Yield: 1 loaf cookie butter banana bread // Total Time: 1 hr. 30 min. // Disclaimer: This post includes affiliate links.
Moist brown butter walnut banana bread, swirled with cookie butter.
brown butter walnut cookie butter banana bread
If you have some sad looking bananas on your counter, I have a delicious way for you to use them up! This banana bread is *super* moist, has toasty brown butter and cookie butter in the batter along with walnuts, and is swirled with more cookie butter. It’s sweet, delicious, moist, and has the most *perfect* texture!
recipe tips
weigh your ingredients
Weighing your ingredients is important for getting the recipe perfect and getting consistent results. Not weighing your ingredients can lead to adding too much or too little of an ingredient which can give you some undesirable results. This kitchen scale is super cheap and worked well for me when I was starting out! If you don’t have access to a scale, here is the best way to measure flour: fluff up the flour with a fork, then use a spoon to scoop it into your measuring cup. Use a knife to level off the top of the cup, then use as directed.
mix the batter carefully
After adding in your flour, you’ll want to be careful to only mix until that last streak of flour disappears into the batter to avoid over-mixing. Over-mixing your batter leads to developing more gluten in the batter, which will make the banana bread more tough and chewy.
room temperature ingredients
It is important for the ingredients to be at room temperature so that they properly incorporate with each other. If you have ever had your batter look curdled, it is most likely due to the ingredients separating from being at different temperatures. Take out the eggs and sour cream at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hr 30 min. before starting the recipe. A little hack that I do is to run the eggs under hot water for 1 minute to bring them to room temp., and microwave the sour cream in 5-second intervals until it’s no longer cold (but not hot.)
how to tell when your banana bread is done
It’s always a little game with telling if your loaf is done. Sometimes it will look done, but it’s still super wet in the center, and now since you’ve opened the oven door, you risk the loaf collapsing in the middle, which is never desirable. This banana bread took me ~55 minutes in an 9×5″ loaf pan at 350F. I would recommend waiting until at least 45 minutes to check on your banana bread, so long as you know your oven isn’t running hotter than it claims to be. When checking for doneness, you’ll want to take a toothpick and stick it down the exact center of the banana bread. If it comes out with a few moist crumbs, you’re good to take it out! If it’s still a little wet, put the bread back in the oven, checking in 5-minute intervals for doneness.
to make cookie butter banana bread, you will need:
All purpose flour: gives the banana bread structure.
Baking powder & baking soda: helps with leavening.
Salt: helps balance and bring out the sweetness of the bread.
Bananas: for banana bread, of course! You will need approximately 3 medium sized bananas.
Unsalted butter: for tenderness and flavor. You can use salted butter in place of the unsalted, just be sure to omit the extra salt from the cookies. We’ll also be browning the butter for some extra delicious toasty flavor. If you’re looking to make this dairy-free, Miyoko’s Creamery vegan butter has the ability to brown just like regular butter and works like a charm.
Cookie butter: for some great flavor and an amazing, flavorful swirl on top!
Granulated sugar: for sweetening the bread and locking in the moisture.
Eggs: for binding the dough together and adding moisture.
Vanilla: for adding flavor to the bread.
Sour cream: makes the banana bread super moist! I recommend using full fat sour cream.
Walnuts: for some extra flavor and texture in the banana bread. Feel free to substitute in your favorite nut, or leave them out all together!
cookie butter swirled banana bread q&a
do I need to use ripe bananas?
I know it can be quite frustrating if you don’t have any ripe bananas on hand, but you do need to use a very ripe banana for this recipe. Ripe bananas provide are a different texture, sweeter, and more flavorful than green or yellow bananas. If you don’t have any ripe bananas, simply buy some at the beginning of the week and leave them out with the intention of making a banana recipe at the end of the week! If you need the bananas ripe NOW, I’ve seen that you can bake them in the oven until they turn brown (although I have never tried this method).
can I double this recipe?
Of course! Just double all the ingredients and bake them in two 8×4″ or 9×5″ loaf pans.
how can I make this dairy-free?
Making this recipe dairy free is as simple as swapping out the dairy with dairy-free alternatives really! If you still want to make brown butter, I HIGHLY recommend using Miyoko’s Creamery because their vegan butter still browns (and I think that’s amazing.) Otherwise, use your favorite non-dairy butter stick, skip the browning process and just melt the butter. Then, just use your favorite non-dairy sour cream or yogurt, dairy-free chocolate chips and you’re good to go!
how to store cookie butter banana bread
Like most baked goods, this banana bread will taste the best on the day that it is baked. However, you can keep it stored in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
why do you measure in grams?
My recipes are all written in grams because it is the most accurate way to bake. When you use a kitchen scale, you ensure that your baked goods turn out as close to the written recipe as possible. Plus, the cleanup is way easier when using a scale! I will provide standard cup measurements but please note that I have not tested the recipe using cup measurements and therefore can not guarantee your recipe will come out how mine did. Here is my favorite kitchen scale
a note on oven temperature
Ovens vary and fluctuate in temperature and aren’t always at the temperature they claim to be. I highly recommend getting an oven thermometer. They are super helpful for letting you know when your oven might be lying to you! I use this one.
tools and ingredients
You can find all my favorite tools and ingredients that I use on my Amazon Storefront page, here!
did you make this cookie butter banana bread?
If you made this cookie butter banana bread I would love to see and know your thoughts! Please leave a comment and review down below, and tag me on Instagram @freshbeanbakery. If you have any questions about the recipe I will gladly do my best to answer them in the comments below!
Cookie Butter Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 240 g all purpose flour (2 c.)
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- ½ tsp. baking soda
- ½ tsp. salt
- 113 g unsalted butter (8 tbsp.)
- 300 g bananas ripe, ~3 bananas
- 150 g granulated sugar (¾ c.)
- 2 eggs room tempearture
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 85 g sour cream room temperature (⅓ c.)
- 220 g cookie butter divided (¾ c. + 2 tbsp.)
- 110 g walnuts crushed (1 c.)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F / 175°C. Butter and line a 9×5" loaf pan with parchment paper.
- In a small saucepan set over medium heat, brown the butter. Stir the butter occasionally until it turns amber in color and develops little brown specks. Take the butter off the heat and let cool in the fridge for 10 minutes or until it is not hot, but still melted.
- Microwave the cookie butter for 30 seconds, or until it has a more liquid consistency.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, mash the banana.
- Whisk in the brown butter, granulated sugar, and 100g (⅓ c. + 1 tbsp.) of the melted cookie butter.
- Whisk in both eggs, the vanilla, and sour cream until very well combined.
- Add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Fold the mixture together with a rubber spatula until almost all of the flour has been incorporated. Add in the walnuts and fold just until no flour streaks remain.
- Pour half of the banana bread batter into the prepared loaf pan. Drizzle half of the remaining cookie butter over the batter, then use a knife to swirl it around.
- Pour the remaining banana bread batter into the pan, and swirl the remaining cookie butter on top of it.
- Bake the bread for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the bread comes out clean. Let the bread cool to room temperature before slicing.
- Serve and enjoy!
This was my first recipe from Fresh Bean and I was not disappointed. I purchased cookie butter specifically for this recipe and the instructions were clear and I love that the recipes are by weight. The banana bread took just about one hour and was moist and delicious! Such a great alternative to traditional banana bread.
Ah thank you so much, I’m so happy you liked it! 🙂
I’ve made this thrice already and it is utterly delicious. Plus your kitchen will smell amazing!