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Best Banana Bread Recipe
5 from 18 votes

Best Banana Bread Recipe

The Best Banana Bread Recipe yields a moist, tender loaf combining mashed ripe bananas with a mix of butter, oil, sugars, eggs, buttermilk, sour cream, and vanilla. The batter incorporates baking soda and powder to ensure a proper rise and soft crumb. A brown sugar topping provides a slightly caramelized crust. This banana bread benefits from the balance of fats and dairy that keeps it rich and moist, making it suitable for breakfast, snack, or dessert.

Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
55 mins
Servings: 8
Course: Breakfast, Bread
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

  • 4 Tablespoons butter (softened)
  • 1/4 cup neutral cooking oil canola or neutral oil, generic cooking oil
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 2 large egg
  • 2 large banana mashed, ripe
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 1 3/4 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
Topping:
  • 3 Tablespoons brown sugar

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease or line a 9x5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper or spray with non-stick cooking spray.
  2. Mash the Bananas. In a bowl, mash 2 large, very ripe bananas until mostly smooth.
  3. Combine Wet Ingredients. In a mixing bowl, cream softened butter, oil, brown sugar, and sugar for 3-4 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl halfway through for even mixing. Add in eggs, one at a time. Add mashed bananas, sour cream, buttermilk, and vanilla extract and mix until combined.
  4. Mix Dry Ingredients In a separate bowl, whisk together -- flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined. Overmixing can lead to a tough banana loaf. For extra warmth, you may stir in 1 teaspoon of cinnamon.
  5. Bake. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle with 3 Tablespoons of brown sugar. Bake for 50–60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. It should come out clean or with a few moist crumbs, not raw batter. I suggest tenting a piece of foil over the bread pan, halfway through baking to allow it to cook fully in the center without getting too brown.
  6. Cool & Slice. Let the bread cool in the pan for about 10–15 minutes before transferring it to a wire rack. Run a knife along the sides to loosen the bread from the pan.

Notes

  • Banana bread freezes well; wrap tightly and store up to 3 months for best texture.
  • Store at room temperature wrapped to keep moist; refrigerate only if humidity is high.
  • Enhance the basic loaf with chocolate chips, coconut and macadamia nuts, or walnuts according to preference.