Brown Butter Banana Bread
on Sep 27, 2023, Updated Oct 05, 2023
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This brown butter banana bread has a nutty, caramel flavours that’s hard not to fall in love with. A buttered slice is perfect for either breakfast or dessert and is a big hit with the kids too! No better way to use overripe bananas.
If you have ripe bananas lying around the kitchen, then this brown butter banana bread is something you should definitely try making! The nutty taste of brown butter and the sweetness of bananas combine to bring you something so satisfying and unforgettable, that you’ll be reaching for seconds and thirds.
Quick Walk Through: Brown Butter Banana Bread
Ingredients You’ll need to Make Brown Butter Banana Bread
- Bananas: Use overripe bananas of the “yellaki” variety to infuse this brown butter banana bread with natural sweetness!
- Butter: Butter lends a rich and indulgent flavor to the bread and also adds some much needed moisture!
- Sugar: To sweeten things up for the perfect balance of sweetness.
- Eggs: To contribute to the bread’s moist and tender texture. It also acts as a perfect binding agent to keep all the ingredients together!
- Milk: Adds a touch of creaminess.
- Vanilla Extract: Enhances the overall aroma and taste. It also acts against the egg to give a more balanced, non-eggy taste!
- All-Purpose Flour, Baking Soda, Salt: The dry ingredients for the batter.
- Roasted Walnuts: To add a delightful nutty crunch to this scrumptious banana bread!
How To Brown Butter For Baking
The nutty and bold flavour of brown butter is a great addition to baked dishes. It adds layers of rich flavour and a hint of caramel-y goodness when added to breads and desserts. Browning butter perfectly is really easy, but it does require paying close attention. Start with cutting the butter into small, equal sized cubes. Transfer it to a pan and turn on the heat to medium. Allow the butter to melt, while stirring frequently. Once the butter is melted, continue to heat it until the color changes to brown and you start to get a nutty aroma.
How To Make Brown Butter Banana Bread
1. Melt the butter in a pan on medium heat. Butter will start foaming and crackling. Swirl the pan as the crackling subsides.
2. At this stage the butter will start changing color to brown and smell nutty. Switch off the flame and transfer butter to a large mixing bowl. Let it cool. Pre-heat oven to 175 degree Celsius. Grease an 8X5 inch loaf tin with butter and line with parchment paper in such a way that the parchment paper hangs over the edges. This will help you lift out the banana bread easily once its baked.
3. Once the butter has cooled, add sugar and mix.
4. Add eggs one at a time, mixing after each egg till everything has combined.
5. Add the milk and vanilla extract to this mixture, and give it another whisk.
6. Peel the bananas and mash them into the mixture. I like my bread chunky but you can mash the bananas completely if you like.
7. Sift flour, baking soda and salt into the bowl with the banana mixture, and fold till everything is combined. There is no need to blend or over mix.
8. Add the nuts and mix. Sprinkle with a little sugar (This gives an amazing crunchy crust to the bread).
9. Tap once to get rid of air bubbles, and place pan in the oven. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes. Start checking for done-ness around 50 minutes. A skewer or fork inserted into the middle should come out clean.
10. Once done, let the bread cool in the pan for 8-10 minutes. Lift the bread using parchment paper and let it cool on a wire rack for another 10 minutes. Or slice it immediately, like I did.
Richa’s Top Tips To Make The Best Banana Bread
- Very ripe bananas (the ones that have become soft and started to brown) work really well for this recipe. The riper your bananas are, the sweeter, softer and more flavourful the bread will turn out to be.
- I would highly recommend mixing the bread batter by hand, rather than an electric beater. Using an electric mixture runs the risk of over mixing the batter, which could change the texture of the bread and make it dense.
- When browning the butter, make sure to turn off the heat when the color changes to a golden brown and you start to get a nutty aroma. Any more browning will risk the butter burning, and we definitely don’t want that.
Serve this brown butter banana bread with some tea or coffee, slather on some peanut butter and/or jam to make a quick snack, or serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream to make for an easy yet delicious dessert. No matter how you serve it, there is no way you can go wrong with this one!
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Watch the video!
Brown Butter Banana Bread
Equipment
- Oven
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Butter
- 3/4 cup Sugar
- 2 Eggs
- 1/4 cup Milk
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 3 medium overripe Bananas, or 6 small Bananas (yellaki variety)
- 2 cups All Purpose Flour
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 pinch Salt
- 1/2 cup roasted Walnuts, chopped
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a pan on medium heat. Butter will start foaming and crackling. Swirl the pan as the crackling subsides. At this stage the butter will start changing color to brown and smell nutty. Switch off the flame and transfer butter to a large mixing bowl. Let it cool.
- Pre-heat oven to 175 degree Celsius. Grease an 8X5 inch loaf tin with butter and line with parchment paper in such a way that the parchment paper hangs over the edges. This will help you lift out the banana bread easily once its baked.
- You can pop some walnuts, whatever it is you are using, in the oven for 10 minutes while it's preheating to roast them. Once roasted, chop them up and keep aside. Keep a timer though because they can burn easily.
- Once the butter has cooled, add sugar and mix. Add eggs one at a time, mixing after each egg till everything has combined. Add the milk and vanilla extract to this mixture, and give it another whisk.
- Peel the bananas and mash them into the mixture. I like my bread chunky but you can mash the bananas completely if you like.
- Sift flour, baking soda and salt into the bowl with the banana mixture, and fold till everything is combined. There is no need to blend or over mix. Add the nuts and mix. Sprinkle with a little sugar (This gives an amazing crunchy crust to the bread).
- Tap once to get rid of air bubbles, and place pan in the oven. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes. Start checking for done-ness around 50 minutes. A skewer or fork inserted into the middle should come out clean.
- Once done, let the bread cool in the pan for 8-10 minutes. Lift the bread using parchment paper and let it cool on a wire rack for another 10 minutes. Or slice it immediately, like I did.
Video
Notes
- This recipe is adapted slightly from The Kitchn
- Very ripe bananas (the ones that have become soft and started to brown) work really well for this recipe. The riper your bananas are, the sweeter, softer and more flavourful the bread will turn out to be.
- I would highly recommend mixing the bread batter by hand, rather than an electric beater. Using an electric mixture runs the risk of over mixing the batter, which could change the texture of the bread and make it dense.
- When browning the butter, make sure to turn off the heat when the color changes to a golden brown and you start to get a nutty aroma. Any more browning will risk the butter burning, and we definitely don’t want that.
Nutrition
More Bread Recipes
Questions about Banana Bread
Brown butter has a bold, nutty aroma. When added to banana bread, it delivers a richer, caramel-y flavour to the whole dish.
If your banana bread remains gooey in the middle, then it is most likely underbaked. Bake it in the over for another few minutes until a knife stuck into it comes out completely clean.
This is the perfect make ahead recipe, especially if you’re cooking for a party or large crowds. This brown butter banana bread stays well at room temperature for up to 4 days if stored in an airtight container. Make sure to keep the container in a cool, dry place, away from heat or sunlight. If storing in the refrigerator, it stays good for up to a week.
Absolutely! When frozen, this banana bread stays perfectly good for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to eat, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight and warm it in the microwave for a couple of minutes before serving.
Tried making this banana walnut cake and it turned out to be a fantastic . thank you Richa for such a great recipe. Every one at home were drooling over it
Hey Lopamudra, so so glad to know it’s your family’s favourite. thank you for leaving a comment.
had some over ripe bananas and hence tried this recipe today…it was super easy and really had that amazing nutty taste… thank you Richa..
Glad you liked it aunty!
The yummiest bread..looks amazing too!
And not to forget the whole house smells heavenly
Wohooo! Thanks for leaving a comment! Soooo glad you liked it Vimala
Easy enough for baking novices like me to follow, was moist kept well in the fridge for a week and was the loveliest snack with a cup of filter coffee!!
Awwww!Thank you so much Ninoshka! So happy you liked it! I hope you’ll try the other recipes too
It was as delicious as it looked😍perfect with tea🤤
Sounds fantastic! Thank you so much Yugma. So glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Have been reading your blog and really love the recipes – they seem so simple and doable. What oven would you recommend for a beginner – someone who has never baked before :).
Thanks Rekha, I’m always happy to hear from a reader. I would recommend a Morphy Richards since that’s what I use and like. The size would depend on you. I have a 52 litres Morphy Richards because we use our oven a lot. Depending on how much baking you plan to do, find a size that fits your lifestyle and the space you have in your kitchen 🙂
Thanks, Richa. That is an OTG right?
Yes it’s an OTG
Sounds awesome!
I have three ripe bananas in the fridge just waiting to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Thaaaaank you for trying it out 🙂
I have never ever tasted a banana bread in my life and found the bread-banana very strange & so out of curiosity wanted to try it. You won’t belive it that this my first ever dish which I made & my family was not only shocked but enjoyed the banana bread for the first time. I followed Richa’s receipe word by word & loved this dish. I made it twice, one with normal banana & the other with boiled Kerala banana. The former one was better but will try again with Kerala banana without boiling. Next I will try Richa’s caramel or fish receipe.