Fudgiest Chocolate Banana Bread

Name: Fudgiest Chocolate Banana Bread
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups (210g) all purpose flour; 2/3 cup (62g) cocoa powder; 1 teaspoon (7g) baking soda; 1/2 teaspoon (2g) baking powder; 1/2 (3g) teaspoon salt; 1/2 cup (110g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled; 1/2 cup (130g) light brown sugar; 1/2 cup (120g) granulated sugar; 3 large (350g), ripe bananas; 2 large eggs (100g), room temperature; 1/4 cup (65g) sour cream, room temperature; 1 teaspoon (5g) vanilla extract; 2 cups (330g) chocolate chips

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Fudgiest Chocolate Banana Bread is likely the most indulgent loaf around. This is rich, decadent, moist, and absolutely bursting with flavor. It's easy to whip up, requiring two bowls, easy and accessible ingredients, and just 15 minutes of prep time. This is the best way to use up some browning bananas!

vertical line of chocolate banana bread slices with crumbs and cocoa powder around it

Why You Need The Fudgiest Banana Bread

Rich chocolate flavor
Easy way to use 3 old bananas
2 bowls
No mixer
No mess
Oven-ready in 15 minutes

three slices of the fudgiest chocolate banana bread on a piece of crumpled wax paper with a milk jug and banana peel in the background

FAQ

Why is there brown sugar in this banana bread?

Including both granulated sugar and light brown sugar adds sweetness.... obviously. However, brown sugar, specifically, adds a deeper, slightly nutty flavor and extra moisture! Try not to skip it if you can!

How can I make chocolate banana bread more moist?

Moist banana bread is the best type of banana bread. The moisture in this recipe comes from the ratio of fat (butter), sugars, and sour cream. Sour cream is a not-so-secret ingredient for extra moisture. If you are looking for an ultra moist loaf, add an extra ⅓ cup of sour cream to your recipe!

How do I ripen bananas quickly?

If you have yellow bananas and can't wait a few days for them to brown, you are in luck! Preheat your oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and place your bananas on the sheet. Bake for 12-17 minutes or until the peels of the bananas are black. Let the bananas cool before scooping them out of the peels and mashing!

bowl of dry ingredients, bowl of wet ingredients, bowl of melted butter, and bowl of sour cream next to three brown bananas

glass bowl filled with chocolate banana bread batter with a metal whisk out of it

metal loaf pan with a brown piece of parchment paper and chocolate banana bread batter inside of it

baked fudgy banana bread inside of a metal loaf tin

Tips and Tricks for Perfect Chocolate Banana Bread

Room temperature ingredients: All of your usually-cold ingredients should, well, not be too cold. Just put them on the counter an hour before you start baking! If you forgot to leave your ingredients out, place your eggs in a bowl of hot water for about 10 minutes and heat your sour cream in the microwave for 15 seconds!
Mixing: Do not overmix this bread. Not only could it cause the bread to fall in the oven, but it will lead your bread to be dense and thick! Make sure you don't have chunks of flour and cocoa, but stop mixing as soon as you see everything fully combine.
Baking: You'll want to bake this fudgiest chocolate banana bread until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with moist crumbs. If your toothpick comes out clean, you've actually overcooked the bread a bit, and this means your bread won't be as light and moist! The top and center of the bread should spring right back up when you poke it!

line of chocolate banana bread slices on the left side of the frame with cocoa powder to the right

Ripe Bananas

You are going to want your bananas to be RIPE... OVER-RIPE if you can have them that way. This is the perfect opportunity to use your most disgusting bananas. This bread can handle it. Obviously, if they are black and moldy... they might be a little too ripe!

I like to place my bananas on a plate, using a fork to mash them. You could place them in a blender, use an actual masher, or even use a spoon. I like to keep some chunks of banana in my batter, meaning I'm not too picky when mashing them. It's completely up to you in terms of how mashed you want your bananas to be.

slice of fudgy banana loaf on a piece of wax paper with a bite taken out of it

Foiling Fudge Banana Loaf

I find that the top of the bread can look nice, cracked, and cooked at about 40-45 minutes. This does not mean that your bread is done. Most likely, the bread will be WAY undercooked under that gorgeous top. If you wiggle the pan while it's in the oven at this point, the bread will move with it! If you stick a toothpick into the center, it will come out wet.

To ensure that the top of your bread doesn't overcook and your bread is fully cooked, you'll want to tent aluminum foil over the top of the pan. This means you will cover the bread with foil without it touching the top of the bread. There should be a lot of space between the foil and the bread, creating a tent-like shape! This protects the top from burning while still cooking the bread!

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sliced banana loaf on top of a piece of wax paper with cocoa powder and melty chocolate chips in front

Make this Recipe?

If you give this recipe a try, I would LOVE to see it or hear about it! Tag or message me on Instagram at @sweetsbyeliseblog, and PLEASE leave a review below! Happy Baking!