Name: Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 75 min
Ingredients: 1 cup granulated sugar; 2/3 cup neutral oil; 2 egg (beaten); 1/4 cup buttermilk; 2-3 ripe bananas (mashed (about 1 cup)); 1 tsp vanilla extract; 2/3 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour; 2/3 cup whole wheat flour; 1/3 cup rolled oats; 1 tsp baking soda; 1 tsp salt; 1/2 cup chocolate chips

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Got bananas and chocolate? Then you’ve got the makings for a wonderful snack. Or breakfast. Or dessert. Make Chocolate Chip Banana Bread!

I never heard of Chocolate Chip Banana Bread until college. It was a “new thing” in 1990. What can I say? We didn’t have the internet back then.

One always knew when Chocolate Chip Banana Bread was on the menu at the dining commons, though. Someone at the front of the line would peer in the window to read the menu and pretty soon the news had spread down the line.

And then there was a mad dash as soon as the doors opened! I remember seeing girls race to the bakery area in order to snag their fair share. And if they were already out of Chocolate Chip Banana Bread? Oh dear.

Hell hath no fury like a woman separated from her chocolate-laden banana bread.

And so, here I am 20-some years later, watching my own daughter crestfallen if I don’t add chocolate chips to the banana bread.

It is really good, if I do say so myself.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread is a great way to use up brown bananas.

Since banana bread already has a fair amount of sugar and even more with the addition of chocolate, I’ve tried to increase some of the nutrition in this banana bread to offset all the sweetness. I’ve swapped in some whole wheat pastry flour as well as some rolled oats for some of the white flour.

It’s not a huge boost of nutrition, but I like to think that the whole grains help our bodies slow down a little with all the sugar.

This Chocolate Chip Banana Bread is a huge hit with my family, so much so that I prefer to make a double or triple batch so that I can freeze a loaf or two for later.

It’s a tough job to make it last that long, however! Four kids can demolish a loaf in about 20 minutes!

How To Make This Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

This recipe combines bananas, oil, and oats for health and some sugar and chocolate – just ’cause. It looks beautiful sliced on a pretty plate for a breakfast buffet and is a welcome surprise in any lunch box.

To start, you want to preheat the oven to 350°F. Then grease a 10×4-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray or line it with parchment paper. Since I prefer to wash as few dishes as possible, I go for the latter.

It can get a little tricky to get the parchment paper to stay in place, so I use binder clips to hold the paper until I’ve poured in the batter.

Yes! Just regular office binder clips are in my stash of unique tools for the kitchen!

It’s always good to get all your ingredients out and lay them together on your work surface. That way you can make sure you have everything you need. It’s always a bummer to get half-way through recipe only to find out that you’re missing a key ingredient!

In a large mixing bowl you want to combine the sugar, oil, eggs, buttermilk, bananas, and vanilla.

In another bowl, whisk together your flours, oats, baking soda, salt and chocolate chips. Combine the wet and dry ingredients in one bowl and then stir until well blended.

Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and remove the binder clips from the pan if you’re using them.

Next, slide the pan into the oven to bake. It will take about 60 minutes or until tester comes out clean. Cool the loaf on a rack before slicing.

Do you need to use buttermilk?

Since this banana bread recipe contains baking soda, it needs an acid, like buttermilk, to help it react and do its work. If you don’t have buttermilk, you can add a little lemon juice or white vinegar to milk and let it sit for a few minutes. This will provide the acid the baking soda needs to be effective.

How do you prevent the chocolate chips from sinking?

To help your chocolate chips suspend themselves in the batter, toss them in the dry mixture before mixing in the wet ingredients. This can prevent them from sinking.

Do You Have To Put Banana Bread In The Fridge?

There is no need to refrigerate this bread. You want to just keep it an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap in a cool place.

However, refrigerating the bread may extend its shelf life for a few days over room temperature storage.

For longest keeping, stash the bread in the freezer. Just wrap the cooled loaves in plastic wrap and slide them into a ziptop freezer bag. You can also slice and freeze the bread, making it that much easier to get your fair share — or hide it in the deep recesses of the freezer so that you can snack on it secretly.

Ahem.

How to make this good and cheap:

Here are some of the strategies you can use to make this recipe more economical:

Bake it yourself from scratch – Don’t buy mixes. Don’t buy pricey bakery bread. You can make your own better and cheaper at home!
Stock up on ingredients when they are on sale. When I find regular kitchen staples on sale, I buy a lot. I’m currently using a price book to track prices and that’s saving me money. For this recipe, keeping an eye on the price of flour and chocolate can help keep the price down. Bananas are often marked on clearance or go on great sales, so watch for them.
Buying in bulk – It’s rare that I would buy one bag of flour. I usually stock up when there are good baking sales. I also have gotten into the habit of buying cases of flour from Bob’s Red Mill.

How I make this recipe easy:

This recipe really couldn’t be easier than it is, but having the right kitchen tools can really make your time in the kitchen more enjoyable. Over time, I’ve honed my collection so that they are perfect for my needs.

Here are the tools that I use for this recipe:

stainless steel mixing bowl – I’m not sure you have too many of these.
wire whisk – Be sure to get one with a closed barrel so dishwater doesn’t get stuck in its innards and drip into your food. Ask me how I know.
rubber spatula – I have two of these; I love them so much.
bread pan – I love the USA pans. No greasing needed and no burning!
parchment paper – Love this for no even having to wash the pans!

Got more bananas to use up? Try this Banana Pecan Coffeecake or these Banana Cupcakes with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting.

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