Sour Cream Banana Bread {One-Bowl!}
This one-bowl sour cream banana bread recipe is amazingly popular for good reason! Super moist and fluffy, it is crazy delicious and so easy to make!
There are a lot of divisions in the world when it comes to banana bread. First and foremost, I would say, is The Great Nut Debate.
Do we dare talk about this here?
Yes, I think we should.
Do you welcome, allow, and love nuts in your banana bread? Or not?
(I’m in the solid not camp on this one, but I genuinely would love to know how you feel about the issue.)
The second big issue (and a conundrum to some) is whether you prefer your banana bread dark and speckly or if you are a fan of golden, light-colored banana bread?
I think the darker crumbed banana bread (like in today’s sour cream banana bread post) is generally thought to be a bit more traditional. Those speckles are a sign of great banana bread, right?
But if you’ve never tried a buttery, light, golden banana bread loaf, you might be missing out (my favorite version is here).
Banana bread definitely brings out a lot of different (and strong) loyalties in people.
You wouldn’t believe the impassioned comments I’ve received about banana bread over the years.
It has been enlightening…and sometimes downright frightening, if I’m being honest. (You feel that strongly about banana bread, huh? Wow.)
There are those that firmly believe there is no place in this world for my beloved golden-loafed banana bread.
And others that believe the dark speckly speckles are for the dogs.
I’ll leave you to search your own soul and determine how you ultimately feel about banana bread and just tell you that I’ve found over the years, I can easily make room in my heart for both kinds (the bespeckled and the unspeckled).
NERD ALERT: As a quick aside, I’ve done a lot of reading and testing (I’m telling you, NERD, and proud of it) to figure out why some banana bread loaves have a light-colored crumb and other recipes produce the dark speckles like you see in these pictures.
One likely reason? Baking soda.
Banana bread recipes that have a larger amount of baking soda usually have a darker crumb. This sour cream banana bread has a full teaspoon of baking soda…and it clearly results in darker speckles.
The buttermilk banana bread I’ve referenced several times already with the light-colored crumb only has 1/8 teaspoon baking soda.
I’m far from a chemist (my least favorite college class in the history of ever, actually), but apparently baking soda is a pretty reactionary ingredient.
And I think it has a lot to do with how the color of the banana bread turns out.
So there. Chew on that for a while.
Today I’m bringing back this crowd favorite from the archives: sour cream banana bread.
I posted it so long ago (back in June 2009*) that I think it’s gotten a little lonely.
For a classic, traditional, perfect banana bread recipe, you can’t go wrong with this one.
If you take a quick glance through the comments, you’ll easily see that many, many, many of you have fallen in love with this banana bread over the years.
No surprise!
It is so easy – one bowl! So delicious – supremely moist and tender!
It really is one of the best banana bread recipes out there.
*It seems unreal that you say the year 2009 and I say “yep, I was blogging back then.” Who knew I’d still be at it over 8 years later (it’s been almost ten years total since I started this adventure!).
I just wanted to take a quick, sappy moment to say thanks for still being here.
Even if you weren’t around all the way back in 2009 when my family was making cross-country moves from Utah to Wisconsin every couple of years, I’m so grateful you are here now.
And if you WERE around back then, let’s just all have a moment of silence for how far we’ve come (and by we, I mean I) in regards to photography…and really all things blogging (my website back then was.a.mess).
You have no idea how amazing it is to me that you visit here, comment here, try recipes from here…and support me in this blogging endeavor. Love your guts to the moon and back.
See How to Make It Here!
Sour Cream Banana Bread
Ingredients:
- 1 cup (7.5 ounces) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup oil (see note)
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 8 ounces), 3 ripe bananas
- 1/2 cup (4 ounces) sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 1/2 cup (7.5 ounces) flour (see note)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Grease and flour a 9X5-inch loaf pan (or several mini loaf pans).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar and oil. Add the eggs, bananas, sour cream and vanilla; blend well.
- Add the flour, baking soda and salt; stir just until dry ingredients are moistened. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes until toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
- Cool for five minutes in the pan. Gently turn out onto a cooling rack and cool completely. Store covered at room temperature (the bread also freezes great).
Notes:
This banana bread recipe has been around a LONG time, and judging by your comments, I’m not alone in my love for it. Over the years, I’ve made little changes (don’t worry, I didn’t mess with the recipe above!) – I often sub applesauce for part of the oil (up to half) and sometimes use melted butter in place of the oil), use 50% whole wheat flour, decrease the sugar to 3/4 cup (especially if using very ripe bananas), and very often, I double the recipe and make two loaves because it freezes great.
Don’t pack the flour in the measuring cup. Fluff up the flour really well, scoop, and level.
Follow @melskitchencafe on Instagram and show me the recipes you are making from my blog using the hashtag #melskitchencafe. I love seeing all the goodness you are whipping up in your kitchens!
Recipe Source: adapted slightly from Leigh Anne at Your Homebased Mom
Recipe originally posted June 2009; updated with new pictures, recipe notes, and commentary.
This is the best banana bread recipe by far. It comes out perfect every time. I had a cup of blueberries to my bread.
Wow! This turned out delicious! Soft and moist. I’ll be making this again soon. I recommend using a bit less sugar than listed.
I meant to give it 5 stars.. oops
Followed this recipe to a T and it’s perfect. Absolutely the BEST banana bread ever. So moist and dense. The bread is devour within a day! Thank you so much
This recipe looks AMAZING!!! I can’t wait to try it! Is there any way you can use gluten-free flour in this recipe and it still taste the same?
I haven’t tried that so I’m not sure. But there may be others in the comments who have tried it.
This is a good bananna bread recipe. It is moist and that is what I was looking for. I did add some walnuts.
I added 1/2 cup blueberries and a tsp cinnamon. Amazing!
Just made this and added peanut butter chips. Yum!
Just made this today. It turned out great. After I greased the pan I sprinkled it with cinnamon instead of flour.
Excellent!!!!!!!
So… I am in the solid “Banana- bread-SHOULD-HAVE-nuts-in-it” camp, but my husband is adamant that it should not. Haha. As a result, I made it to his liking, without nuts. It is a wonderful banana bread recipe and did not last long at all! We ate it as a dessert with every single meal (breakfast, lunch and dinner) and as a snack throughout the day!! Addictive! Next time, I think I will add some chocolate chips (and maybe some nuts:-) )
Hi Mel, thank you for this recipe. This is the best banana bread I’ve ever made – and I’ve made a lot. I used coconut oil and all white whole wheat flour and it turned out incredibly delicious. Such a quick and easy recipe to get in the oven. Thank you!!
Any idea what carbs, calories in banana bread? Yes l made this l added pecans and pumpkin seeds to it. Looks delicious have not cut it yet to try it out.
I don’t have the nutrition facts. Sorry!
Mel I love this recipe and make it all the time. So so yummy! Thanks! Do you think there is way to make this in a bread machine???
I’m not sure, sorry!
Best banana bread I’ve tasted!
Made it without oil only applesauce, added lemon and orange zest and fresh blueberries along with the the bananas. Made 2 large. Muffins yuuumm,y!
Should have been: Made 12 muffins
This is my go to recipe for banana bread. I can count on it being moist and delicious every time I make it. Thanks!!!
So good! I think I may have mashed the bananas too much though – I put them in a blender till they were practically banana juice and the resulting bread was pretty thick. How much do you mash bananas normally? I also only have a 7×4 loaf pan so i put the leftovers in a muffin pan and the tops carmelized beautifully~
I usually just mash with a fork until they are mostly mashed but still just very lightly lumpy.
I’ve made this banana bread twice now and both times it came out awesome. My company said it was the best banana bread they had ever had! First time, I made as recipe shown, subbing butter for the oil. Second time, I used 1/4 cup melted butter and 1/4 applesauce and added 1/2 cup chocolate chips. This recipe is a keeper!!
Hi I wanted to go eggless for this recipe
What are the variations for other ingredients I can use..
Thanks
Nithya
My husband likes the inclusion of raisins in his dessert breads so although this recipe is very good I found that with the raisins the bread too sweet. The next time I will add 1 cup of semi sweet chocolate chips and reduce the sugar to 1/2 cup. Really enjoyed the simplicity of this recipe.
Fantastic Recipe! Came out as it looked in the pictures! Very Moist and visually appealing. Really recommend using this recipe. Love the information on the darker bits.
It was yummy and I used yogurt instead of sour cream also added nutmeg too cuz I like that flavor alot Great recipe!
I was given a recipe similar to this one & it was a disaster. The recipe called for 1 1/2 sugar much too much and oil. I don’t like to mix that much sugar with oil. I will try it again with 1/2 C sugar and butter instead of oil. Would that be 1 Stick of butter (soft)? I think butter & sugar would mix better. And the time to bake it was 350 45 mins. The knife was sticky when I tested it after baking and the top was all much too crusty and much too sweet. What do u think of this??. And 1/2 cup sour cream instead of 1/3 cup
Just made this-this morning…..YUM!!!! I doubled it, used 3/4 sugar, coconut oil and substituted Greek yogurt for the sour cream. Your blog completely changed my kitchen and meals when I found it 8 or 9 years ago! Thanks for having such FANTASTIC recipes!
This is another keeper!! Delicious and so easy!! Thank you, thank you!
Love this recipe, the only thing I added was chopped pecans. All the ingredients are very simple and the result is a delicious moist banana loaf bread. Thank you for sharing.
A long time ago I lost my recipe that was made with sour cream. I have tried several over the years and this is by far the best one I have ever had. The slight crunch on the top crust was pretty amazing. I don’t like nuts in my banana so this was perfect! Highly recommended! Great job!
Baked into 12 mini muffins and 6 regular muffins and turned out great. I cut the sugar to: scant 1/4 cup white and scant 1/4 cup brown. Used just shy of 1/2 cup of applesauce (to clear it out of the pantry) with the rest canola oil. Also added 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon to batter and sprinkled chopped walnuts on top. Toddler gobbled up two mini muffins and almost a whole regular one! This recipe is a keeper. Thank you Mel.
If I use apple sauce in place of oil is it the same measure?
Yes.
This will be my new go to recipe. I loved that it was simple and still gave me amazing tasting bread. This is the second recipe from this site I have tried and they both were big hits.
The only banana bread I make now! Other than some occasional addition of chocolate chips, there is nothing I would change.
Best banana bread I have had went over well with family.
Well add another *great review* to your addition
Absolutely awesome B.B.
Even the teenagers scooped some up and asked for more
That’s it all gone
Will have to make 2 at a time lol xo
wrost recipe they didn’t come out of pan
Dough was very runny i follow recipe to t taste good moist though
Try again my dear
It will be worth it
strange it was runny…maybe sour cream needed stirring before adding?
I’ve been baking for nearly 50 years and this is the best banana bread recipe ever. My husband is a bit picky and he LOVES it! If you don’t have sour cream on hand, you can do as I did and substitute Fage plain Greek yogurt. It comes out moist and beautiful. Try it, you won’t be disappointed.
I used buttermilk cause I had no sour cream
The results were awesome as well
Has anyone ever did this recipe as muffins? If so, are there any changes that need to be made to the recipe?
I am right now and I’d say no..I’m working with a toaster oven and little regular size tins. I added cinnamon and raisins and cranraisans. Don’t think its the “best” I’ve had but its a good recipe.
This bread is delicious & so moist. I did use 1/2-1/2 brown sugar & white sugar.
Thank you for this yummy recipe.
loved it was moist and rich not to mention very easy to make took very little time will make again and again love how simple
I am type 2 diabetic and I try to create lower sugar recipes. For this recipe I substituted Stevia brown sugar 1 quarter cup , coconut sugar quarter cup, and fancy molasses quarter cup. In place of oil I used Besel quarter cup.i used 4 very ripe bananas and 2 cups of flour.followed the rest from the recipe and put into 10 mini loaf pans baked 30 min at 350. Turned out so moist and tasty! Thank you for a great recipe.
It is a very moist recipe. Bake it one day, then serve. Next day. Why is. It that I can’t publish my recipes on Pinterest. I have so many. My family is so diverse. We are Irish, Austrian, English, Cherokee and French.
Why is it, that, I can not publish recipes on Pinterest????
Someone tell me?
Thank you,
Cindy
2 nd time I’ve made this reciepe, only I used a quarter cup of sugar and replaced all the oil with an equal amount of sugar free applesauce, and used whole wheat flour.
TURNED OUT AS AMAZING AS THE ORIGINAL. I also prefer the darker bits in my bread like you spoke about. This has become my ‘go to’ for a perfect banana bread. I highly recommend it.
Thank you for this recipe, it came out amazing. Will definitely use this as my go to banana bread.
Seriously – the best banana bread I have ever made/had. I used greek yogurt instead of sour cream but this bread was moist 4 days after taking it out of the oven (and probably would have been moist up to 6 days if it lasted that long). Easy and awesome go to.
For years, I have been looking for a perfect banana bread recipe and I have finally found it !! Thank you !! Even when I thought I messed up on the ingredients (using slightly water plain yogurt because I had no sour cream), I was very pleased. This will be on my holiday “cookie” plate.
Forgot to mention – I replaced walnut oil for 1/2 of the recipe’s oil and 50% brown sugar for the sugar portion – both because I ran out of canola oil and white sugar. And the bread still came out fantastic .
This has become my favorite banana bread recipe, many raves.
Thank you for sharing
Can I use brown sugar instead? If yes how much? Tia
I’m not sure – I haven’t tried it, but you could definitely experiment!
Ok so I’ve made around 5 banana bread recipes and I’ve never found one that was the winner recipe for me…yesterday I made this one last minute and omg it’s the winner…by far the best bread I’ve ever made. I followed the recipe exactly and it’s literally perfect and so easy. Everyone needs to try this recipe out. It’s flawless I added a teaspoon of cinnamon and it was so fluffy and moist …i can go on and on about it ….but just believe my word …its the best!
So happy to hear that, Mellisa!
I agree
This recipe sounds amazing. I love reading your blog but the advertisements every paragraph are getting annoying.
google has a thing called ad blocker — works no more adds ever
So good! Just made this for 2 people. Halved all but the baking soda. Used quarter cup whole wheat flour half cup all purpose. Put bout quarter tsp of pumpkin pie spice in also, added chopped pistachios (only nut i had)…and topped with white sugar mix with pumpkin pie spice. Cooked for 32 min on middle shelf in a glass pan. This came out perfect! Thank u for recipe!
I made this recipe and the Buttermilk Banana Bread within a couple of days of each other. There were a couple of slices of this one left when I made the other so we had a taste test. Of the six tasters in our home, four liked the buttermilk banana bread better. My son and I voted for this one. My husband said it was hard to pick a winner. They are both great recipes.
Love the side-by-side comparison, Kenna! Thank you!
I absolutely love this banana bread! Just made it last night and we pretty much ate about 3/4 of the loaf as soon as it didn’t burn us! I have to tell you I was so happy you brought this recipe back because I suspect this is my old lost in a moving accident along with the rest of our house belongings recipe. I had found my banana bread recipe somewhere in cyber space about 8 years ago. I printed it out but didn’t notice from where. When I lost it I tried finding it but just couldn’t find it because all I remembered about it was that it had sour cream and oil. I have been a loyal fan of your blog for the last 4-5 years but it never occurred to me that the old recipe might have come from your website all those years ago. The flavor is the same and I have since tried many recipes and none tasted as good so I’m just happy to have it again. I love all you post. Thank you!
Yay! Reunited with a favorite recipe. Nothing better!
Love this recipe, but I’m looking to substitute the flour for something healthier. In your notes you state that you, ‘use 50% whole wheat flour,’ what are you using for the remainder portion? Or are you just cutting the flour in half? I was thinking of trying 1/4 cup and 2 tbsp of coconut flour and adding an extra egg, but I wanted to see if anyone has suggestions on using coconut flour?
When I sub 50% whole wheat flour, I use 50% all-purpose flour. I’ve never subbed another type of flour – good luck!
Perfect every time! An not crumbly which is so important when it comes to little kids and making messes with banana bread!
We have a recipe similar to this that I use in our large bread maker and it even makes the long loaves that you get from a typical bread pan. We absolutely love it and seriously use it daily. I throw it all in and don’t have to worry about taking it out on time. I highly recommend it! Just barely my husband was just telling me how he can’t wait for this next loaf to come out.
This was so easy and sooooo good! I made muffins, no nuts for me and a loaf with nuts for my husband. He is very set in his ways and doesn’t like it when I try new recipes lol. I made one loaf with my regular recipe and one with this recipe. I did not tell him. We will see if he notices. I will report back. No matter what his preference is, I loved the rich banana taste and the lightness of the bread. This surprised me because I have always loved dark, heavy banana bread!
I’ll be excited to hear your husband’s verdict!
Been following you for about 6 years, and I still use almost exclusively just your recipes! By the way I talk about you, you would think we had met!! Thanks for helping us average cooks become rockstars in our own kitchens!
Haha, thanks so much, Amber!
My kiddos and I looove banana bread! This recipe looks and sounds delicious! I have made a ton of banana bread, but I get scared every time that I will go through all the trouble of mixing, baking, cooling, and then when I slice it………. goopy bottom! 🙁 🙁 I have thrown loaves in the garbage that were not done on the inside/bottom. How do you make sure it’s done all the way through every time? Thank you!
Hi Jenna – what type of pans are you using (light colored, dark nonstick, etc)? I usually take a thin paring knife and dip it right into the top of the bread about 1/4-inch (there’s usually a crack running right across the top) and if it comes out without any wet batter, I consider it done.
I am anxious to try this! My “go-to” is made with butter and cream cheese. It has a super light color to it, but an amazing flavor!!
It’s amazing!!!! Made it this evening and am helping myself to another slice as soon as I finish this comment!
Yay! Glad you loved it.
I’ve made both dark and light banana bread. My question is, have you made them at the same time? Do you notice a difference in taste? I don’t think I’ve ever made a bad loaf of banana bread -nuts, chocolate chips, dark, light, it’s all delicious!
That’s a great question! I haven’t ever made the two styles of banana bread side-by-side, but I think they both have great banana bread flavor!
The best, best, best topping for (any) banana bread is to spread/sprinkle a layer of brown sugar over the loaf before you put it in the oven to bake. Life changing, I promise.
Made loaves yesterday and today with a sprinkling of turbinado sugar across the top, but I bet the brown sugar has some fantastic flavor!
This isn’t a forgotten recipe for me! It’s my go-to banana bread! I like to get creative and to substitutions. It’s always great!
While I am looking for a banana bread recipe, today I was looking for a pumpkin bread recipe. I knew I wanted it to produce one loaf and to use one bowl. The more I searched, the more I wanted to find something similar to my favorite Yogurt Cake (http://orangette.net/2004/08/slow-roasting/#comment-67039). When I received the email about this recipe, I decided to check it out. It met all of my requirements — yields one loaf, uses one bowl and used the same amounts of flour, sugar, oil and sour cream/yogurt as my favorite cake.
I substituted pumpkin puree for the mashed bananas and used half brown sugar instead of all granulated sugar. I added a teaspoon of cinnamon. I was going to sprinkle the top with cinnamon sugar, but forgot. I might add more spices next time (nutmeg, allspice, ginger?), but it’s very good.
One of the things I like about both this recipe and the Yogurt Cake is that they’re so adaptable. Even though I didn’t make the banana bread, I’m giving this recipe 5 stars.
I love both of your banana bread recipes, but I MUST add either chocolate chips or the milk chocolate covered Heath bits to my bread. YUM!
Hi ya Mel,
I have made this recipe many, many times (I have some in the freezer right at this moment) and it is moist and delicious. I divide it into mini-loaves (8-10 of them I believe) and 95% of the time, add semi-sweet chocolate chips. I have never added nuts, but one time I might just to see what it tastes like.
I read someone else’s comment asking how long to bake for mini-loaves and I think you were spot on with your answer of 25 minutes.
I think I’ll thaw some out for tomorrow’s breakfast 🙂
I’m new to this website and I thank you so much for such good food.
I haven’t made the recipe yet, but I’m so glad to find a banana bread recipe that doesn’t require yeast, because I’m allergic to yeast. I’m also allergic to eggs, however in some cases I can manage, AND THIS IS ONE!
I’m in the camp with the nuts — LOL! And I wouldn’t say no to a handful of mini chocolate chips, as well. Like a few other of your posters here, I had no idea that there was a recipe for a Golden Banana Bread, and although I’ve never tried it, I think that I would much prefer the more traditional recipe with the darker shade of Banana Bread and the dark flecks running through it. That said, I just recently discovered your website, and I love the recipes and am anxious to start making some of them. Please keep them coming!
Thanks, Valerie! I hope you enjoy any recipes you try. 🙂
Banana bread must have walnuts in my opinion. Many people have to have chocolate chips. That can be OK – especially if the bread itself is just so-so. But walnuts are a must for me. However, they are simple enough to add to any good banana bread, so I just might try this with some of my sour cream that needs to be used before it goes bad. Thanks for another great inspiration recipe.
I agree – you can usually throw nuts into any banana bread recipe with pretty good results (if you are a nut lover!).
I love this recipe! It’s my go to for banana bread. It’s super fast to make and easy to clean up after and tastes amazing. What else could you ask for? I definetly fall in the nuts in banana bread camp; the more the better for me 🙂
Love that! There’s room in this world for nut lovers and non-nut lovers alike!
How funny. I came to your blog to find this recipe posted! I literally made this yesterday!! So delicious!!
Glad you love it, Caroline!
I am for nuts, nuts, nuts! My mother always said there wasn’t much that couldn’t be improved by adding either nuts of bacon–or both. And I agree……..and this is one yummy bread. Thanks!
All you nut lovers! That’s awesome (I’ll leave all the nuts for you guys!).
I’ve been making banana bread since way back when I was in 4-H and my mom would make me “practice” making banana bread all the time when that was the required entry for the fair for 2nd year cooking. I didn’t know there was different types of banana bread but when I asked my daughter to make your buttermilk recipe a year or so ago when we had some extra buttermilk, that changed our world! 🙂 Thank you, we love it! And for nuts —- NEVER! They just change everything about the bread and not for the better! 🙂 I love your site!
Thank you!! Glad you love that buttermilk banana bread. It’s a keeper, too.
I’m in the “no nuts” camp. I also don’t like chunks of banana, so I whip up the bananas with an immersion blender. This has been my go-to banana bread recipe.
I kind of agree, I don’t love big sludgy chunks of banana either.
I love the color of this crumb and I LOVE how moist this loaf looks! Can’t wait to try it!
Your contributions to my family’s eatings is truly appreciated and very much is a gift. Seeing as eating is such an integral part of lives, you really add so much to our plate by sharing all you do. Thank you for all of it!
Thank you so much, Stacy!!
OMG I had no idea there was “light crumb” banana bread in the world! So I guess that tells you what my perspective is on what “real” banana bread should look like.
As for nuts, I take the Mounds/Almond Joy approach – sometimes I feel like a nut, and sometimes I don’t =P
Haha, that made me laugh
No nuts for me either!
I have a banana bread recipe that I have used and loved for years but this one caught my eye! When you say you use melted butter instead of oil, are you saying you just use only the melted butter or is that when you also use the applesauce as part of the oil? My recipe calls for all butter (but not melted) so wanted to get this clarified before I try it. I am definitely trying this though. I love your blog and have tried so many of your recipes.
(discovered it about 4 years ago….lucky me!) Oh, I usually put chocolate chips in mine cause that’s what my two grandsons love…..well, me too!)
Thanks, Char! Glad you love the recipes (and a double thumbs up to chocolate chips in banana bread!). When I use melted butter, I don’t sub in any oil (although sometimes I’ll still sub in half applesauce – so 1/4 cup melted butter and 1/4 cup applesauce). Does that help?
I say “no” to nuts, but “yes please” to a handful of chocolate chips!! Love your site and all your recipes.
Yeah, amen to that. 🙂
I LOVE this recipe! My brother, a tough critic, once told me I should make this bread and sell it… it’s that good! I like to spray my pan with cooking spray, then coat it in cinnamon sugar, and of course sprinkle a little cinnamon sugar on top before baking. Thanks for another great recipe!!
Wowser! Cinnamon and sugar crusted banana bread – could life get any better??
I saw someone mentioned your golden loaf version. What recipe would that be? I looked for one with that name but didn’t find it.
Thanks for all the hard wrk you do.
It’s this one: https://www.melskitchencafe.com/buttermilk-banana-bread/
I’m with you in the “no nuts” camp. I cannot enjoy banana bread with nuts. I am however, a light banana bread fan. I could eat your buttermilk banana bread every.single.day. If I had my way, I’d never make any other. But I happen to live with and love my dark, flecked banana bread preferring husband. So thank you for having the best recipes for us both. At least he hates nuts too. I wouldn’t budge on that one
Yeah, that buttermilk banana bread is something special. And I wouldn’t budge on the nuts-in-banana-bread-thing for Brian either. 🙂
Can I used melted butter instead on oil?
Yes, that should work just fine – you might want to decrease the salt just a tad if using salted butter.
I LOVE my banana bread recipe…but it makes TOO many dishes. I’ve loved everything else that I have tried from you, so I am definitely giving this a go.
Hope you love it, Deb!
I just recently found this recipe and have made it three times this past month. It is so good! I use coconut oil and feel like that adds a little something
Glad you love it, Jennifer! Coconut oil seems like a delicious addition
Can’t wait to try this! Also, anxiously waiting for your Christmas shopping idea lists! Bring them on!
Oh, they’re a’coming! 🙂
This was really Good! Reminded my family is chalupa, since i used homemade canned pork, using the same ingredients. Made the quinoa in the instant pot, great idea!
Haha!! I was going to ask why some had dark flecks!! Now I know.
🙂
I prefer to leave nuts out of my baked treats except for one cookie recipe…cashew cookies with maple frosting , which is a confusing name since the recipe calls for walnuts. I still call them cashew cookies because of the sweet older lady who gave me the recipe years ago. Anyway, even though I don’t put nuts in my baked treats, I wouldn’t turn down a perfectly good banana bread slice or brownie just because of a few nuts.
Love your take on the nut factor.
I’m anti nuts in basically everything (I simply don’t get the appeal, why would you want nuts in the way of a delicious chocolate chip cookie, or in this case banana bread?) and I personally LOVE a light, golden loaf of banana bread. I just wanted to say I’ve been following the blog regularly since 2010 and please, never stop. In my head we’re internet best friends. Even beyond food, I always get compliment when I purchase/implement things you recommend. My friends and family knows I probably got anything good ideas from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe. It’s a little embarrassing, actually.
🙂 thanks, Amanda! You made my day. Seriously.
I always thought the color was a result of how ripe the bananas are, so I learned something new today!
I prefer the speckled kind all the way. Actually, I never knew the other kind existed until a friend made your golden-loaf version. If she hadn’t told me it was banana bread, I probably never would have guessed. Not sure if it’s supposed to faint on the banana flavor or if her bananas weren’t ripe, but I should try making it myself. This sour cream version is definitely going on my bake list. Nice and speckly – just like I like it!
The buttermilk banana bread (light colored loaf) should be pretty banana-y so I’m guessing it needed more ripe bananas.
How long would you cook mini loaves?
I’d probably start checking them after about 25 minutes.
Thanks for the reminder that I need to make a loaf of banana bread. One of my favorites for sure!
I make this banana bread recipe all the time and my family LOVES it. Once I accidentally left out the sour cream and vanilla (wasn’t paying attention I guess) and it still turned out great, but not as amazing as usual.
Serious? That is pretty awesome.
Giggled when I saw this repost today because I made this last night. So good and easy. I used vanilla yogurt because I didn’t have sour cream and didn’t add the extract then reduced the sugar to half a cup. Hard to mess this up and it is delicious- not dry at all. Your recipes are the best and that is why we have been loyal readers for almost ten years.
Hey, that’s great timing, Sheila! And thanks for your sweet comment and loyalty for all these years!
This is SOOOO good. Like eat the whole dang thing in one day kinda good. Oops! Will definitely save this recipe to use over and over. We added mini chocolate chips which took it over the top! Yum!
Fantastic recipe. Brought it to work to share with staff members. They are now requesting I “bring it in again, please”! So I am baking more right now.
Absolutely the best! Will not use another recipe. I added a few crushed walnuts, thats all.
Excellent recipe. Very moist. I added a teaspoon of cinnamon. Half a teaspoon of Angostura bitters, 1/8 cup Creme de Banana and one cup walnuts.
Divine give this recipe five stars!!!
Just made your banana bread recipe, smelling good. Very easy to mix up.
Thank you for the new recipe
I tried it this weekend. It was moist and light. I’ll be trying it again this coming weekend.
I’ve stopped trying banana bread recipes, as this is now my favorite. It’s consistently moist and dense. I don’t mix after adding the to the oil and sugar…only stir. I love the chunkiness of the bananas that way, and it keeps the gluten from setting up and changing the crumb of the finished product.. Also, I used closer to 3 1/2 C of bananas. I bake in a bright 8 x 4 pan, so I bake it for 60-65 minutes since it’s deeper. Try topping this with browned butter icing…oh My!
I mixed this recipe up twice and now putting both loaves in the oven. How long should I cook them? Had to double up as we are preparing for the storm here in Tampa.
You can bake them according to the time in the recipe (even if there are two loaves in the oven). Stay safe!
I just made a loaf of your sour cream banana bread. I added pecans and it was delicious! I have made several different banana bread recipes and this was by far the best I have ever tasted! Will deffinatly make again. Thanks for sharing!
Could I make these in cupcake pans?
I’ve never tried it, but I think that would work!
Has anyone tried subbing applesauce in for the oil? I know sometimes recipes offer this alternative and am wondering if it might work here? Thanks! 🙂
I used half applesauce and half oil came out great!
The most moist banana bread I have ever made and I have tried many! This will definitely become my go-to recipe!
I have made this many times and it is my favorite- I make 3 mini loaves and sometimes add chocolate chips. Fantastic recipe!!!
This is honestly the best banana bread recipe. I’ve made different recipes for years and this by far is now my only recipe! Stays super moist in fridge for almost a week! My pregnant daughter couldn’t get enough of it! Lol
Best banana bread ever. I used virgin oil and reduced the sugar. It came out just perfect, fluffy and moist. This will be my go to recipe now.
My family and I love this! Turns out nice and moist. Very delicious.
Every time I make banana bread, the outside always gets very brown but the inside isn’t cooked. How do I fix this problem?
Try lowering the temperature of your oven 25 degrees and use a pan that is light coated (not dark or nonstick coated).
I tried this recipe for the first time this morning! It turned out great! I used a mini muffin pan and cooked for around 20 minutes. For the sugar I used a little less than the total amount and also used half brown sugar and half reg sugar. I also added a tiny splash of maple syrup! Yum! I’d prob cut the overall sugar a little bit more than I did this time next time.
Great recipe! I added semi-sweet chocolate chips! Delicious!
Happened across this recipe in Pinterest. Have been wanting to try my hand at banana bread and this looked easy enough. The only thing I did differently was use melted ghee instead of oil. All I can say is, its two days later and I need to make another batch! Made mini loaves to take to work as an afternoon pick me up. These were so moist and fluffy!! Thanks for the recipe.
Melted ‘ghee’ instead of oil. What is ‘ghee’?
Ghee is clarified butter (butter without any of the solids).
Have this in the oven now and it looks great. Only problem is its been in for an hour and 10 so far and still raw in the middle so im leaving it in to cook. It looks pretty brown on top so hopefully it doesnt burn. Any idea why it’s taking so long? I made one large loaf.
Sometimes it can depend on each individual oven (or the type of pan you bake it in). Hope it worked out!
This banana bread is fantastic!! One question, any idea how to make it a little more dense? I cannot seem to get my banana breads to be as dense as the stuff I buy at store bakeries. Any ideas?
I’m not really sure, Becky…I kind of like banana bread light and fluffy myself. You might try adding more flour??
This recipe is amazing! Found it on yummly as I didn’t have any butter and had an overabundance of ripe bananas, so I needed one calling for oil…added half a cup of chocolate chips and wow! So moist! Sharing!!
Hi. I want to make this but only have olive oil and coconut oil. Do I need to use veg or canoma to get a good result?
Also, please give me the link to your buttermilk banana bread everyone is raving about. I have lots of brown bananas.
I would use coconut oil (melted) over olive oil. Here’s the link to the banana bread: http://www.melskitchencafe.com/buttermilk-banana-bread/
I made two batches of this recipe—one with butter and one with coconut oil. Both were yummy, but for whatever reason, the coconut oil version turned out taller…if that makes any sense. I had everyone taste test the two versions and 100% of the votes went to the coconut oil version. Which SO works for me because I can save the extra minutes a butter version requires.
Reading the comments, I see that I’m not alone in trying every banana bread recipe I can get my hands on. It seems that that fun has just ended because this recipe is IT.
Interesting about the coconut oil, Lorene!
Thanks for the recipe. Have made this a number of times over the past couple of years. Yummy every time.
Tried this today, it’s a wonderful recipe so moist and delicious, I only had light sour cream but it did not affect the taste, didn’t change anything else and it was done when checked at 50mins. Thank you so much Mel for this recipe 🙂
What size loaf pan did you use?? 8×4 or 9×5… Not sure what the standard is. THX!!!
A 9×5, or 3 small loaf pans will work great.
I have tried to make banana bread more times than I can count. It always turns out rock hard on the outside and literally raw on the inside. I made this recipe exactly as written, save for the fact I used a muffin tin instead of a loaf pan. Absolutely delicious! Perfect texture and wonderful banana flavor. Could not keep my family away from them. Thank you Melanie!
Yay!
So excited to try this! It’s in the oven now and it smells delicious. I didn’t have sour cream but I used 2% greek yogurt instead. Hopefully I didn’t mess it up! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Just doubled and made two. Have not tried yet…just out of the oven. I am just wondering if anyone has any tips as to why whenever I make ANY banana bread recipe…I always need to cook longer than the time says, and even still, sometimes the top middle never cooks. I ended up turning temp down to 325 after a bit (after the 1st 60 mins) and covering top lightly with foil b/c was getting too dark. Any ideas why? I even measured the bananas b/c before I know I was heavy handed with that! Tx
Hi Maria, I had the same problem for ages, so I bought a thermometer for inside my oven, which showed me that my oven consistently runs about ten degrees lower than I set it. I now set the temp about ten degrees higher than the recipes call for and it seems to help. Putting foil over the top of the loaf toward the end of cooking time might keep it from getting too dark while the middle cooks. Good luck!
This banana bread is so yummy and moist! So delicious toasted for breakfast the next day!
Hi Mel, I’m just learning baking and I know how precise it should be, I would just like to ask regarding this instruction: “Add flour, baking soda and salt; stir just until dry ingredients are moistened”.. When you say, “just until dry ingredients are moistened, does it mean it’s normal to have flour lumps? Or should I stir until all lumps are gone? I really don’t want to over mix. Or does it really matter?
Anyway, I really love your website!
Thanks!
Stir until you see the last streaks of dry ingredients disappear – then stop mixing. It’s ok if there are a few lumps.
Thanks for the response. I’ve tried this and the bread is just perfect! Thanks Mel!
I make this banana bread every few weeks because my family loves it. I added half a teaspoon of banana extract and a dash of cinnamon to the mixture as well. I also mash up the bananas like a puree with my fork.
I have made this several times using coconut oil, plain greek yogurt (instead of sour cream), and 1/4 cup sugar. Delicious every time!!
Mel, I just discovered your blog and am loving it! I made this recipe with Greek yogurt and added chocolate chips (and baked it in a 10 in cake pan). It was to die for!
Made this recipe this morning using Greek yogurt instead of sour cream. Still amazing! I have yet to make anything on your page that my family won’t eat. Thank you, Mel!
Perfect banana bread recipe! No adjustments needed. Thanks for this great repurposing for my icky mushy bananas. I’ll try the buttermilk version sometime too.
Very good! I used 1/2 cup of white sugar and 1/2 cup of brown sugar to add a bit more depth, and the banana bread came out perfect. I have another superb sour cream-banana bread recipe that requires separating eggs and folding in egg whites, but it’s such a time-consuming process that I make it only about once a year. So this recipe is now my go-to quick banana bread recipe. Occasionally, I’ve had banana bread cravings when I’ve had only unripe bananas on hand, and found that putting them in a moderate oven for about 15-20 minutes ripens them perfectly for use in banana bread. Now, I try to be prepared, so whenever I have overripe bananas, I just seal them in a freezer bag and freeze them so I’m always just a quick defrost away from the makings for banana bread.
PT, I’m probably the only person who would ever ask, but it is my mission to try every banana bread recipe on Earth and I would love your complicated one with separating the eggs and whipping the egg whites. 🙂 My email is [email protected] if you’d like to share it with me!
I have made these many, many times. Thanks for the great recipe! I have put chocolate chips in before and this time I am trying coconut & chocolate on top.
Hi, Mel,
I surprised my husband before he went to work by leaving a goody bag for him in his car with a piece of the banana bread in it. This was his reponse to me via text: “Sweetie it was very, very good. However, the piece was too small for me to verify the true goodness that I was tasting. Thanks, again.” Wow, Mel! Thank you!!!!!!!
Mel, I made the banana bread with gluten-free flour last night but was only able to taste the batter. The batter was delicious!!!!!!! I have not tasted the bread yet, I will have it for lunch. But if the taste of the batter is any indication of how the bread itself will taste, then this banana bread is AWESOME!!!!! Thanks, Mel!!!! 🙂
I tried making this earlier today and it did not work at all. I was very sad:(. I’m a decent baker/cook and make bread frequently, I’m not sure what went wrong. I didn’t measure the banana, could too much banana cause a problem? It would just not cook and was so mushy in the middle. I love your blog! Some of our favorite recipes are yours!
I made this the other day with coconut oil….my new favorite banana bread. Thanks!!
This bread is my FAVORITE EVER! Also, LOVED the brown sugar on the top….wonderful addition! Wish I could just eat the top. 🙂
Thank you for the great recipe. Was cooking for 100 at YW Camp last week and the heat was taking its toll on the bananas. Your site was my go-to for a banana recipe and did not fail me. Made a 7x batch and had about 9 dozen muffins that were a huge hit.
Just linked back to you on my blog. Thanks so much for this fabulous recipe! It is a real keeper!
Hi, Mel! I love your site! I have tried a few of your recipes already and they all have been big hits! This banana bread recipe is no exception. I had a bunch of ripe bananas at home and decided to bake something with them. This recipe fit the bill perfectly, as I happened to have exactly 1/2 cup of sour cream in the fridge too! I made it into muffins. The recipe produced exactly 12 regular size muffins and 12 minis. The regular muffins were done in 22 minutes and the minis in 14- perfection! The only changes I made was adding 1 tbsp flaxseed meal and 1/2 cup chopped walnuts. They were terrific! My kids and husband loved them so much that there was pretty much nothing left in about an hour (I may or may not have had about 3-4 minis myself:)). So, since I had more bananas left to use up, I decided to make another batch! This time, I had no more sour cream, so I used plain yogurt instead- they turned out just as moist and delicious! I really had a hard time telling the difference- the taste and the texture were the same. The second batch I made into all minis and the recipe yielded 42. I made 1 dz plain (without adding anything, as in your original recipe) and t o the rest of the batter I put 1/3 cup mini chocolate chips. My daughter loved them, and so did my coworkers today. Rave reviews, including requests for the recipe! This will be my go-to banana bread recipe from now on! Thank you so much, Mel, for all these fabulous recipes! I can’t wait to try more! I will be linking back to your great site when I post on my blog!
Hi there…I think you meant it makes 24 minis? Thanks for posting the muffin information as I was looking for just that variation this afternoon with this recipe! Thanks!
Melissa,
Sorry I just saw your comment here. This recipe actually does yield about 42 minis, not 24. 🙂 Of course, you most probably found that out already. 🙂 It’s a great recipe!
Hey There. I found your blog using msn. This is a very well written article.
I will make sure to bookmark it and come back to read more
of your useful information. Thanks for the post.
I will definitely return.
Was looking for recipe using sour cream in banana bread when you post was you were moving to Wi. I have lived in Wisconsin all my life. How to you like our state? Will try you r bread today.
I’ve made this bread before and loved it! lately, my 2 year old will eat almost anything in mini muffin form so I tried that route. They came out amazing and most! I also did a mini loaf for a gift. Thank you for all your hard work you put into this blog. It is definitely worth it! I am always using your recipes and they never let me down!
This had become my go-to banana bread recipe! I make lots of substitutions depending on what’s on hand… I use whole wheat flour, greek yogurt for the sour cream, I’ve added flax seed meal, pumpkin, coconut oil, molasses and I’m sure others! Thanks so much for a great recipe! I’ve tried at least 15-20 of your recipes since finding your site a year ago. I’d say your site is also my go-to for solid recipes and new ideas. Thanks!!!
Just put this bread in the oven, looks super yummy!!! I have tried several of your recipes and I have loved them all!!!
thank you for your nice post.avid mastering,
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So I made this with all the possible adaptions others asked about substituting…
applesauce for oil; plain yogurt for sour cream; and even used 1/2 cup wheat flour.
It was delicious! Thank you for a great recipe that will always work with what is on hand. So moist and yummy. Glad we had enough bananas to double it!
This was truly an amazing recipe!!! The only things I did differently was omit the oil and replace with applesauce and 2tsp of coconut oil. Added flaxseed oil for extra nutrition and used low-fat sour cream… Delicious!!! Thanks for the awesome recipe!! A definite must try for banana bread lovers 🙂 !
I just made this! I love this recipe! I like that they come out light and fluffy and not too dense and dark. I doubled this and made three pans of mini muffins and one loaf. I like to use banana bread muffins or zucchini bread muffins in my kids lunches for school! They love them too! Thanks!
My family loves this bread! Great for breakfast on busy mornings.
I just made these as mini muffins (30 minutes of baking or less), and they are wonderful and moist.
Always enjoy your buttermilk banana bread, but tried this one today – oh my! It is wonderful, too!!
Was looking for a new banana bread recipe and found this one..looks delicious!
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I used this recipe to make muffins this past weekend and were awesome! I have really struggled to make a good moist banana bread and this one was amazing! Thank you!!! You are awesome!
Oh hey, I’m back to comment on this delicious bread again. With some new “recommendations” from my doctor during my second pregnancy, I substituted whole wheat flour for the white flour and 1/2 of the sugar for Splenda (she doesn’t so much recommend artificial sweetener so much as I REALLY wanted some banana bread, but I’m supposed to avoid sugar!). 🙂
It’s delicious as ever! Thanks!
Very good! I wanted to try a new banana bread recipe today. This is delicious!!
This was ok, not bad but not my favourite banana bread.
Maybe it was because I used 1 stick of butter instead of the oil.
I definitely preferred the buttermilk banana bread. That was awesome!
Did anyone ever make this recipe with butter instead of the oil? Is there a difference in the outcome of the bread?
Also, is oil or butter the “healthier” option?
Thanks for any responses!
Can I use canola oil in this recipe or is vegetable oil recommended?
n92 – yes, by all means, use canola. That’s actually what I use most of the time!
This was so delicious! I accidentally added way too much sour cream (my kids were helping me…I was a little distracted), so it turned out extra super moist. But, it was still awesome! Next up is your buttermilk banana bread recipe…=)
Suzanne – it sounds like too much sour cream isn’t a bad thing. Moist is good!
Made this today and LOVED IT!! It was so easy, had all the ingredients on hand and was delicious!!
Can’t wait to try the buttermilk recipe!
Thanks, Sara!
I made this recipe the other day to save a couple of over-ripe bananas from ending up in the trash. It came out great. I put it on the toaster oven and then topped it with some Nutella, which was even more tasty! The recipe was quick and easy to make. I will have to try the buttermilk banana bread recipe as well, but for now this one is definitely going on my “go to” list. Thanks for the recipe!
Ruchita – (thanks for all of your comments!) – love the idea of topping with Nutella! Glad you liked this.
While I’ve publicly proclaimed my love for your Buttermilk Banana Bread (http://meandtheredhead.blogspot.com/2010/04/letters.html), I have to say that this is pretty darn good as well! My buttermilk was spoiled, so I decided I’d try this one. And while the Buttermilk Banana Bread is our all time favorite, this is different and delicious.
As always, much thanks!
Shauntel – glad to know this filled the void of buttermilk-gone-bad. They are both delicious recipes and I’m glad you liked this one, too!
I love that your blog is my go to for recipes! I have some bananas slowly turning to mush on my counter so I thought I’d try my hand at banana bread. I knew if I searched your blog I’d find a recipe, but I didn’t count on three! I have that many bananas so I think I may try all three! Thanks a ton!
Tasha – thanks for your comment! It was so nice…I hope one of the banana bread recipes works out for you!
I tried this recipe this morning and I think that it replaced my old recipe as a family favorite. I added walnuts and choc. chips. Thank you! I will try more of your recipes for sure!
micheleidaho – I’m so glad you liked this recipe! Thanks for taking the time to let me know – walnuts and chocolate chips sound like the perfect addition to this bread, by the way.
debbie – I’ve never tried it that way but I know that plain yogurt is interchangeable for sour cream in many recipes, so there is a good chance it should work out just fine. Let me know if you try it that way!
I have some plain yogurt and was wondering if I can use that in place of the sour cream?
Jennie – the sprinkling of brown sugar sounds amazing. I’ll have to try that for sure!
Anonymous – I hear you on trying new banana bread recipes – how many can there really be? But I am convert to the buttermilk and sour cream banana bread recipes and don’t know if I’ll ever try another! I’m glad you liked these also. Thanks for letting me know!
Good luck with your move! Gotta love a Midwestern summer (that was loaded with sarcasm!)…I’m in IL.
i was just thinking about what to do with those 2 over-ripe bananas on my kitchen counter…
Good luck!! Utah will be a little less tasty now that you have left. 🙁 But Wisconsin is in for a treat!
Thanks for the b bread recipe, sounds terrific. can’t wait to try!
and PS- “hello cupcake” has been a big hit!!! thanks again, i love it! and because this comment seems to be lacking in exclamation points, here are a few more!!!!!!
Good luck with your move to Wisconsin! This banana bread looks fab! Yummie!
This looks similar to my MIL’s recipe for banana bread- it’s so moist and delicious!Your picture is fantastic!
Happy moving!
Good luck with the move!
Banana bread is so comforting to me.
Good luck with the move! This bread does look like a keeper!
Good luck with the move, we’ll miss you while you’re busy!
best of luck with the move, melanie–here’s hoping you get to your new location with everything and everybody. 🙂
great bread, by the way–it looks super moist, which is the most important quality of banana bread to me.
Good luck moving. I’m already dreading the moving/packing process and I don’t have a house and would be staying in the same city.
The banana bread recipe definitely sounds worthy of a shot. I have some sour cream to use up too (if it’s not already past due).
This looks so delicious and comforting! Good luck with your move!
Anonymous – three times on the lemon cake? Awesome! So glad you like the recipe.
Good luck with the cross-country trip! and thanks for the banana recipe, I was just about to go on a search for banana recipes 🙂
I’ve been looking for the “perfect” banana bread recipe – trying a new one each time for the past 6 months. Your buttermilk one is in the top two of my family’s favorites. we’ll have to try this next time. thanks! one thing we really like is to sprinkle a little brown sugar on top before you bake it – it makes a really yummy crust.
good luck with the move!
Melanie, good luck with your move! I’ll be waiting for you to come back and start posting these delicious recipes again!
I have really enjoyed your posts. Thanks for the info about the perfect lemon cake. I have made it three times since. Good luck on your move and I will look forward to more posts.
I was a little skeptical about a “new” banana bread recipe, since banana bread is so common. However, this recipe proved again that not all banana bread recipes are created equal. This was really, truly amazing. We loved it. Definately our favorite b-bread recipe, and going forward, I see no need to ever try a new recipe after having this and the other buttermilk b-bread recipe you posted. It was super delicious.
Good luck with your move to Wisconsin! Say hi to the old home state for me!!