A soft, moist and super easy banana bread recipe that can be made without a mixer. Toss in some nuts, chocolate chips, toffee or caramel for the banana bread of your dreams!

Making banana bread is something so comforting to me. I love the smells, tastes, textures and the heart-warming feeling as you cut yourself a thick slice. Pouring yourself a tall glass of milk and schmearing some peanut butter on top is the best treat!

I have a few banana bread recipes on my site already, these banana muffins are currently holding the number one spot on my blog and a follower and personal favourite. Although that recipe can also be made as a banana bread loaf, I wanted to have an even simpler one that is smaller and uses even more kitchen staple ingredients.

I’ve made this recipe so many times with every substitution that comes to mind but I highly recommend sticking to the key ingredients that makes this banana bread incredible!

Key Ingredients

Soft brown sugar: As with most of my cake loaf recipes, I love adding soft brown sugar because it gives such a nice texture and flavour. You can use either light or dark brown sugar, just make sure that it’s the soft kind.
Super ripe bananas: Always use very ripe and spotted brown bananas when you bake. They give the cake a natural sweetness and a more intensified flavour. The crumb also changes depending on how ripe your bananas are, making it softer and lighter.
Vanilla extract: I love the flavour combination of banana and vanilla so adding in a good amount is a must. I use about half of a tablespoon and I recommend adding extra vanilla in all banana recipes.
Yoghurt: To boost the moisture in the bread loaf I recommend using yoghurt. You can also use buttermilk, Greek yoghurt or sour cream but regular yoghurt works just fine. It makes the crumb so moist and melt-in-your-mouth delicious.

Each person has their own preferences on what to add into the loaf but I kept it plain this time with no add-ins. I have made this recipe with walnuts, chocolate chips and even with peanut butter and Nutella swirled into the batter. Each one was delicious!

This banana bread is such a simple recipe and totally failproof. The crumb is so soft and fluffy, it’s stick-to-your-fork moist and bursting with sweet banana flavour. I just know that this will be the best banana bread recipe you’ll find!

Substitutions

If you are out of soft brown sugar, you can use all white. However, I highly recommend getting your hands on brown sugar. It really does make a world of a difference.

More banana recipe favourites to try:

If you make this or any of my other recipes please tag me @dutchbakerblog on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. I love to see what you’re making!