Name: Brown Butter Banana Bread
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Ingredients: 5 tablespoons butter; 1 ½ cups flour; 1 teaspoon baking soda; ¼ teaspoon salt; ¼ teaspoon cinnamon; 4 overly ripe bananas (skins should be black); ½ cup sugar; 2 tablespoons honey; 1 egg (beaten); ¾ cup toasted pecans; turbinado sugar (optional); 8 tablespoons salted butter (softened to room temperature); 1 tablespoon sugar; 1 vanilla bean (split and seeds scraped)

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This twist on classic banana bread adds brown butter which transforms the bread. Add a swirl of vanilla infused butter for an unforgettable breakfast, brunch or snack. So delicious you’ll need to make two, one to eat immediately and one for later.

A loaf of Brown Butter Banana Bread with a bowl of vanilla butter — Brown Butter Banana Bread with Vanilla Butter

I had good intentions of making brown butter banana bread to take to a friend who is recovering from surgery. However, once it came out of the oven, it was gone before I could share it. Instead of eating just one slice, everyone, including me, just had to have two. We were still talking about it days later. I had to make another loaf for my friend.

However, my bananas weren’t quite ripe enough, so I tried this method to ripen them in the oven. I’ll never be worried about waiting on green bananas again as this technique is easy and magically ripens your bananas.

A slice of browned butter banana bread with vanilla butter on a knife

How to ripen bananas:

To ripen the bananas, just place them whole in their peels on a cookie sheet on parchment paper and let them cook for about 15 minutes at 250º until the peelings are completely black. Let them cool a bit and remove the peelings. The bananas will be almost runny but don’t worry, they will be perfect. No more waiting for your bananas to ripen. Now you can make banana bread any time you want.

What’s the best way to brown butter

While you are ripening the bananas if you don’t already have ripe ones, you need to brown some butter. This is easy to do and will be perfect as long as you don’t get distracted. Place the butter in a small sauce pan and cook it until it foams. You will start to see a brown color develop and will smell the distinct aroma of brown butter. As soon as you seen the brown forming, remove it from the heat and pour it out of the pan into a glass bowl or container. If you leave it in the hot pan, it will continue to brown until it’s burnt and then it’s ruined and you have to start again.

How do you make homemade brown butter banana bread

Step 1: Start with ripe bananas, brown butter and toasted pecans.

Step 2: Mash the ripe bananas and add the brown butter, an egg, sugar and honey.

Step 3: Add the dry ingredients to the banana mixture and mix, just until combined. Add pecans and pour into a loaf pan and bake for 30-40 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for 15 minutes and remove from the pan.

Step 4: For the vanilla butter, sugar and the seeds from a vanilla bean and mix. Refrigerate until needed.

What makes this banana bread better than most is the brown butter, toasted pecans and honey. What puts this over the top and makes the the BEST banana bread is the vanilla butter. I don’t like frosting on banana bread, just warm with butter. So vanilla butter is just perfect for me. Of course brown butter banana bread is fabulous without the vanilla butter, but if you have a vanilla bean hanging around, go for it and be prepared to be amazed.

A bowl of vanilla butter — Vanilla Butter

While banana bread might seem boring, it’s been around for a long time for a good reason. Adding something so simple as brown butter and then serving it with a simple vanilla butter transforms this to a fabulous breakfast or brunch treat. Throw in some sausage balls or serve with a quiche for a tasty brunch.

A slice of browned butter banana bread with vanilla butter — Brown Butter Banana Bread with Vanilla Butter

What else can you make with Bananas

More sweet breakfast and brunch recipes

Adapted from Brunch @Bobby’s