Sour Cream Banana Bread

Sour Cream Banana Bread is a delicious and moist quick loaf bread recipe with whole bananas baked right into the top of the bread.

February 23rd is National Banana Bread Day! Celebrate by baking this sour cream banana bread, or any favorite recipe that you have on hand for banana bread. Your coffee shop might sell banana bread slices too. Share the banana bread love on social media today using the hashtags #NationalBananaBreadDay, #BananaBreadDay and #RecipesForHolidays. Be sure to follow my February Food Holidays page so you never miss a food holiday in the month of February!

“When life gives you over-ripe bananas, make banana bread!”

-Unknown

The History of Banana Bread:

Bananas appeared in the United States in the 1870’s. It took a while for them to appear as an ingredient in dessert recipes.

A recipe submitted by “Mrs. Dean” in a 1918 issue of The Garden Island paper was for a banana muffin. It closely resembles the banana bread we know today.

During the Great Depression (1929 to 1941), every penny mattered. So throwing away food in your kitchen was not an option. Instead of tossing rotten bananas, a quick bread using bananas was invented. Baking soda and baking powder also began being mass produced during this time. So quick breads in general became popular.

By the 1930’s banana bread recipes began appearing in cookbooks. In 1933, a recipe for banana bread appeared in Pillsbury’s Balanced Recipes Cookbook. Banana bread started becoming more popular.

In 1950, a recipe for banana bread was printed in Chiquita Banana’s Recipe Book. By this time, banana bread was even more popular.

And with the popularity of home baking in the 1960’s, banana bread exploded in popularity. It was so easy to make, and ingredients were not expensive.

Nowadays, there are all kinds of varieties of banana bread and lots of recipes online and in cookbooks. There’s brown butter banana bread, chocolate chip banana bread, zucchini banana bread, pumpkin banana bread, chocolate banana bread and so many more.

Ingredients needed:

• all purpose flour
• ground cinnamon
• baking soda, baking powder and salt
• unsalted butter
• white sugar
• eggs
• sour cream
• mashed banana
• vanilla extract
• whole banana

How to make Sour Cream Banana Bread:

The full, printable recipe is at the end of this post. You will need an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan for this recipe. Line it with parchment paper and spray with nonstick spray. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Whisk together the dry ingredients in one bowl, and use a mixer to combine the wet ingredients in another. Combine the two, and don’t over-mix.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Slice a banana in half, and place the sliced bananas on top of the batter, sliced-side-up.

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the bread tests done all the way through.

The result is a really pretty looking loaf. I love this recipe because the bananas on top give a huge hint as to what kind of bread this is!

Slice, and eat with a cup of coffee or tea. The great thing about banana bread is that it can be a breakfast, snack or dessert. Enjoy!

How to store Banana Bread:

Place your cooled loaf on a plate and cover it in plastic wrap, or store it in an airtight container. Store it for up to four days on your counter. If you prefer to freeze your sour cream banana bread, wrap the whole loaf in aluminum foil. Store it in a zip-top bag. Squeeze as much air out as you can and seal it closed. Store it in the freezer for up to three months.

Fun Facts About Banana Bread

• There are more bananas sold in the United States than any other fruit.
• Banana bread is a quick bread that does not contain yeast.
• The most searched for bread online is banana bread.
• Bananas that are yellow with brown flecks are sweeter and are better for using in baking.
• Legend has it that whoever eats the last piece of bread has to kiss the cook!