Banana Bread Brownies

Banana Bread Brownies combine your favorite banana bread flavor with the sweet taste of a banana sheet cake and are topped with a warm brown butter frosting.

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Banana Bread Brownies are rich and moist, with a warm brown butter frosting that is finger-licking delicious. These delicious Banana Bread Brownies are bound to be your new favorite way to use ripe bananas.

MORE RECIPES: Peanut Butter Bread | Chocolate Banana Bread | Cream Cheese Banana Bread

Banana Bread Brownies

Different from the usual brownies you might make, banana bread brownies have the moistness of a brownie, combined with the comforting flavor of banana bread, and are topped with the sweetness of a banana sheet cake. These banana bread brownies are a quick and easy dessert that is perfect for potlucks, bake sales, or afternoon snacks.

A perfect recipe for overripe bananas, these banana bread brownies only take 30 minutes to make from start to finish. Enjoy a warm brownie for dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or drizzled with caramel sauce or hot fudge. 

A pan of banana bread brownies is the perfect dessert to take to a potluck or picnic. Baked in a 9x13 pan, you can easily cut up these brownies into squares to serve to a crowd. 

Banana Bread Brownies Ingredients

• Flour - all-purpose flour
• Baking powder
• Baking soda
• Cinnamon
• Salt
• Butter - unsalted butter
• Sugar - light brown sugar
• Sugar - granulated sugar
• Eggs
• Bananas - mashed
• Buttermilk - store-bought or make your own
• Vanilla
• Walnuts - chopped walnuts
• Sugar - powdered sugar
• Cream - half and half cream

Combining your favorite banana bread flavor with the sweet taste of a banana sheet cake, you want to use flavorful bananas to make these banana bread brownies. You can easily keep bananas on hand by freezing your overripe bananas and storing them in the freezer for up to 3 months. When you are ready to use the frozen bananas, let them thaw in the refrigerator, drain off the excess moisture and then mash and use as directed.

Chocolate chips make a great addition to these brownies. You can add ¾ cup mini chocolate chips in addition to the walnuts, or even instead of the walnuts.  Another option is to swap pecans for walnuts. If you aren’t a fan of nuts you can also simply leave them out.  

You want the brownies to be warm but not too hot when you frost them. If you start making the frosting when you remove the banana bread brownies from the oven the timing should work out perfectly. Or, for a treat that’s slightly less sweet, you can even skip the frosting on top.

How to Make Banana Bread Brownies

Brownies:

FIRST STEP: Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9x13-inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.

SECOND STEP: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.

THIRD STEP: In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar, until combined and fluffy.

FOURTH STEP: Add the eggs, mashed banana, buttermilk, and vanilla and mix well.

FIFTH STEP: Gradually add the flour mixture into the banana mixture, mixing until well combined.

SIXTH STEP: Stir in the chopped walnuts.

SEVENTH STEP: Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and bake for 20 minutes, until the edges are golden, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs.

Frosting:

EIGHTH STEP: In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and cook until it is a golden brown, and has a nutty aroma. Immediately remove from the heat and stir in the powdered sugar, half and half cream, and vanilla.

NINTH STEP: Using a silicone spatula spread the frosting over the warm banana brownies.

Can I make these brownies with a more cake-like texture? 

These banana bread brownies are moist and dense. If you prefer a more cake-like texture bake them for 25 minutes or until there are no crumbs when you test with a toothpick.

How can I ripen bananas quickly? 

If your bananas aren’t quite ripe when you’re ready to bake, you can ripe your bananas in the oven. To ripen the bananas, bake them on parchment paper on a baking sheet at 300°F for 30 to 40 minutes until they are darkly blackened and soft to the touch. Be sure to let them cool before using them in your baking. You can also speed up the cooling process by opening them and gently mashing them in a big bowl to help heat escape more quickly. 

Can I freeze banana bread brownies? 

You can freeze these yummy brownies by wrapping them in plastic wrap and placing them in an airtight container for up to three months.

How to Store Banana Bread Brownies 

ON THE COUNTER: Store leftover brownies in an airtight container on the counter at room temperature for up to 4 days.
IN THE FREEZER: To freeze these banana bread brownies, place them into a freezer-safe airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw them, place them on the kitchen counter at room temperature for about 1 hour.

Banana Bread Brownies

Banana Bread Brownies combine your favorite banana bread flavor with the sweet taste of a banana sheet cake and are topped with a warm brown butter frosting.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 24 brownies

Calories 254 kcal

Ingredients

  

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Brownies:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup unsalted butter (softened)
• ½ cup light brown sugar (packed)
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3 ripe medium bananas (mashed (about 1 cup))
• ¾ cup buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• ¾ cup chopped walnuts

Frosting:

• ⅓ cup unsalted butter
• 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
• ¼ cup half and half cream
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

DIRECTIONS

 

Brownies:

• Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 9x13 inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, cream together the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar, until combined and fluffy.
• Add the eggs, mashed banana, buttermilk and vanilla and mix well.
• Gradually add the flour mixture into the banana mixture, mixing until well combined.
• Stir in the chopped walnuts.
• Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and bake for 20 minutes, until the edges are golden, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs.

Frosting:

• In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and cook until it is a golden brown, and has a nutty aroma. Immediately remove from the heat and stir in the powdered sugar, half and half cream and vanilla.
• Using a silicone spatula spread the frosting over the warm banana brownies.

Notes

Storage:

These banana bread brownies will last for up to 4 days stored in an airtight container at room temperature.

To freeze these banana bread brownies, place them into a freezer safe airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw them, place them on the kitchen counter at room temperature for about 1 hour.

Notes:

Start making the frosting when you remove the banana bread brownies from the oven so that they will be warm but not too hot when you frost them.

These banana bread brownies are moist and dense. If you prefer a more cake like texture bake them for 25 minutes or until there are no crumbs when you test with a toothpick.

This recipe will work fine if you want to leave out the nuts because of allergies or you simply are not a fan of nuts.

Mini chocolate chips make a great addition if you love chocolate. Add ¾ cup instead of the walnuts or in addition to the walnuts.

PRO TIP: If you don't want to wait for the perfect window when your bananas are perfectly ripe for baking, you can follow these instructions. To ripen bananas in the oven, bake them on parchment paper on a baking sheet at 300°F for 30-40 minutes until they are darkly blackened and soft to the touch. You can also speed up the cooling process by opening them and gently mashing them in a big bowl to help heat escape more quickly. Be sure to let them cool before adding to your batter. 

PRO TIP: These banana bread brownies are moist and dense. If you prefer a more cake-like texture, bake them for 25 minutes or until there are no crumbs when you test with a toothpick.

PRO TIP: Start making the frosting when you remove the banana bread brownies from the oven so that they will be warm but not too hot when you frost them.

Nutrition

Calories: 254kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 32mg | Sodium: 111mg | Potassium: 142mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 23g | Vitamin A: 249IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 1mg

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