Just like my favorite cheesecake, tried-and-true lasagna, incredible french bread rolls, this banana bread is my all-time favorite if it’s kind. In fact, it is the only banana bread recipe I’ve made in years. Unlike the dark-flecked variety of banana bread (which is delicious in it’s own right), this bread is light, both in color and texture, and it has a wonderful buttery crust that is my favorite part. I’ve played around with the recipe, messing with the amount of sugar/bananas, so check out the notes in the recipe to see what works!
Buttermilk Banana Bread
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Printable Version with Picture
*Note: Often times, I’ll decrease the sugar to 1 cup, increase the bananas to 1 1/2 cups and the bread still turns out extremely moist and delicious!
*Makes 1 large loaf
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup mashed bananas (I use about 3 average sized bananas)
4 tablespoons buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
DIRECTIONS:
Grease and flour 1 large loaf pan (9 1/4 X 5 1/4-inch) or whatever combination of pans you’d like (several commenters have said this recipe works great made into muffins or smaller loaf pans).
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs, bananas, buttermilk and vanilla until the batter is well mixed. Add in the flour, baking powder, salt and soda. Mix until well combined. Divide batter into greased and floured bread pans and bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Recipe Source: from Aunt Marilyn
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Your Aunt should make a book! this was a really good “lighter” banana bread. My old standby is a darker one…it’s good but different than this. My time also took about 20 minutes longer but I blamed it on my stoneware pan. Sure is good though!!
Hi Melanie, thanks for your response. I used the same thing…basic nonstick bread pan. Mine did come out a bit darker than yours but it’s definately the best banana bread we’ve had and I make it every other week now. THanks again, I’ll be checking for other recipes on your blog! Cheers,Amber
Hi, love the recipe. Mine took much longer to cook, 20 min longer, and came out quite dark.
Hi, I know this is an old post but I just found it via google. I tried this bread last week and my family loved it. My bread was a bit darker than yours and I’m wondering what type of bread pan you use? Thanks again for a great recipe.Amber
I’ve made your banana bread recipe a couple of times now and we really like it! Last night I put a glaze on it while it was hot in the pan and then let it sit for about 5 minutes or so before dumping it onto a cooling rack. Yummy! I used the glaze from your buttermilk cookie recipe (powdered sugar, buttermilk, vanilla) only I didn’t measure anything, just stirred it up until it looked right. Everyone loved the banana bread glazed. Our other favorite banana bread recipe is in the recipe file I sent to you and is very similar to yours only it uses sour cream instead of buttermilk. It’s also very moist. I love it with milk chocolate chips stirred into it before baking.
You should submit this recipe to the Moist Banana Bread Contest:http://www.squidoo.com/moist-banana-bread-recipeWinner gets a $50 gift card to Sur La Table!!blessings,Shauna
Wow–I have never seen such a light colored banana bread. I too love buttermilk in baking and use it all the time. I still trying to figure out why the usual recipe is so dark and flecked?? I am definetly gong to make this up! Thanks for sharing!
I made this today and it was yummy. Jed really liked it! It was really moist too. For some reason my edges were WAY more browned than yours – I’m convinced it’s my bread pans because all of my sweet breads do that. I’ll have to ask you what kind of pans you use.
Anyway, thanks for the recipe!
I have been using buttermilk more and more in things, and this banana bread sounds wonderful!
Anonymous – glad you liked this, although it is interesting on the baking time. I wonder if our altitudes make a difference (depending on where you live)?
Another great banana bread recipe to try! Sounds heavenly!
Hey Mel! This bread sounds so good. I was just thinking about banana bread this weekend too! FYI – I made your rolls again and I’m posting about them with a link to your recipe. They are so awesome! Thanks again!
Wow, this bread sounds and looks amazing! I am going to try this very soon, because I have some bananas just waiting to be mashed and used as bread!
Thanks for the nice comment on my blog, I love your blog too!!!
Carrie – I agree, this banana bread is different from many others. I’m glad you liked it! Thanks for letting me know.
Melanie,I think you’ve convinced me to try this banana bread recipe. It looks and sounds great. I love using buttermilk in my baking as much as I can. Yumm!
Such a light colored banana bread! What a surprise! I love it!
Anonymous – I agree on the cookbook thing but I haven’t talked my aunt into it yet! Glad you liked this variation of banana bread. There are so many varieties out there, it’s always fun to try a new one!
Mmmm…buttery flavored crust, I’ll have to give this one a try!
Evelyn – I agree with you, I’ve always been a fan of lighter banana breads and I am so glad you liked this recipe! Thanks for letting me know.
Hey Jen – I’m flattered that you have made this and like it! I actually have a banana bread recipe with sour cream (I think it is almost identical to the one in your file) that I want to try because I’ve heard it is super moist!
This bread is different from the recipes I’ve tried but is SO yummy and sweet!! I love the buttermilk in it. Thanks for your fantastic recipe and website!
That sounds yummy! I love banana bread…I’ll have to try this one!
Hi Amber – for my banana bread, I just use a really basic nonstick 9X5 pan that I think I got at Walmart. It is definitely nothing special. What kind of pan did you use?
Another great recipe! I’m a big fan of banana bread, but have never really liked the darker variety, so this one was a nice change. Thanks!
Have some older bananas to use and I want to try this!
I have to disagree with the raves for this recipe. I found it overly sweet, almost sickeningly so, and that’s saying something because I love my sugar. I can’t imagine adding to it with a vanilla glaze. The banana flavor was negligible. Moist it was, yes, but that too was a problem because almost none of my slices held together whether I cut them thick or thin. Sorry, but I doubt I’ll be making this again.
Anonymous – I’ve been making this bread for years with nothing but rave reviews so I’m sorry that yours didn’t turn out. You shouldn’t apologize for not liking a recipe. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. My guess is that if your slices weren’t holding together, the bread may have needed to be baked longer because this does produce a sturdy loaf. Sorry it didn’t work out for you!
This is officially the best banana bread the has ever seen. My only complaint is that when I make it…I cannot stop eating it. Mind you, I still make it often. It is moist, cake-like, and the first time I had it my husband and I ate half a loaf in one day.
Anonymous – I’m guessing that even though the loaf looked browned, it probably needed a few more minutes in the oven. But I’m glad that you liked it despite that one hiccup. Thanks for letting me know!
Am i to use self-raising or plain flour for this recipe??
Anonymous – I use regular unbleached all purpose flour for this recipe.
Melanie! This is the BEST banana bread I’ve ever had in my LIFE!! Ahhhh!!! Exclamtion pointsss!! Listen, I love me some banana bread..but I LOVEEEE me some of *this* banana bread even more. My go to recipe from now on. See, I told you you never let me down! (oh, and ps..I totally made succulent steak for Valentine’s day..but I added a caramelized onion sauce to the top. To die for. But I had one leftover uncooked steak..so I let it continue marinading in your marinade for like another day and then I cooked it up, sliced it down, and melted some cheese on it before sliding it into hoagie rolls. OH MY GOSH! YUUMMMMM!!!)
You are the greatest. Get someone to pat you on the back for me.
Abby – you make me laugh! Thanks for your great comment. I'm so glad you liked the banana bread and your addition of the caramelized onions on the steak sounds FANTASTIC. Now I'm off to see if my five year old will pat my back for me. Doubt it.
Just wanted to thank you for this banana bread – we make it on a regular basis and really can't get enough. Sometimes I often secretly hope that my bananas will get overly ripe so I can make it!As a sidenote – this recipe makes amazing muffins too. And I often do half white flour, half white wheat flour. It still tastes great, and my husband is none the wiser!
Shauntel – you are so nice…and your comment made me smile (about the wishful thinking on the ripening bananas!). I'm glad that you like this recipe and love the note about the muffin conversion and white wheat substitution. Definitely trying that!
I had ripe bananas yesterday and wanted to make banana bread. I jumped right onto your blog, sure that you would have a great recipe. We tried this one and WOW – how yummy! We all loved it! Thanks!
Lisa – so glad you liked this, thanks for letting me know!
Mel – I’ve made this recipe twice and revised it each time.
First, I used half the amount of butter, then substituted applesauce for the other half. I had to bake a little longer, but it turned out fabulous.
The second time I made it, I substituted brown sugar for half of the white sugar; then I also substituted applesauce for half of the eggs [I ran out of eggs & refused to go to the grocery store for an egg]. Once again, it turned out fabulous!
I agree – this is by far THE BEST banana bread recipe EVER!
Thanks for your input on this recipe, Melissa! I can’t wait to try it and reduce the butter…and I love the addition of brown sugar. I bet it is delicious that way!
I think this is the first recipe that I have made of yours that I did not adore. I thought it was good, but I have other recipes that I love more than this. Also, I used the stoneware breadpan to make it and it needed to be cooked 20 more minutes additionally to your 50 minutes.
Emily – sorry you didn’t like this banana bread! It must be a matter of preference…but thanks for letting me know either way.
Just made these for my husband and two sons this morning. What a hit! Absolutely the best banana bread I’ve ever had…I don’t miss the dark bits at all (they always kind of bothered me, anyway). Thanks so much to you and your Auntie. This will be my new standby recipe for banana bread. Awesome!
Christie – thanks for the compliments on this recipe. I’ll forever be grateful to my aunt for giving it to me! I’m so glad you liked it.
I made this today and it really was the best banana bread I’ve ever made. It was actually the test drive for my new metallic bread pan (that you recommended). I actually reduced the sugar by 1/2 cup since I was planning on using it for breakfast. It is delicious, but I think it would be delicious with the full amount of sugar as well!! I only had 2 black bananas so I used applesauce to total the 1 cup of bananas. Worked perfectly for us since my husband isn’t huge into the banana flavor of banana bread. I did have to bake it about 20 min. longer, but I’m sure it’s because I used the entire amount of batter in one pan rather than having some in mini pans.
Aunt Marilyn’s the best! =)
This is the best banana bread recipe that I have tasted! It was an absolute hit with my family. I added another banana and it made it moister. The absolute bomb is sugaring the pan instead of flouring it. We used to fight over the top, but now we fight over the bottom! You are awesome!!
kristen – thanks for your comment on this recipe! I’m so glad this is a hit for you and the fam. I love the sugaring idea, too!
Celia – thanks for your detailed comment! I’m so glad that you liked this recipe. And yes, I agree, Aunt Marilyn IS the best.
I have previously made the sour cream banana bread (which was excellent), but this time I had bananas and buttermilk on hand so I decided to try this recipe.
This was also excellent! It was light and sweet and the crust gets nice and crunchy when I put it on the toaster oven. I only had two bananas but otherwise followed the recipe exactly.
Top it with a little pat of butter when it’s still warm, and you have a very yummy treat!
Ruchita – glad you liked this version! It is definitely one of my favorites.
Mel, this is by far the best banana bread recipe I’ve ever had! I had no buttermilk in the house and the only bananas to be had were whole, frozen black and stuck to the bottom of my freezer. I used the bananas and subed whole milk and lemon juice for the buttermilk and they were still fantastic. Your recipes have impressed me more than a couple of times. Thank you so much for making my life so much easier in the kitchen. BTW, I just mixed up your recipe for Oatmeal Pancake Mix…I’m sure I’ll be posting a raving review tomorrow
Hiya! So I doubled this recipe and made two large loaves today. I had to let them cook an additional 2o minutes like some of the other people did. Only problem was that the outside of the bread is overcooked, while the inside is just perfect. Not really sure how to solve this problem without splitting them into smaller loaf pans.
Also, my loaves are really crumbly. Yummy, but break apart when slicing. Do you know why this might happen? I followed the recipe to a T. I’ve had this happen once before with a different banana bread recipe and don’t know what causes it. Anyway… thanks for the recipe as always and here’s to making it even better the next go around!
Hi Anissa! If your bread is getting overcooked on the outside, I would definitely use smaller bread pans, like you mentioned. There can be variances in oven temperature and pans (based on what the pan is made of) and that can all make a difference in how a baked good turns out. I’m not sure why it would be crumbly, though. I’ve never had that happen. The only thing I can think of is wondering if your butter wasn’t softened enough…but again, I’m not sure if that would be the problem.
Amy – thanks for such a sweet comment! I’m thrilled this banana bread was such a hit – even with your creative adaptations.
I made this recipe today but I made it in muffin pans instead of loaves. I live by myself so grabbing a single muffin on the way out the door in the morning is just easier, and I can freeze some, so they don’t go bad on me.
I followed the recipe exactly and ended up getting 16 muffins out of it. I baked them for 20 minutes, and they were lightly browned.
Great recipe, I’ve got a few other ones bookmarked now! Thanks
I made this today and it really is the BEST banana bread! The only thing I don’t like is that it doesn’t dome at all, in fact in sunk just the slightest bit in the middle. I think this is due to the “sad cake” phenomenon when your fat & liquid to dry ratios are off (too much fat & liquid) but in this case, I wouldn’t want to add more flour or change anything just to get a pretty bread. However, I can’t use this recipe for the fair b/c they won’t even taste something if is sunk in the middle b/c they assume it is underdone.
So I’ll have to use another stupid recipe that won’t be as good. BTW, what loaf pans do you use? Mine turn the outside so much darker than yours.
Veronica – I’ve never had this sink in the middle! And I’m bummed it did for you so that you can’t use it for the fair. As for the pans, I use a really old pan my mom gave me and it doesn’t have a brand name on it. It is a really light (both in color and durability) aluminum. That may be why mine turns out so light.
Hi Vanessa – thanks for the review on this recipe and information on baking them as muffins. I’m so glad you liked the end result!
Don’t worry, I was too busy stuffing my face with it to cry over not being able to use it–LOL! It’s soooooo incredible. I think I will try again because I may have overmeasured the buttermilk or something. Even if it falls again, I will have no problem eating the mistake again–haha.
Woah, This looks perfect! I am making this, this weekend! Thanks for the post.
Well, i came by from a request from Veronica. The only thing that threw me off was the “dash” of baking soda. I doubled the recipe and the loaves are about to go in the oven. By tasting the batter, i can tell it is superb in flavor. Thank you so much, i will drop back by when they are done!
Ok, i made it. Love the flavor, it is exceptionally moist, it is a sweeter than usual banana bread, but we all love the sweetness ( now i don’t have to make desert tonight) Mine was a bit darker, but not much, it did start sinking at first but then rose up, did not dome, but thats ok. I had to sub lemon juice and milk ( no buttermilk on hand and i had to make it RIGHT NOW< LOL) I appreciate the recipe, def. a keeper
Regarding Kim’s doubt about the dash of baking soda–I think that’s there b/c of the buttermilk. Whenever an acid is present in a recipe, there’s usually baking soda because they react with one another and I think it helps the rising. And I think it’s only a dash b/c of the small amount of buttermilk. I think in a recipe I used 1 cup of buttermilk, the baking soda was like 1/2 teaspoon. Do I have it right, Mel?
I had to come back. I know it is always better the next day, but i am seriously keeping this recipe forever. My family just devoured the last loaf after lunch. Looks like i need to get more bananas!
Veronica.. i used 1 teaspoon for each batch and mine wasn’t fallen in. It was flat. I’d say, perfecto!
Kim F. – thanks for checking back again to let me know this was delicious the second day, too! As for the baking soda issue, yes, Veronica, you are right…baking soda is used whenever there is an acid present. It neutralizes the acids and provides a bit of leavening, as well as tenderness, too. A “dash” is kind of an ambiguous term but I’m glad you found a workaround that helped your bread turn out, Kim. I will probably edit the recipe to state 1/8 teaspoon, although it sounds like your 1 teaspoon worked fine, too!
Thanks for the tip.
I appreciapte you writing back to me.
I am making your banana bread tomorrow. I heard so many good reviews from Kim and Veronica, that I have to try it. My bananas are ready!!! I will get back to you with the results. I am sure I will love it
My bread turned out awesome! I love it! Thanks!
Cheryl – I’m thrilled to hear that! Thanks for checking back in.
Mel–check Cheryl’s page (The Southern Cookbook)–she posted a pic of your bread that gives me banana bread jealousy! It looks so perfect it’s about to kill me. I think my baking powder may not be very good b/c mine didn’t look anything like that.
This looks so delicious. I’ve seen such boring banana bread,however this looks more like a moist cake. I could totally see this as a cupcake recipe and top it off with cream cheese frosting. YUM! Very nice blog.
This is happening tomorrow!
I am in love with your website! I use it almost everyday! I made this the other day and it is the best banana bread I have ever tasted!! seriously!.. I will be making this again soon.
Thanks, Brooke!
this looks so delicious!
have a nice time!
Paula
Best Banana Bread EVER!!!
Thanks, Ruth!
Made your banana bread yesterday and when my daughter got home from school she had two slices – after the first bite she said “Wow, full of flavor – yet soft and chewy” I was cracking up – it was indeed full of flavor and wonderfully moist! Thanks for the great recipe – definitely beats my old betty crocker banana bread recipe!
Sue E – that is a hilarious (and quite intuitive) comment from your daughter. She should be a guest judge on Iron Chef America or something! So glad this bread was a hit!
My sister made this bread for me & then gave me a link to your website. THANKS for all the hard work you put into this site. I love it!
This is THE BEST banana bread ever for sure.
Thanks, Susanna – it’s so sweet of you to comment and let me know. Tell your sister thanks for me.
This banana bread has become almost a staple treat at our house. We really love this recipe! I have tried a couple of different things with it.
First when I had a half of a loaf that didn’t get eaten in time, I used it in bread pudding. I cubed up the bread just like I would have french bread and let it soak for awhile, maybe 15-20 min? It made a really good banana bread pudding!
Most recently, I have been getting the mood for fall which always means PUMPKIN bread. I made this same recipe and substituted pumpkin in the place of banana and man was it awesome! Now this is my go to banana bread and pumpkin bread recipe.
Thanks Mel, keep the incredible recipes coming!
Thanks, Summer! Love the idea of a banana bread pudding…
BEST banana bread recipe…hands down. I made the banana muffins, cooking for roughly 40 minutes and they were delic. Not only is this recipe great but the effort involved was so minimal. Can’t wait to try the next MEL recipe.
Thanks, Amy! I love that this recipe works so great as muffins. Thanks for letting me know!
I’ve made this recipe several times and it is always perfection. No other banana bread compares. I’ve even subbed in white whole wheat flour, brown sugar, and an egg white for one of the eggs and it’s still come out FABULOUSLY.
I think I love you for introducing me to this recipe.
I recently started my own food blog (inspired by bloggers like you!) and posted this recipe tonight, in muffin form. Check it out if you like! And thank you so much for this recipe!!
http://bakingwithbuttermilk.wordpress.com/2010/11/09/go-to-banana-bread-muffin-recipe/
Thanks, Caroline! I’m so glad that you love this recipe. Thanks for including some of the variations you’ve tried!
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I linked back to you when I posted it and I wanted to stop back and tell you how awesome it is. We can’t get enough!
Thanks, Michelle!
Mel, can you use thawed bananas from the freezer in this recipe? I always freeze them when they start to get dark, then they get a little watery, interested in how to adjust for that, while still utilizing my fruit!
Brandi – I’ve never used bananas from the freezer that have been thawed in this but I’m guessing it should work just fine and is definitely worth a try! If, after thawing, they have liquid pooling on the plate or wherever they are sitting, I would drain that before smashing them and using them in the recipe.
Okay, so I have been wanting to make this banana bread for awhile now. I was quite nervous when after 5o minutes it was still “wiggly” in the middle. It did take about 10-15 more minutes for it to be done for me. Then, I was anxious to take it out of the pan and it ended up falling apart a bit for me. That was totally my fault, though. I didn’t let it cool enough. So, I put it back together and it looks fine. I just tasted it and boy, is it delicious! I can’t wait for my hubby to come home to taste it! He’s gonna love me….well he already does, but he’ll love me even more!
This was fantastic. We really enjoyed it.
Oh. My. Heavens. These are so delicious! They are sweeter than my regular banana bread recipe (which I love). I also enjoyed the texture and buttery flavor. I made 24 muffins (baking for 30 minutes) and my kids downed them all in minutes!
WOW!!! Just found this site through Two Peas and Their Pod. Love the recipes and will be adding you to my favorties. Paulette
Love this recipe. Never used buttermilk in my banana bread and chance would have it that there were both *ripe* bananas and buttermilk in the kitchen. Wonderful results tho mine came out with a darker crust. Probably my pan/oven combo. I mixed it up a little and added a peanut butter cream ribbon on the inside and candied peanuts on the top. Would not have worked without your terrific recipe as a basis. Thanks Melanie!
The bread is in the oven now. The batter is SO DELICIOUS I can’t wait to taste the actual bread! Thank you so much for the recipe.
I made this this week for my son’s class as mini muffins and made double the recipe so we had some for home too. Figured they’d be around a while since I made a lot but my son who is pretty picky gobbled them down. Love the recipe. Thanks!
Wow, this recipe is so good that eating bananas by themselves seems like a waste. It never seems like bananas last long enough…but now, it’ll feel like they last too long. So yummy! Thanks for the recipe.
Are you using powder buttermilk or liquid? I have powdered buttermilk and I’m not sure if I should use 4 table spoons of powered or 4 of it converted into liquid…
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