There is just nothing else better than the smell of a yummy bread cooking in the oven. I just love how the house smells when baking no matter what it is, really! That sweet smell of butter and sugar that takes over the house and hangs in the air, it’s just so amazing and humbling.
My Dad always made Banana Bread when I was younger, in fact I am pretty sure it was his favorite thing to make and eat.I have to admit though, I rarely ate Banana Bread when he made it. I was a super picky eater when I was a teenager, boy has that changed. I like to say I will try anything now, and I mean anything at least once to see if I like it.
I have been making Banana Bread for a few years now and have to admit it has become one of my favorite things to eat out of the oven. Especially while still warm, we have this amazing honey cinnamon butter we get at this peach farm we go to here in TX every Summer and I save it especially for my Banana Bread. YUM YUM.
I love this Banana Bread Recipe, especially because I get two loaves out of if. I have not tried baking it in a bigger pan all together but I might have to after seeing the way Joanna Gaines makes her Banana Bread.
I was recently gifted the Magnolia Table Book by my sister in law and after reading Joanna Gaines recipe for her After School Banana Bread, (OMG trying that recipe soon for sure) I have a new outlook on the “loaf pan” vs. a regular square shaped baking pan.
She gave me some really good ideas on future Banana Bread making and I definitely plan on playing around with my next batch. I mean I love a good inspirational cookbook and this one is just all the heart eyes and so many recipes on my list of “must trys”!
I would highly recommend her Magnolia Table Recipe Book for a gift to anyone that loves to cook! I love it so far after reading just a few pages about her recipes and I also love the photography in the book. Point is – major cooking inspiration happening around here lately.
So since this recipe makes two loaves I have decided in the future I will be making two different flavors and I have some ideas up my sleeve I am DYING to try. So if you see a crazy lady at the store with a basket full of Bananas, it will probably be me, lol.
Lately my Banana Bread making has slowed due to a crazy Banana eating monkey in my house by the name of Nicolas. He just loves those things and I haven’t had any lately go all brown because he eats them all! Luckily I set these two aside in the fridge (I had to hide them so he could not see them) because I was craving some Banana Bread, which is why they look darker than the ones I usually use.
I only used two Bananas in this recipe because they were rather large and my other one I wanted to save for the topping (and for Nic). Next time your Bananas are all spotty don’t throw them out! Those are prime Banana Bread Banana’s!
If you are not ready to make Banana Bread at the time just peel them and freeze, then defrost in a bowl when you are ready to use them – and don’t drain all that banana juice when they defrost, use it just mash it up with those bananas!
I use a potato masher when I mash my bananas for Banana Bread because I like mine super mushy. But if you like your Banana Bread chunky then just mash with a fork.
I also just use a hand mixer for this recipe. The batter gets pretty thick but a hand mixer works for this recipe if you do not want to mess with getting the stand mixer out.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. You want to cream your room temperature butter and sugar together then add in the eggs one at a time, making sure they are mixed well each time. Then add in your vanilla and milk and mix well.
Add in all dry ingredients and mix well then add bananas and mix until all ingredients are well combined. You will have a pretty nice thick batter when you are done. Grease two full size bread pans and pour half of the mixture into each pan.
Topping Time! Get creative here, like I did with this chocolate chip banana one. I made one my usual way, which is with chopped walnuts on top. Then I decided to put thin slices of Banana on top of the other loaf along with some chocolate chips (I think next time I am going to add them into the batter as well, for this one loaf).
Bake both breads for 45-55 minutes, until middle is no longer jiggly and toothpick inserted into middle comes out clean. If desired sprinkle sugar on top immediately after taking bread out of oven for an extra sweet topping. Cool for 5 minutes then move to a cooling rack.
Enjoy while still warm. We add our favorite honey cinnamon butter on top and enjoy with hot coffee. This bread also freezes well and is yummy when slightly warmed in the microwave.
The Chocolate Chip Banana Bread turned out amazing and it looks so pretty too, I definitely will add more chocolate chips on top next time. It was delicious and inspired some new ideas that I plan to try the next time I make this recipe – hint, it has to do with peanut butter!
As usual the Banana Bread with the walnut topping was excellent with our favorite butter on top! I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do. We make this a lot in this house!
This recipe makes two loaves of banana bread. I like to make Banana Bread two ways when making this recipe so have fun and get creative with your favorite toppings!
Two Way Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1 stick of butter ½ cup
- 2 cups of granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup of milk
- 1 ½ teaspoons of vanilla
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 3 cups of flour
- 2-3 large mashed bananas
- Optional Toppings – Walnuts Pecans, Chocolate Chips, Bananas, Get creative.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mash 2-3 large Bananas with fork or potato masher and set aside.
- With a hand mixer Cream the butter and sugar together until well combined. Add in eggs mixing well in between each one then add in milk and vanilla and mix until well combined.
- Mix in all dry ingredients with a spatula or large spoon then add in mashed Bananas. Mix until all ingredients are combined.
- Grease two large bread pans with cooking spray or butter. Add half of mixture to each pan and add desired toppings to each loaf. We like to use walnuts on one loaf and sliced bananas and some chocolate chips on the other loaf.
- Bake for 45-55 minutes or until each loaf is not jiggly in center and toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean. Sprinkle tops of each loaf with granulated sugar right after removing from oven, if desired. Let cool for 5 minutes then move each loaf to a cooling rack.
- Enjoy a slice while still warm.
