An easy and moist Banana Bread Recipe that is loaded with bananas, tangy-sweet raisins, and toasted walnuts. This is one of our favorite overripe banana recipes with hundreds of 5-star reviews.

Banana Bread on a cutting board with walnuts, raisins and ripe bananas to make healthy banana bread

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Banana Nut Bread Recipe:

This is my husband’s recipe which he has perfected over the years and he is known for his Banana Bread. He makes it frequently and it always disappears fast! It is simple to make and our favorite way to use up overripe bananas so they never go to waste. It’s super moist and makes a great breakfast on-the-go. We even created Banana Muffins from this recipe.

This loaf stays moist for days and also makes for a thoughtful and delicious gift idea for the holidays (I’ll take banana bread over fruit cake any day).

Banana Bread Video Tutorial:

Watch Natasha make this moist banana bread. You will be surprised at how easy it is. We will never stop loving this recipe. Now go forth and bake!

Ingredients for Banana Bread:

This is everything you need to make the best banana bread: flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, vanilla extract, softened butter, eggs and of course very ripe bananas. Adding walnuts and raisins is optional but adds great taste and texture, turning it into a banana nut bread.

Can I Omit Walnuts and Raisins?

YES! The recipe will still work if raisins and walnuts are omitted. We make it nut-free all the time due to a walnut allergy in the family. You will still have the softest, super moist and scrumptious loaf. You can also replace them with some chocolate to make Chocolate Chip Banana Bread.

Ingredients for Banana Bread with ripe bananas, flour, sugar, eggs, butter, walnuts and raisins

How to Ripen Bananas:

  • Quick Oven Method: If your bananas are a little green and you want them to ripen quicker, place them on a baking sheet and bake at 250˚F for 15 to 20 minutes depending on the initial ripeness of the bananas.
  • 24 Hour Counter Method: If you are willing to wait 1 day, you can place the bunch of bananas (without separating them) in a paper bag, cover and leave at room temperature. Bananas emit ethylene which causes ripening. Adding an apple to the bag will speed up the process.

Can I Freeze Overripe Bananas?

If you have overripe bananas and aren’t ready to bake with them, DO NOT throw them away!

How to Freeze Bananas: place them un-peeled in a freezer-safe bag, remove any excess air and freeze up to 3 months. You can use thawed bananas for banana bread. You can also freeze them peeled and cut into pieces for easier use in smoothies. P.S. You can also freeze a whole banana bread with the same method!

Slices of banana nut bread on a plate

How to Make Banana Bread:

This is the easiest banana bread recipe. We mix it in a stand mixer because it’s easy, but you can use an electric hand mixer and can even make it work with a hand whisk. There is no fancy equipment required. Watch the video tutorial below and you will be a pro in no time!

  1. In the mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar.
  2. Mix in mashed bananas and eggs.
  3. Whisk together dry ingredients: flour, salt, and baking soda and add to batter.
  4. Stir in vanilla, walnuts, and raisins, transfer to prepared loaf pan and bake.

Substitutions for a Healthy Banana Bread:

  • My sister Anna made this into a honey banana bread; replacing sugar with honey.
  • Use organic whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour.
  • Replace 1 Tbsp of flour with 1 Tbsp ground flaxseed.
  • Reduce sugar to 1/2 cup when using very ripe bananas; they add plenty of sweetness

Moist banana bread recipe sliced to show banana nut bread center

Love Sweet Breads? Try these Popular Bread Recipes:

We love sweetbreads because they are easy to make and are such a treat, especially when you top them with Honey Butter! Don’t miss these reader favorites:

Moist Banana Bread Recipe

4.97 from 6214 votes
Banana bread sliced on a cutting board
This Banana Bread Recipe is loaded with ripe bananas, tangy-sweet raisins, and toasted walnuts. It is one of our favorite ripe banana recipes and even better with overripe bananas.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients 

Servings: 10 people

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a bread loaf pan (9.25 long x 5.25 wide x 2.75 deep). Lightly roast walnuts on a skillet, continuously stirring so they won’t burn. Coarsely chop and cool to room temperature. 
  • In a mixing bowl, cream together 8 Tbsp softened butter and 3/4 cup sugar (or honey if using honey).
  • Mash bananas with a fork until the consistency of chunky applesauce and add them to the batter along with 2 eggs, mixing until blended. 
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together: 1 1/2 cups of flour, 1 tsp of baking soda and 1/2 tsp of salt then add to batter.
  • Add 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract and mix in chopped walnuts and raisins. Pour into prepared loaf pan. Bake at 350˚F for 55-60 min or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let banana bread rest for 10 min before transferring to a wire rack to cool.

Nutrition Per Serving

350kcal Calories45g Carbs5g Protein18g Fat7g Saturated Fat57mg Cholesterol243mg Sodium270mg Potassium3g Fiber20g Sugar354IU Vitamin A4mg Vitamin C26mg Calcium2mg Iron
Nutrition Facts
Moist Banana Bread Recipe
Amount per Serving
Calories
350
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
18
g
28
%
Saturated Fat
 
7
g
44
%
Cholesterol
 
57
mg
19
%
Sodium
 
243
mg
11
%
Potassium
 
270
mg
8
%
Carbohydrates
 
45
g
15
%
Fiber
 
3
g
13
%
Sugar
 
20
g
22
%
Protein
 
5
g
10
%
Vitamin A
 
354
IU
7
%
Vitamin C
 
4
mg
5
%
Calcium
 
26
mg
3
%
Iron
 
2
mg
11
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Course: Breakfast, snack
Cuisine: American
Keyword: banana bread, banana nut bread
Skill Level: Easy
Cost to Make: $
Calories: 350
Natasha's Kitchen Cookbook

If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen

This banana bread recipe was first published in 2009; one of the very first recipes on our blog! It has been a reader and family favorite ever since.

Moist banana nut bread on kitchen towel

This Banana Bread Recipe is loaded with ripe bananas, tangy sweet raisins and toasted walnuts making it a banana nut bread. One of our favorite ripe banana recipes and even better with overripe bananas! This banana nut bread is super moist, easy and makes a great breakfast on-the-go. | natashaskitchen.com
4.97 from 6214 votes (4,175 ratings without comment)

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Recipe Rating




Comments

  • Areej taqi
    May 3, 2020

    Hi Natasha I love your recipes and this banana bread is delicious everybody loved it in my family❤️,I have one question how many days you can keep it on counter top in sir tight container(it’s not gonna last long😊)but I am just wondering,please reply me.

    Thankyou❤️

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      May 3, 2020

      Thank you for your great feedback. It doesn’t usually last for more than 2 days at home too. But if properly stored, freshly baked banana bread will last for about 1 to 2 days at normal room temperature. Freshly baked banana bread will keep well for about 1 week in the fridge when properly stored.

      Reply

  • Becky
    May 2, 2020

    Could i split the batter between mini loaf pans? How long to bake then?
    Thanks!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      May 2, 2020

      Hi Becky, I haven’t tested that and I bet that could work! You will need to adjust the bake time.

      Reply

  • Daisy R. Mazilu
    May 2, 2020

    Hi, your banana bread recipe is awesome! I just tried it today and my family loved it! I have tried several recipes before but this is by far the best! Thank you so much! I am a big fan of your blog!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      May 2, 2020

      You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it Daisy!

      Reply

  • Lilian Uti
    May 2, 2020

    I love the banana bread recipe. Each time I see banana all I thing next is banana bread.

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      May 2, 2020

      This is the perfect recipe for that!

      Reply

  • Trish
    April 30, 2020

    Hi! I only have an 8×4 loaf pan. How do I go about tweaking the ingredients so they don’t go over? Thank you!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      May 1, 2020

      Hi Trish, you may try halving or making 3/4 of the recipe. I haven’t tested it in that size pan to advise.

      Reply

  • Alyssa
    April 30, 2020

    This looks delicious! Just like the one my grandma would make! Unfortunately, I don’t have a loaf pan. Any chance this recipe could be used to make muffins instead? 😀

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      April 30, 2020

      Hello Alyssa, I hope you can try this recipe soon! I haven’t tried making this in muffins yet, I imagine that should be okay however I cannot advise you of any changes in measurements since I haven’t tested it yet. If you want to do an experiment, please share with us how it goes.

      Reply

  • shaur
    April 29, 2020

    Omg! This was seriously the best banana bread I’ve ever eaten. Thank you so much!!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 29, 2020

      You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!

      Reply

  • Evelyn
    April 29, 2020

    Hello Natasha, can I substitute all purpose flour with cake flour or oats flour?

    Reply

    • Natasha
      April 29, 2020

      Hi Evelyn, without testing that out myself, it is difficult to make that recommendation.

      Reply

    • Arlene RIced
      May 10, 2020

      cake flour and all purpose flour are of differing consistencies. Check with Google to make the necessary correction to recipe

      Reply

  • Angi
    April 28, 2020

    One of the recipes that I’ve tried . Thanks sweet Natasha for yourself super easy and yummy recipes

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 28, 2020

      You’re welcome! I’m so happy you’re enjoying our recipes!

      Reply

  • Anne
    April 28, 2020

    Can you substitute oil instead of butter?

    Reply

    • Natasha
      April 28, 2020

      Hi Anne, we always make it with butter but we did have a reader report good results using oil.

      Reply

  • Cathy B
    April 28, 2020

    OMG! I just made this a couple of hours ago and it was heavenly! My husband and I love banana nut bread, but I have never tried making it until this morning. My husband was moaning in ecstasy. He said that was the best damn banana nut bread he has ever tasted. I didn’t use the raisins or walnuts, I just dumped in a 6 ounce bag of pecan pieces (we really like pecans). It was just so moist and delicious! Yum! I will be making this again. Thank you for sharing your recipe.

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      April 28, 2020

      So great to hear that you loved the end result, Cathy. Thanks for sharing that with us and for giving this recipe excellent feedback!

      Reply

  • Devin
    April 28, 2020

    I just made this banana bread. I used mini loaf pans instead of the regular size. They came out amazing thank you

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 28, 2020

      You’re welcome Devin! Thank you for that amazing feedback!

      Reply

    • Lisa
      May 14, 2020

      At what temperature and what duration?

      Reply

    • Geraldine Pierce
      June 9, 2020

      DEVIN, how many mini loaves did it make and what temp at how long to bake?? I just bought mini loaf pans and need a good recipe. Thanks

      Reply

  • David M
    April 28, 2020

    A VERY good recipe! I keep a gallon freezer bag in my freezer and put in my overripe bananas. When it’s full, I quadruple this recipe and give 3 away to different friends on a rotating cycle.
    It is probably the best banana bread recipe I’ve ever tried.Thank you Natasha!

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      April 28, 2020

      That is awesome, David. I’m sure that you always make your friends happy because they get to taste it too!

      Reply

  • Rania
    April 24, 2020

    Hi Natasha. Love your recipes!!

    However, Something went wrong with this banana bread with me. Need your advise pls. I just made it now, once I added the mushed bananas & the 2 eggs & I blended, the mix became super cloudy (not nice & bright yellow as its supposed to be) & I can see lots of white specs (very weird). Knowing that I followed Exactly all the steps & none of my ingredients were expired or anything like that. Any idea what went wrong there for me?? Thanks a lot.

    Reply

    • Natasha
      April 24, 2020

      Hi Rania, could it be that the butter wasn’t fully softened? If the specks are fairly small and appear to be butter, it should still bake up fine.

      Reply

  • Marian Thomas
    April 24, 2020

    I made this recipe using gluten free flour and it came out rather crumbly. Can you suggest a remedy to offset the dryness of the flour?
    However the flavor was very good and I will make it again.

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 24, 2020

      Hi Marina, I haven’t experimented with gluten-free flour/ coconut flour so can’t make a recommendation.

      Reply

  • Thea
    April 23, 2020

    Can you add more bananas? I want to double the batch because I have 8 bananas I need to use up. Thanks.

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 24, 2020

      Hi Thea, you can definitely double this recipe! I hope you love it!

      Reply

  • Peggy Garmon
    April 22, 2020

    I made this yesterday. It is by far the best recipe I have ever used..I substituted 1/2 cup blueberries and 1/4 c dried cranberries for the walnuts and raisins because that is what was in my kitchen. Delicious!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 22, 2020

      That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite!

      Reply

  • Lorraine Doucet-Noel
    April 22, 2020

    Hello Natasha, I have tried this recipe today. I only had 2 bananas so I added a shredded apple and because I am a diabetic, I decided to replace the sugar with splenda. It turned out fine It does not rise as much but the taste is just fine. For a girl who does not bake, I think I did okay. Thank you for your help Natasha,

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 22, 2020

      You’re welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!

      Reply

  • Margaret Hoyle
    April 21, 2020

    Naterlie can I add dried Cranberries as well as the Raisins and the Nuts or would that be too much.
    Thank you
    You are a Gem.

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 21, 2020

      I’m sure you could based on your liking! If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.

      Reply

  • Alicia
    April 20, 2020

    I made this using self-rising flour instead because I’m trying to use it up (while saving my ap flour since it’s still difficult to find at stores.) I also used brown sugar (not packed) instead of white. I didn’t add any other leaveners or salt and it turned out great! Moist but not gummy and just the right amount of sweetness! It was perfectly done after 45 minutes in the oven. Great recipe that seems very flexible!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 20, 2020

      I’m so glad you enjoyed that Alicia! Thank you for that wonderful review!

      Reply

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