Easy Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

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Nothing beats a slice of warm banana bread. And I love it even more when it’s this super easy chocolate chip banana bread. This banana chocolate chip bread recipe couldn’t be easier, and is a delicious way to use up those ripe bananas!

loaf of easy chocolate chip banana bread cut in half


 

Ok, if you’re NOT new around here then you may know by now that my grocery order always has bananas in it. I usually have one as a snack. Like. Every. Day. But even so, I still somehow always have one or two leftover! For awhile, I was totally messing up my instacart order and when I ordered “5 bananas” I had zero idea I actually was ordering 5 bunches!!!

Oops. Major oops. Now yes I had lots of snacks that week. But come on….25 bananas in one week? I don’t think so.

So here’s what I do when leftover bananas happen. I throw them in my freezer until I have enough to make some banana bread, like my classic banana bread recipe with sour cream or maybe my peanut butter banana bread?

Sometimes in a week I have the perfect amount. And if not, I add each ripe banana to my freezer collection. And then when the banana bread craving strikes – Voila! I have ripe bananas in my freezer waiting for me.ย 

And so this time, my weekly batch and freezer bananas went to making a classic – chocolate chip banana bread. 

Because bananas and chocolate are just a happy, happy marriage, aren’t they? Ok enough talk. Let’s make banana bread!!!

Use Ripe Bananas!

First let’s talk bananas. Your bananas for banana bread should very ripe. Black and speckled. This will mean they are very ripe so the sugars have really come through. 

a bunch of ripe bananas

Ingredients Needed

  • Flour
  • Baking Soda
  • Salt
  • Cinnamon
  • Bananas – Of course we need bananas. I just mash mine in a bowl with a fork before I start. And be sure that you use very ripe bananas, that are black and speckled in color. 
  • Sugar
  • Oil
  • Eggs
  • Sour Cream – This adds fat and richness. You could try swapping out for greek yogurt, which I did in my healthy banana bread recipe.
  • Vanilla extract
  • Chocolate chips
four slices of banana chocolate chip bread on top of each other

How To Make This Easy Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Step 1: Mash Your Bananas

In a separate bowl, you want to mash your bananas. I just do this with a fork. It’s easier to get this done ahead of time, and have them mashed ready to go. 

I used 4 bananas about 1 1/2 cups.

a bowl of mashed bananas with a fork in it

Step 2: Combine your dry ingredients

In a large mixing bowl you want to whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. And then set aside. 

Pro Tip: At this point, I like to remove 1 tablespoon of the dry ingredients and toss it with chocolate chips in a small bowl. This will help the chocolate chips from sinking.

bowl of banana bread dry ingredients with a whisk in it

Step 2: Mix The Wet Ingredients

In a second mixing bowl you want to combine your wet ingredients โ€“ oil, eggs, vanilla, bananas, sugar and sour cream. 

Step 3: Fold In The Dry Ingredients

Now using a spatula, fold in the dry ingredients. Just donโ€™t overmix! Overmixing will cause the gluten in the flour to form and too much gluten creates a tough bread. So stop mixing once the last streak of flour is incorporated.

bowl of banana bread batter

Step 4: Add chocolate chips

Now stir in the chocolate chips. Again just be careful to not overmix! Overmixing will create a very tough, chewy banana bread.

Heather’s Baking Tip

I like to save a few chocolate chips to sprinkle on top of the bread once the batter is in the pan, so it the top of the bread looks all pretty.

Step 5: Bake

Then you want to pour the batter into your greased 9ร—5 inch loaf pan and bake! Bake on a middle rack in a pre-heated oven. And bake for 60-70 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

loaf of chocolate chip banana bread on a cooling rack

How Do You Make Banana Bread Moist?

The key to making moist banana bread is using very ripe bananas. The blacker the better when it comes to the bananas! Not just flecks but really black.

You also want to make sure that you don’t overmix! Overmixing causes gluten, the protein in the flour that provides structure to form. So less mixing means less gluten forms. That means you get a nice, tender, fluffy banana bread with chocolate chips.

Recipe Tips:

  • Use Ripe Bananas. You want to make sure you use very ripe bananas. Bananas that have lots of black specks. The blacker the banana is the sweeter it will be. I actually like to freeze my bananas when they have gotten too ripe to use later for banana bread. If you use frozen bananas, then let the bananas thaw before using them.
  • Mash first. Mash your bananas before adding them to the mixing bowl. I do this by hand with a fork since I have used frozen bananas they are very easily mashed. You could also use a pastry blender, potato masher, or a hand mixer.
  • Measure your flour accurately. I use the spoon and level method. You can learn how to measure your flour in this post.
  • Careful to not over mix. I like to use a spatula and fold in the dry ingredients by hand. You want to stop mixing once they have been incorporated. Too much mixing = too much gluten forming. Gluten is what will give a bread its chew, but for a banana bread you want less gluten to form. So we can accomplish that by making sure we donโ€™t overmix!
  • Toss The Chocolate Chips In The Dry Ingredients. Chocolate chips have a tendency to sink to the bottom of the batter, so I like to toss them in a tablespoon of the dry ingredients.

What Else Can You Put In A Banana Bread?

I kept this recipe simple. But you can definitely use something besides chocolate chips – like toasted walnuts like in Flour Bakery’s Famous Banana Bread or try blueberries like this Blueberry Banana Bread.

loaf of chocolate chip banana bread cut in half

More Recipes To Try

And if you are new to making quick breads, be sure to read my Ultimate Guide To Baking Quick Bread Recipes.

Easy Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Recipe

If youโ€™re like me then you always have bananas in the house, and you can never eat them fast enough before they get all black and speckled. I love when my bananas get that way, because it means itโ€™s time to make banana bread. This banana bread recipe is made with chocolate chips for a bit of sweetness!
5 from 7 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings: 12 slices (1 9×5 loaf)
Calories: 392kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups (300 g) all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 1/4 cups (248 g) granulated white sugar
  • 1/2 cup (120 mL) vegetable oil
  • 2 large eggs room temperature
  • 1 ยฝ cups (340 g) very ripe bananas (about 4 medium)
  • ยฝ cup sour cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

  • Preheat and prepare pan. Preheat oven to 350oF. Spray a 9×5โ€ loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray or grease with butter and set aside.
  • Mash bananas. In a small mixing bowl, mash bananas with a fork. Set aside.
  • Combine dry ingredients. In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
  • Combine wet ingredients. In the same mixing bowl with the bananas, whisk in the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract and stir until combined.
  • Combine wet and dry ingredients. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together with a spatula until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips.
  • Bake. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and bake for 60-65 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow the bread to cool completely in the pan set on a wire cooling rack. Store the bread, and any leftovers, covered at room temperature for 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Video

Notes

  • Use Ripe Bananas. You want to make sure you use very ripe bananas. Bananas that have lots of black specks. The blacker the banana is the sweeter it will be. I actually like to freeze my bananas when they have gotten too ripe to use later for banana bread. If you use frozen bananas, then let the bananas thaw before using them.
  • Mash first. Mash your bananas before adding them to the mixing bowl. I do this by hand with a fork since I have used frozen bananas they are very easily mashed. You could also use a pastry blender, potato masher, or a hand mixer.
  • Measure your flour accurately. I use the spoon and level method. You can learn how to measure your flour in this post.
  • Careful to not over mix. I like to use a spatula and fold in the dry ingredients by hand. You want to stop mixing once they have been incorporated. Too much mixing = too much gluten forming. Gluten is what will give a bread its chew, but for a banana bread you want less gluten to form. So we can accomplish that by making sure we donโ€™t overmix!
  • Toss The Chocolate Chips In The Dry Ingredients. Chocolate chips have a tendency to sink to the bottom of the batter, so I like to toss them in a tablespoon of the dry ingredients.
  • Save A Few Chocolate Chips. I add about 3/4 cup of the chips to the bread, and reserve 1/4 cup to sprinkle on top of the batter once it’s in the pan.ย 
  • Use The Right Pan. I used a 9×5 loaf pan. Be sure it’s the right size. And make sure you aren’t using a dark loaf pan, which can bake too quickly and burn.
  • ย 

Nutrition

Calories: 392kcal | Carbohydrates: 53g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 33mg | Sodium: 306mg | Potassium: 204mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 29g | Vitamin A: 119IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 29mg | Iron: 2mg
Tried this Recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @BostonGirlBakes or tag #BostonGirlBakes!


 

12 Comments

  1. Becky Pothast says:

    One batch make 4 mini loaves. Baked for approx 40-45 min. I was using confection oven. Just because I could, I melted a little butter on each loaf when they came out of oven, and sprinkled with some cinnamon and sugar mixture. Going to start making these ahead for Xmas gifts.

    1. The butter on top with cinnamon sugar sounds amazing Becky!! So glad you loved this recipe!

  2. 5 stars
    I made this but substituted greek yogurt for the sour cream and peanut butter chips for the chocolate chips. Flavor was excellent and the yogurt made the bread moist. Instructions were easy to follow and the batter came together quickly. My baking time took over an hour, but I’m guessing that is a function of my pan and my oven. Next time I might try cinnamon chips.

    1. Oh my goodness peanut butter chips sound amazing! I’m going to have to make this next time for sure!! And yes the variation on quick bread can always be due to the type of pan (metal vs glass), the size, and of course your oven.

  3. 5 stars
    Hi, I made this banana bread. I’ve never put sour cream in banana bread so I was interested to see how it would taste. The only thing I changed in the recipe was to use 4 1/2 large bananas and added a 1/4 cup more flour. Unfortunately the batter came to the very top of the loaf pan and was afraid it would spill over, so I used an 11ร—7 inch glass baking pan with a cookie sheet underneath it just incase. It turned out fantastic!!

    1. Hi Nancy, glad you loved the banana bread as much as we did! Yes probably with the extra flour and bananas it created a bit too much batter..but glad you were able to improvise and make it work ๐Ÿ™‚

  4. 5 stars
    This may have been the easiest recipe for banana bread but it also has been the best! And we tried many banana bread recipes during the last few years. Thank you for the detailed instructions and step-by-step pictures.

    1. aw thanks Danielle! I’m so glad you loved it and found it easy!

  5. 5 stars
    I’m so intrigued by your use of sour cream, I can picture how delicious and delicate the banana bread turns out. Bookmarking this for the weekend, can’t wait.

    1. Yes sour cream makes for a tender, moist bread. Let me know how it turns out Nancy!

  6. 5 stars
    WOW!
    My kids (even the one who won’t touch bananas!) loved this. I think it was the choc chips!!
    I made it for lunchboxes and it didn’t even last till the morning for me to put in there!
    So good….it will be a staple in our house ๐Ÿ™‚

    1. yes chocolate always makes it better ๐Ÿ™‚

5 from 7 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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