How to Make the Easiest Banana Bread

March 23, 2020

golden banana bread

I’m back today with a very quick, YUMMY, very easy banana bread recipe – and I just had to share it because for years I thought it was way harder than this.

I love when I think something is difficult for so long and then do a quick search on the net and realize it’s not hard at all. Or maybe I hate when that happens, because I’ve denied myself the goodness all that time.

I found this recipe on Simply Recipes years ago and I love it because you probably already all of the ingredients in your pantry.

It seriously takes only five minutes to mix everything:
banana bread ingredients
This post may contain affiliate links for your convenience.
I may earn a small commission when you make a purchase through links. 
See my policies and disclosure page for more information.    

(I took this after I had already mashed the bananas, these are not quite ripe yet.)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees before starting.



Easiest banana bread recipe (in order)

3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup melted butter 
1/2 cup to 1 cup sugar (the more bananas the less sugar needed)
1 egg, beaten 
1 teaspoon vanilla 
1 teaspoon baking soda 
Pinch of salt 
1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
Per your taste: Cinnamon, nuts, raisins, nutmeg, per your tastes

I love that the ingredients are so basic -- I had everything I needed on hand. How often does that happen when you want something specific?

First mash up the bananas (I use a potato masher), and then add the melted butter:
simple banana bread 
easy banana bread

YUM, banana goo!

Then mix in the sugar, egg, and vanilla:
How to make easy banana bread
Add the baking soda and salt and mix:Super easy banana bread

Add the flour last, bake at 350 in a preheated oven for one hour and you’re done!

I added a bit of cinnamon at the end too, just because I think cinnamon is good in just about any baked item. I've also added nutmeg -- also delicious! 

I don’t care for nuts in banana bread, so this recipe was perfect for me. If you like them in your nanner bread, I’m guessing about half a cup would be perfect.

The recipe specifies an 8” by 4” loaf pan, but all we have is a 9 by 5. Because of that I bake it for about 50 minutes instead of an hour.

It comes out perfect every time!:
easy banana bread recipe
I may or may not have eaten about five a couple pieces by the time I took this picture. :)

It is SO good. Especially yummy warm from the oven, with a little butter…um, what was I saying? I may add a few raisins in my next loaf -- I think that would be amazing.

Now go forth and bake!

**Check out more of my other easy recipes, including three of my very favorite crock pot soups, yummy peanut butter pie and super easy crockpot applesauce.



Never miss a post by signing up to get posts via email. 
Email subscription form header
Your email:*
Please enter all required fields Click to hide
Correct invalid entries Click to hide

Comments

  1. This is almost identical to my great, great grandmother's recipe (she used two eggs and 1/2 c. butter)! It always comes out delicious.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I was just looking for a banana bread recipe and ....voila! Your recipe appeared on Facebook. Perfection!

    ReplyDelete
  3. You can add other fruits too. I made a strawberry banana bread once and it was delicious.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Awww man! I just pulled my banana bread out of the oven and now I see this comment! ugh! I really want strawberry banana bread!!

      Delete
  4. Sarah, I am seriously in shock!! You've NEVER made banana bread before. That's just crazyness! lol It is soo quick and easy. It's a household favorite. I found a great recipe about 12 years ago and have modified it a little bit. It uses sour cream, which sounds a bit strange, but makes for the moistest bread ever. Anyone that's tried it, loves it. And, I've had to give the recipe out several times. Even my mother in law uses it now! I'll share it with ya.

    http://catiescorner2.blogspot.ca/2011/08/this-that-weekend-and-banana-bread.html

    Have a great weekend!!

    ~ Catie

    ReplyDelete
  5. I make it with chocolate chips - yummmmmmmmmm

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have done that but all the chips go to the bottom... it is still very good but would like to have some thru-out the bread. Any suggestions???

      Delete
    2. Add the chocolate chips to the flour mixture before adding to the liquid mixture. It should help suspend the chips through the dough.

      Delete
    3. I put the chocolate chips on after I have put the batter in my pan. I sprinkle on the chips and then take a fork or knife and sort of swirl it into the batter, till it's just below the surface. This seems to help! :-) This is the very same recipe I recently discovered (minus the vanilla extract) and I just keep making it over and over, my husband LOVES it and it is truly the best recipe (and easiest!) I have ever found!

      Delete
  6. That is the exact same link I have on my iPad in the kitchen. I found it a few weeks ago, loved that the ingredients were so basic, and have been making it every weekend ever since! I've substituted the butter for applesauce, and reduced the sugar to 3/4 cup and it turns out great!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I LOVE banana bread! How funny that you've never made it before!

    I recently tried my hand at sticky toffee pudding. Believing that it was some mystical English treat that must be difficult to make, it had never occurred to me to attempt it at home. But after receiving a large container of dates, I decided it was time. It wasn't difficult at all and turned out great!

    Here's my recipe:
    http://www.examiner.com/article/sticky-toffee-pudding-brings-a-british-tradition-into-your-kitchen

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh - it's sooooo easy to make banana bread! We double the recipe in our house for 2 loaves. Yummy! Zucchini bread is just as easy and taste as wonderful as banana bread. My kids love it & they don't really care for zucchini. Glad you tried something new!

    Liz VanKirk

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wow -- I love that it has so few ingredients. Will have to try it -- and, I might have to add in some chocolate chips, too! Thanks so much for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I have made banana bread several times before, but my recipes have never been this easy. Thanks for posting this! It looks so yummy :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Love it, your recipe is almost identical to mine, I add 2 tablespoons of sour cream to mine. Helps make it really moist. Hugs, Marty

    ReplyDelete
  12. I was just thinking today that I need to make some banana bread because I have a ton of ripe bananas in my freezer. Maybe I'll do that this weekend and give it as part of Mother's Day gifts. I've never made banana bread before, but this recipe looks so easy! I have all of the ingredients except for butter. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  13. You can microwave the bananas for a tiny bit (like 30 - 45 seconds) if they aren't ripe enough to mash easily. Picked up that tidbit from a Rachel Ray recipe an it works like a charm!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Yummm! That recipe is similar to mine except that you also add a small box of instant vanilla pudding to the batter. I also do choc chips sometimes......yummm!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Like another commenter said, we love to add chocolate chips to our banana bread. Yummy!!!

    I'm glad you posted this recipe because someone asked me to make banana bread for them and gave me a whole bunch of frozen bananas. The recipe I've used for years involves shortening (I HATE measuring shortening because it's so messy and never think to look up the water displacement method). This will have me in and out of the kitchen much faster. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  16. I add a cup or so (i add more) of berriers (strawberry, blueberry, raspberry, blackberry, cherry) into the mix at the mashing stage and it turns out so yummy. You can use fresh or frozen berries

    ReplyDelete
  17. Thanks for the recipe! I had banana bread with chocolate chips in it and Ice cream on top the other day and it was wonderful! I think I'll make this for Mother's Day!
    Susan
    Homeroad

    ReplyDelete
  18. I made banana bread once while I was babysitting a friends' daughters. They said their banana bread with frozen bananas didn't taste as good as mine made with fresh bananas. Fresh bananas are much better!

    ReplyDelete
  19. That looks good! T just threw out a bunch of bananas that we didn't eat at Disney-gah! I need to try this recipe out.

    ReplyDelete
  20. I'm not much of a baker type gal, but LOVE when my husband makes banana bread. It's just so yummy when it's still warm with a bit of melted butter on top... YUM!!!

    ReplyDelete
  21. It does sound yummy! I will have to try it :)
    Hugs,
    Bj

    ReplyDelete
  22. Even EASIER---1 yellow cake mix, 3-4 over ripe bananas, 2 eggs, 1 cup choc chips. Mash bananas, add cake mix, add eggs, beat with mixer. stir in choc chips. Pour into 2 loaf pans and bake per cake mix directions. EASY and YUM and so moist and YUUMMMMMMMMMMM!!! LOL

    ReplyDelete
  23. Yummo! I especially like the name. :)
    easypeasychic.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  24. I use about a tablespoon of Hellman's Olive Oil Mayo in mine, that's for 2 loaves. It really ups the moistness of the whole thing. You can't taste it at all. I LOVE baking banana bread, my husband practically drools the entire time it's baking and he hates bananas, but he loves my bread!! I use my nifty stand mixer I got as a wedding present and it makes the whole process even that much quicker. I'm always surprised by how simple it is to make.

    ReplyDelete
  25. We like it with cream cheese frosting. (Everything is better with frosting!)

    ReplyDelete
  26. Thanks fro the recipe! I was thinking I should make some today. I never throw away bananas, even if i dont have time to make banana bread when they are ready... I peel them and toss them in a ziploc and put them in the freezer, they keep really well that way (plus then you can make banana milk shakes with less ice cream) Cant wait to try this one today!

    ReplyDelete
  27. So funny! I googled the same thing around a year ago and found the same, exact recipe. I've been using it ever since! It's a huge hit around my house and since it's so easy and requires so few ingredients (that I normally have on hand anyways) it's always easy to make use of over-ripe bananas! I actually blogged the recipe a long time ago, too, because I just HAD to share! :) Yummy! Now you make me want to whip up a loaf!

    P.S. Toss about a half cup of chocolate chips in some flour and mix in and it makes this bread DIVINE! You can even drizzle the top with some melted chocolate or a simple icing (a little milk and powdered sugar). :)

    ReplyDelete
  28. Oh wow! I love banana bread! I usually just make the boxed mixes though because it seemed way too hard to do it all homemade! Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  29. I also use my banana bread recipe to make muffins. Less time to bake & freeze well. Approx. 25/30 minutes (same temp.). Quick!

    ReplyDelete
  30. If you have overly ripe bananas, and don't want to make banana bread right away, you can just pop them in the freezer and pull them out to defrost when you're ready. I do it all the time!

    ReplyDelete
  31. I love banana bread, will try out this recipe.

    ReplyDelete
  32. I love to make mine with walnuts. Also, I like to make mine in mini loaf pans. Then I can share or freeze so I don't eat them all myself. :)

    ReplyDelete
  33. Looks scrumptious!!! It's been a long time scense I've made Nanna Bread. Time to go buy some banannas!

    ReplyDelete
  34. Always, and I mean always, replace white sugar in baking recipes (banana bread, cookies (peanut butter, chocolate chipe, etc)) with brown sugar. It makes it taste sooooo much better.
    Always.

    :)

    ReplyDelete
  35. I LOVE BANANA BREAD. We made it all the time when I was growing up; we were a 'Green banana" family and so the window of perfectness was really small... We loved adding chocolate chips; def adds some calories but is to DIE FOR.

    ReplyDelete
  36. I always add blueberries to my banana bread (if you don't have fresh, frozen work great too). YUMALUMADINGDONG!!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  37. I've used this same recipe many times. It's GREAT with fresh blueberries and Crasins mixed into the batter :)

    ReplyDelete
  38. I wonder how it would taste with blueberries/strawberries and bananas . hmmm.

    ReplyDelete
  39. I just made this. Wonderful bread. Thank you for sharing with us all. Delicious!!!

    ReplyDelete
  40. I always put ingredients away as I go. Can't stand a messy kitchen.

    ReplyDelete
  41. I love this recipe sooo much! I've been using it for a few years, and also tried different banana bread recipes, but this is by far my favorite! It's moist, delicious, and great even with only two bananas. I'm making it right now, but put 1 tsp of almond extract and 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract and it smells AMAZING. For some reason, I always seem to underbake banana bread though :( Next time I make it, I'm going to use coconut oil as a substitute for the butter, and add some shredded coconut!

    ReplyDelete
  42. I just made a loaf this week as well! The simple recipe I found called for brown sugar, instead of white, in the mix as well as sprinkled on top while baking...it was SO good! And I basically ate the whole loaf by myself, minus 2 pieces :)

    ReplyDelete
  43. I have been using this recipe for almost 15 years! I love it and have it memorized since we make it at least once every other week. My kids like muffins more than the bread and we add in some chocolate chips - because everything is better with chocolate! lol :)

    ReplyDelete

If you have a specific question I will do my best to answer you back here!

You can find our paint colors and links to items at the "Our Home" tab at the top of my site.

THANKS so much for reading!