Banana Nut Bread – Soft, moist, and decadent Banana Nut Bread loaded with chopped nuts for the perfect breakfast, snack, or dessert for the holidays. Butter and sour cream give it mouthwatering goodness for a beautiful blast of vibrant flavors. Then a dash of nutmeg and lime zest really ramps it up! Yum!
Who knew having overripe bananas on the kitchen counter could cause this much excitement? That’s because it’s the perfect excuse to make my childhood favorite, Banana Nut Bread, again. Woohoo!
But this time, I wanted to revamp my banana bread with loads of nuts for added texture and flavor. And it turned out fabulicious. Read along to see how it turned out. Clue: It’s totally mindblowing! 😍
The Beauty of Banana Bread
There’s something so comforting about traditional banana nut bread. The sweet, moist, melt-in-your-mouth dessert (or breakfast😉) is incomparable. Then the nuts and vanilla just add to the rich flavor factor (I used pecans, oh yeah!). Not to mention the best reason to buy overripe bananas on a quick sale.
Recipe Ingredients
- Overripe Bananas – Enjoying a fantastic bread dessert with all those healthy fibers, vitamins, and minerals is a bonus – also a great way to save overly ripe bananas. 👌
- Sour Cream – A must-have ingredient to every moist banana bread or cake. You can also use sour cream substitutes like buttermilk and yogurt.
- Dry Ingredients – Flour is a key ingredient in giving structure and body to most baked desserts, such as cakes and bread. For a gluten-free version, you can use the same measurement of your favorite all-purpose replacement. And baking powder and soda give it a good rise.
- Nuts – You can use any of your favorite nuts, such as walnuts, cashew, or almonds, to add a lovely texture and nutty flavors to this bread.
- Flavoring – Vanilla, nutmeg, and lime zest are excellent additions as they complete the holiday flavors. Yum!
How to Make Banana Bread
Make the Batter
- Dry Ingredients – Blend all the dry ingredients using a hand mixer- sugar, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt. (Photos 1-2)
- Add Butter – Then, add butter to the dry mixture until fully incorporated, and gradually add wet ingredients. (Photos 3-4)
- Mash and Mix – In a small bowl, mash the bananas with a potato masher or in a blender. Then mix in eggs, sour cream, and vanilla until smooth; set aside. (Photos 5-8)
- Combine Dry and Wet Ingredients – Continue mixing for about 2 minutes until dry ingredients are fully incorporated. Add chopped nuts. (Photos 9-12)
Assemble and Bake
- Prep Batter – Scrape down the sides, pour the batter into the pan, and spread evenly. Top with chopped nuts. (Photo 13-14)
- Bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Serve – Cool, and then remove it from the pan to serve.
Recipe Variations
- Fruity Additions – My favorite fruit fusions include banana strawberry bread, banana mango muffins, and banana pineapple bread. And they always come out perfect.
- Veggies Additions – And most certainly, bananas taste better with veggies, too, like pumpkin banana and banana zucchini bread.
- More Toppings – Make it more irresistible with chocolate chips, preferably dark or semi-sweet flavor, so as not to be overly sweet. Dried fruits, such as cranberries and raisins, are also excellent choices.
Tips and Tricks
- Avoid unnecessarily opening the oven door because it can lower the oven temperature and disrupt the rising process.
- Cover the loaf pan with foil if the banana bread is browning too quickly, and continue baking until done or a toothpick comes out clean.
- Divide the batter into muffin tins and bake at 350℉/177℃ for 20-25 minutes to enjoy them in easy-to-grab muffin form.
Make-Ahead and Storing Instructions
I highly suggest doubling the batch because banana nut bread is always better the next day, and it freezes well. Just wrap it whole or in individual slices tightly with a cling wrap and keep it in an airtight container once cool.
You can store banana bread at room temperature for 3 days, in the fridge for a week, and for 2 months in the freezer.
If you freeze the slices separately, you can thaw just what you need to satisfy your craving. And you can reheat it in a toaster, microwave, or preheated oven until warm.
FAQs
Two reasons come to mind. First, too much flour or too little moisture. Try reducing the flour by a tablespoon or two and see if that helps. Second, overbaking tends to dry the bread out. Everyone’s oven is different, not to mention altitude. Just start checking for doneness 10 minutes before the recipe recommends.
The riper the bananas, the better. Overripe, but not rotten, bananas create a sweeter and moister banana bread. The ones that have lots of dark spots on the skin (or dark brown peels) and are soft to the touch. My favorites have a slightly fermented smell.
The top should be firm to the touch, and a toothpick, skewer, or thin knife should come out clean with no signs of wet batter when you stab it into your banana bread.
What to Serve with Banana Nut Bread
You’ll enjoy eating nutty banana bread on its own, but you can make it even better by serving them with luscious sauces and elegant frostings below.
More Drool-Worthy Banana Recipes to Try
Conclusion
This decadent banana bread ramped up with crunchy nuts is a soul-satisfying specialty. How do you like to serve your banana nut bread, with or without glaze? Drop a comment below and let me know.❤️
Watch How to Make It
This blog post was originally published in November 2015 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video.
Banana Nut Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups (240g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (105g) brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon (6g) baking soda
- 1 teaspoon (4g) baking powder
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)
- 1 teaspoon lime zest, finely grated (optional)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 4 ounces (115g) unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 2-3 large and overripe bananas (about 1½ cups mashed bananas)
- 2 large eggs
- ⅓ cup (80ml) sour cream
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) vanilla extract
- ¾-1 cup (125g) nuts (pecans or walnuts)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉/177℃. Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray; set aside.
- Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl: sugar, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, lime zest, and salt.
- Then add butter to the dry mixture, and beat until fully incorporated.
- In a small bowl, mash bananas with a potato masher or in a blender. Then mix in eggs, sour cream, and vanilla until smooth; set aside.
- Gradually add the wet ingredients to the dry. Continue mixing for about 2 minutes until they are fully incorporated. Gently stir in half of the chopped pecans.
- Scrape down the sides, pour the batter into the greased pan, and spread evenly.
- Sprinkle the reserved pecans over the top of the bread.
- Bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool, then remove it from the pan to serve.
Tips & Notes:
- Avoid unnecessarily opening the oven door because it can lower the oven temperature and disrupt the rising process.
- Cover the loaf pan with foil if the banana bread is browning too quickly, and continue baking until done or a toothpick comes out clean.
- Divide the batter into muffin tins and bake at 350℉/177℃ for 20-25 minutes to enjoy them in easy-to-grab muffin form.
- Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.
Carmelita says
I love putting this recipe together. Was a little skeptical adding the butter to the flour mixture but was okay with it as it turned out to look like crumbled sand. I used whole wheat pastry flour, yogurt instead of sour cream and medium to finely chopped walnuts. I didn’t have a metal loaf pan or parchment paper and used a glass loaf pan. It took longer to bake, especially in the middle and the edges were slightly burnt. All in all, I was blown away by the taste and texture! It’s absolutely one of the best banana breads I’ve baked! Next time I’ll play around with the sour cream and then try buttermilk. Also will use all-purpose flour too. Imma, your recipes are always so on point! I’ll be baking this banana bread from now on! Thank you!
ImmaculateBites says
I am so glad you love it, Carmelita! Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
ImmaculateBites says
Hi Linda! You are welcome, I am happy you loved them!
Gcinile says
Hi Immaculate great recipe, but I don’t understand the method you used to incorporate the butter into the dry ingredients, please do explain more, sorry am new to the world of baking.
ImmaculateBites says
Hello ! Slowly mix in the butter, using a wooden spoon.
Diana says
The best I have made!
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! Thanks.
Melanie says
Forgot to rate previously.