Sour Cream Banana Nut Bread is super moist with a crunchy sweet topping.
Put those ripe bananas on your counter to good use and make a batch of this delicious quick bread. You can easily double or triple the recipe and then freeze the loaves!
Why this recipe works:
If you love a good baking recipe, you're going to be thrilled with this banana walnut bread recipe.
- It's super moist because the recipe uses sour cream and a lot of ripe mashed banana.
- There's a sweet and crunchy topping
- There are tons of walnuts and loads of smashed ripe banana in this recipe which means tons of flavor and great texture
- This banana bread freezes exceptionally well, so plan on making a lot if you have extra bananas
Ingredients used:
One of the things I love most about banana bread is that I almost always have everything I need in my pantry and refrigerator.
- Butter - make sure it's nice and soft
- Granulated sugar and golden brown sugar - I find using both instead of one or the other yields the best results
- Eggs - I always have them at room temperature when baking
- Large ripe bananas - my ideal banana bread banana is yellow with lots of dark brown spots
- Vanilla - make sure you use pure vanilla extract and not imitation
- Sour cream - not lowfat
- All-purpose flour - unbleached recommended
- Baking soda - make sure it's reasonably fresh when you use it for cooking
- Cinnamon - I almost always replace with Pumpkin Pie spice when I bake
- Salt - every sweet recipe needs salt
- Walnuts - when I bake, I always use raw (not dry roasted) nuts
How to make it:
- First step is to cream together the butter and sugar, then mix in all of the remaining wet ingredients
- The dry ingredients are sifted together and then mixed into the batter
- Finally, the walnut pieces are stirred in
- Next you will prepare the streusel topping
- Pour the batter into a prepared loaf pan and cover with the streusel topping mixture
- Bake the loaf for about an hour
Recipe tips:
- Bananas - The ideal banana is mostly yellow and just starting to brown. I will actually squeeze them while they're still in the peel because it makes it easier to mash up the ripe banana once it's in the bowl.
- Nuts - This recipe calls for walnuts but you can easily substitute with a different nut if you prefer. I've used pecans as well as macadamia nuts. Raw nuts are recommended over roasted.
- Baking tips -
- You can either grease the loaf pan or use parchment paper. I prefer parchment so that as soon as it's done cooking, you can lift the loaf out of the pan and pull the loaf out of the paper to cool. This will prevent it from getting soggy.
- Be sure to insert a cake tester into the center of the loaf to ensure there is no wet batter before removing from the oven. If the top appears to be too brown, you can set the loaf lower in the oven to allow it to finish cooking without getting too browned on top.
- Freezing tips -
- The loaf or loaves (if doubling recipe) must be fully cooled before freezing.
- Wrap in foil or plastic wrap to eliminate air and prevent freezer burn. I actually now wrap the loaves in freezer paper and then in foil.
- This banana bread should last 6-12 months in the freezer as long as you're able to prevent freezer burn. To enjoy, allow to fully thaw before slicing.
Related recipes:
There are so many things you can make with ripe bananas. Here are some of my favorite recommendations.
- Banana Bread Brownies - For this recipe I swirled together a banana batter with a dense chocolate batter. The result was absolutely amazing. Ever have a chocolate covered banana? Yeah, there's a reason why those two pair so well together.
- Banana Upside Down Cake - Not only is this one gorgeous, but I dare you to only eat one piece.
- Brown Butter Banana Bars - You know I love my brown butter.
- Banana Cupcakes - Topped with blueberry cream cheese. Oh my!
- Banana Bread Pudding with Rum Sauce - This is the kind of dessert that makes you want to walk 5 miles the next day just to burn off the calories. Worth it.
- Coffee Banana Smoothie - tasty and filling!
- Banana Cake - Secret brown butter in the cake and the frosting!
Sour Cream Banana Nut Bread
Sour Cream Banana Nut Bread is a super moist banana bread recipe with a crunchy sweet topping. Put those ripe bananas on your counter to good use and make a batch of this not-so-healthy banana nut bread. Whether you enjoy it for breakfast with a hot cup of coffee or as a late afternoon snack, you will love it!
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CLICK TO PLAY RECIPE VIDEO
Hover to scale: 12 servings
Ingredients
Banana bread:
- ½ cup butter (softened)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup golden brown sugar
- 2 eggs (slightly beaten)
- 3 large ripe bananas (mashed)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 ½ cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup walnut pieces
Topping:
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup flour
- ¼ cup butter (softened)
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅓ cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper or heavily grease with butter.
- To make the bread:In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugars. Add eggs, bananas, vanilla and sour cream. Mix until well combined.
- In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Add large spoonfuls of the dry ingredients to the wet and stir just enough to fully incorporate all of the ingredients. Fold in the walnuts.
To make the topping:
- Mix together the topping ingredients into a small bowl. Mix well to combine.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Drop crumb mixture over surface of batter. Cook in preheated oven for about 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
Notes
Makes 1 standard sized loaf
You may use two mini loaf pans in place of a single standard size loaf pan if you wish. Cooking time will be reduced, so remove from oven when center is cooked.
If you have a lot of ripe bananas, you may want to double or triple this recipe.
This banana bread freezes well. Just slice, wrap tightly with plastic wrap, and freeze until ready to eat. For longer storage you may also want to use freezer paper to keep it from getting freezer burn.
NUTRITION INFORMATION
Calories: 387kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 62mg | Sodium: 312mg | Potassium: 227mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 475IU | Vitamin C: 2.8mg | Calcium: 49mg | Iron: 1.7mg
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This post was originally created in February 2018 and has been updated with additional photos, information and cooking tips. Don't worry - I didn't change the recipe!
Ojie
Love this recipe! the best Banana-nut bread ever!
Mikki
This is the best banana bread ever. It is super moist. I also like that the recipe uses only a 1/2 cup of sugar. 1/4 brown sugar and 1/4 granulated sugar. I did not top with streusel. Maybe next time. Loaded with flavor.
Ann
Can you make muffins instead of a loaf? How long would they need to cook for?
Krissy
Hi Ann, You absolutely can make muffins. The cook time would be reduced, but I can't tell you an exact number. I always base it on sticking it with a toothpick or cake tester and it coming out clean.
Amy
I've tried many banana bread recipes and this is THE ONE. I first made it a couple of years ago and found my way back after trying other recipes that didn't come close on flavour. Wonderful banana-y taste and the house smells fantastic. Subbed half the walnuts with milk chocolate chips. Delish!
Veronica
I’ve used this recipe twice now and it my husband raves about it. I like how clear the steps are.
ReNae
Great recipie! My kitchen smells devine and the loaves look great!
Ana
I have tried about 3 different recipes, this is my 4th. The first 3 were not fluffy and turned out hard as stone. This one is no. 4, in the oven now and looks liquid in the middle and starting to burn on top. I have put it on the lower rack, fingers crossed.
Clay Robins
love this recipe very easy to make, poured it into a large pullmn loaf pan butit wokred out fine even without the toppings... The sour cream made it very moist
Sue Harrod
This is probably the "Best" Banana bread I have ever eaten!
Laura
I cannot comment on flavor because the bread is still baking. I am only 20 minutes into it and I had a bad feeling about it only making one loaf as advised. I made this bread in the standard bread pan and it is already overflowing in my oven. All the crumble topping is falling out on my pan I placed below. I would say this recipe makes two loaves. To try to fit this into a standard pan is crazy, It is still cooking so I have not sampled it yet but it smells delicious if you can get passed the smell of the overflow burning.
Krissy
Oh no! I've made this several times and never had that happen. I wonder what went wrong. Besides the burnt smell, did it turn out?
Kathy
This is my favorite Banana Nut Bread - Super moist and delicious all by it's self. I use low fat sour cream and leave off the streusel. It is perfect!
Tiffany
I had serious hope for this recipe because my boyfriend swears up and down this is the one he used when he surprised me longer ago by making me some (because a good, warm slice of banana bread is my favorite!). I ended dumping this before even adding my bananas. After reading the comments of others who had issues I’m wondering if it’s because there isn’t enough sugar? Looking at other comparable recipes, those that start with 1/2 cup softened butter you end up adding 1 cup sugar...this one only adds half that (1/4 granulated + 1/4 brown sugar). I dumped mine because with the butter, vanilla, sugar, eggs and sour cream it was waaaay too runny. It didn’t look right and didn’t want to waste the bananas.
Krissy
Hi Tiffany, I've made this recipe several times and I can guarantee that it turns out perfectly. I have a recipe video as well... just haven't finished editing it. I'm sorry you threw it away before even trying to bake it! I use less sugar because I don't think it needs that much, esp if your ripe bananas are extra sweet. Krissy
Madeleine Fratello
Stepping away from my traditional recipe, I was excited to try yours....the idea of using sour cream and have a crumble topping made it seem so unique. Following your directions to a tee, after 1 hour of baking, the cake is not set.....it's rather 'wet' and I am at a loss to know what to do. The topping is well done and browned, but the inside is not.
Not sure why but so disappointed. Will let it sit on the counter and hope for the best - then I will slice and freeze it until an idea comes to me.
Krissy
Sorry this happened! Sounds like your oven cooks hotter on top than mine does. I'm guessing this recipe would work better for you if you cooked the bread on the lower rack of your oven. Also, did you use a metal bread pan or something different like glass or ceramic? I ask because the glass or ceramic can slow the cooking time. -Krissy
Donna
Can you use frozen ripe bananas
Krissy
Yep! As long as you thaw them first of course. -Krissy
Cassandra
Why doesn’t it have flour?
Krissy
Why doesn't what have flour?
Carol MacDonald
😂 wait you skipped flour. That’s ok. I once forgot eggs in my cake. Don’t feel bad. Just try again. Try to follow in order. It’s extremely hard for me because I have ADHD. But luckily I know basically this recipe and I love it. The only thing I do differently is add a quarter cup of OJ. It gives it its own unique taste without being citrusy. Thanks Krissy for taking the time to post your recipe and I did try cinnamon and made topping for first time. In oven now we shall see. 💜
Carol MacDonald
1 1/2 cups flour It’s ok. Easy to miss . Try again. Don’t give up.
Judy I Wood
I LOVE THIS RECIPE !!
daniel
I love the final product,it looks great.good work
blueyes87
Excited to try this but I followed the recipe to a T And it's been baking for an hour and a half and still isn't done. What gives?
Krissy
Did it turn out for you? Sometimes baking times can vary drastically with things like quick breads depending on your altitude and humidity. I hope it worked!
Arlene C
Can this recipe be done without bananas? I made it last week, it was delicious but my family prefers without bana6.
Krissy
perhaps with applesauce instead of banana?
TIFFANY
Seriously, honestly, absolutely, and overwhelmingly THE best recipe I've ever discovered on the internet. It's really that good.. I now actually like banana bread vs just tolerate it. This is great! Thanks..
Krissy
Best comment ever! Thank you!!!
Sharlyn Button
GR8 recipe. Days flew by n I was concerned the bananas were way past ripe n recipe would have that spoiled banana taste. Nope bread turned out to be delicious, moist n perfect for breakfast midday n evening desert . Had to try them all so I could be sure. Made with extra nuts because we love them, an old corning ware dish that was readily available, a toaster oven, long story n skipped the topping just because. Will definitely make again only this time will double the recipe, may even use loaf pans n inclued topping. It was that good.
MICHELE JARRAIT
I've never liked any Banana Bread recipe, until today. This is absolutely the best!!! Moist, flavorful, love the crunchy topping, Perfect!
Janelle
This is a great recipe! The sour cream makes it very moist and the crumbled topping is great!
Andrea
I made this and I shared with family and my neighbor. Everyone raved about it! I definitely need to make more; at least a double recipe!!!