Banana Bread
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Say hello to your new favorite banana bread recipe! With its tender crumb, rich flavor, and irresistibly crisp crust, it’s simply the best!
Are you on the hunt for the perfect banana bread recipe? Look no further—this is the one! With a tender crumb and a crisp crust, it’s absolutely phenomenal fresh out of the oven and just as delicious toasted up for breakfast the next day. You might be surprised by an unexpected ingredient: lemon juice. While it doesn’t make the bread taste lemony, it actually enhances the banana flavor. The acidity also works with the baking soda to help the bread rise, giving it a beautiful golden color, toasty flavor, and light, fluffy texture.
My family loves this banana bread plain, but you can easily add nuts or chocolate chips if you like. And if you’re craving variety, I’ve got plenty of options, including marbled banana bread, chocolate banana bread, whole wheat banana bread, and chai-spiced banana bread. After all, you can never have too many banana bread recipes!
Table of Contents
“Best banana bread ever! And I have tried a lot of different recipes. I think the secret is the lemon juice!”
What You’ll Need To Make Banana Bread
- All-purpose flour: Provides the structure for the bread.
- Baking soda and baking powder: Act as leavening agents to help the banana bread rise and become fluffy.
- Butter: Adds richness, moisture, and flavor to the bread, and helps create a tender crumb.
- Sugar: Sweetens the bread and contributes to the golden-brown crust when baked.
- Eggs: Bind the ingredients together, add structure, and contribute to the bread’s rise and fluffiness.
- Mashed very ripe bananas: The star ingredient that provides moisture, sweetness, and distinct banana flavor to the bread. For a really moist, banana-forward bread, use very ripe bananas. The bananas should at least be dark yellow with plenty of brown spots, and it’s okay if the skin has turned completely brown. (See the FAQs below for tips on how to speed up ripening.)
- Lemon juice: Enhances the banana flavor and reacts with the baking soda to aid in leavening and browning.
- Vanilla extract: Enhances the overall flavor of the banana bread, adding depth and warmth.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Whisk to combine.
In the bowl of an electric hand mixer (or a stand mixer), beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Add the eggs one at a time.
Beat well after each addition.
Add the mashed bananas, lemon juice and vanilla extract.
Mix well. It will look a little curdled at this point; that’s okay.
Add the dry ingredients.
Beat on low speed until just incorporated. Do not over mix.
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes.
Let cool in the pan for about 10 minutes.
Then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Storage & Freezing Instructions
Banana bread should be stored at room temperature in an airtight container or wrapped tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil to prevent it from drying out. If properly stored, it will stay fresh for 2 to 3 days. If you’re not planning to eat it within that time frame, freeze for longer storage. After it is completely cooled, wrap it securely in aluminum foil or freezer wrap, or place it in a freezer bag, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving. Crisp up individual slices in the toaster for a fresh-baked effect.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you’re in a hurry to ripen bananas for baking, there are a couple of methods you can try:
24-Hour Method: Place the bananas (still attached at the stem) in a loosely sealed brown paper bag and let them sit on the counter. Check them after 24 hours to see if they’ve ripened to your liking.
Quick Oven Ripening: If you need ripe bananas even faster, you can use your oven. Place the bananas, still in their peels, on a foil-lined baking sheet to catch any leakage. Bake them at a low temperature of 250°F for 15 to 20 minutes or until they develop a deep brown color. This method helps break down the starches in the bananas quickly, resulting in a softer texture and sweeter flavor.
Absolutely! If you have overripe bananas and you’re not ready to bake, don’t let them go to waste. I typically freeze them in bags of 2 or 3, as mashed, they typically yield about 1 cup, which is what most banana recipes call for. Simply peel the bananas, place them in an airtight container or freezer bag, and freeze. When you’re ready to bake, thaw them in the bag and then mash.
Banana Bread Video Tutorial
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Banana Bread
Say hello to your new favorite banana bread recipe! With its tender crumb, rich flavor, and irresistibly crisp crust, it’s simply the best!
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup mashed very ripe bananas, from 2-3 large bananas
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, from 1 lemon
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour 9x5-inch metal loaf pan.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the mashed bananas, lemon juice and vanilla extract and mix well. It will look a little curdled at this point; that's okay.
- Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed until just incorporated. Do not over mix. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The bread can be frozen for up to 3 months. After it is completely cooled, wrap it securely in aluminum foil, freezer wrap or place in a freezer bag. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (12 servings)
- Serving size: 1 slice
- Calories: 208
- Fat: 9 g
- Saturated fat: 5 g
- Carbohydrates: 30 g
- Sugar: 14 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Sodium: 394 mg
- Cholesterol: 51 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Our family loves this recipe! Whenever I make it, my 5 and 2-year-olds gobble it up. I’ve started adding lemon zest in addition to the lemon juice for an extra lemony flavor, and I cook for about 36-37 minutes instead of the 40-45 min. It’s super moist and a perfect way to use up our over ripe bananas!
Absolutely love this banana bread! So yummy. It’s also very forgiving if you add too many bananas…
I would like to try adding oatmeal to this – do you have any tips?
Hi Krysten, I’ve never put oatmeal in a quick bread, so I can’t say from experience, but I suspect it will work (though the bread will definitely be a bit drier and more dense). I’d replace the flour with an equivalent amount of oats (and I’d suggest keeping the oats to no more than 1/2 cup). Hope that helps — I’d love to hear how it turns out if you make it this way!
Favorite banana bread recipe !!!
What temperature for the oven?
350°F/175°C. Hope you enjoy!
Just put 2 more loaves in the oven. This is a great basic banana bread recipe that comes out perfect every time. The only thing i do different is double the recipe and use half white and half brown sugar. I stop using the mixer when i add the flour and mix by hand to keep the air bubbles out. At the end i fold in a cup of chopped walnuts. Love your recipes and have tried so many. They all come out great. You make me look like i actually know what I’m doing. Thank you
Love this easy recipe. It is moist and tasty. I am not accurate with measuring so I’m surprised it turned out so good. I always add my own touch like raisins and or nuts or some other fruit. It all works out great. Thank you for this great easy recipes
Delicious banana bread that is moist and not too sweet. I added 3/4 cup of toasted walnuts and loved it so much that we ate the entire loaf in less than 2 days. We have loved all of the recipes that we made in your fabulous cookbook! Some of our favorites are Thai Chicken Soup with Rice Noodles, Peruvian Roast Chicken with Green Sauce, Baja Fish Tacos and French Apple Cake. Recently, our friends devoured the Peruvian Chicken meal with your suggested sides and thought it was so good that they ordered your cookbook that very night.
Jenn, thanks for providing such wonderful recipes that are easy to follow, can always be counted on to taste delicious and make us shine. Please publish another!
So glad you like the recipes, Catherine!! I actually am working on another cookbook – you can read more about it here. 💓
Hi Jenn, made this and it was the best banana bread I have ever made. Soft and light but still moist. Can I replace butter with canola oil and if so do I need to reduce portion ?
Thank you
So glad you liked it! Canola oil won’t work here, but a few readers have commented that they’ve successfully used coconut oil with good results. Hope that helps!
I haven’t made banana bread in years, but I found myself with a bunch of overripe bananas. I let them go for several more days, knowing the riper the better, and then tried to decide which of many recipes to use. Then I thought of this website since I’ve never been disappointed with a recipe from Jennifer. This one was no exception. The bread was moist and flavorful–my husband said the best banana bread he has ever eaten. I have enough bananas for another loaf and had planned to try a different recipe for comparison, but why fool around with perfection? The only change I made was to add 1/2 cup of chopped toasted walnuts as I like a little crunch in my banana bread. I cooked it in a convection oven at 325 degrees and ended up taking it out after about 33 minutes as it was nicely browned and a toothpick came out clean. Thanks once again, Jennifer!
I have been making this banana bread for a few years now it is an excellent recipe that’s works every time not too sweet lovely with a strong coffee at any time of the day ….thank you so much for sharing ….
Great recipe as always. Made as directed and added chocolate chips.