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.
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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.
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.
I made this last night,very easy recipe and very moist as describe! Its a keeper, thank you!!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Soraya!
This is my go to banana nut bread recipe. I just add a touch a cinnamon and it’s always so moist. I even live in high elevation.
My banana load most of the time was not moist enough, tried for the 2nd time yesterday. LOVE IT! Gonna save the recipe. Thank you Natasha’s kitchen.
Sounds like you found a new favorite! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
My banana bread was bubbling with butter 🙁 seems like it was too much.
Hi Maddy, I haven’t had that happen -did you use the same measurements of butter?
Hi Natasha. I have been following your recipes ever since I started baking. This recipe is also good like your other recipes. I added 1/4 tsp of cinnamon powder to this recipe and the taste came out excellent.
Hi Vidya, thanks for sharing that with us. I hope you’ll love all the recipes that you will try!
Can you make it without the nuts and raisins?
I have made several of your recipes in the past for a couple of reasons: 1. They always have great reviews, and 2. My daughter’s name is also, Natasha!
Hi! You sure can! I hope you love this recipe! & thank you so much for sharing that with me, I’m so glad to hear you’re enjoying my recipes!
Looks so yummy, I want to take this luscious loaf to my next church luncheon. I know it will be a hit.
By the way I tried the pie crust for the apple pie recipe and it caused quite a stir…along with special requests!
That is great! I’m glad it was hit. I hope you try and love this recipe!
Hi Natasha,
I think I have made this banana bread recipe 100 times. I literally have it memorized and can whip it up in 10 minutes haha. It’s the best banana bread recipe I have ever tried and has become staple in our house hold. Thank you ❤️
That’s awesome! I’m happy that you really loved this recipe. Thank you for the review, Tanya.
I had 3 overripe bananas I wanted to use up, so I tried this recipe. I did add a teaspoon of cinnamon, simply because I think it enhances banana bread. My kitchen was filled with the wonderful smell of bread baking. I cut a piece while still warm, and I must say, this recipe is a keeper! It’s amazing, east to prepare, moist and loaded with flavor. I love it. Thanks so much.
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Phyllis!
First of all Phyllis, this is my grandmother’s name and I adore her. I just so happen to have 3 overripe bananas and i decided to make some banana bread. This will be my first time. Like you, I’m adding cinnamon to mine. i don’t have walnuts.. but i do have cashews.. i’m gonna put them in the food processer and add them.
This is by far the best banana bread I’ve ever made. I actually read the reviews first before baking and followed the tips of many. I added cranberries and chocolate chip. The game changer is not putting in on convection. I think that was the best advice I’ve gotten. My bread was super moist and it plump up my cranberries.
Wonderful! I’m so happy to hear that. Thank you for sharing.
This bread was easy and delicious! I only had one cup of bananas so I added a little bit of sour cream for consistency and used almonds instead of walnuts because that was all I had. It came out beautiful and hope it tastes as good as it looks!
I hope it becomes your new favorite! Please update us on how it goes.
I’m not sure if it’s me but for some reason it’s not cooking properly. I’ve made banana bread a gazillion times and decided to try a new recipe, but with this one I found that the centre just would not cook, while the outsides got over cooked. Maybe it’s something I did wrong but probably won’t use this recipe again.
Hi Jessica, I’m sorry to hear that. This is one of our most popular recipes and I am happy to help troubleshoot. Make sure you are using conventional oven settings (not convection), also ensure your oven is fully preheated. Some ovens (like my own) will say they are preheated way before they really are. I highly recommend using an in-oven thermometer to check your ovens temperature settings. Lastly, the type of pan you are using can make a difference in timings.
Rough crowd. I have made varying types of banana bread for years. Mine turned out very moist and delicious!
What about baking powder. Is this not required.
I have never used vanilla. I will try it. Can I use hazelnuts instead. Are dark raisins or light raisins required.
Thank you
Baking powder is not needed in this recipe. You can use hazelnuts if you’d like, it should be fine. I used darker raisins but you can use whichever you prefer.
Upon thorough research for a delicious, moist, simple banana bread, I decided to try this one.
I followed the recipe step by step and was utterly disappointed in how dry it was. It was simple, I’ll give you that.
This bread was far from moist and decadent as described in ALL of these reviews.
It makes me wonder if anyone has tried any other recipes that would actually be moist and enjoyable.
I wish I hadn’t wasted my time and supplies for this recipe.
If you’re wanting MOIST banana bread, I recommend you look elsewhere.
Not impressed.
Not very moist.
Meh. I’ve made better not following a recipe but I thought I’d give it a try.
Now I know!!
Hi Anna, it’s hard to say what went wrong without being there, but I recommend ensuring all of your ingredients are not expired, especially the flour and baking soda and that they are measured correctly. Here’s my post on how to measure wet and dry ingredients, this can help.
This is a very easy and great recipe. I never knew about baking my bananas to get them to ripen quickly! What a fantastic hack!!! It really helped me out here as my bananas weren’t ripe. The bread turned out great!
I’m so glad that was helpful!
I want to make the chicken stir fry. I can’t have salt in my diet..no soy, dairy, milk, butter or egg yolks. Can you help me w this recipe?
You can omit the butter, use another oil of your preference instead, unsalted or low sodium chicken broth. Coconut aminos is a popular soy sauce substitute, still has sodium but at times much less than soy sauce. I would research other soy sauce alternatives and see what else you can find. I hope that helps!
I have made this bread several times for my family and church gatherings. Its always a hit. Used dried cranberries and also added choc chip bcos my older son loves anything with chocolate.
Thank you for sharing, those additions sound delicious!
I made this with my kids the other night and wow!! Absolutely delicious. Definitely going to make it again. Can’t wait for over ripe bananas lol
I’m so glad it was a hit, Itzel! Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
Wow! I’ve made a lot of banana bread recipes but this is the best! Next time I’ll add more raisins!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for the wonderful review!
Absolutely loved this recipe. I have tried a dozen different recipes to make banana bread lately and this was by far, the best one. Furthermore, I liked that it was very easy to put together. Would like to try the healthier ways to make it as listed below in the future. Thank you!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Crystal!