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I have been using this banana bread recipe for thirty years. It has amazing texture and flavor. And I know that you will agree that this recipe makes the very BEST banana bread.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe!
This truly is the BEST recipe ever! I can call it that because my maiden name is Best – so I guess every recipe I have could be called the BEST recipe.
But seriously, this recipe is the BEST! I have been making this recipe for years years. The recipe came from one of those little softcover recipe books you can buy in the grocery store line.
Everyone I have ever made this bread for LOVES it and asks for the recipe.
Last summer when my friend’s teenage daughter had ACL repair surgery the one thing she asked for after her surgery was my banana bread. Of course there was a warm loaf waiting for her when she got home from the hospital.
Ingredients Needed
- Ripe Bananas
- Sugar
- Oil. I use canola oil but you can use any mild oil such as vegetable, avocado or sunflower oil. You can use butter if you prefer but I think the oil really gives this bread great texture.
- Eggs
- Sour cream. You can also use plain yogurt.
- Vanilla Extract
- Flour. My preference is unbleached all purpose flour
- Baking Soda
- Salt
How to Make Best Banana Bread Recipe
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Grease and flour bottom of 9 x 5″ loaf pan.
- In a large bowl, mix together sugar and oil. Add in eggs, banana, sour cream and vanilla. Blend well.
- Whisk in flour, baking soda and salt and stir until dry ingredients are moistened.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes of until a toothpick comes out clean
- Cool 5 minutes and remove from pan. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack on the counter.
Tips from Leigh Anne
- I like to mix my banana bread by hand instead of in a stand mixer. This prevents you from over mixing the batter which can cause the banana read to become tough in texture.
- My favorite way to enjoy banana bread is to slice it warm and add a bit of butter on top!
We love to add chocolate chips to this recipe. Nuts are great too. Just add 1 cup of either or 1/2 cup of each if you would like to use both.
If you love cinnamon, add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon in with dry ingredients. Cinnamon and chocolate chips together is also a great combination.
You can also make a dozen muffins with this recipe. Just pour batter into a prepared (greased or lined) muffin tins and bake at 350 degrees F for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make mini loaves of banana bread?
This recipe will make about 3 mini loaves of banana bread. Baking time will be about 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
How do you store leftover bread?
Store the bread wrapped in plastic wrap or in a zippered plastic bag at room temperature. It will last 3-4 days.
To freeze bread: Allow to cool completely and then wrap it airtight in plastic wrap and aluminum foil and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
What is the best way to mash bananas?
If your bananas are really ripe you won’t have to mash them, just squeeze them out of the skin directly into the batter. For firmer bananas, mash them by placing them in a bowl and use your hand mixer to beat them until the desired consistency. If you want chunks of banana in your bread don’t beat it as much and leave it somewhat chunky. Beat it smooth if you don’t want chunks of banana in your bread.
Can I use frozen banana?
You can but allow it to thaw at room temperature first before adding it into batter.
Check out more of my other favorite quick bread recipes:
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Best Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup mashed ripe banana
- 1/2 cup sour cream or Greek yogurt
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Grease and flour bottom of 9 x 5″ loaf pan.
- In a large bowl, mix together sugar and oil. Add in eggs, banana, sour cream and vanilla. Blend well.
- Add in flour, baking soda and salt and stir until dry ingredients are moistened.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes of until a toothpick comes out clean
- Cool 5 minutes and remove from pan. Cool completely. Makes 1 loaf.
Tips & Notes:
Nutrition Facts:
Kristin says
I just finished making banana bread – it literally came out of the oven 10 minutes ago. The recipe I have is nearly identical to yours – with the exception of three things (That’s nearly identical isn’t it LOL) Mine uses butter instead of oil, no sour cream and one less egg. I will have to make your next tiem and compare the two. Thanks so much!!
Kristin
Melanie says
I love the light color of the bread – that’s my preference with banana bread. I’m saving the recipe to try for sure!
Leigh Anne says
Carol
I am not a big fan of nuts in my baked goods but I’m sure they would be great. Chocolate chips is a great idea too. I recently saw a recipe for banana bread with white chocolate chips – yum! While in Florida a few weeks ago I had a salad that they put banana bread croutons on – they were delish. I am saving one of my small loaves to give it a try and make croutons out of. Happy baking!!
carol says
Hey Leigh Anne…. k, I know what I’m doing with those black bananas on my counter when I get home tonight. I’m curious, have you ever added nuts or chocolate (or any other kind of) chips to the recipe?
Tina says
Sounds yummy! I have everything but the sour cream, and not even plain or vanilla yogurt to substitute, so it will have to wait a few days.
srcesario says
I substituted the sour cream with mascarpone cheese for a creamer taste and added oats and walnuts – I also balanced between white flour and whole wheat flour as well as white and brown sugar. Delicious !!!
Leigh Anne says
Love your changes- glad you liked it!