Best banana recipes for using those ripe bananas! Tried and true family favorite banana recipes for banana bread, banana muffins, banana pudding, bars, cookies and more.
I love making recipes with bananas because unlike most other fruit, bananas are available year round. They’re readily available in most grocery stores and they’re inexpensive. Oh, and they taste wonderful! Baking with bananas is the best because not only do they add a great flavor, but they add moisture and a delicious sweetness. Grab a bunch and get to baking!
We’ve gathered the very BEST BANANA RECIPES ever here for you. Be sure to pin this to save it!
How can I ripen bananas quickly?
Ripe bananas are used in banana bread because they have a stronger, more pronounced flavor. There are several ways to help bananas ripen faster so that you can make banana bread. Here are my preferred methods:
- Ripen bananas in the oven. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place bananas peel and all on the parchment and bake for 30-40 minutes, until peels are black & shiny. Let cool 1 hour and proceed with banana bread recipe.
- Ripen bananas in a paper bag. If you have more time, place bananas in a paper bag with an apple. Fold and secure closed. I usually leave bananas like this for a full day, then proceed with the Banana Nut Bread recipe.
Did your banana bread sink in the middle?
This happens to me occasionally too! Often it’s because I’ve over mixed the batter. Quick bread (referring to a bread recipe that doesn’t use yeast) does not like to be stirred too much, so try to just barely mix all the ingredients together. Another culprit could be overfilling the pan. The bread pan should be only half full each time. As always, make sure your leavening ingredients- baking soda and baking powder- aren’t too old. Baking soda should only be on your shelf for 6-9 months before purchasing new. I purchase it in bulk (I bake a lot!) and refrigerate it to help it last longer.
Can baked banana recipes be frozen?
Yes, you can freeze baked banana recipes. Most will stay fresh for 2-3 months in the freezer. I like to first wrap it in parchment paper or freezer paper, then put it in a ziplock freezer bag. Instead of using a ziplock bag you can wrap it in foil or plastic wrap.
Which bread pan is best?
I bake a lot of bread and the pans I prefer are either aluminized steel or ceramic. Both types of pans will bake bread more evenly and release the bread more easily after baking. I’ve used glass pans in the past and it seems like my bread sinks too often when using them, so I stopped. I also don’t like using dark or nonstick pans because the bread cooks unevenly. It darkens on the outside before the bread is cooked on the inside, so it’s easier to burn.
Best Banana Recipes
Chocolate Chip Banana Bars
Chocolate Chip Banana Bars are a simple & delicious banana bar recipe that’s even better than banana bread! They’re the perfect recipe to use that bunch of over-ripe bananas. Great for breakfast, lunch and snacks in between. Check out all the 5 star reviews- everyone raves about these Chocolate Chip Banana Bars! See the Chocolate Chip Banana Bars recipe here or print it below!
Chocolate Chip Banana Bars
Ingredients
- 5 Very ripe bananas
- 3/4 cup Brown Sugar
- 1/4 cup Oil any type- I use coconut
- 1/4 cup Milk
- 2 Eggs
- 1 3/4 cup Flour I regularly swap out all-purpose flour for whole wheat!
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Cinnamon
- 1 cup Mini Chocolate Chips, Divided
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 15×10.5″ pan with non-stick spray.
- Peel bananas and mash well. Stir in brown sugar, oil, milk and eggs until combined.
- Add in dry ingredients and stir. Fold in 1/2 the chocolate chips.
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle remaining chips on top. Bake 18-22 minutes, until a wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
- Cool completely and cut into squares.
- Yields 24 bars
Easy Banana Bread
Banana Cream Cookies
Banana Cream Cookies are a classic banana cookie recipe with a twist! They have a great soft, chewy texture that comes from banana pudding mix plus a whole banana. Banana cream pie lovers- you’ve got to try these banana cookies! See the Banana Cream Cookies recipe here!
Frosted Banana Cake
Make this Frosted Banana Cake from scratch in no time! Lovely banana flavor combined with rich, buttery frosting and topped with chopped nuts. Delicious! See the Frosted Banana Cake recipe here!
Banana Cream Pie Muddy Buddies
You’re going to love these easy Banana Cream Pie Muddy Buddies! The white chocolate and banana pudding mix flavors covering the crunchy Chex cereal make this recipe irresistible! See the Banana Cream Pie Muddy Buddies recipe here!
Banana Cream Pie Cookies
Banana cream pie cookies are the perfect way to cheat and still enjoy the taste of banana cream pie without having to deal with a pie crust! See the Banana Cream Pie Cookie recipe here!
Banana Split Pie
This Banana Split Pie only takes a few minutes to prepare and will stay ready in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours before serving so you can prepare it in advance. You can also customize it and add nuts and/or any other toppings you’d like! See the Banana Split Pie recipe here!
Yogurt Banana Bread
Yogurt banana bread is the best banana bread recipe ever! Made with yogurt and ripe bananas, it’s super easy to make, light, moist & has the best flavor. See the Yogurt Banana Bread recipe here!
Banana Cream Cheesecakes
Banana cream cheesecakes made with banana pudding, whipped topping, and a graham cracker crust are the absolute perfect, easy to make, sweet & creamy treat! See the Banana Cream Cheesecakes recipe here!
Buttermilk Banana Cake
If you have ripe bananas to use up instead of traditional banana bread, try this delicious Banana Cake! It smells amazing while baking but tastes even better after topping it with cream cheese frosting! See the Buttermilk Banana Cake recipe here!
Double Chocolate Banana Bars
Double chocolate banana bars made with 5 bananas & double the chocolate for a tasty banana recipe that everyone enjoys. Not too sweet & perfect anytime! See the Double Chocolate Banana Bars recipe here!
Cranberry Banana Bread
Cranberry banana bread is made with flavorful fresh cranberries, sweet bananas, cinnamon & nutmeg to make this fantastic take on traditional banana bread. See the Cranberry Banana Bread recipe here!
Banana Cinnamon Breakfast Cake
Banana breakfast cake is a delicious banana and cinnamon breakfast cake with a tasty glaze drizzled on top! Everyone loves when we have this for breakfast! See the Banana Breakfast Cake recipe here!
Nutella Banana Muffins
Nutella Banana Muffins give you that delicious “treat” taste with the Nutella, in an amazing homemade banana muffin! Perfect for breakfast, snack or treat! See the Nutella Banana Muffins recipe here!
Caramel Banana Cream Tiramisu
Caramel Banana Cream Tiramisu is the creamiest, most perfect combination of banana pudding, graham crackers, and caramel! It’s such a decadent dessert that everyone is sure to enjoy! See the Caramel Banana Cream Tiramisu recipe here!
Banana Split Milkshakes
You’ll find all the flavors of a banana split in these tall and tasty milkshakes. Freeze fresh, ripe bananas ahead of time so you can enjoy these milkshakes whenever you please. This dessert is full of all the classic sweet, creamy flavors of a banana split, only in shake form. See the Banana Split Milkshakes recipe here!
Southern Banana Pudding Recipe
This Southern banana pudding recipe makes a classic, Southern dessert. A family recipe everyone loves, this homemade banana pudding is an essential part of so many holidays and celebrations! See the Southern Banana Pudding recipe here!
Easy Banana Magic Cake
If you are looking for a quick and easy cake recipe with just few simple ingredients, this Easy Banana Magic Cake is perfect sweet treat. Make the magic yourself with this easy recipe.
Strawberry Banana Cheesecake Salad
This Strawberry Banana Cheesecake Salad recipe comes together with just 6 ingredients. Rich and creamy cheesecake filling is folded into luscious strawberries and sweet banana to create the most amazing, glorious fruit salad ever! See the Strawberry Banana Cheesecake Salad recipe here!
Banana Crumb Muffins
These Banana Crumb Muffins are perfect for breakfast and snacks! With the wonderful crumbly texture on top and the tasty banana flavoring inside, you’ll be needing to whip up another batch fast! See the Banana Crumb Muffins recipe here!
Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies
Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies are soft and chewy with just the right amount of banana flavor. They are the perfect recipe for using up those overly ripe bananas. Kids and adults will love them! See the Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe here!
Banana Cream Pie
Do you have a banana lover in your life? Make them this Banana Cream Pie! With plenty of fresh bananas, fluffy custard filling, and sweet whipped cream, nestled into a flaky, buttery crust. It’s such a treat! I promise this recipe will not let you down!
Banana Bars
Banana Bars are a delicious cake-like bar with an amazing cream cheese frosting on top! Betty Crocker know her stuff and, once again, nailed it with this one! See the Banana Bars recipe here!
Banana Pancakes
Fluffy on the inside, crispy on the outside, and delicately flavored with bananas and vanilla — these are phenomenal banana pancakes! See the Banana Pancakes recipe here!
Bananas Foster
If you have never had the classic dessert, Bananas Foster, this is the recipe to try it out on! Those caramelized bananas are completely delicious! See the Bananas Foster recipe here!
Banana Oatmeal Cookies
These Banana Oatmeal Cookies are hands down the best banana flavored cookie I’ve ever had. Not only are they moist and chewy for days, they are unmistakably banana-y. These cookies make the list of banana things to go crazy for. Without a doubt. Figure out why they are so dang good by following the recipe here!
Banana Bread
I have baked and eaten A LOT of banana bread in my days. I love making different versions, but today we are talking about classic banana bread. Banana bread that will remind you of your mom’s recipe or your grandma’s recipe…but even better. This moist banana bread has an intense banana flavor and the perfect amount of sweetness. It is our favorite quick bread, and you can find out how to make it here.
There are so many wonderful banana bread recipes. I feel like everyone just needs to find the right one for them! Here are some more GREAT banana bread recipes to try:
Classic Banana Bread from Live Well, Bake Often
Banana Raisin Walnut Bread from Natasha’s Kitchen
Easy Banana Bread recipe, from Spend With Pennies
Banana Bread Crumb Cake
This Banana Bread Crumb Cake recipe is a fun twist on both Banana Bread and Crumb Cake…it’s like a muffin in cake form, and oh so good! I am always looking for recipes using bananas…especially old-ish ones…so grab you some elderly bananas and let’s get this banana bread crumb cake recipe started!
Pan Fried Honey Bananas
These simple Pan-fried Bananas are caramelized in honey and cinnamon for a simple and delicious treat. You can enjoy them as is or pair with ice cream, yogurt, pancakes, french toast, and more! While I’ve never been a big fan of eating bananas plain from the peel, caramelized bananas…bananas foster…oh, and those deep fried banana egg roll desserts…they all make me weak at the knees. They’re easy to make, just follow this easy recipe.
Peanut Butter Banana Cookies
Got ripe bananas? These easy Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies are WAY more fun than making banana bread and so delicious too! Super soft and absolutely amazing! Banana cookie recipe here!
Bhagiyalakshmi Sabarirajan says
It’s a easy and quick recipe. I love it. It’s ready in less than 30 minutes, and filling snack bars for kids. Definitely I will do this recipe again.
Alison says
Thank you so much!
NSL says
Tasted like chocolate chip banana bread. I thought there would be more of a consistancy like a bar.
Jess says
These did not come out. They did not rise and were like a gloopy mess. I followed the recipe and used coconut oil but subbed almond for coconut flour. After adding in the dry ingredients, the texture went from wet to dry, like cookie dough. I didn’t see any place to check within this recipe on the consistency of the batter… but I thought maybe it’s supposed to be like that and not like l banana bread as I would assume… I put it in the oven after spreading it across the cookie sheet.
20 mins go by and it still looks the same, 30 mins go by and it smells amazing but still no change. I left it in the oven for 40 mins and it’s basically in the exact same form as it was when I put it in, but now hot and toasty around the edges. I tested it with a toothpick and it was still really wet on the inside as if it didn’t bake.
So there’s definitely something off here with the recipe. I think a video tutorial would be a great addition and very helpful to those who try this in the future.
Jessica says
You can’t just sub in coconut flour, unfortunately. I find coconut flour hard to bake with.
Laura says
I made this today and thought it was a just a little gooey on the inside. I followed the directions to a T. The only difference was I used a 13 x 9 pan because I wanted them a little thicker. . I cut them up and put them in the oven at 350 again for 10 minutes. They were a better but not great where I would say “ooo these are so good I’m gonna make them again”. My husband liked them and my kids haven’t tried them yet. I wonder if using less bananas would make a difference?
Alison says
Hey Laura! This recipe was made for a cookie sheet size pan so it will definitely come out fully cooked if you use that next time rather than the 9 x 13 🙂
Judy Wahl says
Delicious! Perfect. My family LOVED them.
Alison says
So glad Judy!