Overripe Banana Bread with Sour Cream
Moist, not wet — sour cream is what makes the crumb tender.
Method · 9 steps
- 1
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x5 metal loaf pan and line with a parchment sling.
- 2
Mash bananas in a large bowl with a fork until mostly smooth with a few small chunks.
- 3
Whisk melted (cooled) butter and brown sugar into the bananas until combined.
- 4
Whisk in sour cream, eggs, and vanilla until smooth.
- 5
Sprinkle flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt over the wet mixture. Fold with a spatula just until no dry streaks remain — overmixing develops gluten and gives you a rubbery loaf.
- 6
Fold in walnuts or chocolate chips if using.
- 7
Scrape into the prepared loaf pan. Smooth the top and rap the pan once on the counter to release air bubbles.
- 8
Bake 60-70 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Tent with foil at the 45-minute mark if the top is browning too fast.
- 9
Cool in the pan 15 minutes, then lift out and cool on a rack at least 30 minutes before slicing. Slicing warm makes it gummy.
Chef's notes
- →Blacker bananas = sweeter bread. If yours are only spotted, roast them in the skin at 300°F for 15 minutes to deepen flavor.
- →Weigh the flour. 220g. Even 30g extra makes a dry loaf.
- →Do not use low-fat sour cream — the fat is what makes the crumb tender.
Storage
Wrap in plastic at room temp 3 days or refrigerate 5 days. Freeze whole or sliced up to 3 months.
