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Banana Bread

Banana Bread
The bananas must be ripe to give the rich taste to this bread. The bread keeps well and tastes even better the next day. Exceptionally good toasted.
Yield 1 loaf
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6

Reviews

Ingredients

  • 2 cups bread flour
  • 1 (0.25oz) package (7g) or 2 1/4 teaspoons Red Star Active Dry Yeast
  • 1 teaspoon table salt
  • 1 tablespoon warm water (120-130°F)
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 large egg
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 3/4 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2/3 cup whole wheat flour
  • 2/3 cup (about 2 medium) bananas (mashed)

Instructions

  • In stand mixer bowl, add 1 cup bread flour, yeast, and salt; mix well. Add warm water and oil to flour mixture. Using a paddle attachment, blend on low speed for 30 seconds. Add egg, honey, vanilla and bananas; beat on medium speed for 3 minutes.
  • Switch to dough hook attachment. Gradually stir in whole wheat flour and enough remaining bread flour to make a firm dough. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 to 7 minutes.
    (NOTE: For hand mixing: following above steps, mix ingredients in large mixing bowl using a wooden spoon or dough whisk. Knead on floured surface until smooth and elastic.)
  • Place dough in lightly oiled bowl and turn to grease top. Cover; let rise until indentation remains after poking dough with finger down to second knuckle, about 2 hours.
  • On lightly floured surface, roll or pat dough to a 14×7-inch rectangle. Starting with shorter side, roll up tightly, pressing dough into roll with each turn. Pinch edges and ends to seal. Place in greased 8×4-inch or 9×5-inch bread pan. Cover; let rise until indentation remains when lightly touched.
  • Preheat oven to 400°F.
  • Bake for 15 minutes; reduce heat to 375°F and bake 20 to 25 minutes longer until browned and loaves sound hollow when tapped. Bread is thoroughly baked when its internal temperature tests 190°F. Remove from pan; cool on rack.

Notes

Get Bread Machine Method here.
Bananas vary in liquid content. It is very important to check the dough consistency adding more water or more flour if needed.
Note: This is not a cake-like sweet banana bread.
Photo by Food Wanderings.

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Review & Comments

Betsy | Reply

Can you please add back the ingredients and instructions for the bread machine version?

Red Star Yeast | Reply

Hi Betsy – it is now in our Bread Machine section: https://redstaryeast.com/recipes/bread-machine-banana-bread/
Happy baking!

Deedee | Reply

5 stars
This bread is absolutely delicious. I followed the instructions to the letter. Perfect. Thank you so much.

Jill Kahn | Reply

5 stars
I found this recipe a number of years ago on a Red Star yeast packet.
I mix the dough in my bread machine but take it out after the first rising.
I shape it, put it in a well-greased bread pan and let it rise a second time.
I like to add golden raisins or cut-up dates. I add these after the first rising.
Always delicious especially the next day toasted.

Betsy Ammermann | Reply

What a ridiculous recipe! How can you make a 2 pound loaf of bread with 1/3 cup of water? Other recipes call for almost a cup of liquid.

Red Star Yeast | Reply

Hi Betsy,
The liquids for this recipe include water as well as honey and oil. The bananas also provide some moisture (see note at bottom of recipe). As with any recipe, if the dough is dry, add in water – 1 tablespoon at a time – until it comes together.
Happy baking!
Carol

Sadie | Reply

5 stars
Excellent! Dense, moist, soft crumb. Loved the flavor. Added 1/2 tsp cinnamon and ginger and 1 tbsp vital wheat gluten, but those were the only changes I made to the recipe. Kneaded dough by hand for approximately 10 minutes until it passed the windowpane test. Dough was sticky to work with and I ended up kneading in an additional 3 tbsp flour to get it to a soft, tacky texture. First rise was slow – about 3 hours. Proofed in pan for 1 1/2 hours. Took longer than the recipe suggested to bake. At 190° it seemed to be underbaked, with gummy crumbs on the thermometer probe. I baked to an internal temperature of 205°, and the bread was moist and sliced beautifully. As pictured, the top crust is a dark brown, even though I tented it with foil.

Jennifer S. | Reply

4 stars
Sadie – my first rise was also very slow. I doubled the “medium” recipe, yeast included. That crust is very dark mahogany, and I may bake next time for 35 minutes at the 375 to get a more moderate crust. But recipe is delicious and definitely worth repeating.

Elie | Reply

She’s right about the water with the small loaves. I tried the 1lb. and it came out clumpy.

Red Star Yeast | Reply

Hi Elie,
As with any bread recipe, the liquid to flour ratio may need to be adjusted as the flour absorption can vary from brand to brand, as well as from lot to lot. Add 1 tablespoon of water (if too dry) or flour (if too wet) at a time to achieve the desired consistency.

I hope you enjoyed the bread!

Happy baking!
Carol

Elie | Reply

5 stars
I made this again and I needed to add water as I observed the absorption, but wow, does it look good.
I’m smelling it as my first batch just came out of the oven.

Easy banana & pumpkin yeast bread | earthilicious | Reply

[…] recipe adapted from https://redstaryeast.com/banana-bread/ […]

Mary Alice Brown | Reply

5 stars
The amount of water for the small and medium loaves need fixing. I made the medium loaf and just adjusted until I reached a good consistency. The resulting bread is absolutely wonderful.

Rebecca Wetmore | Reply

I made this vegan by omitting the egg and adding additional banana instead. I also used agave nectar instead of honey. The dough looks and smells great. It’s rising right now but I’ll try to remember to come back and comment after it is done to let you all know how it turned out.

Rose | Reply

That’s really weird that they don’t say when to add vanilla, but it is still an awesome bread

Red Star Yeast | Reply

Hi Rose!
We updated the recipe – thanks for letting us know about the error. So glad you enjoyed the bread!
Happy baking!
Carol@RSY

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