This 3 Bananas Banana Bread Recipe is super moist, delicious and easy to make. It’s the perfect way to use up those overripe bananas and is loaded with sweet banana flavor. If you’re looking for a classic banana bread recipe, just like grandma used to make, you’re going to love this!
When I say this is a classic banana bread recipe that your grandma would have made, I mean it. It’s my grandmother’s banana bread recipe. Tried. True. And passed down now over three generations. I’m obviously biased but this is the best banana bread recipe. So, from my family to yours, please read a few of my tips and tricks for making the perfect loaf of banana bread, and enjoy!
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Basic Ingredients
Here’s everything you’ll need to make this banana bread recipe using three bananas:
- Ripe bananas: Three ripe bananas. The best bananas for this recipe are spotty bananas or partially brown bananas. You know, the stragglers everyone forgets to eat. You can use a fork or a potato masher to mash the bananas in a small bowl.
- Flour: You need all-purpose flour for this easy banana bread recipe with a soft crumb.
- Leavening: Baking powder and baking soda help quick breads rise. Make sure they haven’t expired so your banana bread rises properly.
- Salt: Salt brings out the other flavors in this recipe.
- Sugar: To add sweetness. White sugar is fine here. You can use a little less sugar in this recipe if you’d like – ¾ a cup will still yield a nice sweet loaf.
- Butter: I use unsalted butter in this recipe to avoid being too salty. Although cooking with bananas reduces the amount of bananas you need to make a moist bread, we still use a little to create a moist, tender bread that stays moist for days. I’ve not tried it with this particular recipe, but you should be able to swap for vegetable oil or melted coconut oil. Avoid using olive oil in this recipe as it will change the flavor.
- Eggs: Large eggs help bind the batter and add structure. Room-temperature eggs are best for this recipe (and most baked goods). Eggs that are at room temperature are more easily dispersed and blended with the other ingredients. You’ll also get better volume on your baked goods when you use room temperature eggs.
- Vanilla extract: Vanilla extract wakes up the other flavors and adds a mouth-watering aroma.
- Buttermilk: Brings a pleasant tang to your banana bread while also tenderizing gluten, given it an even softer texture and more body. It also helps activate baking soda, which is a leavening agent that requires acidic ingredients to activate it.
Optional Banana Bread Add-Ins
Although this super easy 3 bananas banana bread recipe is delicious on its own, here are some some optional add-ins that will shake things up in the flavor department:
- Chocolate chips: Chocolate chip banana bread is hands-down my most-requested banana bread in our house. Add ½ to 1 cup of chocolate chips depending on how chocolatey you like your banana bread!
- Nuts: Chopped walnuts or pecans make the most beautiful banana nut bread. Add up to a cup to a loaf.
- Cinnamon: Add ½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon for depth and warmth.
- Nutmeg: For a slightly nutty, earthy, and aromatic flavor, add ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg.
How to Make This 3 Bananas Banana Bread
- First, preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease and flour a 9×5-inch loaf pan and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, sift together your dry ingredients and then set the bowl aside.
- Next, use a large bowl and a handheld electric mixer (or fork) to cream sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl before whisking in the rest of the wet ingredients. Then, fold in the dry ingredients until just combined.
- Pour the mixture into the loaf pan and bake at 350F for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Note: this bread will be a deep golden brown before you can pull it. Trust the process.
- Let cool for at least 30 minutes before running a knife around the perimeter of the loaf pan and inverting the banana bread loaf and transferring it onto a cooling rack. Slice and serve as needed.
Tips & Tricks for a Great Banana Bread Loaf
Use overripe bananas. The key to a delicious and moist banana bread is making sure you use overripe bananas. You want them to be nice and brown. That’s because, as bananas ripen they become sweeter, making them better for baking!
When you are mashing your bananas, make sure you don’t leave any large pieces. There is nothing worse than biting into a large mushy chunk of banana in your bread.
Use fresh baking powder and baking soda.
Both baking powder and baking soda lose their freshness over time, especially once opened. Stale baking powder and baking soda impacts a baked good’s ability to rise, leading to flat, dense baked goods.
To check baking powder for freshness, you can test it adding a ½ teaspoon to a small bowl of water. If it’s still fresh, you should see a lot of bubbles and fizzing.
You can test your baking soda by sprinkling a teaspoon of the baking soda into a few tablespoons of vinegar. If the baking soda bubbles, it will still be good to use.
Don’t overmix the batter or you’ll end up with a tough, chewy loaf.
Use a light-colored loaf pan to prevent the edges and bottom of your banana bread from browning too much.
Bake until deep golden brown. You can start checking for doneness 45 minutes into bake time, but in my oven, this bread is never done until the 55 minute marker. At that point the bread will be a deep, dark golden brown. You can also cover with aluminum foil at the 45-50 minute marker to keep the banana bread from getting too dark.
Help! How to Ripen Bananas in a Hurry?
The fastest way to ripen bananas? Throw them in the oven, unpeeled, at 250°F for 15-20 minutes. And boom! You’ve got soft, sweet bananas perfect for mashing into banana bread!
Can I Freeze Ripe Bananas?
Yes! You can absolutely freeze ripe bananas. Our kids go through banana phases, and there’s always that one week where no one eats the bananas you buy. When that happens, I like to stick freezer bags with 3 ripe bananas in the freezer so I always have exactly the right number of bananas on hand to make this recipe! Just make sure you thaw them before mashing.
Storage & Freezing
We usually eat this banana bread so fast that it is gone after two days. If you have more willpower than me and my family, banana bread lasts 4 days on the counter and up to a week when stored in the fridge. You can freeze the entire loaf for 4 months in a ziplock freezer bag or airtight container.
Alternatively, wrap individual slices, pop them into a freezer bag, and freeze them so you can just grab a slice or two when the mood strikes. Thaw for a few hours in the fridge and then warm them up in the microwave or toast them.
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📖 Recipe
3 Bananas Banana Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 ripe mashed bananas
- 2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup butter
- 2 eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup buttermilk
- Optional: ½-1 cup chopped nuts chocolate chips, or dates
Instructions
- First, preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease and flour a 9×5-inch loaf pan and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, sift together your dry ingredients: 2 cups of flour, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, and ½ teaspoon of salt. Set aside.
- Next, use a large mixing bowl to cream 1 cup of sugar and ½ cup of butter in a large mixing bowl before whisking in 2 eggs and 2 teaspoons of vanilla. Stir in the ½ cup of buttermilk and the 3 mashed bananas. Then, fold in the dry ingredients until just combined.
- Pour the mixture into the loaf pan and bake at 350F for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.
- Let cool for at least 30 minutes before running a knife around the perimeter of the loaf pan and inverting the banana bread loaf and transferring it onto a cooling rack. Slice and serve warm or at room temp with butter, nutella, or peanut butter. Enjoy!
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