Learn how to make the best chocolate banana bread with this easy recipe. This moist banana bread is made with cocoa powder and chocolate chips for an intensely chocolaty banana dessert.
This chocolate banana bread recipe is a great way to use up extra-ripe bananas when you are craving something chocolaty. It's a variation of my favourite moist banana bread recipe without baking soda.
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Ingredients
You likely have all the ingredients you need to make this chocolate-flavoured banana bread recipe on hand. Here's what you need:
- bananas—for the best flavour and texture, use very ripe bananas that have a darker, blackened peel and are very soft.
- butter—this banana bread is made with unsalted butter. If you prefer to bake with salted butter, you may reduce the amount of added salt
- sugar—you will need both granulated and brown sugar (preferably dark brown)
- eggs—this recipe was tested with large eggs. If you use eggs that are either smaller or larger, the results may be slightly different
- vanilla extract—use pure vanilla extract to make this recipe. Artificial vanilla extract is more potent and you may add less of it to achieve the same flavour
- flour—use bleached all-purpose flour, though unbleached should work just fine
- cocoa powder—this recipe was tested with Dutch-processed cocoa powder, specifically, the Extra Brute cocoa powder from the brand Cacao Barry
- chocolate chips—dark chocolate chips will give you the best chocolate flavour
See the recipe card for the exact ingredients and quantities.
Substitutions and Variations
This chocolate banana bread is a simple recipe with little room for variations. Here are a few to consider:
- Sugar - you can make this recipe with all granulated sugar, all brown sugar, or a combination of granulated and brown sugar
- Salt - I bake with Diamond Crystal Kosher salt. If you prefer to bake with regular table salt, please use half the amount
- Chocolate chips - I prefer to use dark chocolate chips, but milk or white chocolate chips would work too
How to Make Chocolate Banana Bread
The batter for this chocolate-flavoured banana bread is made using the creaming mixing method.
Step 1—Combine the butter and sugars in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (step 1). Cream them together until light and fluffy, scraping down the beater and bowl whenever necessary to make sure all the butter and sugar mix together well (image 2). While the mixer is running, you can sift the dry ingredients together (image 3) and mash the banana with the vanilla extract (image 4).
Step 2—Add the eggs to the mixer bowl, one at a time (image 5), making sure to mix each egg into the batter very well. Whip the mixture for several minutes until very light before adding the dry ingredients (image 6), alternating with the mashed banana (image 7), beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Once you've mixed in all the dry ingredients and banana, add the chocolate chips (image 8).
Step 3—Prepare a loaf pan by buttering it and lining the bottom with a piece of parchment paper (image 9), then transfer the batter to the pan, smoothing it out with an mini offset spatula (image 10). You can insert an oiled bench scraper down the middle of the batter in the loaf pan to encourage any cracking down the centre of the loaf as it bakes.
Step 4—Bake the loaf cake on the middle rack of the oven until the edges are set and pulling away from the pan, and a thermometer inserted into the center reads 209 °F (98 °C). This takes about 80 minutes in my oven.
Hint: Use a fast-reading digital thermometer to measure the internal temperature of the cake to ensure it has baked completely. Banana bread should be baked to an internal temperature of 209 °F (98 °C) to ensure the cakes don't collapse or have a gummy line of underbaked batter towards the bottom of the loaf.
Step 5—Let the banana bread cool in the pan for at least 20 minutes (image 14) before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely (image 15).
Tip: It takes at least 3 hours for a loaf cake of this size to cool. For the best texture, do not slice the loaf cake before it has cooled completely.
Testing Notes for Chocolate Banana Bread Recipe
While developing this chocolate banana bread recipe, I discovered a few key ingredients and steps that make this recipe perfect:
- Use 300 grams (1-¼ cups) mashed banana—not more, not less. If you use too little, your banana bread may be a little dry. If you use too much banana, the loaf cake may collapse and you will end up with a line towards the bottom that is mushy/underbaked.
- Use both baking powder and baking soda. Baking powder alone doesn't have enough oomph, likely due to the slight acidity of the mashed banana.
- Bake the banana bread to 209 °F (98 °C). Otherwise, your banana bread may collapse, and you might see a layer of collapse or some gummy texture towards the bottom.
For more on this, please read about how to make the best banana bread for key information and troubleshooting tips and tricks.
Banana Bread Baking FAQs
Wrap banana bread tightly in plastic wrap and store in a cool place for up to 4 days. For longer storage, I like to slice the cooled loaf and freeze it, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and then foil. You can microwave a frozen slice of banana bread for approximately 30 seconds to defrost it.
I tested this chocolate banana bread with just baking powder and also with a combination of baking powder and baking soda. Both versions worked well, but I found the loaf cake baked with both leavening agents had a better texture and rose taller, without collapsing.
To prepare a loaf pan before baking a cake, if the pan has a non-stick finish like the loaf pan I use, I prefer to butter it and line the bottom with parchment paper. If the pan is a regular light-coloured aluminum pan, you may want to also flour the sides of the loaf pan to ensure the cake unmoulds easily and cleanly after baking. Alternatively, you could line the pan with parchment paper sling that is large enough to cover the sides and bottom of the pan.
You can definitely use frozen bananas to make banana bread. Simply defrost them overnight in the refrigerator. If any liquid separates from the fruit, you can place the water in a saucepan and cook it down to form a concentrated syrup and add that to your banana bread along with the mashed banana.
Other Loaf Cakes to Try
Looking for other easy cake recipes baked in a loaf pan like this? Try these:
If you tried this recipe for chocolate banana bread (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 220 grams bleached all-purpose flour
- 30 grams Cacao Barry extra brute cocoa powder
- 10 mL baking powder
- 5 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
- 2.5 mL baking soda
- 175 grams unsalted butter softened
- 150 grams dark brown sugar
- 50 grams granulated sugar
- 2 large egg(s) room temperature
- 5 mL pure vanilla extract
- 300 grams mashed banana roughly 3 medium–large ripe bananas
- 175 grams dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 ºF (175 °C). Butter and flour an 8½ x4½-inch (21.5x11.5 cm) loaf pan OR a 9x5-inch (23x12.5 cm) loaf pan, then line the bottom with a rectangle of parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.
- Mash the banana with the vanilla using a fork.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer), cream together the butter and sugars for at least 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl often to make sure the mixture is evenly whipped.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing in between each addition.
- Add the mashed banana. Mix well, scraping the bottom and sides to incorporate everything.
- Add the whisked dry ingredients alternately with the mashed banana, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Stir in the chocolate chips.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf cake pan. Smooth the top to even it out.
- Bake until the edges are set and a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean. This takes about 65 minutes for a 9x5" loaf or 75 minutes or more for an 8.5"x4.5" pan/
Video
Notes
- Make sure the bananas are very ripe (with a blackened peel).
- Please weigh the mashed banana. Too much banana will cause your banana bread to collapse and it will be slightly underbaked towards the bottom of the loaf
- If you are using frozen bananas for this recipe, please make sure do the following:
- defrost the bananas
- peel the bananas and place in a strainer set over a bowl
- press very gently to squeeze out the liquid
- either discard the banana liquid OR place the liquid in a saucepan and boil it down to a couple tablespoons, stirring often so that it doesn't burn. Add this banana concentrate to the bananas and proceed with recipe.
- If you want to make any substitutions or variations on this recipe:
- use any type of chocolate chips (white, milk or dark) or chopped chocolate —use the same weight as in the recipe. You can also skip the chocolate but I find the dark chocolate chips enhand the flavour of the cake
- add 250 mL (1 cup) chopped walnuts or chopped pecans instead of the chopped chocolate
- add 5 mL (1 tsp) ground cinnamon to the dry ingredients
- add 10 mL (2 tsp) ground cardamom
- you can make this recipe with all granulated sugar, all brown sugar, or a combination of granulated and brown sugar
- I bake with Diamond Crystal Kosher salt. If you prefer to bake with regular table salt, please use half the amount
- Use a thermometer to check if your cake is done baking and the internal temperature should register around 209 ºF or 98 ºC when it's done.
- If you don't have eggs or are allergic, try this eggless banana bread recipe
Gayle DenHartigh says
I love to bake. Especially for my grandkids. They all agreed that this is the BEST BREAD they have ever had. It was so easy to make & uses ingredients that I always have around. THANK YOU!!!