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Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
There is something about a good banana bread recipe that I just can't get enough of. And don’t get me wrong, I like traditional banana bread, but when you add peanut butter (and chocolate), it takes it to a whole new delicious level! And this banana bread is loaded with ripe bananas, creamy peanut butter, and studded with chocolate chips.
Why You'll Love This Easy Banana Bread Recipe
- Flavor. Obviously, it's jam-packed with banana flavor, but it's also loaded with peanut butter and chocolate chips. YUM!
- Texture. This banana bread is super soft and insanely moist.
- Easy to Make. Just mix the ingredients with a hand or stand mixer, bake, and let cool!
- Size. This recipe is made in an 8×4-inch pan, which means less leftovers to worry about.
Ingredients & Substitutions
This peanut butter chocolate chip banana bread contains pretty standard ingredients. Here's what you'll need:
- Butter: The one and only. This recipe uses melted butter, so no need to wait for it to soften at room temperature!
- Sugar: I use all granulated sugar for this recipe (only ½ cup), but feel free to replace some of it with brown sugar for a more complex flavor! I also like to sprinkle some turbinado sugar on top of the loaf before baking, but that's totally optional!
- Sour cream: This helps keep the banana bread super moist! Feel free to replace with an equal amount of Greek yogurt if that's all you have on hand.
- Milk: This also helps with overall moistness. You can replace it with non-dairy milk though!
- Vanilla: I generally prefer vanilla bean paste as I find it to lend a stronger flavor, but you can use an equal amount of vanilla extract!
- Egg: Only 1 large egg is needed; make sure it's room temperature! Stick the egg in a warm glass of water to help bring it to room temperature quickly.
- Peanut Butter: Opt for a non-natural peanut butter like Jif or Skippy. I don’t recommend using natural peanut butter as it produces a fragile and overly moist loaf. Peanut butter not your thing? Feel free to replace it with your favorite nut butter!
- Bananas: This is banana bread, after all. Make sure to use overly ripe bananas; where most of the peel is brown/black. Brown, overripe bananas are sweeter because, in the ripening process, the starches in the banana are converted to sugar, which is important here since this recipe doesn't use much sugar!
- Chocolate chips: I like using dark or semisweet chocolate chips but honestly, use whatever you prefer here!
- All-purpose flour: You'll need 1½ cups total.
- Baking soda: To help our banana bread loaf bake up and brown nicely.
- Salt: Baked goods made without salt can taste a little plain, so don't forget it!
Why Overripe Bananas are Best for Baking
Most banana bread recipes (this one included) insist on using only the ripest bananas; I'm talking super spotted brown, almost black, mushy bananas. But why are overripe bananas better to bake with?
As mentioned above in the ingredients & substitutions section, as bananas ripen, their starch converts to sugar which makes for a sweeter baked good. What’s more, sugar behaves like a liquid in baked goods, so banana bread made with ripe bananas will not only have a sweeter flavor but also be moister and will ultimately have a more pronounced banana flavor. Not to mention overripe bananas are SO much easier to mash up and incorporate into a batter than their less-ripe counterparts.
If you don't have overripe bananas on hand and don't have the patience to wait for them to naturally ripen some more, you can use just regular ripe bananas. Just note you might wanna increase the amount of sugar used by about 2 to 4 tablespoons (25-50 grams).
How to Make the Best Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
If there’s one thing to know before making this peanut butter banana bread at home, it’s this: it's SUPER easy. Seriously, if you can mix and stir and pour, you can make this recipe!
Here are the basic steps to making this peanut butter chocolate chip banana bread:
Serving & Storage
Serving: You can serve this banana bread warm or at room temperature. It's best served within the first 3 days of being made. I like to reheat it a little in the microwave before eating!
Storage: Leftovers should be stored in an airtight container and can be kept at room temperature for up to 4 days. Leftovers can also be wrapped in plastic wrap surrounded by tin foil and then frozen for up to 2 months.
Note on Loaf Pan Sizes
This recipe calls for an 8x4-inch loaf pan. If you only have a 9x5-inch pan, you can use it, just note that the larger pan size will produce a flatter loaf. If baking in a 9x5-inch pan, bake for 45 to 55 minutes.
Watch How to Make This Banana Bread:
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
Ingredients
For the Banana Bread:
- 188 g all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 227 g mashed bananas (approx. 2 medium ripe bananas)
- 192 g creamy peanut butter
- 85 g unsalted butter melted
- 100 g granulated sugar
- 90 g sour cream room temperature
- 30 g milk room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 large egg (~50 g)
- 180 g semisweet chocolate chips
- turbinado sugar for topping (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line an 8x4-inch loaf pan with parchment paper, letting the excess hang over the long sides to form a sling. Spray the inside with cooking spray and then set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt, then set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the mashed banana and peanut butter until combined. Add the melted butter, sugar, sour cream, milk, vanilla, and egg, and whisk until well combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Then fold in the chocolate chips until incorporated.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and sprinkle the top with turbinado sugar, if using. Bake until deeply golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, about 50-60 minutes. Let the loaf cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.
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