Your Forever Banana Bread Recipe (2024)

Published: Mar 30, 2024 by Kelli Avila · This post may contain affiliate links ·

This One-Bowl Banana Bread recipe is perfect for when you have a few overripe bananas and want to make something deliciously comforting. The bread is moist, tender, and has just the right amount of sweetness.

Consider this your back-pocket banana bread recipe. Or at least, that is what I set out to create six months ago when I decided that I needed a back-pocket nostalgic banana bread recipe. After dozens and dozens of tests (and making my poor poor family eat countless pieces of it every week since...you know...for the good of the testing process) I think I achieved what I set out to.

While I do have a Whole Wheat Banana Muffin recipe, this quick bread recipe is different. The objective was clear: create a straightforward one-bowl banana bread recipe (similar to this one-bowl Whole Wheat Pumpkin Bread) that is easy to make, moist, not excessively sweet, and has a pure banana flavor (without the necessity of adding nuts or chocolate chips to make it more impressive).

This towering yet delicate bread is the result, and it is the perfect way to turn your overripe bananas into a nostalgic treat with minimal effort.

So let's get to making it! You can jump around the article using the menu below, or you can just head right to the bottom for the complete recipe.

Ingredients Needed and Substitutions

Here is a brief overview of the ingredients needed for this recipe. The recipe card lists the full recipe with quantities below this article. If substitutions are available for this recipe, they'll be listed here. If you don't see a substitution you are looking for, please leave a comment below.

• ripe bananas (we're talking brown and speckled- that type of ripe!)
• granulated sugar and brown sugar (you can use either type of sugar exclusively, substituting it in equal amounts, but for the best texture and flavor use both sugars as the recipe suggests)
• avocado oil or other neutral oil (or a combination of oil and butter)
• eggs
• plain full-fat Greek yogurt (or sour cream)
• all-purpose flour
• baking powder + baking soda
• coarse kosher salt(this recipe was tested using Diamond Crystal coarse kosher salt. If you use Morton's kosher salt or fine salt, decrease by about half for volume, or use the same amount by weight.)
• cinnamon
• coarse sugar(this is for sprinkling on the top before baking)

Optional Add-Ins

This banana bread recipe needs no additions to be delicious, and that was the goal. However, our family has enjoyed it with some additions like chopped nuts (walnuts are good here!) or hydrated raisins (like is done in this Stuffed Carrot Cake Muffins recipe) and of course, chocolate chips. Add in about ½-1 cup of anything your heart desires.

Step-By-Step Recipe Overview

This is a quick visual overview of the steps needed to make this recipe. If you are looking for the full recipe, keep scrolling!

Step 1: Weigh out the bananas on a kitchen scale.

See Also

Moist Banana Bread Recipe (with No Baking Powder!) - Mortadella HeadDelicious Banana Bread Recipe with Unripe Bananas – Moist & Tangy FlavorSimply Irresistible Banana Bread Recipe for Every OccasionButterfinger Banana Bread – Can't Stay Out of the Kitchen

Step 2: Or mash and then measure them out.

Step 3: Whisk together all of the wet ingredients, along with the salt, leaveners, and cinnamon.

Step 4: Fold in the flour.

Step 5: Transfer the batter to a prepared baking tin, and sprinkle the top with turbinado sugar.

Step 6: Bake until the middle is cooked through.

How to Tell When It's Done

This is a big banana bread—big enough that it won't fit in a small loaf pan. You'll need at least a 9-inch by 5-inch pan (like this 1-½ pound one here). If you only had a smaller 8x5" pan, you might need to bake it in two batches, or you could make a few muffins.

Because it is big, it takes a while for the center to cook through. Don't even start checking on the bread until at least 55 minutes into the bake (assuming your oven temperature isn't wildly off).

You'll know the bread is baked when:

• It is evenly golden, with a tall rise and the bread "springs back" and feels firm to the touch.
• An internal temperature taken with an instant-read thermometer in the center of the cake is above 200ºF.
• A cake tester/toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean.
• Finally, my favorite way: If you listen to the cake very closely, you will hear one of two things. The first is very rapidly bubbling noises. This indicates that the cake still needs to bake, and the noise you hear is water evaporation or boiling. If you don't hear anything or just a few slow bubble noises, that likely means the cake is done!

Storage

Banana bread is one of those recipes that almost gets better with age. It is great warm, but it's also great on the 2nd, 3rd and sometimes even 4th day (depending on the temperature of your kitchen). Store it in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-4 days.

It will also freeze wonderfully, wrapped tightly for about a month. It can be wrapped as a whole loaf, half a loaf or even in pieces. Defrost at room temperature before serving.

More Breakfast Bakes

Making the recipe? Be sure to leave a comment with a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on your experience! Have a question? Leave a comment below and I’ll get back to you as quickly as I can!

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