This double chocolate banana bread leans right into dessert territory. There’s cocoa in the batter, melty chocolate chips throughout, and you can even add a handful of chopped walnuts for a bit more dimension. The best part is that you don’t need any fancy ingredients. Just grab a few overripe bananas and some pantry staples, and you’re well on your way.
Jump to the recipe + video if you’re ready to start baking, or read on for a few tips for success.
Tips for chocolate banana bread success:
1) Consider lining your loaf pan.
I usually skip this step (living dangerously in the world of quick breads). If you’re worried about your chocolate banana bread sticking, use a parchment sling.
2) Let it cool.
It’s tempting to cut right into that beautiful loaf of chocolate banana bread, but cooling helps the crumb set and makes for cleaner slices. You don’t have to let it cool completely, but give it at least 30 minutes or so.
3) Make it vegan:
This recipe is already pretty close to vegan. It’s made with olive oil instead of butter. To keep it fully plant-based, use vegan chocolate chips and a one-for-one vegan egg substitute (e.g., Just Egg or something like it). I haven’t tested this loaf with flax or chia eggs, so I can’t vouch for those. It might work, but I’d stick with a vegan egg replacer if you want to be sure.
4) Do not overmix!
This is the most important tip for making a really good loaf of any sort of cake or quick bread. Once the dry and wet ingredients combine, use just enough swipes to bring it all together. If you overmix, it will taste tough and dry.
I’ve got a growing collection of banana bread recipes—check out a couple of my other favorites:
- Olive oil banana bread
- Pistachio banana bread
- All my favorite loaf cakes! (including banana bread)
Double Chocolate Banana Bread
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Total Time: 70 minutes
- Yield: 6 to 8 slices
Ingredients
- 1 cup [240 g] mashed banana from about 3 very overripe bananas
- 1/2 cup [105 g] extra virgin olive oil
- 2 large eggs*
- 2/3 cup [130 g] sugar
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 1 1/4 cups [160 g] all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup [30 g] dutch process** cocoa powder
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/3 cup [85 g] chocolate chips (plus more for sprinkling)
- 1/2 cup [50 g] coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F [180°C].
- Grease an 8 x 4 inch [20 x 10 cm] loaf pan.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the mashed bananas together with the olive oil until very well combined. Add the eggs, sugar, and salt, and whisk together until completely incorporated.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder.***
- Add the wet mixture and the chocolate chips and walnuts (if using) to the flour mixture. Stir to combine, but do not over-mix (stop mixing as soon as there are no dry pockets of flour).
- Spoon the mixture into the prepared loaf pan. Top with a few extra chocolate chips (if using).
- Bake for about 1 hour. Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick or wooden skewer into the center of the loaf. If it comes out with batter, it needs more time, but if it comes out with just some crumbs, it’s ready to take out.
- Remove from the pan and cool on a rack for at least 30 minutes before cutting and serving.
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Notes
* See note above recipe on turning this into vegan chocolate banana bread.
** If you only have natural cocoa powder (e.g., “Hershey’s 100% cacao natural unsweetened”), you can still make this recipe, but you’ll need to add baking soda. Add 1/4 tsp baking soda to the recipe, use 1/3 cup [30 g] natural unsweetened cocoa powder, and keep everything else the same (including the 3/4 tsp baking powder).
*** If you want to save on dishes, place a fine mesh sieve over a paper towel and add the flour, baking soda, and baking powder to the sieve. Sift the dry ingredients directly onto the wet ingredients (and don’t forget the dust that filtered onto the paper towel too).
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