “dead” bananas in my freezer with banana bread written all over it!!
That would go so well with my tea now, Kevin! It looks wonderful!
mmm, i love banana bread. this looks great! i love it with walnuts or pecans and raisins, too.
Wow Kevin , looks so good and delicious. I was wondering how smells well your kitchen in the moment that you bake it
Hi Kevin, that does look extremely good! Slap some butter on it once it’s cool, that is what I would do! Don’t tell anyone!
If you are thinking of adding choclate, have a look at Jen’s Banana bread, I have been drooling over it!
I never knew you could freeze bananas!
My favorite banana bread has lots of spices – cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg.
I haven’t had banana bread since I was in college. You just brought back some good memories! This looks great.
That looks delicious.
I did my banana cake with dark chocolates and it turned out awesome. It tastes great also with applesauce and nuts (I did those versions too).
I am a banana bread lover. I was actually craving banana this weekend, and made some banana cookies, so we must have been on the same wave length!
I’ve been trying to make banana bread for a while now but I keep eating the bananas before they’re ripe enough!
Put however many bananas you need on a cookie sheet in a preheated 300 degree oven for 30 minutes, and you will have ripe bananas ready for making your banana bread.
As Brilynn, bananas are eaten too fast… So I tried to prepare a banana bread with normal bananas, and it was pretty good 🙂
I had to put them in the micro-wave for a couple of minutes to be able to mash them.
Now I've hidden 4 bananas for my next attempt so my father won't eat them!!
Thank you for the recipe. I just baked it a few minutes ago. I only had 1 cup of bananas, but it still came out delicious!
Kevin,
Instead of butter can I use applesauce and can I use I cup of whole wheat flour in place of the AP flour.
Anonymous: Both of those changes would work!
Hi Kevin, Your recipes are superb and the photography is awesome.
Well done in all ways, I love to get your blogs, you are so talented.
Louise A.
I am sitting here wishing I could have that loaf for dinner!
I have been advised to gain weight!
Banana bread would be perfect 🙂
Why do the photos all show whole/sliced lengthwise bananas or am I seeing things???
I like to place bananas, sliced lengthwise or widthwise, on top for decoration and it is completely optional.
Hello Kevin ~
My daughter-in-law has asked me to make Banana Bread for her and, I’m happy to do this.
She said she loves it with chocolate chips. I can’t imagine chocolate with Bananas, in all
honesty, I can’t imagine anything to enhance that delicate banana, buttery taste.
So, at the bottom line of your recipe I noticed your options do include adding chocolate chips.
Have you personally done this and do you find it satisfying or one of those “wish I hadn’t done this”
sort of reaction?
Chocolate chips are so amazing in banana bread! I add them to banana bread very often! Enjoy!
I love recipes like this one. Easy to put together, mixed by hand, didn’t have to pull out my mixer. Truly moist, tender and full of banana flavour. I usually follow the recipe exactly when I make for the first time but I had to make an exception cause I had bananas that had to be used but didn’t have a/p flour. So I used 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour. I scatered a handful of chocolate chips in the batter and on top. Oh this was so delicious. Made yesterday and hardly have any left today. Thanks for another great recipe!
Wonderful recipe just made it tonight, and it is going fast
Kevin, do you place sliced bananas on top of baked banana bread or while it is baking? I would love to try it, but don’t know when to add the top bananas.
Add the sliced bananas on top of the batter before baking. Enjoy!