Easy Banana Bread (No Mixer!)

Easy Banana Bread made with ripe bananas and sour cream is the PERFECT combo of moist rich and fluffy, and ready in only 60 minutes!

Our kitchen is on baking mode this week, and we’re making all of our favorites like Cinnamon Rolls and Apple Crisp!

Banana Bread
EASY BANANA BREAD (No Mixer!)

Easy Banana Bread is super simple to throw together on the weekend and grab all week for breakfast. Plus it’s super kid-friendly. I’m not kidding when I say that this is the BEST banana bread recipe I’ve tasted.

You can make a few different versions of this banana bread recipe by adding a handful of semi-sweet chocolate chips or a teaspoon of cinnamon to the batter. I’ve even added cocoa powder with the all purpose flour to make chocolate banana bread! Plus the kids love helping me add the chocolate chips to the bread.

HOW DO YOU MAKE BANANA BREAD MOIST?

The real secret to this banana bread recipe is the sour cream. That coupled with the mashed bananas is what makes this the most MOIST banana bread you’ll ever have in your life. You can use low fat sour cream to cut back on some of the calories, or swap it out entirely for applesauce, but you’ll lose some of the insanely soft texture.

HOW SHOULD BANANAS LOOK FOR BANANA BREAD?

To get that great banana flavor in your banana bread recipe, you want the bananas to be as brown as possible, without becoming rotten. It’s the delicate balance between over-ripe brown and way too mushy brown. Your bananas should be completely brown with practically no yellow left, with a sweet aroma.

The more ripe your bananas are, the better sweet banana flavor you’re going to get in your banana bread, and the easier they’ll be to mash.

Easy Banana Bread

CAN BANANAS BE TOO RIPE TO USE IN BANANA BREAD?

There’s a fine balance between ripe bananas and rotten bananas. If they’re past brown to black, throw them away. You also want your banana to be softer than the usual firmness, but not completely mushy. If it is difficult to peel the banana because of how soft they are then it’s too soft.

HOW DO I MAKE BANANAS RIPEN FASTER?

There’s a few ways to make bananas ripen faster. First, you can place them in a paper bag and leave them alone in a warm area for 1-2 days. The peels create ethylene gas, which fills up the bag and helps them turn brown faster.

If you don’t have time to wait for the paper bag method, try baking whole bananas at 300 degrees F for 20 minutes, or until they turn brown/black. Make sure you cool them completely before using them in banana bread. We’re using large eggs in this banana bread recipe, you don’t want the hot ingredients to start cooking them in the batter.

WHY DOES MY BANANA BREAD LOAF FALL?

A banana bread recipe can fall for a few reasons, mostly to do with measuring the ingredients. If you used too much baking powder, expired leavening agents, or over mixed the dough, your banana bread will have rising and texture issues.

Also make sure you follow the directions step-by-step. You want to mix your all purpose flour with the other dry ingredients to make sure they’re evenly dispersed.

And lastly, make sure you keep a constant even temperature while it’s baking. Resist the amazing aroma of banana bread baking in the oven and leave the door closed until it’s almost done. Also, invest in a good quality loaf pan for even heat distribution. Your banana bread recipe will thank you.

Moist Rich Banana Bread

HOW DO YOU STORE BANANA BREAD?

Wrap your banana bread loaf tightly in plastic wrap and store at room temperature for 3-4 days. I usually just leave it in the loaf pan. You can also cut the banana bread into slices and store it in an airtight container. Don’t store bread in the refrigerator as it will go stale faster.

TIPS FOR MAKING THIS EASY BANANA BREAD RECIPE

  • Make chocolate banana bread by replacing some of the all purpose flour with cocoa powder, and adding chocolate chips to the batter. Melt chocolate chips in the microwave and drizzle over finished loaf.
  • Use this banana bread batter in a muffin tin for banana bread muffins!
  • Swap 1/2 cup of sugar for brown sugar to add a deeper brown sugar banana flavor and brown color to the loaf.
  • Swap the all purpose flour with whole grain flour or cup for cup gluten free flour for a healthy alternative.
  • Cook the butter until it browns, then let it cool before adding it to the dough for a really nice browned butter flavor.
  • Drizzle the top of this banana bread with honey, icing, or a dusting of cinnamon for a decorative look. You can also add some crunch to your banana bread by adding 1/4-1/2 cup walnuts.
  • Mash your bananas in a food processor to make banana bread faster.

One Bowl Classic Banana Bread

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Easy Banana Bread (No Mixer!)

Easy Banana Bread made with ripe bananas and sour cream is the PERFECT combo of moist and fluffy, and ready in only 60 minutes!

Course Bread, Breakfast
Cuisine American
Keyword easy banana bread
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings 10 servings
Calories 285 kcal
Author Sabrina Snyder

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup butter melted
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 medium ripe bananas
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter and flour a 9x5 loafpan.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together butter and sugar before adding in the eggs, then the vanilla, then the sour cream and finally the bananas.
  3. Add the flour, baking soda and salt, whisking it until just combined into the butter mixture until smooth.
  4. Add the mixture to the loaf pan and bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Recipe Notes

Note: click on times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer while cooking.

Nutrition Facts
Easy Banana Bread (No Mixer!)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 285 Calories from Fat 108
% Daily Value*
Fat 12g18%
Saturated Fat 7g44%
Cholesterol 63mg21%
Sodium 329mg14%
Potassium 132mg4%
Carbohydrates 40g13%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 23g26%
Protein 3g6%
Vitamin A 420IU8%
Vitamin C 2.1mg3%
Calcium 24mg2%
Iron 1.1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

About the Author: Sabrina Snyder

Sabrina is a professionally trained Private Chef of over 10 years with ServSafe Manager certification in food safety. She creates all the recipes here on Dinner, then Dessert, fueled in no small part by her love for bacon.

Dinner, then Dessert, Inc. owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this site unless authorization is given. If you enjoyed the recipe and would like to publish it on your own site, please re-write it in your own words, and link back to my site and recipe page. Read my disclosure and copyright policy. This post may contain affiliate links.

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Comments

  1. This was really easy to make! I was developing fruit flies from my bananas and this was the perfect solution. This batter also makes great muffins. I baked them for 20-30 minutes instead of the full our. Absolutely delicious and banana-rific!

  2. Hello again made this yesterday for breakfast It was an instant hit…I am going to try as many recipes as possible from your site…this is simple and yummylicious..kudos to you..Thank You Soo Much!

  3. Best Banana bread! I’ve made this recipe 3-4 Times. It is easy to follow and moist and delish! I love this recipe because it does not require a hand mixer which is how I found this recipe. I have two small kids and a small kitchen so I need recipes that do not require too many tools. Today I topped it off with mini chocolate chips and used only 1/2 a cup of sugar and it was sweet enough.

  4. This banana bread recipe was amazing and so easy! I also loved the tips! I cooked the butter until it browned and also used a muffin pan–turned out amazing. For the muffin pan, I baked it for 25 minutes. I didn’t have a mixer so I searched for a no mix recipe and I’m so glad I found this. Thank you so much!

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