Marbled Banana Bread
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With a gorgeous ribbon of chocolate running through it, this marbled banana bread is as impressive as it is delicious.
I haven’t been shy about offering up banana bread recipes on this site (pick your flavor: chai-spiced banana bread, chocolate banana bread, or coconut banana bread) but this one is such a beauty, I couldn’t resist adding one more. Tender and sweet with a gorgeous ribbon of melted chocolate running through it, marbled banana bread is as impressive looking as it is delicious. Plus, it’s fun to make: you spoon the banana and chocolate batters into a loaf pan alternately, then artistically swirl the two together with a knife.
Table of Contents
“I am pretty sure that my kids beg me to buy bananas at the grocery store, only to let them go brown, so that I have to make this banana bread. So delicious!”
What You’ll Need To Make Marbled Banana Bread
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by combining the flour, baking soda and salt.
Whisk to combine.
Set aside, then cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs one at a time.
Beating well after each addition.
Add the dry ingredients.
Beat on low speed to combine.
Add the mashed bananas, sour cream, and vanilla extract.
Mix until just combined. The batter will be thick.
Place the chopped chocolate in a small microwave-safe bowl.
Microwave in short intervals, stirring in between so the chocolate doesn’t scorch, until the chocolate is almost melted. Stir, letting the residual heat melt the chocolate completely, then stir in the cocoa powder.
Add one cup of the batter to the melted chocolate.
Stir until well combined.
Spoon the two batters alternately into a greased loaf pan.
Then swirl with a knife. Don’t over-swirl or the colors will get muddled—four or five times up and back should do it.
Bake for about an hour and ten minutes.
Cool the loaf in the pan on a rack for about ten minutes, then remove and cool completely.
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Marbled Banana Bread
With a gorgeous ribbon of chocolate running through it, this marbled banana bread is as impressive as it is delicious.
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups all purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup mashed very ripe bananas, from 2-3 bananas
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped (a heaping ½ cup)
- 2 teaspoons natural unsweetened cocoa powder, such as Hershey's
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan generously with butter or nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- 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 flour mixture and mix on low speed until just combined. Add the mashed bananas, sour cream and vanilla extract and beat until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Place the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl. Cook on high power in 20 second intervals, stopping to stir in between, until about 80% melted. Stir until smooth, letting the residual heat in the bowl melt the remaining bits of unmelted chocolate. Add the cocoa powder and stir until dissolved. Add one cup of the banana bread batter to the melted chocolate and stir until well combined.
- Spoon the plain batter and chocolate batter alternately into the prepared loaf pan. Swirl the batters together with a knife (don't overdo it or the colors will get muddled -- up and back 4 to 5 times should suffice). Bake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for about 10 minutes, then remove the loaf from the pan and set on the 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 in the refrigerator before serving.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (12 servings)
- Serving size: 1 slice
- Calories: 276g
- Fat: 13g
- Saturated fat: 8g
- Carbohydrates: 39g
- Sugar: 22g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 4g
- Sodium: 246mg
- Cholesterol: 56mg
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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I had some very ripe bananas and decided to use them up with this recipe since it didn’t have nuts like the usual banana bread recipes. It turned out exactly as the recipe is written. Very moist. The outside crust texture was a little more rigid as a bread should be. It was super easy to make and clean up was a breeze. I was actually running to get somewhere and didn’t realize the time it took to bake it which for me was around an hour give or take a couple of minutes longer. So I actually had to carry the bread which was still in it’s pan in the car with me then while my husband was driving I inverted it after 10 minutes and it turned out perfectly fine! I had it cooling in the car while we went to our appointment and when we got back to the car, it smelled of heavenly banana bread!! Wish I could capture that scent, and use it as an air freshener…
My only tip for someone making this is, it is on the sweet side so if you’re not into that try decreasing the sugar by 1/4 cup and increasing the bananas to another half of a banana or so. Or just decrease the sugar alone.
I looked at all of your banana bread recipes and I’m curious about the varying amounts of flour while the rest of the ingredients are essentially the same – specifically 1/1/4 c in the Chocolate Banana Bread and 1/3/4 c in the “Swirl” version. Would love to know why!
Hi CJ, They are all a little bit different, with a slightly different texture. But with the chocolate banana bread, there is also cocoa powder, which acts as a dry ingredient and takes the place of some of the flour. Even though there is also a little cocoa powder in this recipe, it is used in a different way. In the end, there is only slightly less flour (or dry ingredients) in the Chocolate Banana Bread. But if you make the two recipes, you’ll notice that the one with less flour is a little more cake-like and doesn’t dome as much. Hope that helps!
Thanks Jenn! Will try one tomorrow!
This is delicious! It’s so moist and the marbling makes it look pretty. It’s the perfect way to incorporate chocolate into banana bread.
Another winner Young Lady….and I’m just getting started on your site. I’ve not much else to do in these harsh winter months, so I go around testing new recipes, and new sites, for my “Faves Book”. Keep it up, and thanks.
I was wondering what’s the sour cream for? Can it be omitted. Also, can I use vegetable oil instead of butter? I love your bread recipes I already three of them banana bread, banana coconut with pecan and pumpkin bread. I thoroughly enjoy each one of them. Thanks again
The sour cream helps to add moisture to the bread. If you’d prefer, substitute yogurt for the sour cream, but I would not eliminate it entirely. Also, because the sugar and butter are creamed, I would not recommend oil, but you could use margarine in place of the butter.
This was moist and delicious! I never knew how to marble anything, and my Family was very impressed. Thank you!
Hi, can I omit bananas?
Sorry, Siran, that won’t work.
I made a mistake and bought bittersweet rather than semi sweet chocolate. Will that make a big difference? Is there any adjustment that I can make with the bittersweet chocolate?
Hi Cheryl, It won’t make a big difference — no need to worry 🙂
this is so delicious and moist! I substituted gluten free “Cup for Cup” flour to create a gluten free version and it is so yummy. My non g-free kids and husband love it too!
I really like this recipe. I only cooked mine for 50 minutes in my gas oven @ 350. I didn’t have semi sweet chocolate so I used 85% cocoa dark chocolate. I was in a rush so I did not layer the colors before Marbling. I just put the banana and then the chocolate on top and swirled. I still liked it. I have a pic but I don’t see a way to post pictures.