Best Banana Bread | Swanky Recipes (2024)

The Best Banana Bread recipe that is supremely moist with exceptional banana flavor. A simple and classic banana bread that’s made with ripe bananas, sugar, butter, flour, and eggs. For more sweet bread recipes, try this Cranberry Orange Bread, or Peanut Butter Streusel Bread recipe.

Grandma’s homemade banana bread recipe has been a family treasure for decades. Warm out of the oven with a pat of butter is our favorite banana bread tradition. Her very moist recipe gets lots of love in our house for its classic flavor that can’t be beaten. A recipe that’s known for its simple pantry ingredients and easy baking steps, you’ll be making this breakfast staple again and again.

BANANA BREAD INGREDIENTS

■ BANANAS: Use bananas that are ripe. Typically I use bananas that have been sitting out for a few days and are soft with brown spots. The more ripe the banana, the sweeter the flavor.

■ SUGAR: Stir sugar into mashed bananas along with melted butter.

■ BUTTER: Adds moisture and richness to the batter. I like to use melted butter for this recipe.

■ EGGS: Binds the ingredients together resulting in a moist bread crumb.

■ BAKING SODA: Allows the dessert batter to rise nicely while baking in the oven.

HOW TO MAKE BANANA BREAD

1. Mash bananas.
2. Stir in sugar and melted butter.
3. Whisk in eggs and vanilla.
4. Fold in flour, salt, and baking soda.
5. Pour into prepared 9 X 5-inch loaf pan.
6. Bake in 350° F oven for 50 minutes.

EASY PAN REMOVAL

Butter and flour the pan generously. Use a paper towel or the butter wrapper to smear soft butter all around the edges of the pan and on the bottom. Next, sprinkle in a tablespoon of flour. Shake it around the pan, hitting the sides against your hands to loosen any excess flour while evenly coating it.

BANANA BREAD VARIATIONS

Banana bread has been around for ages. Everyone seems to have their own recipe that’s been passed down through generations. If you’re looking for a new recipe or are wanting to add flavor to your own batch, try these other flavor variations.

• NUTS: Pecans, walnuts, and almonds are commonly used in this dessert bread. Grandma always made her banana nut bread recipe with ½ cup chopped walnuts.
• STREUSEL TOPPING: A combination of butter, flour, oats, and sugar like brown sugar or granulated sugar adds a sweet crunch to the top. Use this streusel bread topping recipe for more flavor.
• ICING: Drizzle an iced topping made with powdered confectioners’ sugar and water or lemon juice. Simple whisk together 1½ cups powdered sugar and 1 tbsp water.
• CHOCOLATE: Chocolate chips or chunks are a nice flavor surprise for a super sweet dessert.
• DRIED FRUIT: Dried cranberries pair nicely with nuts.
• CINNAMON: I like to use cinnamon and nutmeg occasionally in this recipe.

Can I freeze loafs? Yes. We do this all the time. Allow the bread to cool before wrapping it tightly in plastic wrap. Next, store it in ziplock bag and then freeze it for up to several months.