Chocolate Chip Banana Bread (Printable version)

Moist banana bread with chocolate chips and pecans, perfect for breakfast or a snack.

# What you need:

→ Wet Ingredients

01 - 3 medium ripe bananas, mashed
02 - 2 large eggs
03 - ½ cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
04 - ½ cup packed light brown sugar
05 - ¼ cup granulated sugar
06 - 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

→ Dry Ingredients

07 - 1½ cups all-purpose flour
08 - 1 teaspoon baking soda
09 - ½ teaspoon salt
10 - ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

→ Add-ins

11 - ¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips
12 - ¾ cup pecans, roughly chopped

# How To:

01 - Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and line a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
02 - In a large bowl, whisk together mashed bananas, eggs, melted butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and vanilla extract until smooth.
03 - In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon until evenly blended.
04 - Gently stir the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined, avoiding overmixing.
05 - Carefully fold in chocolate chips and chopped pecans, reserving a small portion of each for topping.
06 - Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan and sprinkle reserved chocolate chips and pecans over the surface.
07 - Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
08 - Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The chocolate and pecans turn a humble banana bread into something almost decadent, but it's still easy enough for a weeknight.
  • It's forgiving—overripe bananas are actually better, and the bread stays moist for days.
  • One loaf feeds a small crowd or gives you breakfast for half the week, which feels like winning.
02 -
  • Overmixing is the silent killer—it develops gluten and makes the bread dense and tough, so mix until just combined and trust the baking process to finish the job.
  • Cold or room-temperature butter matters; if it's too warm, your batter breaks and the bread bakes up dry and heavy.
  • A toothpick pulled straight from an oven is hotter than the bread itself, so it might look wetter than it is—look for crumbs, not batter.
03 -
  • Toast your pecans in a dry pan for 3 to 4 minutes before adding them—it brings out oils and turns them from simple nuts into something almost caramelized.
  • If your chocolate chips tend to sink to the bottom, toss them lightly in a tablespoon of flour before folding them in; it helps them stay suspended throughout the batter.

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