February 20, 2022

Best Ever One Bowl Banana Bread

There are a few reasons why this is the best ever one bowl banana bread recipe. I’ve tried so many over the years and this is the one I’ve settled on likely forever. It’s so moist with just the right balance of sweetness and spice from the cinnamon. And it has a slight caramel flavour that will leave you craving slice after slice. It really is hard to stop eating this banana bread once you start!

What Makes This Banana Bread Recipe So Good?

There are a few things that make this the best ever one bowl banana bread extra amazing. One secret to its success is the addition of sour cream. Be sure to use full fat as anything less will be noticeably different. Not only does the fat add moisture and richness, the acidity reacts with the baking soda resulting in a higher, fluffier banana bread.

If you do not have full fat sour cream, then full fat Greek yogurt will do the job just as well.

Another thing that makes this recipe so good is the addition of oil. That small tweak makes a noticeable difference in the moistness–something we all love about banana bread!

Last but not least, preheating the oven to 375F/190C then baking at 350F/177C helps leaven this banana bread with a little more spring. It also gives the crust that extra bit of caramel flavour!

How Long is it Good For?

Banana bread will keep well for 5 days at room temperature. And what’s really great is it actually improves in flavour and gets more moist. It’s kind of like my One Bowl Sweet Potato Muffins on this site. Because it contains butter it may harden in the fridge, so pull it out about an hour before serving time. Be sure to keep in well wrapped in plastic and inside an airtight container.

You can also freeze it in the same manner for up to 3 months, so go ahead and make an extra one to have in case you have unexpected company!

Tips For Making The Best Banana Bread

When measuring your ingredients, go by weight rather than volume. A cup of flour from where you live is almost certain to be heavier or lighter than a cup of flour from where I live. But weighing everything on a scale rather than relying on cups will ensure accuracy and consistency.
Use room temperature ingredients. If your eggs and sour cream are cold while everything else is room temperature, your batter might curdle or split when you mix it together. This can result in greasy spots throughout the texture when baked and it won’t be as fluffy as it could.
Use only very ripe bananas. They are at their peak sweetness then they are very ripe, plus they will be very easy to mash. The skins should look quite brown and spotty but not black. If you need to ripen your bananas in a pinch, bake them at 300F for 10-15 minutes and they will turn brown and soften in the middle. You can also freeze bananas whole in their skins when you see they are turning brown but you don’t have time to make banana bread right away.
Do not over mix! As soon as you see every trace of flour has disappeared when adding the dry ingredients, stop mixing. You will develop too much gluten which will result in a tough bread. It is almost better to have the slightest amount of flour still visible rather than over mixing.
Preheat oven to 375F/190C but bake at 350F/177C. Starting many quick breads at a higher heat helps give them more lift when they rise during baking. Then you turn the heat down to continue baking so it cooks properly throughout.
Cool completely before serving–even better, wait till the next day. If you like a slightly crunchy exterior on your banana bread, serve it the same day. As your banana bread sits for a day or two, the crust will soften and it will become more moist. In fact, the moisture and flavour improve the longer it sits.

You’ll be convinced that this is the best ever one banana bread recipe out there. I hope these tips help you create a banana bread that will have your friends begging you for the recipe. If you make this, let me know how it turned out for you!