The Best Banana Bread

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Hello friends! I’m finally giving you the recipe for the best banana bread. I’ve been extremely remiss by not giving it to you until now- please accept my deepest apologies for standing between you and banana bread bliss. I promised it to you nearly a year ago in my What I Cooked Over Spring Break post, and I’ve been making it for over five years without changing the recipe! This is how I know it’s a winner… well, that and the fact that Tommy can eat a whole loaf in about a day and a half. And by the way, this recipe doubles beautifully.

I hope no one thinks I’m full of myself for calling this banana bread “the best”, but for me, it ticks all the boxes. It:

• is quick, easy to make, and pretty foolproof- it turns out the same every single time
• calls for simple, inexpensive ingredients- and who doesn’t have brown bananas sitting on their counter at least a few times per week?
• uses whole grain flours which add fiber and nutrients
• is low in sugar and fat (unlike most banana bread recipes)
• is just so, so delicious!

Let’s make this!

What You’ll Need:

• Bananas: the riper, the better. No perfectly yellow, amazing for snacking-on bananas here! We want those brown speckles. The riper the bananas, the more natural sweetness and lovely creamy texture they will add to your bread. This is the key that allows us to use about half the sugar found in most recipes.
• Flours: I use a combination of unbleached white flour, whole wheat flour, and oat flour. The whole grain flours add a nice nutty texture to the bread, without making it heavy at all. Nice fiber boost too- 2 grams per serving.
• Sugar: I just use good old white sugar here… it keeps the crumb of the bread moist and adds the perfect amount of sweetness.
• Oil: many banana bread recipes call for butter, but I actually think oil makes it even more moist. Plus, liquid oil is low in saturated fat.
• Egg: for binding. I’ve used flax egg with good results, so if you’re vegan, this would be the way to go.
• Milk plus vinegar: the addition of the vinegar sours the milk a bit, which helps keep this banana bread light. I often use soy milk as a substitute for low-fat milk, so feel free to use whatever you have on hand.
• Baking powder and baking soda: for a nice rise on your banana bread. We need the baking soda because we added vinegar to the milk.
• Vanilla and salt: for flavor boost!
• Chocolate chips: we’re a divided family on whether to add these or not! Some of us love chocolate chips in banana bread, some of us don’t. So you do you- this bread is delicious with or without!

Because this recipe is low in fat and sugar, it uses the “muffin method” of mixing the ingredients together. You whisk together the dry ingredients in one bowl, and then mix the wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Add the two together, and stir lightly to combine, just until the dry ingredients are moistened. Don’t over-mix it! It’s ok if there are some lumps in the batter. This method prevents gluten from developing, making your banana bread light and tender. (Works well with pancake batter too!)

Bake it for about 40-45 minutes until it’s golden brown on top and a wooden toothpick comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Don’t over bake it or it will be dry- I start testing it at about 39 minutes. If you wait until it’s completely cool before slicing, you’ll get nice clean slices that are photo-worthy… but I won’t judge you for digging in with a fork while it’s still warm, right out of the pan.

I hope you love it as much as we do. Cheers, friends!