This Banana Bread Recipe is simple, easy, ultra moist and honestly the best Banana Bread Recipe out there. 8 basic ingredients is all you need.
Best Banana Bread
I am going to level with you, I am normally not a Banana Bread fan. Like, at all. This Banana bread though, I’m all over it! It truly is the BEST Banana Bread. It’s sweet, moist and has the perfect crumb, ever.
I love how Banana Bread can be considered breakfast, a snack or dessert. That is one versatile recipe, if I do say so myself! 😉
Some bakers search the world looking for the best banana bread recipe in the world and seek out a perfectly moist, soft and flavorful banana bread. Luckily for you, the search is over!
This banana bread puts a little twist on the classic banana bread recipe by using brown sugar and no oil! Most banana bread recipes call for white sugar and either butter or olive oil. The brown sugar and butter in this recipe help to give the banana bread that golden color as well as a richer flavor and moist texture that has you going back for more.
Ps. If you are a chocolate lover, make sure to check out my Chocolate Banana Bread Recipe!
What’s In Banana Bread?
- Melted Butter: I use salted butter, if you only have unsalted on hand, add an extra pinch of salt to the recipe!
- Brown Sugar: we use brown sugar in this recipe to keep the bread ultra moist.
- Vanilla Extract: This recipe calls for a lot of vanilla.. use it!! It enhances that banana flavor like you wouldn’t believe!
- Eggs: We will just need two. 🙂
- Mashed Banana: We are looking for a total of 2 cups of mashed bananas, depending on the size of your bananas, this is about 4-6 bananas.
- Flour: All purpose is all you’ll need. Nothing fancy here.
- Baking Soda
- Salt
How to Make Banana Bread
This Banana bread recipe could not be any easier! You can make this using a stand mixer, electric hand mixer or even just a whisk!
The first thing that you’ll need to do is mash those bananas. Use over ripe bananas, they are much easier to mash and they yield a much sweeter and flavorful bread.
Then we will mix everything together, the melted butter and brown sugar. Then the eggs, vanilla and bananas. Lastly, the flour, soda and salt are added.
Once the batter is ready, pour into a 9 inch loaf pan that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. If you want to make muffins or smaller loaves, fill the pan up 2/3 of the way full.
Lastly, bake the Banana Bread until it passes the toothpick test! For the 9 inch loaf pan, that will be about 50-60 minutes. When I made mini loaves, they baked for 25 minutes.
Adding Mix-ins to your Banana Bread
There are many things people like to add into their banana bread prior to baking. If you are interested in adding anything extra into your banana bread, just fold it into the batter right before pouring the batter into the pan.
Popular Banana Bread Mix in’s include:
- Chocolate Chips
- Nuts
- Peanut Butter Chips
- Dried Fruits
- Coconut
Should banana bread be refrigerated?
Banana bread can be stored at room temperature or inside of the fridge depending on your preferences. While you can get a few added days out of the shelf life of your banana bread by placing it in the fridge, it will be just fine on the counter. Just make sure that when you aren’t cutting/eating the bread, that it remains well wrapped and covered so that it doesn’t dry out.
Do bananas have to be ripe for banana bread?
Yes and no. The riper a banana is, the easier it is to mash and the more naturally sweet it is. You can speed up the process of a non-ripe banana by baking it in the oven for a few minutes, or use can use a nonripe banana and add in more sugar and sweetness to the recipe. Using a nonripe banana will also give you a less strong banana flavor.
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Love Breads? ME TOO!! Find my favorites below:
- Blueberry quick Bread
- Blueberry Lemon Quick Bread
- Garlic Parmesan Focaccia Bread
- Homemade Soft Pretzels
- Frozen Dinner Rolls
- Little Caesars Breadsticks
Best Ever Banana Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter melted
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 tbsp vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups mashed bananas
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°. Spray 9 inch loaf pan* with non stick spray.
- Using either an electric hand mixer or stand mixer, mix together the melted butter and brown sugar.
- Add in the vanilla, eggs and mashed banana.
- Add the flour, baking soda and salt to the bowl. Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients until just combined. Do not over mix.
- Pour into prepared bread pan.Bake at 350° for 55-60 minutes. It should pass the toothpick test before taking out of the oven.
- Let cool slightly or completely before slicing, according to your preference.
Notes
Nutrition
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Michelle C B says
Sounds delicious! I mean who doesn’t seem to have some overripe bananas sitting around these days! I’ll be trying this later this week.
Karli Bitner says
Hi Michelle! I hope you loved it! Thanks for the comment. 🙂
Michelle C B says
I did! So good!
Vicki J. says
Do you think it would be possible to substitute canned pumpkin for the mashed bananas, and make pumpkin bread instead? I don’t like bananas but I do like pumpkin bread.
Karli Bitner says
Hi Vicki! That is a very good question. I am not sure how that would turn out. I’ll put it on my list of recipes to try!!
Danielle says
Made this today in the muffin form. Very easy and tasted great! Toddlers and husband loved. Will definitely save to make again
Karli Bitner says
Banana Muffins for the win!! Thanks for the stars and comments, Danielle!
Emily Supalla says
Made this today and it was delicious!!!! We made muffins and added chocolate chips and walnuts. Thank you for our new favorite recipe!!!!
Karli Bitner says
Yum! I need to add walnuts to mine next time. 🙂 I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe, Emily!
Rachelle says
I can’t even handle how much I love this recipe! I was able to substitute bobs red mill gluten free 1-for-1 flour in this, and it was perfect. My second round is baking right now. I added chocolate chips this time as well. I’ve been searching for a banana bread recipe that tasted great when gluten free. I’ve found it! Thanks for knocking it out of the park once again Karli!
Karli Bitner says
Wahoo! I am so glad that you enjoyed the recipe and you were able to substitute the gluten free flour with success! I am sure that will help so many other people. 🙂
Karli says
My boyfriend said this is the “best bread he has ever had”. It was so good! My first time ever baking bread. It was simple and easy to follow. So yummy! I added chocolate chips. 🙂
Karli Bitner says
I’m so glad the boyfriend is happy Karli! Chocolate chips are so good with this. Thanks.
Niki says
I’m going to have to try this one! My mom has the best recipe that my 8 year old made and won a sweepstakes award at the county fair for. She beats her eggs for 5 minutes after the oil and sugar are added and then dissolves the soda in a tbs of water beforehand and it rises SO high. Absolutely beautiful. However, I’m like you and don’t love banana bread! Going to give this one a shot next time!
Karli Bitner says
Sounds great Niki, let me know how it goes!
Breanna Rinckens says
How do you know how much walnuts/peanut butter chips/dates/coconut to add to the recipe. As I’ve never made banana bread before and this doesn’t indicate the max amount suggested for the add-ins.
Thanks,
Karli Bitner says
Hi Breanna- I didn’t want to limit the creativity. 😉 I would suggest adding about 1 cup total of mix ins.
Karli says
My boyfriend said this is the “best bread he has ever had”. It was so good! My first time ever baking bread. It was simple and easy to follow. So yummy! I added chocolate chips. 🙂
Karli Bitner says
I’m so glad the boyfriend loves it Karli!
Kylee says
This recipe is so perfect and easy! I love how quick it is to throw together. I like to cover my pan with cinnamon and sugar around the sides and bottom before putting in my banana bread batter. It adds an extra flare!
Karli Bitner says
Ohh, love that idea, Kylee!! I’ll try that next time. 🙂
Alexandria M Cordova says
This recipe is so good I have made it multiple times during the same week because my family will devour this banana bread! I have gotten creative with banana bread to change things up like: adding walnuts, dipped the top in chocolate, add chocolate chips, etc… GIVE ME ALL THE BANANA BREAD
Dan Bitner says
Thank you Alexandria! Banana bread is one of those great things to have in your back pocket. My kids love it!
Janelle says
This is now my go-to recipe for banana bread. For the longest time, I’ve used my tried and true recipe from my old Good Housekeeping cookbook, but Karli’s recipe blew me away! Now this is the only recipe I’ll use. Sometimes I add a sprinkle of cinnamon just to mix it up a bit 😊
Karli Bitner says
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Janelle!! ❤️