The Perfect Banana Bread

Easy, moist banana bread that is perfectly crisp on the outside. One bowl, no mixer required!

I’ve spent an embarrassing amount of time in the kitchen desperately trying to come up with the perfect banana bread recipe. After many, many iterations of this recipe, I finally found the perfect combination. It’s moist, but not heavy. It’s flavorful, but not loaded with sugar. The top has just the right amount of crunch and the whole thing smells amazing. 

Look at that.

That crack down the middle of freshly baked bread is what I live for. It’s imperfectly perfect, and that’s exactly the way I like it. 

I’m not a fan of bananas in general, but I love banana bread (as you’ve seen with my double chocolate banana bread and chocolate chip banana muffins). My personal preference is to blend the bananas instead of just mashing them, but for banana-lovers… a good, old fashioned mashing is all it takes.

I don’t add nuts to mine when I make it, but I know lots of people love the added crunch of walnuts. If you’re into that sort of thing, toss 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts into the batter,, and maybe sprinkle some on top, too – you know, for good measure. 

Take a picture of your own freshly baked banana bread and tag #stressbaking on Instagram so I can check it out!

The Perfect Banana Bread

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• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hour
• Total Time: 1 hour 5 mins
• Yield: 1 loaf
• Category: Breakfast

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Description

Easy, moist banana bread that is perfectly crisp on the outside. One bowl, no mixer required!

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Ingredients

• 1 cup mashed very ripe banana (about 3 medium bananas)
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup canola oil (can substitute greek yogurt)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1 3/4 cup flour (as always, I recommend King Arthur Flour)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• Pinch of salt

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325°F and spray a 9×5 loaf pan with non-stick spray. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, mash banana to remove as many of the lumps as possible. If desired, run through a food processor.
3. Add eggs, buttermilk, oil, vanilla and whisk until well combined.
4. Add brown sugar and whisk again until well combined.
5. Add flour, baking soda and salt and whisk until just combined.
6. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake on rack in the lower third of the oven for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
7. Leaving loaf in the pan, place on wire rack to cool for 15-20 minutes. Invert and carefully remove loaf and place back on wire rack to cool completely.
8. Slice into 8 pieces and enjoy!

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