Banana Bread

If I find myself at a coffee shop with pastries and they have banana bread, I’m getting it. I love a soft, moist interior with a slightly crunchy edge. And while bananas are not necessarily my favorite fruit, they are my favorite fruit baked in bread—I love that banana flavor!

And this homemade banana bread recipe is my favorite! It’s easy, foolproof and exceptionally delicious. When I bake this banana bread, it doesn’t last long at our house as it’s one of my husband’s favorite desserts as well.

Related: If you want a similar quick bread recipe that uses butter instead of oil, try our chocolate chip banana bread recipe.

Ingredients

• Ripe bananas
• All-purpose flour
• Baking soda
• Salt
• Walnuts
• Oil
• Brown sugar
• Eggs
• Sour cream
• Vanilla extract

I like to sprinkle a little turbinado sugar, sometimes called sugar in the raw, on top before baking. This adds a nice crunch and a pretty texture, but it’s optional.

How to make Banana Bread

First, peel and mash the ripe bananas in a small bowl. Set aside until you need them.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda and salt. Then stir in the walnuts.

In a medium size mixing bowl, stir together the wet ingredients: oil, brown sugar, eggs, sour cream and vanilla extract. Now stir the wet ingredients into the dry. Last, stir in the mashed bananas.

Spray a bread loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray, or you can grease with softened butter or line with parchment paper. Spoon the batter into the prepared loaf pan and top with turbinado sugar if using.

Bake in the oven at 350°F for 45-50 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out mostly clean (no completely raw batter clinging to it). Allow the bread to cool in the pan before removing. Once room temperature, you can slice and serve.

Tips and Substitutions

• For the oil in this recipe, I usually use canola oil or vegetable oil. But you could use other oils, like olive oil or melted coconut oil. If you use a more flavorful oil, keep in mind this will add to the flavor of your bread.
• You can substitute plain Greek yogurt for the sour cream.
• You can use white sugar instead of brown sugar, but I prefer the flavor brown sugar adds.
• If you are wanting to make this banana bread recipe but your bananas are not ripe yet, learn how to quickly ripen bananas here.
• If you want your banana bread to be Pinterest worthy, add a sliced banana to the top before baking. 🙂 This is not necessary but really pretty if you have an extra banana.
• Other additions you might like include: chocolate chips, other nuts like pecans or almonds, other spices like cinnamon or nutmeg.
• If you want to make banana muffins instead of bread, you can bake this batter in standard size muffin tins and reduce the bake time to 20-25 minutes.
• Save any leftover bread by wrapping in plastic wrap or storing in an airtight container for at least 3 days and likely longer. You don’t have to refrigerate unless you prefer cold banana bread.

More Homemade Bread Recipes

• Pumpkin Bread
• Chocolate Chip Bread
• Zucchini Bread
• Focaccia
• Poppy Seed Bread
• Rainbow Bread
• One Banana Banana Bread – in case you only have one ripe banana

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5 from 23 votes

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Get the Recipe

A moist and flavorful banana bread recipe without butter.

Yield 10

Prep 15 minutes mins

Cook 45 minutes mins

Total 1 hour hr

Ingredients

1x2x3x

• ▢ 2 cups bananas (3-4 bananas)
• ▢ 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ cup walnuts
• ▢ ½ cup oil
• ▢ ¾ cup brown sugar
• ▢ 2 eggs
• ▢ ⅓ cup sour cream
• ▢ 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ▢ 1 tablespoon turbinado sugar (optional)

Instructions

• First, peel and mash the ripe bananas in a small bowl. Set aside until you need them.
• In a large mixing bowl, stir together the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda and salt. Then stir in the walnuts.
• In a medium size mixing bowl, stir together the wet ingredients: oil, brown sugar, eggs, sour cream and vanilla extract.
• Now stir the wet ingredients into the dry.
• Last, stir in the mashed bananas.
• Spray a bread loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray, or you can grease with softened butter or line with parchment paper.
• Spoon the batter into the prepared loaf pan and top with turbinado sugar if using.
• Bake in the oven at 350°F for 45-50 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out mostly clean (no completely raw batter clinging to it).
• Allow the bread to cool in the pan before removing. Once room temperature, you can slice and serve.

Notes

• For the oil in this recipe, I usually use canola oil or vegetable oil. But you could use other oils, like olive oil or melted coconut oil. If you use a more flavorful oil, keep in mind this will add to the flavor of your bread.
• You can substitute plain Greek yogurt for the sour cream.
• You can use white sugar instead of brown sugar, but I prefer the flavor brown sugar adds.
• If you want your banana bread to be Pinterest worthy, add a sliced banana to the top before baking. 🙂 This is not necessary but really pretty if you have an extra banana.
• Other additions you might like include: chocolate chips, other nuts like pecans or almonds, other spices like cinnamon or nutmeg.
• If you want to make banana muffins instead of bread, you can bake this batter in standard size muffin tins and reduce the bake time to 20-25 minutes.
• Save any leftover bread by wrapping in plastic wrap or storing in an airtight container for at least 3 days and likely longer. You don’t have to refrigerate unless you prefer cold banana bread.

© Author Emma Chapman

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American

Keywords banana bread

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Banana Bread

Amount per Serving

Calories

353

% Daily Value*

Fat

 

18

g

28

%

Saturated Fat

 

2

g

13

%

Trans Fat

 

0.05

g

Polyunsaturated Fat

 

6

g

Monounsaturated Fat

 

8

g

Cholesterol

 

37

mg

12

%

Sodium

 

188

mg

8

%

Potassium

 

205

mg

6

%

Carbohydrates

 

45

g

15

%

Fiber

 

2

g

8

%

Sugar

 

21

g

23

%

Protein

 

5

g

10

%

Vitamin A

 

116

IU

2

%

Vitamin C

 

3

mg

4

%

Calcium

 

38

mg

4

%

Iron

 

2

mg

11

%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.