In the span of a week I had received 10 pounds of bananas in a Costco order that all seemingly ripened overnight and this Easy Banana Bread Recipe with Walnuts and Brown Sugar helped me make the most use of them. In trying to figure out the best way to approach overripe bananas, this is one of several banana bread recipes that have become a go-to for a quick bread for breakfast or an afternoon snack.
Scroll down for the recipe card to print and save. Also, be sure to check out tips for baking and freezing you delicious walnut banana bread for later enjoyment.
What You'll Love About This Banana Bread Recipe with Walnuts and Brown Sugar
This is by far one of the best banana bread recipe variations we've made to date. It has moist crumbs and you'll love the crunchy texture of the toasted walnuts. I love the minimal prep as this is an easy recipe to follow where we combine both the wet ingredients and the dry ingredients in one bowl. It's sure to become your new favorite banana bread recipe with chopped walnuts.
Ingredients for this Easy Banana Bread Recipe
This Easy Banana Nut Bread Recipe has a list of key ingredients that leads to a flavorful whole loaf for the perfect banana bread. Here's what we'll need:
- 4 over-ripe bananas: Over ripe bananas can be a bit of a relative term. For some, overripe can mean large bananas that have a bit of brown spots. Ideally, you want bananas that are soft to the touch with very dark stems and brown spots all along the skin. The over ripe bananas are helpful both in adding the sweetness and intense banana flavor for the moist banana bread.
- Brown Sugar: A great sweetener for the sweet tooth that offers a caramel-like sweetness to our banana bread. You can swap for maple syrup, too. I've had success using a 1:1 ratio of maple syrup and olive oil.
- Olive Oil: I deeply love the use of olive oil to create a buttery banana bread. Using a good quality olive oil helps with both adding decadent flavor and binding our yogurt, eggs, and oil to the quick bread batter for this deliciously good banana bread recipe.
- Yogurt: The use of yogurt, much like sour cream, helps to create a tender crumb. Greek yogurt is what we use and while you can use a vanilla flavored yogurt, the plain yogurt helps to control the amount of vanilla we'll use in this loaf.
- Cinnamon & Vanilla: Our flavoring agents that help to complete the banana flavors of this banana bread. Just a little bit of cinnamon and vanilla extract go a long way to amping up the flavor for this delicious quick bread.
How to Bake This One-Bowl Banana Bread
In about an hour, you'll have this delicious treat ready to enjoy. Here's how to make it:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place a rack in the center of the oven.
- Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan with a nonstick cooking spray or unsalted butter and set aside.
- In a large bowl, mash the ripe bananas with brown sugar. Add the olive oil, yogurt, eggs, and vanilla extract. Whisk vigorously until well combined and almost frothy.
- Next, add in the all-purpose flour, baking soda, ground cinnamon, and kosher salt. Gently fold in the dry ingredients until the batter forms. Avoid over mixing as it will create a more dense loaf.
- Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan. Top with the roughly chopped walnuts. Bake until golden brown, about 50 to 60 minutes, with a toothpick or knife comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely before serving.
Final Tips & FAQ
Sharing a few final tips in preparing and savoring this delicious loaf of banana bread:
- To Freeze: You can freeze loaves of banana bread for later enjoyment. To do this, slice individual slices of the bread for ease in freezing. Allow bread to cool completely to room temperature. Doing so will prevent any excess moisture which can lead to freezer burn and a mushy slice of bread once defrosted. Place slices of parchment paper between the slices of banana bread to prevent them from sticking together. Place in a freezer safe bag and seal completely. Label and date the bag to track the time elapsed and plan to enjoy within 3 months.
- If enjoying the banana bread that same week, store leftover slices in an airtight container and enjoy within 2-3 days.
For more banana bread ideas, check out the following recipe and other quick-bread recipes:
Easy Banana Bread Recipe with Walnuts and Brown Sugar
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 very ripe bananas
- ⅓ cup brown sugar lightly packed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt non-fat or low-fat
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅓ cup roughly chopped toasted walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place a rack in the center of the oven.
- Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan with a nonstick cooking spray or unsalted butter and set aside.
- In a large bowl, mash the ripe bananas with brown sugar. Add the olive oil, yogurt, eggs, and vanilla extract. Whisk vigorously until well combined and almost frothy.
- Next, add in the all-purpose flour, baking soda, ground cinnamon, and kosher salt. Gently fold in the dry ingredients until the batter forms. Avoid over mixing as it will create a more dense loaf.
- Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan. Top with the roughly chopped walnuts. Bake until golden brown, about 50 to 60 minutes, with a toothpick or knife comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely before serving.
Raquel says
I am not a baker but love banana bread so when I saw Francis’ loaf I had to try her recipe! It was easy to follow and loved the addition of the yogurt! I swapped the walnuts for chocolate chips because my boys love chocolate and it was a HIT!!
Frances Kellar says
Thank you so much for your feedback, Raquel! This makes my heart happy to know it worked well for you and I love the swap for the chocolate chips. You can never go wrong with that!