This Blueberry Banana Bread truly is the BEST ever! This recipe yields perfectly soft, moist and tender bread with fresh banana flavor and bright pops of juicy blueberries in every bite!
I have to throw a disclaimer up for this bread because it is very addictive. Dangerous, even.
Since making this bread for the first time 2 weeks ago, I’ve since made three more batches. Not because I’m testing it, but because I am OBSESSED with it. I have a You-level obsession with it, actually. It’s borderline unhealthy but don’t you dare try to talk me off the ledge. Color me in love with this bread!
People ask me all the time what I do with everything I make. I explain that I taste-test everything to make sure flavors and textures are on-point but I usually give about 98% of the stuff I make away to neighbors, coworkers at my second job, or family and friends. But there are a few exceptions to this rule where I keep the entire batch to myself and scarf it down in one sitting basically – and this bread made that cut and then some.
I made this bread with a few other baked goods in one day, since I usually “batch bake” where I’ll bake 2-6 recipes in one day and then photograph them the next day. I called my mom to let her know I had treats available and she stopped by to pick them up. I had mentioned on the phone that I had this blueberry banana bread, in addition to X, Y, and Z, but after I took another bite of it I realized I was not giving up ANY of this bread without a fight. Sorry, Mom. It’s never cool when you have to redact an offer you gave your mom, but I also sent her home with cupcakes, bars, cinnamon rolls and other things so don’t feel too bad for her.
What I love about this Best Ever Blueberry Banana Bread is that it is SUPER simple to make, uses ingredients you probably have on hand, and yields the most perfectly soft, tender and moist bread with real, fresh banana flavor and bright pops of juicy, sweet blueberries in every bite! Sometimes the most simple recipes are the most delicious and this is definitely the case. Here are a tips and notes about this banana bread in question:
- This banana bread gets its moisture from several sources: the bananas, Greek yogurt, and surprise: instant dry pudding mix! I know you’ve heard about using dry pudding mix powder in your cake mixes for moist cupcakes, but it also works in this bread perfectly! It makes everything SO moist and delicious. Trust me, don’t skip the pudding mix!
- For extra banana flavor, I like using banana-flavored Greek yogurt or banana instant pudding mix since I tend to like a very strong banana flavor in my bread.
- To ensure your bread bakes evenly and yields a perfect loaf of buttery banana bread, I recommend using a light metal loaf pan or a disposable foil baking pan. I have found that people generally have issues with dark metal or glass baking pans. Why? Dark baking pans conduct heat MUCH faster, creating bread that burns or cooks way too quickly, and glass baking pans don’t conduct heat consistently in my opinion, creating bread that bakes perfectly on the bottom with completely underdone centers. You can fix this by purchasing or using a light metal baking pan or buying a $1 disposable foil pan which works infinitely better than glass or dark metal.
Whatever you do, you have to promise me you’ll make this magical bread! I cannot stop eating it and snacking on it throughout the day. This is a real contender for THE recipe of 2020, so try it and lemme know what you think!
*adapted from my Best Ever Banana Bread Recipe
Best Ever Blueberry Banana Bread
Author: Hayley Parker, The Domestic Rebel
Recipe type: Breakfast
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6-8
This Blueberry Banana Bread is the BEST recipe I have had EVER! It yields perfectly soft, moist and super tender banana bread with REAL banana flavor and bright, juicy pops of blueberries in every bite!
Ingredients
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ⅓ cup Greek yogurt (for more flavor, I like using banana or vanilla flavored Greek yogurt, but plain works too!)
- 2 cups mashed bananas (from about 3-4 small/medium bananas)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- One 3.4 ounce box INSTANT banana pudding mix (just the dry powder; do not make the pudding)
- One small carton fresh blueberries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Liberally grease a 9″ light metal loaf pan with cooking spray; set aside. (I like using light metal loaf pans because I personally feel they conduct heat the most consistently. I find that people have issues with the bread when they use dark metal or glass baking pans. If you don’t have a light metal baking pan, consider purchasing a disposable foil loaf pan). Place the loaf pan on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any potential overflow.
- In a large bowl, beat together the butter and brown sugar with a handheld electric mixer until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, followed by the Greek yogurt, bananas, and vanilla, mixing well. Lastly, stir in the cinnamon, baking soda, salt, flour and instant dry pudding powder by hand using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, careful not to overmix. Over-mixing the dough could lead to tough bread, so you still want to see some streaks of flour in the bread. Batter may be lumpy; this is okay. Gently fold in the blueberries.
- Spread the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth out the top. If using disposable foil pans, you may want to divide the dough among 2 pans since the disposable pans tend to be smaller than a metal loaf pan. Conversely, you may also bake any additional batter as muffins!
- Bake the bread for 30 minutes, then tent the bread with a sheet of aluminum foil to prevent the top from browning too quickly and return the bread to the oven to bake for another 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean or with moist, not wet, crumbs. Depending on your pan and oven, you may need additional baking time, so bake in 4-5 minute increments until a toothpick test reveals moist, not wet, crumbs.
- Cool the bread completely before slicing.
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This banana bread is my new favorite thing EVER and I think you’ll agree!
Want more quick bread recipes? Check out these!
Have a super sweet day!
xo, Hayley
