Banana walnut bread is moist, spongy, and just the right amount of sweetness that is so satisfying. It is just perfect for breakfast, snacks, or as a dessert after a meal. This recipe of banana and walnut bread is full of flavors from perfectly ripened bananas. The sweetness comes more from naturally ripened bananas and less from granulated white sugar. Toasted walnuts give the perfect crunch to balance the moist bread.

I have been making this recipe for years. I like how easy it is to put all the ingredients together. Banana walnut bread is a good option for me to make for kids’ lunch boxes. I pack it in the pyrex box and save it in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days and take the slices out when needed. This bread also freezes well. I thaw it and microwave it for 15 to 20 seconds before serving.

Details of the Recipe Ingredients:

1. I have tested this recipe a few times with both butter and oil. It turns out moist, light, and fluffy with oil when compared to butter. 
2. I have also used extra light olive oil (neutral oil) and not canola oil or vegetable oil. 
3. When I make this bread, it is always a last-minute decision and not a planned one as I never know when I will have the leftover bananas going to the perfect deep yellow ripened state. Banana walnut is a great recipe to do it that way, as the batter comes together in less than 10 minutes with or without a hand blender. 
4. If you want to ripen the bananas to make this bread, leave it on the countertop of your kitchen for 1 to 2 days, and you will have it ready to bake. You can also bake it in the oven (at the lower setting possible). Make sure to use the baked banans right away as it turns black if left for a longer time.
5.  If you want the bananas to stop them from quickly ripening, place them in a paper/plastic bag and refrigerate for a day. In the freezer, it stays fresh for about 2 to 3 months. Thaw the bananas before making the bread.

Ingredients, Alternatives and Tips:

The main ingredient of this recipe is ripe bananas, extra light olive oil, sugar, vanilla extract, eggs, salt, baking soda, all-purpose flour, and walnuts.

Egg replacements for this recipe: Bob Red Mill’s egg replacer, yogurt, and apple sauce work the best.

Nuts: Walnuts can be replaced with any other nuts or completely skipped from this recipe. You can also add dry fruits like raisins, craisins, dried cranberries, and blueberries.

Sugar replacements: Brown sugar instead of white and honey are good alternatives. 

All-purpose flour can be switched entirely to wheat flour or use half all-purpose flour and half wheat flour. Bread flour in place of all-purpose flour works well too.

Main Steps of this Recipe:

Making the Batter in one step: Unlike many other recipes, ingredients do not have to be at room temperature. We can start tossing in all the elements one after the other to make a quick batter.

Baking: Baking time significantly varies for each oven. Make sure to check your oven settings for precise baking. Banana bread takes a long time to bake compared to some of the other fruit and veggies cakes. My oven bakes this cake perfectly @ 350 F for 55 minutes. It is normal to have minor cracks once the cake comes out of the range. During the cooling process, cracks become smaller.

Cutting and storage: Like all the other cakes, wait for the cake to cool down before completely cutting it.

Process and Instructions:

I have mashed the ripe bananas with a fork. I have added sugar to all the wet ingredients first ( extra light olive oil, vanilla extract, and eggs) followed by dry ingredients (salt, baking soda, and all-purpose flour).

Banana walnut bread is a one-bowl recipe, so all the ingredients are added and then blended in one step. I have used a hand-blender, but a regular whisk or even mixing the entire batter with a fork will work too.

Storage Instructions:

1. You can store the banana bread at room temperature for two days. Save it in an airtight container on the kitchen counter to avoid moisture.
2. Can store it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days and two months in the freezer—Thaw the bread for at least 2 hours and microwave for 25 seconds before using it.

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