Carrot Cake Banana Bread

by Sarah | Broma Bakery

This carrot cake banana bread is moist, warmly spiced, and packed with carrots, coconut, and walnuts. An easy one-bowl twist on classic banana bread!

Carrot Cake Banana Bread

So…you’ve got a few questionable looking bananas sitting on your counter. Perfect. You’re exactly where you need to be.

And if you’re looking to mix things up from your classic banana bread situation, this carrot cake banana bread is the move. She’s moist (obviously), warmly spiced, and packed with grated carrots, shredded coconut and crunchy walnuts. It has all the cozy, warm flavors of carrot cake, but with the ease of a classic banana bread. No layers, no fussy frosting or decorating, just a really good delicious loaf of bread.

How to make banana bread

I love how easy it is to make homemade banana bread. You just have to chuck all the ingredients into a bowl, give it a good stir, pour it all into a loaf pan, and pop it into the oven. Honestly, the only downside of making your own banana bread is that it takes a almost and hour to bake. It’s good for us to practice our patience though.

1. Combine all the wet ingredients (mashed banana, grated carrots, oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla) in a large bowl.
2. Add all the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt).
3. Whisk together until combined.
4. Bake the banana bread.

And that’s it! If you want, you can top it off with a cream cheese frosting, but it’s totally optional!

Tips for making this carrot cake banana bread

This one bowl banana bread couldn’t be easier to make, but we have a tricks to guarantee you get the tastiest bread possible.

• Use brown bananas: Homemade banana bread tastes best when you use overripe, brown bananas. Brown bananas taste extra sweet and have a super soft consistency that makes them perfect for tossing into baked goods. Out of brown bananas? Pierce a few bananas with a fork and bake them for 15 minutes, or until they turn brown. Allow them to cool completely before mixing them into your banana bread batter.
• Don’t overmix the batter: The more you mix the batter, the more gluten develops in your bread which can lead to a tough, dry loaf. Once you add the dry ingredients only mix until just combined and no streaks of flour remain.
• Keep an eye on the bread while it bakes: Ovens can vary so much in temperature and the way they circulate heat. Always keep an eye on your baked goods in the last ten minutes of baking to make sure you’re not over or underbaking your bread!

Ingredients swaps and substitutions

Want to make this carrot cake banana bread your own? Easy peasy. This bread is a great base for switching up the stir ins and spices to your taste!

• No walnuts? Leave them out or swap them out for another nut. Pecans would be equally delicious here.
• No coconut? Or don’t like it? Skip it or swap it out for another stir in like raisins or chopped dates.
• Swap the oil. You could use melted coconut oil (just make sure your eggs are room temperature!) and give this bread a tropical spin or melted butter if you’re out of vegetable oil.

How to store carrot cake banana bread

Thanks to the moisture from the banana and carrots, this bread will stay delicious and tender for days as long as it’s stored properly.

• Store your carrot cake banana bread in airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to a week. I actually think this bread is even tastier cold so I love keeping it in the fridge!
• You can also freeze this bread to make it last longer or prep ahead. To freeze, make sure the bread is fully cool before placing in a freezer safe plastic bag or wrapping generously in plastic wrap. Freeze for up to 3 months! Thaw to room temperature or warm it up slightly before serving! For best results, we recommend freezing without icing!

Happy baking, my friends!

XXX

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