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.
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
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.
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!
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!
- In the mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar.
- Mix in mashed bananas and eggs.
- Whisk together dry ingredients: flour, salt, and baking soda and add to batter.
- 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
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:
- Apple Bread – a pull-apart moist apple bread
- Pumpkin Bread – so easy and we love it year-round
- Banana Chocolate Chip Bread always disappears fast
- Persimmon Bread – great way to use ripe persimmon
Moist Banana Bread Recipe

Ingredients
- 3 very ripe bananas, (medium/large)
- ½ cup unsalted butter, (8 Tbsp) at room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup walnuts
- ½ cup raisins
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
Filed Under
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.
This was great. Husband and kids loved it so much, they had 5 slices! I-i…..had 6 slices! I made sure WE ALL brushed, flossed and used mouthwash after that! Thanks Natasha! Can you make Texas toast please? Our family is big on Texas toast. Thanks again! 🙂 Love you and all your recipes.
Wow 6 slices! I’m impressed! I’m so happy you all loved the banana bread. Thank you for the recipe suggestion. If I come up with something great, I will be sure to share it.
Ok Thanks! 🙂
The banana nut bread has no baking powder, and only baking soda. What creates the ‘rise’ ?
Curious to understand the difference between baking soda and baking powder.
Love all of Natasha‘s recipes.
Hi Leslie, Baking soda is strong. In fact, it is about 3-4x stronger than baking powder. You want to use *just enough* to react in the recipe.
Can you let me know how much 1 cup converts in Gms for flour. Different countries have different cup measurements and therefore it’ll be more accurate to have quantity in metric
Hi there, our new recipes can be converted to grams, just click on Jump to recipe and click Metric. I hope that helps!
I have made this banana bread twice this weekend! Once with all the fixings and one plain. My family and I loved it! And I loved how simple it was to make!
That is the best when the family loves what we moms make. That’s so great!
My 4th time to bake this scrumptious banana walnut bread. So very moist. Doubled the vanilla (homemade) and added 1/4 cup of brown sugar. We love this recipe and it always disappears quickly.
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review!
Hi! I’m making this banana bread for the third time in two weeks 🙂 My guy just loves it and so do I. I was wondering about doubling the recipe. That way I can have more on hand lol. Would it be as easy as doubling each ingredient and then using 2 pans? Thanks for this great recipe.
Hi Lauren, I imagine that will work. If you click on the serving size in the recipe card, you can slide it up or down to scale the recipe ingredient lists. I hope that helps!
can i use self-rising flour in this
recipe?
Hi Rosemary, I haven’t tried this with self-rising flour, so I can’t give you specific recommendations for that. Maybe someone else has tried – if so, please let us know! 🙂
I am looking for a real moist Banana Nut Bread Recipe. Mine is always dry and not real sweet. I am going to try yours. But I do not have raisins. And using Pecans. Will it still come out the same?
Hi Barbara! That should work! Several of our readers left comments mentioning they used pecans instead! I hope you love this recipe!
I want to make this Banana Bread for my kids, can this recipe be made in a 12-mini loaf pan? Would cooking time be different?
Hi Danna, I imagine that would work however I would have to personally try it to find out. I think it’s worth experimenting with! If you give that a try, please share with us how it goes.
Great recipe 👌🏻 This is my fourth tint making this Banaba bread. Everyone absolutely loved it . As I write am making it for my parents.
Thank you
Jenny
I’m so happy you love the banana bread. Thanks for the amazing review.
I try to make this recipe every week; it’s awesome.
Just thinking… do you think if I substitute bananas for chunks of granny smith apples it would work with this recipe? lmk
Thanks.
Hi Norma, That’s so cool to hear you’re making this regularly! Love that! One of our readers reported doing that and wrote: ” I only had 2 ripe bananas on hand, so I added 1/2 a cup of applesauce.” I hope that helps.
I have made this banana bread today for the seventh time. It is so easy to make and always turns out great. I use honey instead of sugar, which adds a wonderful flavor, and it’s not too sweet. Natasha, thanks so much for posting it.
Wonderful! I’m happy to know that you enjoy this banana bread recipe, thanks for your awesome feedback!
Thanks for this comment. you just made my day.. I love this recipe so much – but would love to use honey . Plas tell me how much honey to use – Same amount as sugar?
I used a half cup of honey, as my bananas were very ripe and added enough sweetness.
Great recipe, and great idea on those very ripe bananas! I also like to use a very ripe banana in a fruit smoothy. You are The Bomb Natasha! Thank you for making everyone’s life taste better! Hope you had a fabulous Mother’s Day! And that your family cooked for you!
You’re so nice! Thank you Steven!
what can i use to replace the eggs
Hi Teresa, I haven’t tested this but one of my readers wrote: “Ground flaxseed and water is an egg substitute. I think it is 1 Tablespoon of flaxseed mixed with 3 Tablespoons of water is the equivalent of one egg. You may want to do an internet search for more information.” I hope that helps.
Can you please tell the quantity of 3 banana in grams
It’s about 1 3/4 cups mashed.
Thanks❤️
Hey 😊, I made banana bread today using your recipe oh my it’s heaven on earth I loved it so much thank you so much for this recipe. Please continue taking our tongues on different tours 😂.
Yay, that is fantastic! Thanks for sharing that with us, glad you loved it!
Absolutely amazing! My super picky son kept asking for more so we ate it all in less than a day.
Sounds awesome! Thank you for sharing your great feedback with us, Viktoria.
OH-M-G that’s a keeper! 👍👍
I scanned through a lot of recipes before finding this one and all the others were completely overboard with the sugar. This one?
**********PERFECT**********
I’m having a hard time getting my husband to wait until the rest completely cools. Guess I’ll be getting more bananas. 😁
Love it! Great to hear that you loved this recipe, Lisa. Thank you for your awesome feedback!
This recipe is super delicious and so easy to make. Thank you Natasha!
I’m glad you loved this recipe, MJ. Thank you for sharing!
The Banana Loaf was perfect! It keeps disappearing. Thanks!
You’re welcome Diane! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Great recipe! I like to add 3 Tbls of sour milk. so moist and delicious.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me.