This chocolate banana bread recipe takes the meaning of banana bread to another level! It brings together the best of both worlds – a super moist banana bread and rich fudgy chocolate cake. It’s decadent, rich, and probably the best version of banana bread I’ve ever had!
Why You’ll Love This Chocolate Banana Bread
When I say this is the best variation of banana bread I’ve had, I honestly mean it! Here are a few reasons why I think you’ll love this banana bread as much as I do 🙂
Rich Flavor: This recipe uses both cocoa powder (I would recommend using Dutch process cocoa for a richer chocolate flavor) and chocolate to add a rich and deep flavor to this chocolate banana bread. You could technically call this a double chocolate banana bread! The natural sweetness of ripe bananas complements the chocolate in this recipe, resulting in a deep, decadent chocolate banana flavor that is beyond delicious!
Moist Texture: Bananas add great moisture to any baked good, resulting in a moist and tender texture. Similarly, chocolate also adds additional fat and moisture, particularly if you use a good quality chocolate block (which is my preferred option, as opposed to chocolate chips). The combination of banana and chocolate in this recipe (and of course a few of my favorite baking tricks!) results in a super moist and tender quick bread!
Balanced Sweetness: What I love most about this recipe is that it isn’t too sweet, despite having two ‘sweet’ ingredients – ripe bananas and chocolate! Because this recipe uses dark chocolate (semi-sweet works fine too), it ensures that the banana bread isn’t too sweet. I like to use a 50% dark chocolate block, but you could go upto 70% dark chocolate. I wouldn’t recommend using anything higher than that otherwise the banana bread may turn out bitter!
Versatility and Ease: This recipe is easy to make, doesn’t require any frosting, and can be enjoyed for breakfast, dessert, or as an afternoon tea snack!
How to Make Chocolate Banana Bread
As promised, this recipe comes together really easily in a few quick steps!
Begin by preheating your oven to 160 °C (320°F) with the fan on (also known as convection mode) and line an 8.5×4.5 inch loaf pan. I like to lightly grease the tin before lining it so that the parchment paper sticks better. If your oven doesn’t have a fan option, then you will need to increase the baking temperature to 175°C/350°F.
Next prepare your chocolate, if you’ve opted to use a dark chocolate block. I would recommend using a good quality chocolate like Whittakers, Ghirardelli or Hershey’s. Cut the chocolate into little chunks and set aside for now.
Next mash very ripe bananas using a potato masher and fork and set aside for now. It’s very important to use ripe bananas – the riper the better!
Sift together all purpose flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder (make sure to use unsweetened cocoa powder). Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined. Set aside for now.
In a large mixing bowl combine butter, sugar and oil, and using an electric mixer (hand or stand mixer both okay) on a medium-high speed, cream together for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
Next add in a room temperature egg and mix until well combined.
Next add in mashed banana mixture from earlier and vanilla, and mix until well combined. Once done, remove any remaining batter off of the attachment(s) and set your mixer aside as the rest of the mixing will be done by hand.
Add the pre-sifted dry ingredients from earlier into the wet ingredients, along with 3/4s of the dark chocolate. Using a spatula, gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix the batter.
Distribute the batter evenly into the prepared cake tin, and sprinkle the remaining dark chocolate on the top.
Drop the cake tin lightly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles, and bake for 65-75 minutes, or until a skewer, toothpick or knife comes out mostly clean. There may be some melted chocolate on your cake tester, but as long as there isn’t any wet uncooked batter it’s done.
Allow to cool in the cake tin for about 20 minutes, before transferring to a wire rack or serving plate. Allow to cool for another 30 minutes before serving (I like mine slightly warm!).
Commonly Asked Questions
How do you store chocolate banana bread?
This chocolate banana bread can be left at room temperature in an airtight container for a few days. After that, it’s best to refrigerate for up to a week.
Why is my banana bread dense?
Dense banana bread can be caused by many reasons. Some of the most common reasons are as follows:
Not using ripe enough bananas: You can you your bananas to be soft and sweet – the riper the better!
Incorrect amount of bananas: If you add too many bananas, this can result in a heavy bread. If your recipe provides gram measurements, I would recommend using them for accuracy.
Too much flour: Flour can cause excess gluten in your banana bread, which can make it dense. This is especially true if you stir the mixture more than it needs to be mixed.
Expired leavening agents: Baking powder and baking soda contribute to the rise of our baked good, making them light and fluffy. Double check your leavening agents are still working as intended. Click here for a great article on how to check this 🙂
Can bananas be too mushy or too ripe for banana bread?
When it comes to banana bread, the riper the bananas the better! You of course still want the bananas to be good (so if they look really watery make sure they aren’t off). Even frozen bananas will work well for banana bread.
I would recommend weighing the bananas though to ensure you aren’t adding too much banana into the banana bread, otherwise this can result in too much liquid in the batter and the bread will not rise as intended.
Can you freeze chocolate banana bread?
Yes! In general, banana bread freezes really well, and the same goes for chocolate banana bread. Once the loaf is completely cool, wrap it in plastic wrap and foil, and store in an airtight container before freezing for up to 3 months. Allow it to thaw completely before serving. I would recommend it heating it slightly so the chocolate melts a little – it tastes so so good!
Moist Chocolate Banana Bread
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (170 g) dark chocolate chunks - I like to cut up a bar of 50% dark chocolate. Semi-sweet chocolate chips/drops will work too.
- 1½ cups (339 g) very ripe bananas - mashed, about 3 large bananas
- 1¼ cups (155 g) flour - plain, all purpose
- 2 tbsp (16 g) cornstarch
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ⅓ cup (35 g) cocoa powder - unsweetened, dutch process preferred
- ¼ cup (56 g) unsalted butter - room temperature
- ¾ cup (150 g) white granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (52 g) unflavoured vegetable oil - I use canola oil
- 1 large egg - room temperature
- 1½ tsps vanilla extract/essence
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 160 °C (320°F) with the fan on (see note 1 if you don't have a fan function) and line an 8.5x4.5inch loaf tin (I like to lightly grease the tin before lining it so that the parchment paper sticks better).
- If using a dark chocolate block, then cut it into small chunks and set aside for now.
- Mash the bananas using a potato masher or fork and set aside for now.
- Sift together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder. Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined. Set aside for now.
- In a large bowl combine butter, sugar and oil, and using a hand or stand mixer on a medium-high speed, cream together for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Next add in the room temperature egg and mix until well combined.
- Next add in mashed bananas and vanilla, and mix until well combined. Once done, remove any remaining batter off of the attachment(s) and set your mixer aside as the rest of the mixing will be done by hand.
- Add the pre-sifted dry ingredients from earlier into the wet mixture, along with 3/4s of the dark chocolate (around 130g). Using a spatula, gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix the batter.
- Distribute the batter evenly into the prepared cake tin, and sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of dark chocolate on the top.
- Drop the cake tin lightly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles, and bake for 65-75 minutes, or until a skewer or knife comes out mostly clean. There may be some melted chocolate on your cake tester, but as long as there isn't any wet uncooked batter it's done.
- Allow to cool in the cake tin for about 20 minutes, before transferring to a wire rack or serving plate. Allow to cool for another 30 minutes before serving (I like mine slightly warm!).
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
24 Comments
I made this bite of heavan a few months ago and must’ve made it a few dozen times since then. OMG this is perfection. The first time around I used only what I had so just regular cocoa powder and only between 1/3- 1/2 cup chocolate chips. Since it turned out so perfect, I always make it this way. It doesn’t rise much but don’t let that concern you because it’s supposed to be dense and fudgy as opposed to airy. Also, the flavours ripen over time which means it is even better the next day. So if you are making it for company, please make it a day ahead. Thanks a lot for another fool proof recipe Maryam my namesake 🙏
Aww thank you so much for the wonderful feedback Mariam! 😀
So glad you’re loving the chocolate banana bread – it is probably my fave type of banana bread!