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The Best Banana Bread

Rated 4.5 out of 5
(11)
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The cooks in the Williams Sonoma Test Kitchen tried a dozen different banana bread recipes to dial in the perfect portions for the moistest, most flavorful version of this home-baked treat. The result is this recipe for the best banana bread ever. You can decide for yourself whether to include the optional chocolate chips or nuts; it’s great with or without them.

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 60 minutes
Servings 8

Ingredients

  • 2 cups (10 oz./315 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
  • 3 very ripe bananas, coarsely mashed
  • 1/2 cup (4 oz./125 g) sour cream
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 8 Tbs. (1 stick) (4 oz./125 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1 cup (7 oz./220 g) firmly packed light brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup (6 oz./185 g) semisweet chocolate chips or 1 cup (4 oz./125 g) coarsely chopped toasted walnuts (optional)

Directions

Preheat an oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease and lightly flour a 9-by-5-inch (23-by-13-cm) loaf pan.

In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In another bowl, combine the bananas, sour cream and vanilla extract. Stir to combine. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat together the butter and brown sugar on medium speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the eggs and beat until smooth. Add the banana mixture to the bowl and beat just until combined. Add the flour mixture to the bowl and beat, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, until just combined; the batter should remain slightly lumpy. Fold in the chocolate chips or walnuts.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan (it should be no more than two-thirds full). Bake until the loaf is dark golden brown and dry to the touch and the edges pull away from the sides of the pan, 55 to 60 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean. Let the bread rest in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn the loaf out onto a wire rack and let cool completely. Cut into thick slices to serve. Serves 8.

Williams Sonoma Test Kitchen

Rated 5 out of 5 by from Most delicious banana bread This is the best banana bread ever!! Easy to follow recipe that tastes as good as it looks. I win the best banana bread award at my work !!
Date published: 2023-10-20
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Perfect right out of the oven! For me and my family this is indeed the best banana bread. I normally don’t like banana bread fresh from the oven, but this bread is different. The outside is a little bit crunchy, and the bread is full of flavor. My family loves it with the mini chocolate chips, while I love pecans and/or walnuts. Last time I used pecans and choc chips, and it was awesome! Every time seems better than the last.
Date published: 2023-08-13
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Easy to make, great flavor This bread is much more flavourful than other banana bread recipes I’ve tried. It has a nice texture and is moist. I used walnuts, which were good, but pecans would also work well. It was good the first day, but actually tasted better the second day. This will be my go to banana bread recipe.
Date published: 2022-01-23
Rated 1 out of 5 by from Too sugary With that amount of sugar it banana bread browned too quickly. Also way to sweet for us! Would reduce the amount of sugar.
Date published: 2021-11-08
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Better the next morning. Used pecans Was great but stored it in a sealed Tupperware and tasted even better the next morning (much softer and more moist). I used pecans
Date published: 2021-03-15
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Tasty! I've been using another banana bread recipe for years and decided to try this one. This will be the recipe I use from now on, it's really good. My husband isn't a big fan of banana bread but loved this.
Date published: 2019-11-13
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Oh my goodness!!!! I have never been overly fond of banana bread, and now I know why. I had NEVER made this Banana Bread before. It's delicious and moist and absolutely the best!! As we say in the south..."Makes ya wanna slap yo Momma!! Ha I chose to replace the walnuts with pecans because that's what I had. Also, for whatever reason I had enough batter for an extra mini loaf which I just gave to my neighbor.
Date published: 2017-05-09
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Favorite Banana Bread Recipe!!! This is my go-to banana bread recipe! Always a crowd-pleaser! Super flavorful, moist, and crunchy top! I can never resist a just baked slice paired with a cold glass of milk! Followed the recipe to the T minus the nuts and chocolate chip... I like it pure! Bake it in my 9" WS Goldtouch bread pan at the suggested 350 degrees for 60mins; slides out smoothly and always come out perfectly baked! Can't wait for the 3 bananas on the counter to get super ripe again so I can make bread again!!!
Date published: 2017-04-27
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