So you want to know how to make banana bread simple? I love banana bread too much so I’ll share it with you.
Looking for a new low carb, keto friendly recipe to try? If you miss having banana bread, I think you’ll love this sweet idea for making it. This is super simple but delicious. It does take a few steps and ingredients — but the rewards are fantastic!
Easy Banana Bread Recipe
This easy Banana Bread recipe is a no-fail favorite that comes out perfect every time!
With a handful of ingredients that you likely have on hand and only a few minutes of prep, you’re going to start buying extra bananas just for this recipe!
Why We Love This Recipe
- Quick This is so quick to prepare, you’ll probably have it ready to go before your oven even finishes preheating!
- Easy Ingredients The ingredients needed are things I always have on hand so I can make this at a moments notice.
- No-Fail This recipe turns out perfectly every time.
- Extra Moist The banana bread in this recipe is deliciously moist with a tender crumb, just as it should be.
Ingredients
Bananas You want your bananas to be ripe with many black spots, this means they’re soft and full of sugars. You can peel them and freeze them to bake with at a later date too.
To Ripen Bananas Quickly: Uhoh, you have beautiful yellow bananas, perfect for a smoothie or banana pudding but not so much for baking!
- To ripen in 1-2 days: place them in a paper bag (with other ripe fruit if you have any) and seal.
- To ripen immediately, bake at 300°F for 15-20 minutes. Cool before using in this recipe.
Eggs & Oil Eggs and oil add moisture to quick breads like zucchini bread and of course this recipe too.
In this recipe, we replace some of the oil with mayonnaise (which is made of… eggs and oil)! While this may seem like a weird ingredient, as you can see from the reviews, it is the perfect addition!
How to Make Banana Bread
Banana Bread with Mayonnaise? I know it may sound a little bit strange, but mayo is made with oil and eggs which are basically staple ingredients in any quick bread.
Be sure not to overmix or it’ll be dense and chewy instead of soft and moist.
- Combine dry ingredients in a bowl (per recipe below).
- Combine bananas (of course), mayonnaise and egg in a second bowl.
- Mix the two together just until moist (image below, your batter should be lumpy).
- Pour into a greased pan and bake.
I make a Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake which is to die for. If you have never had a bread or cake made with mayonnaise before, you MUST try it.
Tips for Success
Bananas add flavor and moisture to this loaf as does the mayonnaise. A few more favorite tips:
- The batter is thick, do not add extra liquid.
- Avoid adding extra bananas, this can make the bread too dense.
- As with all quick breads, do not overmix. Stir just until incorporated.
- Do not overcook. Ovens can vary so check your bread at least 10 minutes before the time is up.
- Seal well once cooled (a freezer bag works well too).
SIMPLY PERFECT BANANA BREAD RECIPE
Simply the perfect Banana Bread recipe. Moist, quick and easy to make with a soft, tender crumb. Truly the best Banana Bread I’ve ever had and our favorite way to use up ripe bananas!
Love bananas? Us too! Try this delicious Banana Pudding and Chocolate Chip Banana Cookies too!
There is nothing better than homemade banana bread. I have spent a good part of my life baking and I still get a thrill when I see I have some beautifully ripe bananas that need to be used.
When testing this recipe, I made over 50 loaves of banana bread. You read that right. I’ve tested every combination of ingredients, temperatures, baking methods, pan sizes – you name it. It’s been a labor of love – and a heck of a lot of bananas.
When I say this is the best banana bread I’ve ever had, I mean it. My kids agree.
Best Banana Bread Recipe
What makes this the best banana bread? There are a few things that I was looking for as I developed this recipe:
Banana flavor. This is often overlooked in banana recipes. Banana bread should taste like bananas, period. I have found the perfect amount of banana to be 1 1/4 cup of mashed ripe banana, or, about 3 to 4 really ripe bananas. This gives the bread the perfect amount of banana flavor to this easy recipe. (Note: I tested this recipe using 1 to 1 1/2 cups of banana and the recipe works flawlessly for this range.)
Moistness. This moist banana bread recipe is exactly what I was going for. Banana bread should be deliciously moist but not dense. It has a It needs to have enough moistness that it stays fresh for days. The moistness lends to a super soft, tender crumb.
I literally had to hide loaves of banana bread to ensure that I could check days later. You would think Reece and Bryce would be sick of this banana bread recipe at this point, but nope.
Banana bread with sour cream is my favorite way to ensure a moist bread but you can also use Greek yogurt if you prefer.
Easy. Yep, this banana bread recipe is a quick bread – so it shouldn’t take a lot of effort. The hardest part of this recipe is mashing the bananas. I use a potato masher, my mixer or a fork. You do you. This recipe can be made in one bowl and the butter is melted so you don’t even need a mixer. A whisk, a bowl and a spatula are all you need.
How to Store Banana Bread
Banana bread should last about 3 days tightly sealed on the counter.
To FREEZE: You can either freeze the loaf as a whole or slice it and freeze the slices. To defrost a slice just pop it in the microwave for a few seconds or even just add it to the lunch box frozen, it’ll defrost in plenty of time for lunch!
Options and Add-Ins
- Banana Nut Crunch Muffins – reader favorite
- Blueberries – Toss with a bit of flour before adding to the batter to keep evenly distributed
- Peacans, coconut, dried fruits
Ingredients
- ▢3 medium bananas mashed
- ▢½ cup mayonnaise or dressing
- ▢1 egg
- ▢1 ½ cups flour
- ▢1 teaspoon baking soda
- ▢½ teaspoon salt
- ▢¾ cup sugar
- ▢½ cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350*F.
- In a bowl mix together mashed bananas, mayo and egg. In a separate bowl combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and pecans
- Add flour mixture to wet mixture and stir just until combined. Note: The mixture will be very thick, do not over mix
- Pour into a greased loaf pan. Bake 60-70 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Remove from pan and allow to cool completely.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.To Ripen Bananas Quickly bake at 300°F for 15-20 minutes. Cool before using.Avoid adding extra bananas, this can make the bread too dense.As with all quick breads, do not overmix. Stir just until incorporated.Check your bread at least 10 minutes before the bake time is up.Line the loaf pan with parchment paper leaving about 3 inches of paper folded over the top of the pan for easy removal.To Make Muffins divide over 12 muffin wells and bake 14-18 minutes or just until a toothpick comes out clean. Do not overbake.
Banana Bread
Ingredients
Deselect All
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
4 very ripe bananas
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon cinnamonAdd to Shopping
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, cream together the eggs and sugar. Stir in the mashed bananas, vanilla, oil and cinnamon. Stir in the flour mixture, a third at a time, until just combined.
- Pour the batter into a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Bake for about 1 hour.