Six-Banana Banana Bread — 🍌 Not sure what to do with overripe bananas you have on hand? Make this Six-Banana Banana Bread! This is the best banana bread recipe EVER — it’s so moist and flavorful!
The BEST Banana Bread Recipe
There’s no chance of wimpy or lackluster banana flavor here. I baked six bananas into one loaf. Yes, six.
Don’t get me wrong, I love my gold standard banana bread recipe for banana bread. It’s everything I want and it never lets me down. But I also cheat on it from time to time. Say, with 35+ banana recipes, and about 15 of them are recipes for various Banana Breads. You can never have too many.
I wanted to pack more pure banana essence and intensity into the bread and so I used more bananas. A whole lot more.
Rather than using 1 to 1 1/2 cups of bananas, which is what most recipes call for, I used a solid 2 1/2 cups. To compensate for the extra banana volume and moisture, I cut back on the amount of Greek yogurt (or sour cream) I usually use.
The verdict is that this super moist banana bread is everything and more. It’s soft, tender and supremely moist. The pudding mix serves to add some lightness, fluffiness, and springiness.
You’ll never have to wonder again what to do with overripe bananas thanks to this freckled overripe banana recipe in your arsenal. Kill six with one loaf.
You may even find yourself wishing for some speckly and freckly ones.
How Does Six-Banana Banana Bread Taste?
Because of the 6 bananas, don’t expect a super light and airy loaf. It’s on the heavier and denser side, but I think all good banana bread should be. I don’t want light, airy, cakey, or dry. I want moist, heavy, and dense.
The real clincher is that all those bananas really make a difference in the overall banana flavor and intensity level.
If you’ve ever felt like your banana bread is a bit underwhelming in banana intensity level, this recipe will cure that. It’s bursting with banana flavor. I mean, duh.
Ingredients in Six-Banana Banana Bread
To make this super moist banana bread recipe, you’ll need:
- Unsalted butter
- Eggs
- Granulated sugar
- Light brown sugar
- Sour cream or Greek yogurt
- Vanilla extract
- Bananas
- Vanilla instant pudding mix
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Cinnamon
- Salt
How to Make Banana Bread with 6 Bananas
This vanilla pudding banana bread made with six bananas comes together quickly and easily! Here are the basic steps:
- Combine melted butter, eggs, two types of sugar, sour cream, and vanilla in a mixing bowl and whisk to combine.
- Add the six mashed bananas, followed by the dry ingredients (note that you add the pudding mix dry — you don’t need to make it into pudding first!).
- Bake the homemade banana bread in a greased 9×5-inch loaf pan for roughly 60 to 75 minutes.
How to Tell When Banana Bread Is Done
Insert a toothpick into the center of the loaf; if it comes out clean, or with very few crumbs, it’s done baking. Or, gently press it with your thumb and if the bread immediately springs back it’s cooked through.
And just as one final reminder, I can’t stress how important it is that you bake by your bread, not the clock.
Depending on your bananas, your altitude, etc. your loaf of banana bread may take more or less time to bake than mine did. Trust your gut!
Banana Bread FAQs
If store at room temperature in an airtight container, this six-banana banana bread will last up to 1 week.
Vanilla pudding banana bread should be stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
Yes, you can freeze this six-banana banana bread for up to six months — it thaws like a dream! To freeze the entire loaf of six-banana banana bread, let it first cool to room temperature. Then, wrap it in two to three layers of plastic wrap, followed by a layer of tinfoil.
Or, you can slice the loaf and freeze the slices on a baking tray. Once the slices are frozen, transfer them to a freezer bag (freezing them on the tray first prevents the moist banana bread slices from getting squished).
When you’re ready to enjoy this banana bread, set it out on the counter to thaw. Don’t unwrap the plastic wrap, though! Leave all the wrappings on to lock in the moisture.
This easy banana bread recipe calls for six large bananas, which equals about 2 1/2 cups when mashed well. So by my calculations, three medium-sized bananas should be about 1 cup mashed.
When in doubt, buy more bananas than you think you need! You can always peel and freeze the bananas for future bakes, or throw them into your morning smoothies.
This six-banana banana bread is best with vanilla pudding mix.
I’ve tried omitting it, and have trialed various combinations of buttermilk, sour cream, Greek yogurt, butter, and oil. But the pudding mix bread wins every time.
If you can’t find pudding in your area (international readers write about this), I recommend adding one-quarter cup of additional flour, two teaspoons of cornstarch, and a dash of extra sugar.
If you thought your bananas had to be black as the night for banana bread, they don’t. Nicely freckled and speckled, but pitch black is not necessary.
Cook’s Illustrated found there’s little difference in sweetness between freckled and completely black. Ripe is fine. They don’t have to be nearly rotting.
One of the first ingredients in instant vanilla pudding mix is cornstarch, which is a workhorse for keeping cakes, cookies, and bread extremely soft, light, tender, and moist.
In the last 10 minutes of cooking, I tented my 9×5-inch pan with foil because the center hadn’t quite set, but the edges and top surface were getting a smidge on the dark side. I recommend covering with foil if at any point your bread is looking a little dark.
Banana Bread Variations to Try
This extra moist banana bread made with vanilla pudding mix and six bananas is perfect as is, but you’re welcome to add mix-ins or tweak the recipe as desired!
- Add chocolate chips — 1/2 cup or so should do it.
- Add nuts — Raw, unsalted chopped nuts are best.
- Swap the sour cream for Greek yogurt — Make sure to use plain, full-fat Greek yogurt.
- Instant vanilla pudding mix — This bread doesn’t need any more banana flavor, but you could always add instant banana pudding mix instead!
- Spices — I used 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, but you can add more. Or, you can add additional spices such as nutmeg, ginger, cloves, etc.
The one mix-in I do NOT recommend adding is fresh fruit or berries. This bread is already quite dense and supremely moist, and if you add berries the batter will never bake through properly.
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Six-Banana Banana Bread
Ingredients
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, , melted
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup sour cream or thick Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract, or to taste
- 6 medium/large very ripe bananas, mashed (2 1/2 cups mashed bananas; if your bananas are huge you may only need 4 or 5; if they’re small, you may need more)
- one 3.4-ounce box vanilla instant pudding mix, (not Cook ‘n Serve)
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 9×5 loaf pan with floured cooking spray, or grease and flour the pan; set aside. (If necessary, you may need to use a muffin pan or mini loaf for pan a small amount of batter.)*
- In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter, about 1 minute on high power. Allow the butter to cool momentarily so you don’t scramble the eggs.
- Add the eggs, sugars, sour cream, vanilla, and whisk to combine.
- Add the bananas and stir to incorporate
- Add the pudding mix (just add it dry like a dry ingredient; don’t actually make pudding), flour, baking soda, cinnamon, optional salt, and fold in with spatula or stir gently with a spoon; don’t overmix or bread will be tougher.
- Bake 9×5 loaf for 60 to 75 minutes (I baked 68 minutes), or until the top is domed, golden, and the center is set, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. Tip – In the final 10 to 15 minutes of cooking, or at any point if your bread is getting a bit dark before the center is setting, tent with foil. There are a lot of moist bananas to cook through in this loaf so if it takes longer than the estimated time to cook through, do so. Do not pull it from the oven, and decide later that it wasn't quite done!
- Allow bread to cool in pan for about 20 minutes before turning out on a wire rack to cool completely before slicing and serving. Serve plain, or with butter, jam, or your favorite spread. Makes excellent French toast.
- Storage – Bread will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 4 months.
Video
Notes
- If you can’t find pudding in your area (international readers write about this), I recommend adding one-quarter cup of additional flour, two teaspoons of cornstarch, and a dash of extra sugar.
- *If baking a mini loaf is necessary, bake for about 35 minutes, or until done; I estimate 2 or 3 muffins will take about 20 to 25 minutes.
- Baking times for loaves will vary based on moisture content of bananas, pan sizes, climate, and oven variances. Bake until done; watch your bread, not the clock.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Recipes Using Ripe Bananas:
ALL OF MY BANANA BREAD RECIPES!
Cream Cheese-Filled Banana Bread — This is the BEST homemade banana bread recipe! This banana bread tastes like it has cheesecake baked in! Soft, fluffy, easy and tastes ahhhh-mazing!!
Strawberry Banana Bread — This strawberry bread is packed with fresh, juicy strawberries in every bite! This is an easy, no-mixer quick bread recipe you’re going to love!
Peanut Butter Apple Banana Bread — Jazz up regular banana bread with peanut butter and apples! A perfect combo that tastes amazing together!! Fast, easy, no mixer required, and a hit with everyone!
Carrot Banana Bread — EASY, no-mixer, super soft banana carrot bread that reminds me of carrot cake but healthier!! Great Easter brunch idea or spring baked good!
Pumpkin Banana Bread with Browned Butter Cream Cheese Glaze — I’ll never tire of pumpkin recipes and this one pairs pumpkin bread with banana bread for a soft, tender loaf that’s subtly pumpkin and molasses flavored.
Brown Sugar Blueberry Banana Bread — Super moist blueberry banana bread made with Greek yogurt and dark brown sugar. Smear some homemade blueberry butter onto a slice of this blueberry brown sugar banana bread and prepare to fall in love!
Zucchini Banana Bread — This zucchini banana bread is so soft, tender, uber-moist, dense enough to be satisfying, but still light!
Originally published May 29, 2013 and republished January 14, 2022 with updated text.
And I thought my 4 bananas in my upcoming banana bread was a lot!! 6! You go girl. That is so wonderful and I’ve never tasted or seen a recipe with so much banana. This looks like the mother of moist banana bread. SO soft, SO tender, and just so moist and flavorful. I hoard bananas too. We usually have two piles. The pile that is OK to eat and the “do not touch” pile – aka the rotting pile. And I never thought about it – pudding is to breads as cornstarch is to cookies. And I didn’t even realize CS was #1 in the pudding ingredients. No reason your banana breads are always perfect!
Exactly re the pudding/cornstarch analogy. And when I don’t use pudding mix, I NEVER can duplicate the results. I have tried every combo of oil, buttermilk, butter, greek yog, sour cream and never get it as soft. I haven’t tried JUST adding C.S. either b/c frankly, I like the flavor of the pudding for that hint of extra vanilla. And with 6 bananas in this baby, I didn’t want to start fiddling around with ingredients and ratios :) Can’t wait to see your bread!
Six banana?! Love it! I need to go to the grocery store and become a banana hoarder so I can make this and the rest of your banana recipes. Seriously.
Wow, the colour of that bread is amazing! Six bananas- who would have thought? I agree with freckled vs black, I actually usually freeze mine before they’re overripe because I don’t like it when they get black in the freezer.
I freeze them too and have never had an issue with it…I peel them, break them in chunks, toss them into a tupperware, and freeze. I have never had any issues with them seeming to get more ripe in the freezer or get black. They stay normal, creamy/light banana color!
Wow Averie! That is one lovely banana bread. Seriously gorgeous.
I do sometimes find myself with an overload of bananas that have all gone bad simultaneously…so this is pretty much the perfect recipe for those times! Plus, more banana essence is definitely a good thing!
they always go over-ripe ALL at once – that always happens to me too!
I am in love and it is perfect because I always have at least 12, yes 12 bananas on my kitchen counter at pretty much all times! The pudding mix sound brillant and I honestly can not wait to make this! I love banana bread!
12!! You have me beat as a general rule. Normally I’m at 5 to 8 :) LMK if you try this!
Banana bread should have tons of banana. I didn’t know it was possible to use six though. I just made a batch with about four but more banana flavor would be welcome. Love that it’s moist and dense too!
Anything is possible, that’s how I look at baking most days!
These photos are STUNNING, Averie!!! I’m suddenly craving banana bread like crazy (even though I just polished off our loaf last night)!!! I love how many bananas you stuffed inside this loaf – genius!
Thank you! I was pleased with these pics, too :)
When I lived in Switzerland there used to be this guy that worked with me there from Equador. He called himself the “banana bread king”! haha, and told me that a “good” banana bread couldn’t possibly be made with any less than 5 bananas. So he’d love this recipe!!
I usually only use three bananas, but from what I remember 5 or more sure does make a moist bread! Great recipe Averie!
First, I didnt know you lived in Switzerland…how amazing!! And that guy, he totally knows what he’s talking about and I bet he would for sure love this bread :)
Quick breads are my second favorite baked goodie to make (second only to cookies :)). And I am ALWAYS looking for new banana bread recipes. I love how much this bread is bursting with banana flavor, thanks to the six bananas! Thanks for another great recipe!
I would say my #1 and #2 are cookies and bread of any kind…okay forgot about bars. They are #1 I think!
Oh my god, yum! I love banana bread and definitely wouldn’t mind some extra banana flavor. It’s looks delicious!
This is my kinda banana bread!! I bet it is SO moist and delicious… next time I make banana bread, this is going to be the one! And your photos are absolutely stunning – that first is especially SO appealing!
Thanks for the photo compliments! I loved the way some of them turned out, especially the first one as well:) And if you make this bread, LMK!
I thought my not-quite-open eyes were seeing something incorrectly when I first read the title of the post. 6 bananas…in 1 loaf…how did she do that?!?! Clearly you did it quite well–it looks like it baked up beautifully! I think the only time I’ve used 6 bananas has been in my beloved soft serve! Seriously though, this looks CRAZY good…loads of banana flavor, heavy but moist. I have to make a mid week trip to the store so I’ll see how my luck is for marked down bananas–otherwise, the paper bag works like a charm.
LOL – glad I had your eyes playing tricks on you. Paula you will LOVE this bread. It’s so good and I know you like my other recipe for banana bread with pudding – and this one is just like that, but enhanced! In 2 weeks I’ll probably hear back that you made it & can’t wait. Unless your groc store has red-sticker bananas. Or the bag trick :)
Wow! Six mashed bananas? I’m all for more banana intensity! I think you could call this banana bread recipe, “Intense Banana Bread”. You know…kind of like Ina Garten’s iconic “Outrageous Brownies.” ;) You are one wicked baker, Averie! Must make this one, soon! Thanks for sharing! xo
I almost named it something sort of like that, but then just went with numerical :)
This looks wonderful Averie, I love banana bread (particularly with that extra banana flavour!) I love it with add-ins (like chocolate chips and peanut butter!) but sometimes pure banana bread is best :-)
I love doctored up banana bread, too – choc chips, PB, etc but this loaf could stand on its own with all those bananas!
I have no particular favorite, though I used to frequently use a recipe that used coffee as an ingredient-you didn’t end up tasting it, it just melded with the banana and brown sugar and…I should find that recipe.
But this sounds magnificent. Dense and moist are two of my favorite qualities in a quick bread:)
Oh wow, that sounds interesting with the coffee! I actually think bananas and coffee go together (I’m thinking tropical-ish drinks with banana liqueur and coffee!)