Brown Sugar Banana Bread - Easy & Tasty

Seriously, who doesn't love homemade brown sugar banana bread? The tantalizing aroma wafting through your kitchen...the sweetness of banana that coats your mouth the moment it hits your tongue. Brown sugar banana bread is soft and moist, perfect served warm and cold - how versatile! I mean, I LOOOVE my brown sugar banana bread recipe!

Brown Sugar Banana Bread

Luckily, making the perfect banana bread recipe from scratch is quick and simple. No wonder banana bread is one of the most popular quick bakes out there!

Why Use Brown Sugar Instead of White?

Due to the added molasses, brown sugar will give added moisture and caramel-like flavor to your banana bread compared to using white sugar.

Brown Sugar Banana Bread - Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour - Use all-purpose flour for this banana bread recipe with brown sugar.
• 1 teaspoon baking soda / bi-carb soda - This leavening agent will help aerate your loaf.
• 1 cup brown sugar - brown sugar is the SECRET to this recipe - it makes moister and richer banana bread. Of course, you can experiment with other types of sugar, but brown sugar is my favorite.
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon - the sweetness and warmth of cinnamon enhances the banana flavor.
• ¾ cup mashed banana - To prevent lumpy batter, mash the bananas separately before adding them to the other ingredients.
• 1 egg - Beat the egg lightly.
• 2 oz | 57g butter, melted - Butter enriches this delicious super moist banana bread recipe. You can replace the butter with the same amount of vegetable oil.
• ¼ cup milk - Use regular dairy milk or experiment with different plant-based types of milk with complimentary flavors such as almond or hazelnut milk.
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract - Enhance the brown sugar banana bread recipe with the flavor of vanilla.

How to Make Brown Sugar Banana Bread?

Here are the steps for how to make the best banana bread recipe with brown sugar:

What Makes a Moist Banana Bread?

• BROWN SUGAR - will give a moister banana bread than white granulated sugar.
• SIFTING - ensure you sift the flour and bi-carb, as this will add air and help your cake be spongy and fluffy.
• FLOUR TO BANANA RATIO - use the right amount of flour to bananas to ensure a moist banana bread. If you use too much flour, your banana bread will be dry.
• OVERRIPE - Use over-ripe bananas. They taste sweeter, are easier to mash, and give the banana bread more moisture and flavor.
• DON'T OVERMIX - Don't overmix the batter! The loaf will come out tough and chewy if you do due to the overdeveloped gluten. Instead, gently fold the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients. Tip: Use a wooden spoon or rubber spatula and don't use an electric hand-held or stand mixer.

What to Add to Banana Bread Recipe with Brown Sugar

A classic banana bread recipe is delicious, but sometimes we want to make our version fancier by adding extra goodness. I personally like to experiment with my quick banana bread recipe by adding chocolate, spices, dried fruits, and nuts.

• Chocolate - Banana combined with chocolate is a match made in heaven! I love this chocolate chip banana bread recipe. Go dark, mild, or white choc chips or chunks. Oh, and don't forget to sprinkle some over the top before baking for extra texture.
• Spices - Any aromatic spices, really. My personal favorites are ground nutmeg, cloves, and cardamom. You can use a single spice or combine them (or use allspice instead). Mix in ½ teaspoon to 1 teaspoon of any spice you like to the dry ingredients for every cup of flour. Be careful not to overpower the banana flavor. You just want to enhance the flavor.
• Dried Fruit - For extra tastiness in your brown sugar banana bread recipe, try adding dried fruits such as small berries and raisins. Add ½ cup of dried fruits for every cup of flour. Fold them into the batter before transferring the mixture to the loaf pan. To avoid burnt fruits, don't sprinkle them over the top.
• Banana nut bread recipe with brown sugar - Toasted nuts and seeds are great for adding crunch (and a ton of fiber!). Simply stir them into the batter. The general rule of thumb is ½ cup for every cup of flour. Types of nuts such as walnuts and almonds are my favorite go-to's, and I love sprinkling some seeds on top of the batter in the prepared loaf pan. Any seeds you can think of; sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, chia seeds, or poppy seeds. Go crazy!
• Peanut butter - add ¼ cup of homemade peanut butter to the wet ingredients of this moist banana bread batter.

Brown Sugar Banana Bread Variations

Vegan Banana Bread Recipe With Brown Sugar

Eggs - Eggs in the brown sugar banana bread recipe act as a binder. To tweak my banana recipe into vegan, replace the eggs with a powdered egg substitute or add more bananas. Use 1 medium-sized banana to replace each egg. Oh yes, more banana goodness!

Milk - replace the dairy milk with a plant-based type of milk.

Butter - To make this banana bread recipe with brown sugar a vegan recipe, you can substitute the butter with a plant-based butter substitute. Alternatively, replace the butter with oil. Use a neutral flavor oil such as sunflower or canola oil. Or try using coconut oil and making coconut part of the banana bread's flavor profile. Replace the butter with the same amount of oil.

Gluten-Free Banana Bread Recipe With Brown Sugar

To make a gluten-free banana bread recipe, swap out the regular all-purpose flour with a gluten-free flour of your choice. Most supermarkets have a great selection of gluten-free flour these days. Alternatively, use a nut-based flour such as almond flour - it will give a rich and nutty taste to this banana bread recipe with brown sugar.

Healthier Banana Bread Recipe With Brown Sugar

For a healthier option, substitute the all-purpose flour with an equal amount of whole wheat flour. You can also sweeten your banana bread with honey instead of sugar. Replace at the reduced ratio of ¾ cup of honey for each cup of sugar.

Types of nuts such as walnuts and almonds and types of seeds such as pumpkin and sunflower seeds are a great way to boost the taste and health factor of this banana bread recipe with brown sugar. Sprinkle some nuts and seeds on top, too - it looks pretty and tastes good!

Banana Bread Muffins

These banana muffins make great snacks to pop into your child's school lunch box. Even better, get your children to help make them during the next school holidays!

What to Serve with Brown Sugar Banana Bread

• Cinnamon buttercream frosting topping for banana bread - frost the top of this brown sugar banana cake with this deliciously spiced buttercream frosting. It will transform your everyday loaf into a special treat.
• Whipped cream or clotted cream - serve a slice of warm banana bread with cream.
• Chocolate ganache - add decadent chocolate ganache to this loaf for a special dessert banana bread.
• Fresh banana slices
• Butter - spread some good quality butter on a warm slice of banana bread.
• Ice cream - add some crunch and enhance the caramel-y taste of the brown sugar banana bread with this delicious brown bread ice cream! Made semifreddo style, a scoop of this creamy and delicious ice cream is the perfect combo!
• Butterscotch sauce - warm gooey butterscotch sauce from my sticky date pudding recipe poured over warm banana bread. Oh my, delicious!

How to Store Brown Sugar Banana Bread

• Room temperature - Can you leave banana bread out overnight? Yes, you can. Store the loaf of easy banana bread with brown sugar in an air-tight container for up to 3 days.
• Fridge - Extend the shelf life of your best tasting banana bread by up to 1 week by keeping it in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.
• Freezer -Keep the whole loaf or slices of the loaf in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Tip; wrap each piece in plastic wrap or divide the slices with baking paper so you can just take out what you need. Let the slice defrost or pop it in the microwave, in 30-second bursts, for a quick and tasty snack.

More Recipes Featuring Bananas & Other Fruit

• Banana muffins
• Chocolate chip banana cake
• Apple cobbler
• Sticky date pudding

Brown Sugar Banana Bread FAQs

Your 8 Questions about Sugar Answered:

1. Which brown sugar is best for banana bread? - There are two types of brown sugar, light, and dark. I love dark brown sugar in my banana cake loaf recipe for that extra toffee-like flavor, but light brown sugar will taste just as good.
2. Can you replace brown sugar with white sugar? Yes, you can substitute brown sugar for white sugar in banana bread, but you will get a slightly different taste, color, and texture. Brown sugar gives the bread a more caramel-y taste than white sugar. It also gives the bread a darker color and more moisture than white sugar.
3. Are white sugar and brown sugar interchangeable? In this basic banana bread recipe, white and brown sugar are interchangeable at the same 1:1 amount. That is, replace the 1 cup of brown sugar with 1 cup of white sugar.
4. What happens if you use regular sugar instead of brown? You'll still get a delicious-tasting homemade banana bread recipe. It will just look lighter in color and have less caramel-y flavor.
5. What can I use if I don't have brown sugar? - Use any other types of sugar in your pantry, such as regular white granulated sugar, palm sugar, or coconut sugar. Out of sugar altogether? Don't worry; this easy moist banana bread recipe can use other sweeteners such as maple syrup, molasses, date paste, or agave nectar.
6. Can I use honey instead of sugar in banana bread? Yes, you can use honey instead of sugar in this best banana bread recipe. Honey is much sweeter than sugar, so adjust the recipe to only ¾ cup of honey instead of 1 cup of brown sugar.
7. Can I make banana bread with less sugar? You can reduce the amount of sugar in this banana bread loaf. Use ¾ cup of sugar instead of 1 cup. Your brown sugar banana bread will still taste sweet. Another way to reduce sugar is to substitute part of the sugar with ingredients such as dried fruit to help naturally sweeten the loaf.
8. How does brown sugar affect baking? Brown sugar makes your baked treats moister, softer, and darker in color than using granulated white sugar. It will also give a caramel-y flavor to the baked goods due to the molasses in the brown sugar.

Can I Substitute Oil Instead of Butter in this Banana Bread Recipe?

The short answer is yes! You can substitute oil for butter in this banana bread recipe at a 1:1 ratio. So, in this recipe that calls for 2 oz or ¼ cup of butter, use ¼ cup of oil instead.

Is Brown Sugar Banana Bread Better with Oil or Butter?

• Taste - Substituting oil for butter will give this brown sugar banana bread recipe a slightly different taste. Still delicious, though! Use a neutral flavor vegetable oil or experiment with a complementary flavored oil such as coconut oil.
• Texture - Replacing the butter with oil will result in a spongier and fluffier cake.
• Cost - Oil is cheaper than butter and has an extended pantry life, not needing refrigeration.

Brown Sugar Banana Bread - How to Mash Bananas?

Take off the peels, cut the bananas into manageable pieces, then put them in a bowl. Mash them with a fork until completely mushy. Perfect mashed banana for the perfect banana bread recipe should look like baby food. It doesn't look pretty at this stage, but it sure will be heavenly once turned into a loaf!

Are Black Bananas Good for Banana Bread?

Making this banana bread recipe is the best way I can think of to use up all of those spotty, overripe bananas sitting on your kitchen counter. These overripe bananas are actually the best bananas for banana bread; they're sweeter, softer, and easier to mash and add moisture to your banana bread.

Why Does my Banana Bread Taste Better the Following Day?

You're not crazy! You can enjoy banana bread the best the next day if stored properly. My best guess is that some moisture has slowly left the home made banana bread, making the flavor even sweeter and more concentrated. So, perhaps resist the urge to finish your fresh-baked loaf immediately. I know, it's hard! I can't wait a whole day myself!

How do you Keep Banana Bread Moist?

After taking your banana bread out of the oven, let it rest for 5 minutes before removing it from the pan. Let it cool completely on a wire rack, then pop it in an air-tight container. This sealed container will help keep your baked banana bread moist and fresh. Tip: Any warmth left in the bread when you store it will cause condensation and turn your perfect banana bread into a soggy loaf.

Why is my Banana Bread Dense and Not Fluffy?

• Why is my banana bread so dense and wet? This dense and wet texture, especially in the middle of the loaf, could be from using too many bananas. Instead, please resist the urge to add too many of your overripe bananas and instead freeze them in a zip lock bag for baking another day.
• Why is my banana cake dense and rubbery? Don't overmix the batter. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stop as soon as you see the last whisp of flour incorporated into the batter. The more you mix a batter, the more gluten develops, resulting in tougher, rubbery, and dense banana bread.

Brown Sugar Banana Bread - Why Does my Banana Loaf Not Rise?

Banana bread cook time - You may not have cooked your banana bread loaf long enough, so it hasn't risen to its full height. It can look a bit deceptive as banana bread often has a nice caramel crunchy exterior, so it looks cooked. Always check that the banana bread is cooked by inserting a skewer into the center and checking that it comes out clean.

Overmixing - You may have overmixed the batter, resulting in a dense and flat loaf. Always use a wooden spoon or spatula to mix the batter until the ingredients are just incorporated.

How do you Know if Banana Bread is Undercooked?

• Why is my banana bread mushy on top? A mushy texture on top means that your banana bread loaf is undercooked. Adjust the banana bread bake time by popping the pan back into the oven for longer. Bake until the loaf is fully cooked and no longer mushy on top.
• Why is my banana bread not cooked in the middle? This uncooked middle part of the banana bread loaf could be because you have added too many bananas to the batter. This increased ratio of bananas to flour can result in an undercooked center.
• How do you know if banana bread is undercooked? Your banana bread is undercooked if you insert a skewer into the loaf's center and moist batter stick to it. To be confident that your banana bread is cooked perfectly, insert the skewer into three different parts of the loaf.

What Happens if I Put Too Much Banana in Banana Bread?

If you add too much mashed banana to the banana bread batter, you may end up with a dense and wet cooked loaf. So next time you have too many overripe bananas, either freeze them for another baking day or use them for baking my banana muffins or chocolate chip banana bread!

Banana Bread Recipe With Brown Sugar - In Conclusion

Now that you've learnt how to make my foolproof brown sugar banana bread recipe go make a loaf or two! Impress your guests; impress yourself!

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