This easy banana nut bread recipe is nutty & delicious! Walnut banana bread is a classic treat and great for breakfast or a snack. This recipe is easy to make and only uses a few simple ingredients. Of course, the key ingredients are RIPE bananas and chopped walnuts. If you have a nut-loving family, they will really enjoy this walnut banana bread. In addition, beyond their great taste, people like to eat walnuts due to their high omega-3 content. FYI – You can also turn this recipe into great Banana Nut Bread Muffins.
In case you are interested in some walnut facts – According to Wikipedia, “In 2017, world production of walnuts (in shell) was 3.8 million tonnes, with China contributing 51% of the total. Other major producers (in the order of decreasing harvest) were the United States, Iran, and Turkey. In 1998, walnuts from California accounted for 99% of all walnuts grown in the United States, and for 38% of the world’s production of walnuts”.
However, since this banana bread contains walnuts, please do not serve it to anyone with a nut allergy. Also because this banana bread contains chopped nuts, it may be a choking hazard to very young children. Always use caution when serving any type of banana nut bread!
This walnut banana bread recipe should take you only 10-15 minutes to prepare and clean up. Please be aware that this is an oven-baked banana bread recipe. It is not made with a bread machine. For more banana bread ideas, please visit our main section on Banana Bread Variations. Bread Dad also has a printable and “pin-able” recipe at the bottom of this page. If you liked this recipe, we hope you will leave a comment below and give us a 5 star rating. We would love to hear from you!
Key Ingredients – Chopped Walnuts & Ripe Bananas
This Recipe Also Makes Great Walnut Banana Bread Muffins
Ingredients – Easy Banana Nut Bread Recipe – 2 lb Loaf
- 8 Tablespoons – Unsalted Butter (softened)
- 2 – Large Eggs
- 3 – Bananas (ripe & large sized)
- 2 Cups – Flour (all purpose flour)
- 1 Cup – White Granulated Sugar
- 1 Cup – Chopped Walnuts
- 1 Teaspoon – Vanilla Extract
- 1 Teaspoon – Baking Soda
- 1 Teaspoon – Baking Powder (aluminum free)
- 1/2 Teaspoon – Salt
Servings – Roughly 12 slices
- Equipment required for this recipe – Measuring cup & spoons, mixing bowl, long wooden spoon, 9 by 5 bread pan, oven mitts, silicon spatula, cooling rack and an oven.
Instructions – Easy Banana Nut Bread Recipe – 2 lb Loaf
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- Mash bananas with a fork.
- Soften butter in a microwave.
- Stir eggs, bananas and butter together.
- Mix in remaining ingredients (except the chopped walnuts). Stir until the batter is fully mixed.
- Add the chopped walnuts after the batter has been completely mixed. Make sure the chopped walnuts are evenly spread throughout the batter.
- Pour finished batter into a nonstick bread pan. Smooth out the top of the batter within the bread pan.
- Optional (for decorative purposes) – Sprinkle a small handful of chopped walnuts on top of the batter before placing into the oven.
- Bake in the oven for 70 minutes.
- Take out of oven and let the banana bread cool down in the bread pan for 10 minutes. Do not remove the banana bread from the bread pan during this 10 minute cool down period. Use oven mitts as the bread pan will be very hot coming out of the oven.
- After 10 minutes, remove the banana bread from the bread pan. Place the banana bread on a cooling rack in order to completely cool. This cool down may take 1-2 hours. Gently slide a silicon spatula between the banana bread and the bread pan walls if the banana bread is stuck in the pan.
If you liked this recipe, please leave a comment below and give us a 5 star rating. Your comments help us to improve & clarify our recipe instructions. Moreover, it is always fantastic to hear from someone who has enjoyed our recipes!
Reference Sources
- Wikipedia, Banana, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana
- Wikipedia, Banana Bread, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana_bread
- Wikipedia, Omega-3 Fatty Acid, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omega-3_fatty_acid
- Wikipedia, Tree Nut Allergy, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree_nut_allergy
- Wikipedia, Walnut, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walnut
Tips – Easy Banana Nut Bread Recipe
- The tips below are designed to help banana bread “novices” and/or people with limited baking experience.
- As I stated earlier – Since this banana bread recipe contains walnuts, please do not serve it to anyone with a nut allergy. Also because this banana bread contains chopped nuts, it may be a choking hazard to very young children. So please use caution when serving any type of banana nut bread!
- Optional – Sprinkle a small handful of chopped walnuts on top of the batter (after it has been poured into the bread pan) if you want a “walnutty” top for your walnut banana bread.
- Other nuts commonly used in banana nut breads include chopped pecans, chopped almonds, chopped peanuts, chopped cashews, etc. Use your family’s favorite type of nuts in order to make this banana nut bread even better.
- Use RIPE bananas for improved taste. Ripe bananas are soft and usually yellow with small black spots. Hard yellow/green(ish) bananas are too starchy and have less banana flavor.
- Make sure to use 3 large bananas (not 3 medium bananas). Otherwise, the walnut banana bread might turn out to be a little dry.
- In case, you like to use cups versus banana “sizes”… 3 medium-sized bananas equal roughly 1 to 1 1/4 cups of mashed bananas (not sliced bananas). 3 large-sized bananas equal roughly 1 1/3 to 1 2/3 cups of mashed bananas (not sliced bananas). Of course, banana sizes can vary greatly… and my version of medium and large-sized bananas may differ from yours!
- This doesn’t happen often but if the top of the banana bread looks too moist or under cooked, you should try the “toothpick test”. Gently push a toothpick into the top of the bread and see if any batter sticks to the toothpick. If batter is sticking to the toothpick then it hasn’t completely cooked. Place the bread pan back into the still hot oven for another 2 or 3 minutes. Make sure to wear oven gloves because the bread pan will be very hot. After the 2 or 3 minutes, remove the bread pan and test the banana bread again with a tooth pick.
- If you have a problem with a banana bread recipe, please make sure that you are following the recipe exactly (i.e. using the correct oven temperature), using the correct amounts of ingredients (i.e. don’t eyeball the measurements versus using a measuring cup or accidentally add a tablespoon when a teaspoon is called for), using the correct ingredients (i.e. baking soda/powder versus yeast or all purpose flour versus bread flour), etc. Please don’t “wing” things with recipes.
- In addition, you should always try to use relatively fresh baking soda & powder for the best results. For example, using baking soda from an open container (that has been deodorizing your refrigerator for months) may lead to subpar results. Old & hard baking soda/powder may lead to rising problems and/or leave small bitter clumps in your walnut banana bread.
- For more easy banana bread recipes (i.e. blueberry, cranberry, chocolate chip, vegan, oatmeal, etc.), please visit Bread Dad’s main Banana Bread Recipes section. Or try some of our Banana Bread Muffins Recipes.
Easy Banana Nut Bread Questions
What kind of nuts can I use in banana nut bread?
This banana nut bread recipe uses chopped walnuts. However, you can use many different types of chopped nuts in a banana nut bread. Some examples are chopped pecans, chopped peanuts, chopped cashews, chopped almonds, etc. Nevertheless, always be aware that nuts are a potential choking hazard especially for small children.
Why do people use walnuts in banana bread?
Walnuts are often added to banana bread in order to provide greater texture and flavor. Some people enjoy the “crunch” of walnuts in banana bread. Others like the rich taste of walnuts or want consume the omega-3 found in walnuts.
Related Recipes
- List of Easy Banana Bread Variations – This section of Bread Dad covers tons of easy-to-make banana bread recipes (i.e. blueberry, cranberry, chocolate chip & many more).
- Banana Bread with Oil
- Banana Nut Bread Muffins
- Bread Machine – Banana Bread
- Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
- Classic Banana Bread
- Vegan Banana Bread
Easy Banana Nut Bread (Walnut Banana Bread)
Ingredients
- 8 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter (softened)
- 2 Eggs (large)
- 3 Bananas (ripe & large sized)
- 2 Cups Flour (all purpose flour)
- 1 Cup White Granulated Sugar
- 1 Cup Chopped Walnuts
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder (aluminum free)
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- Mash bananas with a fork.
- Soften butter in a microwave.
- Stir eggs, bananas and butter together.
- Mix in remaining ingredients (except the chopped walnuts). Stir until the batter is fully mixed.
- Add the chopped walnuts after the batter has been completely mixed. Make sure the chopped walnuts are evenly spread throughout the batter.
- Pour finished batter into a nonstick bread pan. Smooth out the top of the batter within the bread pan.
- Optional (for decorative purposes) – Sprinkle a small handful of chopped walnuts on top of the batter before placing into the oven.
- Bake in the oven for 70 minutes.
- Take out of oven and let the banana bread cool down in the bread pan for 10 minutes. Do not remove the banana bread from the bread pan during this 10 minute cool down period. Use oven mitts as the bread pan will be very hot coming out of the oven.
- After 10 minutes, remove the banana bread from the bread pan. Place the banana bread on a cooling rack in order to completely cool. This cool down may take 1-2 hours. Gently slide a silicon spatula between the banana bread and the bread pan walls if the banana bread is stuck in the pan.
Notes
Nutrition
If you liked this recipe, please leave a comment below & give us a 5 star rating. Your comments help us to improve & clarify our recipe instructions.
Moreover, it is ALWAYS great to hear from someone who has enjoyed our recipes!!!