Use these ripe bananas for the best banana bread recipe ever. Juicy and delicious, easy to make – one bowl, no blender needed!
In this recipe
-
The best loaf pan for this recipe
-
Adjust this recipe
-
More recipes for ripe bananas
This banana bread has been the most popular recipe on Simply Recipes for over 10 years. Thousands of people do it every day. Why?
Because it really is the best banana bread recipe, period. You can mix everything in one bowl, you can vary the amount of sugar or bananas. And the secret of its great taste? Melted butter.
The beauty of this banana bread recipe is that you don’t need a fancy mixer! A mixing bowl, a fork to beat the eggs and a sturdy spoon to stir the batter are all you need. The amount of sugar is flexible. The original recipe called for 1 cup of white sugar, but most people, including me, do fine with 3/4 cup, and many are happy with 1/2 cup.
You can add a cup of chopped nuts, raisins, or chocolate chips if you like, or pour the batter into muffin tins and make banana nut muffins instead. You can even take it a step further and make chocolate banana bread.
I got this banana bread recipe years ago from my friend Heidi H, who had begged the recipe from a ski mate’s mom many years ago – Mrs. Höckmeyer. Thank you Heath!
1:19
How to make banana bread
The best loaf pan for this recipe
This recipe calls for an 8″ x 4″ loaf pan, which produces a tall loaf. The recipe also works in an 8 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ loaf pan, making for a slightly shorter loaf. Because the pan is slightly larger, the baking time is shorter: 47 to 57 minutes. A 9 x 5 inch pan makes an extra short but still delicious loaf; Bake for 45 to 55 minutes.
CONTINUE READING:
Adapt this banana bread recipe
- Replace some of the sugar with light brown sugar.
- Replace up to half of the flour with white whole wheat flour.
- Add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon.
- Mix in 1/2 cup chopped nuts or dried fruit.
- Add 1/2 cup chocolate chips.
CONTINUE READING:
More Banana Bread Recipes!
- Vegan Banana Bread
- Banana bread with cream cheese
- Gluten Free Banana Bread
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
- Rum Raisin Banana Bread
From the editors of Simply Recipes
banana bread
You don’t need a blender for this recipe! Cleaning is also easy. If you want, you can mix everything together in a bowl.
This recipe calls for an 8 x 4 inch loaf pan. If baking in an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch pan, bake for 47 to 57 minutes. If baking in a 9 x 5 inch pan, bake for 45 to 55 minutes. Note that the larger shape gives a flatter loaf.
The best bananas for banana bread are the ones that are overripe. The yellow skins should be at least half brown and the inside of the bananas should be mushy and brown.
ingredients
-
2 to 3 medium (7″ to 7-7/8″ long) very ripe bananaspeeled (about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups pureed)
-
1/3 cup (76g) Butter, unsalted or salted, melted
-
1/2 teaspoon baking soda (no baking powder)
-
1 prize Salt
-
3/4 Cup (150g) Sugar (1/2 cup if you like it less sweet, 1 cup if you like it sweeter)
-
1 big beaten egg
-
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-
1 1/2 cups (205g) all purpose flour
method
-
Preheat the oven and prepare the pan:
Preheat oven to 350F and butter an 8″ x 4″ loaf pan.
-
Mash the bananas and add the butter:
In a mixing bowl, mash the ripe bananas with a fork until completely smooth. Stir the melted butter into the mashed bananas.
-
Mix in the remaining ingredients:
Mix in the baking soda and salt. Stir in the sugar, beaten egg, and vanilla extract. Mix in the flour.
-
Baking bread:
Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan.
Bake at 350°F for 55 to 65 minutes or until a toothpick or wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. A few dry crumbs are fine; Streaks of wet dough are not. When the outside of the loaf is browned but the center is still moist, loosely stretch the loaf with foil and continue to bake until the loaf is fully baked.
-
Cool and serve:
Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for a few minutes. Then remove the banana bread from the pan and let cool completely before serving. Slice and serve. (A bread knife helps make slices that aren’t crumbly.)
Well packaged, the banana bread will keep for 4 days at room temperature. For longer storage, refrigerate or freeze the loaf for up to 5 days.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 220 | calories |
| 7g | Fat |
| 37g | carbohydrates |
| 3g | protein |
