Sourdough Banana Bread
Sourdough banana bread is a rich banana bread recipe you just can't miss! Use sourdough starter or even sourdough discard in this recipe.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1 cup light brown sugar lightly packed
- 3 ripe bananas about 6" long
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup sourdough starter or discard see notes
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 1 1/4 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375f, and prepare a 9x5 loaf pan by greasing well with butter or margarine. If desired make a parchment paper sling for the banana bread.
- Add 1/2 cup softened butter and 1 cup lightly packed light brown sugar to the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on high speed until completely combined, light, and fluffy - about 2-3 minutes.
- Mash or break up 3 ripe bananas, then add to the sugar mixture and mix until mostly smooth, this should take about a minute.
- Add 2 large eggs and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and mix at low speed until completely combined. Add 1/2 cup of sourdough starter or discard and 1/4 cup sour cream to the mixing bowl and mix on medium-low speed until completely incorporated.
- Add 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar, and beat well to combine completely.
- Meanwhile, combine 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon baking powder, and 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt in a small bowl.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients all at once, if adding chocolate chips, nuts, or other mix-ins, this is the time to add them. Mix the flour into the batter on low speed until barely combined. Avoid over-mixing as that can result in a tough loaf.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan, taking care to not deflate the batter.
- Bake the banana bread at 375f for 45-55 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the loaf comes out clean.
- Allow the banana bread to cool for 5 or so minutes in the loaf pan before removing it to a wire mesh cooling rack to cool.
Notes
Sourdough:
You'll get more tang with an aged discard and more rise with an active starter. Learn more about starters and discard.Batch:
This banana bread recipe bakes 1 epic loaf! It can be doubled easily but don't recommend tripling or more, sometimes baking any more than double-sized batches results in unexpected results.Storage:
ROOM TEMPERATURE:- Your sourdough banana bread can be kept at room temperature in an airtight bag or container for up to 3 days - if it lasts that long
- Whole loaf: allow the loaf to cool on a wire rack until completely cooled, then carefully wrap in plastic wrap or tin foil. Place the wrapped loaf into a ziplock bag and store in the freezer for later enjoyment. To thaw, simply remove the loaf from the freezer and unwrap before thawing at room temperature.
- Sliced: allow the loaf to cool on a wire rack until completely cooled, then slice into desired width slices, we like 1/2". Wrap 1-2 slices in plastic wrap before placing the slices into a ziplock bag and storing in the freezer for later. To thaw, remove the slices from the freezer and thaw, wrapped at room temperature.
variations + substitutions
- add 1/2 cup of chopped pecans or walnuts for banana nut bread
- add 1 cup chocolate chips for a chocolate chip sourdough banana bread
- bake them as muffins! Scoop the batter into lined muffin trays and bake at 350f for 15-18 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean
- add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon or cinnamon extract for a hint of warming spice
