Chocolate Banana Bread

Chocolate Banana Bread: If you’ve got a chocolate craving this will satisfy! Deep, dark, & super-flavorful! A really easy-to-make recipe.

It’s been a little bit but I’m back with you today, sharing another fabulous recipe!

I took off last week to do a little home improvement project, but I missed baking! And especially baking with chocolate. There’s really nothing better, am I right?

I’ve really been craving chocolate lately. That flourless chocolate cake, those peanut butter blondies with big hunks of melty chocolate, and that homemade toffee made a dent- but I still find myself wanting more!

And since there aren’t a whole lot of fresh fruits in season right now, I thought chocolate banana bread might be the perfect thing!

I was not wrong!

This recipe bakes up deep, dark, and intensely chocolate-y, with a sprinkling of chocolate chips on top and a moist, soft interior bursting with that unmistakable sweet banana flavor.

Plus it’s super-easy to make, with just a handful of pantry staples.

So warm up your kitchen and have something positively scrumptious to show for it!

HOW TO MAKE CHOCOLATE BANANA BREAD

This is a quick bread recipe, which means it’s quick to make (duh) but also that it’s leavened with baking soda rather than yeast, and the method is really simple.

Basically, you have one bowl of dry ingredients and one bowl of wet ingredients, and then you mix them together and bake. All quick bread recipes are made this way.

So, start with the dry ingredients. In a big bowl, place your flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt, and then whisk them all together until they’re combined.

For the loaf you see in these pics and video, I used a combination of regular unsweetened cocoa powder and Dutched (aka: “dark”) cocoa powder. I really like using both because you get the deep chocolate flavor of the regular cocoa plus the tempting dark color of the Dutched cocoa.

But you can use whichever kind you have! Either kind will work equally well.

Next, mash up your bananas. You can use a slightly smaller bowl for this step.

If you have a few old, brown bananas lying around, this is a great way to use them up! Darker, riper bananas are perfect for banana bread.

But if not, that’s fine too! I’ve used barely ripe bananas for banana bread before and it still comes out amazing!

Once you’ve got the bananas all mashed up, add the sour cream, milk, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla extract, and whisk it all together until smooth.

Pour the wet into the dry, and fold together gently until just barely combined. Don’t overmix, or your chocolate banana bread could come out tough!

This is a very stiff batter!

Transfer it to a standard-sized, lightly greased loaf pan and sprinkle on a few chocolate chips for garnish.

Or leave them off if you like! I also think this chocolate glaze would be fantastic poured over this bread!

Bake the bread until a skewer inserted in the thickest part comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it. It could take anywhere from an hour to an hour and 15 minutes, depending on your oven. Just keep in mind that the loaf will stay hot for a long time even after you take it out of the oven, and it will continue to cook as it cools. So don’t overdo it, or it could end up dry! Better to err a little on the side of underdone.

IS CHOCOLATE BANANA BREAD HEALTHY?

I’ve included a nutrition label in the recipe card below, so you can judge for yourself.

But I will say that the addition of cocoa powder to make this chocolate banana bread really doesn’t make it any less healthy. There aren’t a ton of added calories or sugar in cocoa. So, other than the chocolate chips on top, it’s really no different than regular banana bread. And probably a little better for you than chocolate chip banana bread, since there are fewer chips!

ALLERGEN-FREE ALTERNATIVES

While I have not tested this recipe with any alternative ingredients, I do feel it could work well as an allergen-free recipe.

For gluten-free chocolate banana bread, look for a gluten-free flour blend that subs 1:1 for regular flour.

If you’d like to make this dairy-free, use a dairy-free butter product that subs 1:1 for regular butter.

For an eggless, vegan version, try using a flax egg or chia egg. For each egg, mix one tablespoon of ground flax or chia seed with 2 tablespoons of water, and allow it to sit for about 5 minutes until gelled.

CAN THIS BE MADE INTO MUFFINS?

You can totally use this same recipe to make chocolate banana bread muffins! I’ve done it and it works beautifully!

You’ll get 12 standard-sized (though tall & puffy!) muffins and they’ll need around 20 to 30 minutes to bake.

HOW LONG WILL IT KEEP?

Leave this chocolate banana bread in an airtight container at room temperature and it should last for around 3 to 5 days.

If you still have leftovers after that, you can extend the shelf life by stashing them in the fridge for another week or so.

Or you can freeze them! This recipe freezes beautifully and will last (tightly wrapped) for a few months at least. Thaw at room temp or in the fridge, and reheat a slice or two gently for a few seconds in the microwave, or (wrapped in foil) in a low (170 degrees F) oven.

A FEW MORE OF MY FAVORITE BANANA RECIPES:

• Banana Nut Muffins
• Banana Cream Pie
• Banana Pudding Layer Cake
• Banana Split Mini Bundt Cakes