The best Chocolate Chip Banana Bread recipe (2024)

FAQs

Why is my banana bread not moist enough? ›

You Measure Flour the Wrong Way

Moisture is key when it comes to banana bread, and the ratio of flour to banana makes all the difference. If you use too much flour, you'll end up with dry bread.

Baking soda: Baking soda acts as a leavener, which means it helps the banana bread rise. Salt: A pinch of salt enhances the overall flavor, but it won't make the loaf taste salty.\

Ripe bananas are not only softer and easier to mash and blend into a batter, but they are also sweeter, which is why baking recipes specifically call for ripe bananas in ingredient lists. As the bananas ripen, the fruit converts starches to sugars, making them sweeter and more flavorful.

Banana is full of moisture. It takes longer for moist cakes to be fully cooked. Use a tester inserted in the center of the cake to make sure it is done before taking it out of the oven. My banana bread baked in a standard loaf pan takes about 70 minutes at 350°F to be done.

Fats keep your bread moist. If your loaf was too dry, try adding a tablespoon or two more oil next time you make it. Likewise, water does more than hydrate your dough. It helps yeast do its thing, activates gluten and determines the volume of your loaf—all crucial for the right results.

I believe their recipe calls for 1/4 cup of plain yogurt added to melted butter, bananas, and egg for the wet ingredients alongside the usual dry ones. I only use 2 bananas but add 1/2 cup plain applesauce and 1/4th cup half and half. Comes out very moist and yummy.

Baking soda works best in conjunction with an acidic ingredient. In the case of banana bread, this may be buttermilk, brown sugar, molasses or the bananas themselves. Recipes generally include just enough baking soda to balance the acidity in the batter.

Banana bread recipes typically ask you to use overripe bananas so that they're easier to mush. This means it's tempting to toss all your bananas into the mix when you're ready to bake, to avoid food waste. But if you add too much of the fruit into your batter, your bread could turn out mushy, heavy, and wet.

As a general rule, you can use either baking soda OR baking powder in banana bread – both ingredients will make your banana bread rise. While baking soda will react with acidic ingredients in the batter to raise your bread, baking powder can leaven banana bread without the addition of acidic ingredients.

Bananas are safe for dogs, but moderation is key. Bananas are high in sugar, so too much of it can put your dog at risk of developing medical conditions. You should give your dog only a few thin slices of banana once in a while. At least 90% of your dog's food should be regular dog food.

How late is too late to use bananas for banana bread? ›

The best bananas for banana bread aren't yellow; they're black. Or they're at least streaked with black/brown, with just the barest hint of green at the stem. And again, the darker the better: there's no such thing as a too-ripe banana when you're making banana bread.

You can double a standard banana bread recipe, as long as you bake the batter in two same-size loaf pans, or one after the other.

Push a toothpick into the loaf near the center then pull it out. It should not have any wet batter or crumbs sticking to it. As previously suggested, you could cook it at a lower temperature for a longer time. Or you could try a different baking pan.

Alternatively, consider giving the bread an extra 10 or so minutes in the oven, which should be enough time for excess moisture to evaporate as steam. If it's too late to salvage the soggy loaf, fret not, as there are creative ways to put mushy banana bread to use.

Using too much butter makes for a heavier cake with less banana flavor. Using double the amount of butter that the recipe called for left me with a loaf that was dry on the outside and moist on the inside. The coloring was almost identical to that of the loaf made with too little butter.

Is there enough water in it? Consider the whole bread making process as one in which the dough dries out, especially once it gets into a hot oven. So you need to make sure your dough is kept moist enough. Don't sprinkle the surface with flour when kneading – it will absorb the water in your dough and dry it out.