This easy Banana Bread recipe yields supremely moist, perfectly soft banana bread with bits of crunchy walnuts and coconut throughout. Whether made as muffins, loaves, or a bundt, it is an irresistible treat to serve for breakfast, feed to a brunch crowd, or freeze ahead.
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The perfect banana bread recipe… it needs to be moist and tender, not dense and certainly not dry. It needs to have sweet banana flavor perfectly complemented with shredded coconut and crunchy walnuts. It needs to form a perfect crust on the top and stay wonderfully tender on the inside.
This, my friends, is that recipe. It was originally inspired by Ina Garten’s Banana Crunch Muffins, but I simplified the mix-ins and removed the chunky banana pieces. They do make fantastic muffins, but I prefer to make them in loaf pans and occasionally in a bundt pan.
🍌 Ingredients
Flour: All-purpose white flour.
Sugar: Just regular granulated sugar.
Baking powder: Rising agent #1…
Baking soda: Rising agent #2… Both create fluffy, tender bread!
Salt: Kosher salt is best.
Butter: Use real butter for the best flavor. Both salted and unsalted will work.
Bananas: The riper the better! Choose bananas that are covered in black or brown spots and are very soft.
Eggs: Use large eggs for best results.
Milk: Whole milk is best, although I have had good results with 2% as well.
Vanilla: I know it can be pricey, but this recipe really benefits from the vanilla. Don’t skip it if you have it.
Walnuts: Just give them a quick chop before using. They add great texture to the bread. Feel free to use pecans, cashews, or macadamia nuts.
Shredded/flaked coconut: Sweetened is a must. If you don't have or do not care for coconut feel free to omit it. No changes to the recipe are required.
🥣 Instructions
The batter starts by whisking the dry ingredients together to make sure there are no lumps. Then pour melted butter over the top and blend with a stand/hand mixer until it forms small lumps. In a separate bowl combine the wet ingredients. Combine well with the dry ingredients to form a thick batter. Then gently mix in the walnuts and shredded coconut.
Pour the batter into prepared loaf pans, muffin tins, or a bundt pan. Bake at 350°F until the bread is deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then dump and finish cooling on a wire rack.
👨👩👧👦 For a Crowd
This is a really fun recipe to serve for special brunch gatherings or even baby/bridal shower parties. The easiest way to serve to a crowd is to make it in a bundt pan, which will serve at least 14-18 people. You could also double the recipe to make additional loaves or muffins. If you double the recipe, I highly suggest making each recipe in its own mixing bowl. This will help prevent overmixing, which makes the bread tough and dense.
🙋 Questions and Answers
Banana bread typically forms a firm crust on the top, which can make it look finished before it actually is. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean or with a few large crumbs.
The biggest culprit of sinking banana bread is taking it out of the oven before it is finished. If the middle is still raw or too soft, it will collapse as it cools. Make sure to cook it until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean or with a few large crumbs.
Store banana bread in an airtight container or serving dish (such as a covered cake stand) at room temperature for 2-3 days. It isn’t necessary to store the bread in the fridge, but you most certainly can if you prefer it cold.
Yes, this is a great freezer bread! Allow it to cool all the way to room temperature, then wrap in a layer of plastic wrap and a layer of tinfoil. Freeze for up to 3-4 months. Thaw at room temperature on the counter for a few hours or in the fridge overnight.
📖 More Breakfast Winners
- Need something everyone will love? You really can’t go wrong with this Lemon Curd Coffee Cake… it’s what breakfast dreams are made of!
- The ultimate breakfast side dish: easy, sweet, and perfectly crispy Oven-Baked Bacon. You’ll never cook bacon on the stove again!
- For classic breakfast lovers, try these Famous Farm Buttermilk Pancakes. They’re moist, golden brown, and just begging for syrup 🤤.
👨🏼🍳 Tips & Tricks
- Use very ripe bananas for the most flavor (they should be heavily streaked with black and brown spots). Then mash them thoroughly until smooth to avoid chunks of banana in the bread.
- Fully incorporate the butter into the dry ingredients. If any dry spots are left, it won’t mix into the wet ingredients as well.
- Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula often. Ingredients tend to hide out at the bottom of the bowl or cling to the sides, so scrape, scrape scrape after each step.
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📋 Recipe
Easy and Moist Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cups flour
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 1 cup butter melted and cooled
- 3 ripe bananas mashed until smooth
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup milk 2% or whole
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup walnuts chopped (or use pecans, cashews, macadamia)
- 1 cup shredded coconut sweetened (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray 2 9" loaf pans with baking spray. **For muffin or bundt instructions, see notes.
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until combined. Add the melted butter and mix on low speed using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Blend until butter is thoroughly incorporated and batter forms small lumps.
- In a separate bowl, combine mashed bananas, eggs, milk, and vanilla. Add to the dry ingredients and mix on low until combined, scraping the bowl as needed. Batter will be slightly lumpy; don't overmix.
- Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the walnuts and coconut. Pour batter into prepared pans and bake for 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Allow to cool in loaf pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and finish cooling to room temperature on cooling rack. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Use very ripe bananas for the most flavor (they should be heavily streaked with black and brown spots). Then mash them thoroughly until smooth to avoid chunks of banana in the bread.
- Fully incorporate the butter into the dry ingredients. If any dry spots are left, it won’t mix into the wet ingredients as well.
- Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula often. Ingredients tend to hide out at the bottom of the bowl or cling to the sides, so scrape, scrape scrape after each step.
Nutrition
All nutrition information is provided by a third party and is an estimate only. Use your own nutritional calculator for more specific measurements.
Sally says
Oh man.... the family devoured this bread! I followed the recipe exactly as is and it turned out great. I will try a Bundt pan next time.
Misty says
Love to hear you had happy eaters!
Patricia says
I made this in the muffin version this morning. SO good! It made 22 muffins for me, each filled to the top of the liner. I made a couple of changes to the recipe with the sugar. I wanted to use a little less sugar and I also wanted to use some brown. So I did 1 cup of white sugar and 1/2 cup of brown instead of 2 cups of white. Otherwise I followed the recipe exactly. They turned out amazing!
Misty says
Awesome, good idea to use both sugars. So glad they turned out well for you!