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Brown Butter Banana Bread

Brown butter banana bread with a deeply golden, nutty loaf and a rich, moist crumb. Browned butter adds hazelnut-caramel depth, giving a darker crust and a tender slice every time.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 5 minutes
cooling browned butter 10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Breakfast, Snack
Cuisine: American
Calories: 330
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Banana bread base
  • 3 ripe bananas Mash until mostly smooth with a few small lumps.
  • 0.5 cup unsalted butter Brown until golden brown with nutty aroma; cool 10 minutes.
  • 0.75 cup brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Dry ingredients
  • 1.5 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 0.5 tsp cinnamon
  • 0.25 tsp salt
Optional mix-in
  • 0.25 cup chopped walnuts or chocolate chips Optional.

Equipment

  • 1 light-colored saucepan
  • 1 9x5 loaf pan

Method
 

Brown the butter
  1. Brown butter in a light-colored saucepan over medium heat, swirling frequently, until the milk solids turn golden brown and smell nutty; remove from heat and cool 10 minutes.
Mix and bake
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F, then grease a 9x5 loaf pan.
  2. Whisk cooled browned butter and brown sugar together until smooth, then whisk in eggs and vanilla.
  3. Stir in mashed bananas until fully combined.
  4. Fold in flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt until just combined, then fold in any mix-ins.
  5. Pour batter into the loaf pan and bake for 60–70 minutes at 350°F until the top is deeply golden and a toothpick comes out clean.

Notes

Pro tip: use a light-colored saucepan so you can clearly see when the milk solids shift to deep golden-brown; cool the browned butter 10 minutes so it doesn’t scramble the eggs. Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days or refrigerate up to 5 days. Freezing is yes—slice and freeze up to 3 months. For a dietary swap, use a gluten-free 1:1 all-purpose flour blend to make it gluten-free (check that the blend supports baking soda).