Delicious Brown Butter Banana Bread

Brown Butter Banana Bread: bananas, browned butter and vanilla? Absolutely yum.

For some helpful tips before you begin, click here.

Makes one 8 x 4-inch loaf.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup (1 stick or 112 g) butter
2 tablespoons (16 g) powdered milk
3 very ripe bananas (about 1 1/2 cups or 270 g), peeled
1 large egg, beaten
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon (3 g) salt
3/4 cup (150 g) sugar
1 1/2 cups (180 g) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon (5 g) baking soda
optional: 1/3 cup (66 g) mini chocolate chips
optional: 1/3 cup (48 g) chopped walnuts

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven and grease the loaf pan.

– Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). (325°F/162°C for glass pans. Do not use dark pans.)
– Grease an 8×4-inch loaf pan.

2. Brown the butter.

– Have a heat-proof bowl nearby and ready for the browned butter.

Melt the butter:
– In a large heavy-bottomed pot, heat the butter over medium heat. Swirl the pan around to heat the butter evenly. The butter will sputter, bubble and foam.
Add the milk powder:
– When the butter turns clear and the milk solids begin to separate and sink, sprinkle in the milk powder. It will be very foamy.
– Turn the heat down to medium-low.
Cook until nutty brown and remove from heat:
– Continue to swirl the butter around and stir with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula, scraping up any browning bits sticking to the bottom of the pot. (That’s where all the flavor is!)
– Immediately remove from heat when the milk solids turn a toasty brown (like the color of butterscotch) and the butter smells toasty and nutty.
Cool the brown butter:
– Pour the brown butter and all the brown bits into the heat-proof bowl to cool.

3. Mash the bananas and combine the ingredients.

– In a large mixing bowl, mash the ripe bananas with a fork.
– Stir the browned butter into the mashed bananas.
– Using a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, stir in the beaten egg, vanilla, salt and sugar.
– Sift in the flour and baking soda. Stir until just combined.
– Fold in the mini-chocolate chips and chopped nuts, if using.

4. Pour into the prepared loaf pan and bake.

– Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
– Bake for 50 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean. (I always check closer to the top of the loaf. That seems to be where the loaf bakes the slowest in my oven.)

5. Cool and serve.

– Let your Brown Butter Banana Bread cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes before removing onto a cooling rack.
– Cool completely before slicing.

For muffins:
– Baked in a muffin tin for 25 to 30 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean.

To store:

– Store your completely cooled Brown Butter Banana Bread wrapped well in plastic wrap on the counter for about 3 days.
– Refrigerate for up to a week.

To freeze:
– Wrap your Brown Butter Banana Bread securely in plastic wrap.
– Place the wrapped banana bread in a plastic freezer bag.
– Freeze for up to 1 month.
– Thaw overnight at room temperature.

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About This Recipe

Banana bread is already a tasty classic. This recipe for Brown Butter Banana Bread ramps it up with the toasty, nutty flavor of browned butter.

Take it over the top by adding mini-chocolate chips and your favorite chopped nuts. Yum.

Visit my page on Brown Butter, and how to make brown butter even better!

TIPS:

Here are 4 helpful tips:

1) Use a scale, if you have one.

– Measuring by volume may be convenient, but measuring by weight will ensure consistent results. If you bake often, I recommend getting a scale, preferably one that reads grams and ounces.

Ingredients for Brown Butter Banana Bread

2) Brown butter plus milk powder equals sublime flavor.

– Brown butter has a deeper, more intense flavor than regular butter and adds a toasty, nutty flavor to your banana bread.
– Adding milk powder to your browning butter will intensify the flavor even more. The toasted milk solids in the browned butter is where the flavor is. And just a couple of tablespoons of milk powder can add enough extra toasted milk solids to really boost that flavor over the top!

Brown butter without the milk powder (LEFT) and with the milk powder (RIGHT). All those extra toasty milk solids are PURE FLAVOR.

3) Use overripe bananas.

– This will make your banana bread more moist and flavorful.

4) Baking times sometimes vary.

– Ovens vary, so check your Brown Butter Banana Bread at the earliest time. A good time to start checking is when you can smell the banana bread baking.