Happy Fri-yay (as my boys like to say!)
This Peanut Butter Banana Bread seemed like a fun recipe to kick the weekend off with. My family loves bananas and I buy a lot for snacks and they are a must for our daily green smoothies, but sometimes we don’t use them in time. My boys are not fans of eating brown bananas and I agree with them. When the outside turns from yellow to spotty and brown, they are too sweet and mushy in my opinion to enjoy BUT they do make the BEST banana bread! We LOVE banana bread so we welcome those brown bananas!
My favorite way to eat a fresh banana is to split it down the center and fill it with peanut butter and I have passed this along to my boys who always do it too. YUM! There is something about the combination of peanut butter and banana that is so delicious! Those are the key elements in this dreamy loaf that come together to make a fabulous banana bread! If you are a chocolate lover, you could add in some chocolate to really take it over the top. I sometimes add chocolate chips to the batter or sprinkle them on top before baking. With or without chocolate this Peanut Butter Banana Bread is sure to become a family favorite. We like ti so much that I normally double the recipe and freeze thick slices between wax paper. That way we can easily grab a slice to add to school lunches or for a quick breakfast on the run.
Isn’t that ruffled loaf pan cute? My youngest son gave that to me for Christmas this year—I love it! Here is the link if you would like one too:)
What is your favorite way to enjoy bananas? Listed below are some of our favorite banana recipes…
Magnolia Bakery’s Famous Banana Pudding
Cream Cheese Filled Banana Bread with Cinnamon Sugar Crust
Peanut Butter Banana Baked Oatmeal Bars (these are SOOO good!)
Peanut Butter Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup mashed brown bananas (you will need 3 large brown bananas)
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
- In a large bowl, mash the ripe bananas ( I like to use a potato masher) Next add the peanut butter and melted butter and stir together until well combined. Stir in the brown sugar, egg, and vanilla and mix until well combined
- Now stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, but be careful to NOT over mix the batter.
- Pour batter into your prepared pan and pop into the preheated oven.
- Bake for 50-65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean. Check the bread at 50 minutes, to see if it is done. You never know…some ovens are VERY efficient!
- When inserted toothpick comes out clean, remove the pan from the oven and set on a wire cooling rack. Let the bread cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes and then run a knife around the edges of the bread to loosen it and make for clean removal from the pan.
- Let the bread cool on the wire cooling rack (if you can wait) for another 15 minutes or until barely warm. Cut into slices and serve.
Note-the bread will keep on the counter, wrapped in plastic wrap, for a few days, but longer in the fridge (and it is great chilled). This bread also freezes well. I like to wait until it has cooked completely and then I cut thick slices and freeze them between pieces of wax paper in a freezer bag. This makes a great breakfast for busy weekday mornings!
Recipe source: Two Peas in their Pod
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