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This ultra moist banana bread recipe calls for a handful of ingredients to make a warm & comforting loaf of bread that is perfectly crunchy on the outside and melt-in-your-mouth soft on the inside. This homemade banana bread is incredibly easy to make, yet has a divine taste and texture to instantly brighten your day. 

How to make Ultra Moist Banana Bread

After many years of baking, homemade banana bread still remains to be one of my favorite things to bake with its melt-in-your-mouth texture as well as its sweet & comforting taste.

The complementary texture of the soft and tender bread and the crunchy crust is the highlight of this moist banana bread recipe. It is truly the perfect way to use up overripe bananas, as its natural sweetness accentuates its rich flavor.

This easy banana bread recipe calls for simple ingredients and only takes a few minutes to prepare, and the aromas of freshly baked banana bread that fill up your house are truly heaven-sent. 

What do I need to make Ultra Moist Banana Bread?

Making banana bread is delightfully simple and calls for only a handful of ingredients to make. Here is a list of ingredients:

• Unsalted butter: softened at room temperature. 
• White + brown sugar: to be mixed with the butter to create a light, fluffy mixture. 
• Eggs: at room temperature.
• Overripe bananas: that are very soft in texture with brown or speckled skin. This is the key to this recipe in making your bread extra moist and flavorful.
• All-purpose flour, baking soda + salt: for the dry ingredients.
• Vanilla extract: to heighten the aromatics.
• Optional add-ins: such as chopped nuts, dried fruit, or chocolate chips to your preference. 

And that’s it! The best part about this easy banana bread recipe is that it calls for ingredients that are commonly found in your pantry, which explains its notable renaissance during the pandemic. 

Tips and tricks on perfecting your banana bread

It’s not an understatement that this moist banana loaf is one of my favorite things to bake in my kitchen. Here are a few essential tips to help you make the best homemade banana bread on your first try:

• Prepare the oven and pan before anything else. The leavening components of banana bread – baking soda and baking powder – are activated as soon as they are moist, so it is important to pour the batter into the pan and to the oven as soon as the mixture is complete. 
• Mix wet and dry ingredients separately and thoroughly. Separating each mixture ensures an even mixture as well and at the same time avoids over-mixing.
  • Mix them together gently in the final process, until just combined. Don’t worry about lumps in the batter so long as they are moistened, as they will bake out in the oven.
• Do not overmix. Overmixing the batter will develop air pockets as it bakes and result in a tough and hard texture. Be sure when you are mixing together the wet and dry ingredients, to mix until they are just combined. I recommend using a silicone spatula for this final process. 

Additional tips and tricks:

• Use room-temperature eggs and butter. Softened butter (not melted) will ease the creaming process, and ensuring the egg is at room temperature will help disperse more evenly into the batter, giving these cookies a lighter texture. Take both these ingredients out of the fridge about 30 minutes before use.
• Do not over-bake. Although 55 minutes at 350 is usually a golden time in my oven, everyone’s ovens and pans are different and can require different baking times.
  • The best way to check if your bread is done is to insert a toothpick into the center of your bread, pull out, and then see if any wet batter remains on the toothpick.
  • In this case, return to the oven and test again in a few minutes. The bread is done when the toothpick returns with no more than a few crumbs sticking to it.
  • I recommend writing down the baking time as it will make your future sessions a lot easier! 
• Use add-ins as desired. Additional toppings such as nuts, dried fruit, or chocolate chips can be added after the wet and dry ingredients are combined. Be sure to fold everything together gently when mixing these components. 

How to quickly ripen bananas

Using 4 medium-sized bananas work the best for this particular recipe, and the riper they are, the better! This is a perfect way to use those overripe bananas that you’ve been neglecting over time and transform them into heavenly goodness.

If you’re in a rush with no overripe bananas in hand, use the following techniques to achieve the desired ripeness:

• Place them in a brown paper bag and close loosely. Let Ethylene work its magic!
• Prepare unpeeled bananas (works best when they are not overly green) on a baking sheet and place them in an oven set to 300°F – checking frequently until the peels become shiny and black.
• Poke around the banana peel with a sharp knife or fork, and place them in the microwave for 30 seconds. Let cool and check for the desired softness, microwaving for an additional 30 seconds, and continuing if necessary until the preferred ripeness is obtained.

To add to the delightful texture, I like to add some chopped walnuts into the mix, and into the oven to create a heavenly loaf of homemade banana bread.

I hope this moist banana bread recipe brightens up your day, and please do leave me a comment below or send me a message on Instagram if you have any questions! Enjoy and stay safe everyone!

 

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