This classic Banana Bread recipe makes a super moist, soft, and sweet loaf. Tender and loaded with flavor, there’s a reason that it’s such a popular breakfast idea!
Banana Bread is one of the most comforting baked goods. It’s soft and sweet, with just a hint of banana flavor. It’s great as a grab-and-go breakfast, snack, or an addition to any weekend brunch spread. This homemade quick bread is one recipe that I just can’t stop eating. Probably ate an entire loaf to myself when I was testing this recipe.
Why You’ll Love This Banana Bread Recipe
Here’s all the reasons I love it, and I think you will too:
- Quick & easy. With just 10 minutes of prep time, this recipe is easy to make. (And perfect for making ahead!)
- Perfect texture. The moist and tender consistency has me slicing pieces off all day long. Trust me when I say that this loaf will be gone before you know it.
- Just the right amount of sweetness. It’s sweet enough to eat on its own, but not so sweet that you couldn’t add some honey or maple butter on top if you wanted.
- Flexible. You can add mix-ins like chocolate chips, nuts, and more. I shared some ideas below!
What You’ll Need
Most of the ingredients for this bread are probably already in your pantry. Here’s everything you’ll need to make this recipe. Be sure to scroll down to the recipe card for a printable list.
- Mashed Bananas: Be sure to choose bananas that are quite ripe with some brown spots. They’ll be softer and sweeter!
- Oil: I used vegetable oil but you could also use olive oil.
- Butter: Unsalted
- Eggs
- Milk: You could also use soy milk or almond milk.
- Vanilla
- Sugar: I used regular sugar, but you could also use light brown sugar if you wanted to add a touch of caramel flavor.
- Flour
- Baking Powder
- Baking Soda
- Salt
- Cinnamon
How to Make Banana Bread
Banana Bread is both simple and easy to make. Here’s everything you’ll need to do:
- Prepare your equipment. Preheat the oven to 350°F and generously grease a 9-inch loaf pan, setting aside once that’s done. Feel free to line it with parchment paper (this will help prevent the bread from sticking once it’s done baking).
- Mash the bananas. Using either a potato masher or a fork (the potato masher is usually easier), peel and mash the bananas.
- Combine the wet ingredients. Once mashed, combine the mashed bananas with the oil, butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla extract. Then, beat everything together until it’s all thoroughly combined.
- Add sugar. When every has been combined, add the sugar and continue beating until it’s well incorporated.
- Combine the dry ingredients. In a large mixing bowl whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the bowl with your wet ingredients. Beat just until it starts to combine (beating too much will cause the bread to be tough and chewy). To finish incorporating the flour, just continue to stir the mixture with a spatula.
- Bake. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake at 350°F for 55-65 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean). Allow the bread to cool for at least 1 hour before slicing.
Tips for Success
Although this banana bread is easy to make, getting the right consistency with any baked good can be challenging. Here are a few of my tips for making the best homemade banana bread:
- Use extra ripe bananas: The riper the bananas are, the better flavor your bread will have. When it comes to banana bread, I like to use overripe bananas. I will often pop overripe bananas in the freezer so that I can make banana bread later (just make sure to thaw them before trying to mash them!)
- Be careful when mixing the batter: This is definitely not a recipe that you want to overmix the batter (doing so will result in a tough and chewy bread). When combining the wet and dry ingredients, try to stop once everything is just combined.
- Set the timer at 55 minutes: Baking time can vary based on a lot of factors, so make sure that you test your loaf after 55 minutes. The easiest way to do this is by inserting a toothpick into the center. Once it comes out clean (you may have to do this two to three times between the 55 and 65 minutes), take it out of the oven to cool.
Choose Your Own Mix-ins
One of the reasons I love this recipe is because it’s so simple, but also easily customizable. There are so many ingredients that add flavor and texture to this classic bread. Here are a few of my favorite ingredients to add:
- Chopped Nuts: I love the way crunchy nuts add texture to this otherwise soft bread.
- Chocolate Chips: Rich chocolate pairs great with the lightly sweet flavor of bananas.
- Dried fruit: Raisins and craisins are great for adding both texture and sweetness.
How to Store Banana Bread
This recipe will stay moist for days when stored properly. First allow the bread to cool completely. I recommend placing the bread in an airtight storage bag or container so that it stays as moist as possible. You can then either store it at room temperature for 3 days or in the fridge for 6 days.
Can I Freeze It?
Yes, you can freeze banana bread! Whether you made it in advance or just couldn’t finish the loaf, this recipe will last for up to 2 months when frozen. Allow the bread to cool completely, then wrap it in one layer of plastic wrap and one layer of aluminum foil.
When you’re ready to serve it, just remove it from the freezer and place it on the counter. It should take about 24 hours to come to room temperature this way, so make sure you plan when you want to take it out ahead of time.
More Quick Bread Recipes
If you like this recipe, here are a few other easy bread recipes that I think you’d like:
Print
Moist Banana Bread Recipe
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 10 slices
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Description
This classic Banana Bread is super moist, soft, and sweet. Tender and loaded with flavor, there’s a reason that it’s such a popular breakfast favorite!
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup mashed banana (about 3 medium bananas)
- ½ cup (118ml) vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons (30g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) milk
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (190g) granulated sugar
- 1 ½ cup (210g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F: Generously grease a 9-inch loaf pan and set aside. Line the pan with parchment paper if desired.
- Mash the bananas: peel and mash the bananas with a potato masher or fork.
- Combine the wet ingredients: Combine the bananas with the oil, butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla extract. Beat all the ingredients together until well combined. Add the sugar and beat until incorporated.
- Combine the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl: flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Whisk to combine. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl and beat just until it starts to combine. Stir the mixture with a spatula to finish incorporating the flour.
- Bake at 350°F for 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool for at least 1 hour before slicing.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 302
- Sugar: 23.7g
- Sodium: 259mg
- Fat: 14.4g
- Carbohydrates: 41.3g
- Fiber: 1.3g
- Protein: 3.6g
- Cholesterol: 43mg
I ran out of butter can I substitute margarine. Love the recipe by the way it’s my go to!
I don’t bake with margarine, so you’d have to give it a try. I would probably just use oil instead myself.
if I want to add only butter and skip vegetable oil and also want to make it eggless, can you suggest what all modification I have to make in the recipe?
I do not recommend replacing the oil with butter. Oil adds moisture and texture. I have not tested this with an eggless option.
Love this quick banana bread, came together quickly and didn’t disappoint. Nice texture.
Thank you Ann! We love this one so much, I am glad you did to!
I have searched for years for a banana bread recipe like my mother used to make. This is it!!! So delicious and yes, moist! My family loves banana bread, super easy to whip up!
Amazing! Thank you Susan!
Came out great! I add a little brown sugar and do a light homemade brown butter, it’s the bees-knees 😋🫶🏽🔥
AMAZING! So many people have commented that they swapped out some white sugar for brown sugar!
I have made many banana bread recipes, looking for ‘the one’ .. All I can say is, found it at last. Thank you.. It’s the perfect texture and moistness. Quick and easy recipe also. I have marked it as my favourite and will be removing all other recipes saved.
I am so excited to hear that! I love this recipe so much and it bring me immense joy to know others have found it!
Simple and delicious… Tried today and will do it again
Wonderful, thank you!
This is my go to banana bread recipe. Very simple and very delicious
Woohoo! I love that! Thank you!
I’ve tried many banana bread recipes and this is genuinely the best one I’ve come across. It results in such a moist delicious banana bread OMG! I love adding pecans and chocolate chips. Thanks for sharing this, I love it so much!
The best 🍌 Bread recipe Ever!!! Thank you 😊
Yeesss! Love that so much!
My go-to banana bread recipe. Always turns out perfectly moist and flavourful with a little crunch and Im obsessed! Thank you thank you thank you
Love love love that! Thank you so much!
Everyone raves about this bread. I do just under the half a cup oil and then add a scoop of Greek yogurt. I add chopped walnuts and chopped dark chocolate chips as well. 10/10!!!!
Love that, thank you so much!
Great recipe !
So glad you like it!
Great recipe! Thank you for sharing!
You are so welcome!
Super moist! Was a staple when my NB arrived.
Can you substitute almond flour instead? If so how much? And would it change the baking time?
I did this when I had my baby to!
Tried this recipe it was amazing!! Huge hit, got finished the day I made it. Took half the batter and added 1 tbls cocoa powder made it Mable and added chopped pecans so lovely
Oh my gosh that sounds amazing, I am going to try it this weekend!
Tried the banana bread recipe today and it turned out great! Very good recipe. I will definitely use recipe again:) delicious, thank you
Love that Norma, this recipe is one of my favorites on my site and every time someone takes the time to make it and leave a review it just makes my day
My go to recipe every single week! Sometimes i add blueberries, chopped walnuts or choc chips…it’s always perfect!! I even make it for gifts when i visit friends and family. Thank you for sharing❤️
Wow Deborah! Thank you so much! I will have to try this recipe with blueberries! Thanks for sharing!
Best banana bread ever. I added in dark chocolate chips and it was PERFECT.
Wonderful!! Thank you so much Aalia!
This is the best banana bread recipe I have made. It is moist, sweet, just right as far as density goes. It truly is the perfect banana bread recipe.
I have to say I totally agree LOL. Thank you for sharing Kristin!
this sounds good how did it taste?sounds like good idea