From scratch · Quick breads
Banana bread
Very ripe bananas, butter and a little brown sugar in a moist loaf.
✋ 15 min hands-on
⏱ 1 hr 45 min start to finish
🍽 One 9 × 5-inch loaf, about 10 slices.
ContainsMilk, Eggs, Wheat.
Ingredients
- 3 bananas, very ripe, mashed (about 1⅓ cups)
- 76 g butter, salted, melted
- ⅔ cup brown sugar, packed
- 2 eggs, large
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 190 g all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 3 g table salt
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon (optional)
- ½ cup walnuts, chopped (optional)
Time
Hands-on time is when you’re busy; the rest is rising, simmering, chilling or cooling, when you can do something else.
| Step | Hands-on | Waiting |
|---|---|---|
| Mix | 15 min | – |
| Bake at 350°F | – | 1 hr |
| Cool | – | 30 min |
| In all | 15 min | 1 hr 30 min |
How long it keeps
- Counter: wrapped, about 3 days (NDSU’s figure for bread).
- Freezer: wrapped once cool, 2 to 4 months (University of Missouri’s time for quick breads); thaw in the wrapping, 1 to 2 hours.
Nutrition
Estimated from the ingredients’ USDA FoodData Central numbers.
Steps
You’ll need: bowl, 9 × 5-inch loaf pan.
- Heat the oven to 350°F and grease the pan.
- Mash the bananas in a bowl, then stir in the melted butter, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla.
- Sprinkle the baking soda, salt and cinnamon over the top and stir, then stir in the flour (and nuts) just until no dry flour shows.
- Bake 55 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick in the middle comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes in the pan, then on a rack.
⚖️ ScalingDouble it for two pans. The darker the bananas, the sweeter the bread.
🛡 SafetyDon’t taste raw dough or batter, and wash your hands and the counter after handling flour: raw flour can carry germs that only baking kills (FDA).
Sources
- Food Storage Guide (FN579), NDSU Extension, reviewed January 2023. Accessed 2026-10-25.
- How to Freeze Home-Prepared Foods (GH1505), University of Missouri Extension. Accessed 2026-10-25.
- Handling Flour Safely: What You Need to Know, U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Accessed 2026-10-25.