Pumpkin Banana Bread

Pumpkin Banana Bread is a soft, moist fall quick bread made with ripe bananas, a can of pumpkin, maple syrup, cinnamon, and pumpkin spice. This easy recipe makes one delicious loaf with optional chocolate chips or nuts.

Prep Time20

Cook Time1 10

Cooling Time35

Total Time2 5

Course: Bread, Sweet Snacks

Cuisine: American

Keyword: fall baking, holiday bread, pumpkin recipes, quick breads

Servings:

Author: Sandy Clifton

Equipment

Ingredients

2 Ripe Bananas
½ cup Unsalted Butter room temperature
½ cup Brown Sugar
½ cup Granulated Sugar
2 large Eggs
⅓ cup Pure Maple Syrup
1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
1 15-ounce can Pumpkin Puree
2 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
½ teaspoon Baking Powder
¼ teaspoon Salt
1 ½ teaspoons Pumpkin Pie Spice
2 teaspoons Ground Cinnamon

Optional

1 cup Chocolate Chips
½ cup Chopped Pecans or Walnuts

Instructions

Prep

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Line a 9x5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper, leaving some parchment hanging over the sides to use as handles.
Mash the bananas with a fork and set aside.

Make the Batter

In a large mixing bowl, use a hand mixer to cream together the softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs and mix until combined.
Add the maple syrup and vanilla and mix well.
Add the mashed bananas and mix until combined.
Add the pumpkin puree and mix until incorporated.
In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to gently mix just until combined. Do not overmix.
If using chocolate chips or chopped nuts, gently fold them into the batter.
Lightly spray the lined pan with baking spray., Then transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan and spread the top evenly with a spatula.

Bake

Bake at 350°F for 1 hour 10 minutes, checking the bread at 1 hour. If the top is browning too quickly, loosely tent it with aluminum foil. Continue baking until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.

Cool

Remove the loaf from the oven and let it cool in the pan for 15 minutes.
Use the parchment paper to lift the bread out of the pan and transfer it to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling.

Serve

Slice and serve plain or with butter.
For a warm slice, gently heat it in the microwave or air fryer before serving.

Notes

Be sure to use 100% pure pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling.
Do not overmix the batter after adding the flour. Mix only until the dry ingredients are incorporated.
You can add chocolate chips, pecans, walnuts, or a combination.
For a sweeter finish, top the cooled loaf with cream cheese frosting, maple frosting, powdered sugar, or cinnamon-sugar.
If the top of the loaf begins to brown too quickly during baking, loosely tent it with aluminum foil.

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