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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Delicious! Very easy to follow recipe instructions. This is my third time making it and it comes out great every time!
This banana bread is amazing! I made this recipe vegan by replacing butter with vegan butter and the eggs with 2 flax eggs and it’s amazing! Even my non vegan family members loved it. We make a lot of banana bread and honestly I just find a new recipe each time but this is a keeper. Thanks for sharing!
poorly written recipe
tried this recipe once, it was great! just have one question: does the “1-3/4 cup of flour” refer to one AND three quarters or one TO three quarters? Same goes with the vanilla extract.
Hi, Glad you liked it! Those measurements refer to 1 cup plus 3/4 cup of flour (and the same format for the vanilla). For some reason, the back end of my system makes me include that hyphen. Sorry for any confusion!
That’s funny because I always have the same question. It is a bit confusing with the hyphen.
What an excellent recipe! I deviated slightly from the recipe in that I took Julia Childs advice and used jumbo eggs. Sugar reduced to 1/3 cup. I’m not a sweet fan, plenty of sugar in the bananas. Flour was spooned and leveled in measure, bananas were cooked for 8 min in a non-stick skillet to reduce the moisture, 3/4 cup pecan pieces added. Bread pulled at 200 deg F on an instant thermometer. P E R F E C T !
Yes, I gave this a shot. Tried to make banana bread about 20 years ago during the dot-com crash when I went from high-paid engineer to Mr. Mom. Not so good. Rephrase. Horrible. About a month ago, my wife and I tried another recipe. OK, but not great. Today, I tried yours. Far superior to my last efforts. Thank you, m’lady.
This really is the best banana bread EVER! I think I could eat the entire loaf myself. This is like my only banana bread recipe now
Excelent recipe!I have made it as is many times and it’s always eaten and enjoyed by all. I have a gluten free family member and have now made this recipe 3 times using Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 GF flour–each time a success! For the GF flour, I have found I need to increase baking time. Otherwise, I followed the recipe as is and it’s great.
I’ve also added chocolate chips to the recipe and that’s a kid favorite.
We love this recipe in our home. I’m wondering how I could convert it to a muffin or mini muffin recipe..?
Glad you like it, Beth! It should work nicely for muffins. I’d keep the oven temp the same and start checking them for doneness at about 18 minutes for standard muffins and about 12 minutes for minis. Hope that helps!
Can you make this with gluten-free flour, and if so what brand/kind do you recommend? Thank you!
Hi Martha, I haven’t made a gluten-free version of this but other readers have and have been happy with the results. Please let me know how it turns out if you make it!
Try Bob’s Red Mill 1-1 GF Flour Blend. Already has xanthan gum so don’t add any. I use this and King Arthur’s Measure for Measure GF blend (also has xanthan). Of the two, I lean more towards Bob’s, but do know that the KA blend is enriched. The only one that I know of in the market that has that. Tip: I always add a bit more leavener. If recipe calls for 1 tsp bkg pdr, I’ll add another 1/8th tsp. ALSO: Allow batter to sit in the prepared pans for about 5 mins or so. This allows flours to “hydrate” but do know that I use only double acting bkg pdr.
Good luck! And ENJOY!
FORGOT TO ADD: I replace 1/2 cup of the flour with Bob’s Superfine Almond Flour or the Unblanched Superfine Almond Flour. Of the two, I prefer the results with the unblanched (comes out a bit firmer, which I prefer). I use homemade brown sugar and reduce the amount called for to 2/3 c or use equivalent Truvia Brown Sugar Blend. I also play with the butter because that is just too much when you are watching calories. Recipe works well with replacing eggs with liquid eggs. Hey, when you have to watch A1C and cholesterol, you do what you gotta do so you can still enjoy a treat!
I’m not rating since I did not follow recipe as written.
I actually prefer Cup4Cup gf flour. I find I don’t need to make any adjustments to recipes, it’s really a terrific gf flour (better than Bob’s Redmill, as much as I love them).
I didn’t use Jenn’s actual recipe because I had a lot of bananas to use up and needed one that could absorb at least 4 but I did follow her instructions since all recipes pretty much start the same. The step-by-step photos are so helpful, thank you Jenn! I’m new to baking and had no idea what ‘cream until light and fluffy’ should look like until I read your post. I also panicked initially when adding the banana and it looked curdled, so also appreciate your extra note there. Thanks again!