This is simply the best banana bread recipe; we keep coming back to it. This easy banana bread is moist and offers huge banana flavor without distractions.
Prep Time: 15 minutesmins
Cook Time: 1 hourhr
Servings: 10
Ingredients
½cupbutter, softened to room temp but not at all melty
Preheat oven to 350F, with rack on lower middle position. Grease a nonstick 9x5 loaf pan (light colored pan, if possible.) Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream together the butter and both sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, scraping down sides and paddle as needed (2-3min.) Add eggs and beat on medium-low speed just until combined. Add mashed bananas and vanilla extract; continue beating just until mixture is incorporated. Remove bowl from stand mixer and set aside.
In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, and salt until combined. Add flour mixture to bowl with banana mixture.
Use a rubber spatula to fold dry and wet ingredients together just until no flour streaks remain, scraping down sides as needed. Do not over-mix, as doing so causes a drier/tougher texture.
Scrape batter fully into greased loaf pan, gently evening out batter to the edges and corners of pan. Bake 1 hour, or until toothpick inserted in center of loaf comes out with a few tender crumbs attached. Do not wait until toothpick is completely clean, or your loaf may become over-baked.
Let finished loaf cool in pan at room temp overnight or until fully cooled. Gently loosen bread from edges of pan with thin knife, turn it out onto a cutting board, and slice to serve.
This recipe is pure and banana-focused, so we kept it simple. If you'd like to amp up the flavors with some warm spices, feel free to add 1 tsp cinnamon and 1/4 tsp nutmeg to the dry ingredients.
Six whole, medium-sized bananas is equivalent to about 4 cups of mashed bananas.
If using frozen bananas, defrost them in a colander at room temperature prior to using in this recipe; all excess liquid should be drained. Bake time may need to be increased when using defrosted bananas.
Our banana bread isn't overly sweet, as it relies on overripe bananas to provide some of the sugar content - the more spotted they are, the better. If you prefer a sweeter bread, increase granulated sugar to 1/2 cup.
*If you enjoyed this bread, come back and give it a rating ❤️