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.
There is no way this whole banana bread has 350 calories. Are there any accurate nutritional facts?
Hi Mary, as noted on the printable recipe card, this banana bread serves 10. Each serving is 350 calories. I hope that helps.
I made this banana bread but I exchanged the butter for sunflower oil. Any healthy vegetable neutral flavor oil would work. I found that the butter leaves the bread a bit dry. The oil was a game changer. Also, after removing it from oven while still very hot, I basted the top of bread while still in pan with a thin syrup of 2 tablespoons sugar and 3 tablespoons very hot water. Baste until all syrup is absorbed by the bread. This makes the top soft and yummy.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me!
Hi, I’ve baked this banana bread a few times now and always comes out delicious. Now, I want to reduce the fat content slightly, and was wondering if I could substitute half of the butter by 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce?
Would that work..?
Thank you 😊
Hi! Thank you for sharing, I’m glad you enjoy this recipe. I have not tested it with applesauce, but it seems like it could work. You’ll have to experiment. Let us know your results.
I made this recipe today with half butter half apple sauce and it was EXCELLENT so it definitely works!
Thank you Natasha for great banana bread recipe, just like my Mom’s. I wish you all the best!
You’re welcome, Dianne.Same to you too!
Turned out great, only problem was waiting for it to bake to completion, I found my self sitting in front of the oven counting down the minutes til the delicious golden brown loaf is ready to emerge. The flour coating on the bottom paired with a quick wipedown with oil made for quick and easy removal.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
I made this for my children and they really liked it. I have enjoyed all the recipes I have tried. Thank you very much!
That is wonderful! Thank you for sharing.
good recipe, but it seems no matter how many bananas you stick in a recipe, the result always seems to need more banana flavor unless it’s a banana cream pie or pudding.
The secret is to use really, really, really ripe bananas. The kind you wouldn’t eat because they’re so ripe, the more ripe the bananas, the more flavor you get.
Can you leave out the raisins & walnuts without affecting the recipe?
Hi Lisa, we love it with both, Raisins add sweetness to the recipe but feel free to add more sugar on your next try if you will omit the raisins again & nuts.
Thank you Natasha for all recipes yuo sent to me !I love Banana bread & Cream cheese!👍👍👍❤️❤️❤️
You’re very welcome! 🙂
This is a wonderful recipe! I used it with my Special Needs Life Skills class today and they nailed it!
Thank you and your husband!
Thank you for the good review!
Hi Natasha, love your cooking, can I change the all purpose flour to almond flour and how much do I use thanks
Hello Barbara, thank you for sharing. I haven’t tested using almond flour to advise. I think it’s worth experimenting with, if you try that, plese share with us how it goes.
You’ll have to use a mixture of almond flour with all-purpose. Otherwise, the outside will burn and the inside will be liquid.
I followed the recipe almost to a T except I used less walnuts, less sugar, added some cinnamon powder and used 1.5 tsp of baking powder instead of baking soda (which I read is a No-No! I didn’t have any on hand so substituted it.)
The results? A perfectly moist banana bread which is not overly sweet.
Am very happy with it and will repeat the recipe again to see if I can achieve the same results.
Thank You Natasha!
That is awesome, good to know that the changes that you made worked well too. Thank you for sharing that with us.
Want too make this can I add monk sweeter instead of sugar .
Hi Flora, I haven’t really tried using Monk Fruit sugar yet to advise so you might have to do an experiment to find out. Please share with us how it goes.
Made this today! It is the best banana bread I’ve ever made. Thank you!
Thanks for the amazing feedback, Dawn!
I often add some European Vanilla sugar for flavour, also vanilla yogurt… always moist and delicious, thank you for recipe!
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Elina! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Got rid of all the banana bread recipes I had. Is the most delicious banana bread I’ve ever tasted! Loved it!
Love it, Pat! I’m happy to hear that this is now your go-to recipe.
I made the banana bread with fresh honey I bought from a bee farm, I didn’t toast the walnuts, I used golden raisins, I do not like the dark ones. I made 3 1/2 small loaves. Just took it out of the oven, cut off a small piece from one, its light not heavy, not super sweet but I like it very much. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
That sounds wonderful! You’re very welcome! Enjoy.
I followed the recipe to a T but instead of regular flour, I used gluten free as my family is allergic to regular flour. It turned out amazing, but the time was shortened by 15 min. So only cook your banana bread at 350 degrees for 40 min & its Sure to turn out perfectly.
Thanks for sharing your experience using Gluten-free flour. Good to hear that it turned out great!
I am going to use pistachios instead of walnuts. Wish me luck! 😆
Sounds good, let us know how it goes!
Wow! I made this recipe over the weekend, and it exceeded my expectations! In my experience banana bread tends to be too sweet, too dense, and often as not, too dry. This bread was light and moist, with the perfect level of sweetness. I did not add nuts or fruit in order to experience the basic bread recipe. This will definitely become a favorite treat going forward!
That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite, Ed! I’m so happy this was a hit!
Delicious! I added a T of cinnamon-sugar and swirled it in before baking. The loaf was all gone within 12 hours!
That sounds absolutely AMAZING! So glad you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for sharing.
I love cinnamon so be for I make can I ask how much you put.
Tasty! Followed the recipe exactly. One recommendation is to add foil about 15 min before end time so it doesn’t burn. I noticed it got a little too browned to my liking. Added the foil and came out perfect. So tasty, moist and not too sweet.
Thank you so much for sharing that with us!