Easy Homemade Banana Bread
Banana Bread is such a classic quick bread that everyone should have a recipe on hand. This one is moist and flavorful with a touch of cinnamon. You’ll love how easy it is to make! Served with a smear of butter and a hot coffee, it’s the perfect treat.
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Key Ingredients
Flour – There is no need for specialty flours in this recipe. All-purpose flour is the perfect choice for a moist and delicate crumb.
Cinnamon – Cinnamon is the perfect flavor pairing for bananas. It adds a nice warmth to the flavor of the bread. You could also add some nutmeg, ginger, and cloves for a fall flavor.
Bananas – Of course, bananas are the star of this bread so we want to make sure they are the perfect ripeness to give us the best banana flavor. Letting your bananas get deeply browned and soft means they will be extra sweet and have a more intense banana flavor.
This is the perfect level of ripeness for this recipe.
Butter – I recommend using unsalted butter. That way you can control the amount of salt by adding it yourself. However, you can use salted butter if that’s what you have. There have been plenty of times where all I had was salted butter and that certainly wasn’t keeping me from banana bread! Just reduce the added salt a bit to make up for it.
Brown Sugar – I like the extra richness of brown sugar in banana bread. You could use white sugar if you wanted but I think the brown sugar really lends itself to rounding out the flavor.
Unsweetened Applesauce – Unsweetened applesauce adds both extra moisture and a touch of extra sweetness to the banana bread. Though there is only a small amount it has a big impact on the finished product.
How to Make Banana Bread
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×5 loaf pan with butter (my preference), shortening, or non-stick spray.
In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar. Mix in the applesauce, eggs, bananas, and vanilla.
Add the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Mix just until combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean and the top feels firm when you gently press down.
Allow the banana bread to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Then, turn it out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
Items You May Need
Electric Handheld Whisk
9×5 Loaf Pan
Wire Rack
Storing the Banana Bread
If kept in an air-tight container on the counter, I recommend eating it up within 2 days.
If kept in an air-tight container in the fridge, it will last about 5 to 7 days.
You can also wrap the banana bread in plastic wrap and freeze it for up to 6 months.
Tips For Making Banana Bread
- I recommend using European-style butter in your baking and cooking. Due to its higher fat content, it produces a richer final product.
- Be sure to bake the banana bread long enough. It can be tempting to pull it out of the oven early so that it doesn’t end up dry. But, it’s actually more likely to underbake the bread and end up with soggy parts.
- If the banana bread is browning too quickly, tent the pan with aluminum foil and continue baking until it’s baked through.
Optional Add-Ins
If you want to add in other flavors, you can mix them in at the end when you mix in the dry ingredients. Here are some ideas for add-ins:
Chocolate chips
Walnuts
Pecans
Pumpkin seeds
Cranberries
Raisins
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The BEST Autumn Spiced Granola
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Banana Bread
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Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 large eggs
- 2 1/2 cups overripe bananas mashed (from about 5 large bananas)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9×5 loaf pan.
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar. Add in the applesauce, eggs, mashed bananas, and vanilla. Mix until well combined.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix just until combined. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
- Bake for 60 to 70 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean and the top feels firm when gently pressed down.
- Allow the banana bread to cool in the pan for 10 minutes then turn it out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
Notes
- If you use salted butter, you may want to reduce the salt to 1/4 teaspoon.
- Your bananas should be overripe and deep brown for the best banana flavor.
- Be sure to bake the banana bread long enough. Pulling it out of the oven too early will result in a soggy center. If it’s getting too deeply browned, tent with foil to finish baking.
Update this is amazing.
Thank you for the update! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
I just made this is in the oven now. It was very easy to make. Hoping it turns out. I had glass loaf pans so we’ll see. I’ll update when it’s done.
Made this Banana Bread and I loved it. Definitely easy peasy and oh so moist! It’s going in my go-to recipes.
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it!