Say goodbye to banana bread because after trying these banana bars, this may likely be the only recipe you’re going to want to use those prime, overripe, generously speckled bananas for =). I’m pretty sure I could have finished the whole pan on my own. These are so amazingly moist, with the perfect combination of flavors. You get tons of banana flavor (notice there’s nearly equal portions of banana to flour) with a pinch of warm cinnamon flavor, then you get just a hint of richness from the sour cream and cream cheese along with the perfect balance of sweetness, then to finish an ever so slightly salty crunch from the pecans. I hate to brag, but I have to say it, these bars are undeniably incredible =)! I also love the simplicity of this recipe, I created it to be a one bowl recipe (granted you’ll have to wash the bowl to make the frosting). All you have to do is toss all the ingredients into one mixing bowl, stir for 2 minutes and bake, bada bing bada boom! Love it. I thought about creating this recipe to be a sheet pan size, but good thing I didn’t because I would have a very hard time restraining myself from being engorged by these banana bars =).
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 Tbsp applesauce (or 2 additional Tbsp vegetable oil)
- 1 egg
- 1 cup mashed overripe bananas (about 2 large bananas)
- 1 recipe Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting, recipe follows
- 1/3 cup chopped pecans
- 3 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 3 Tbsp butter, softened
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients (except frosting and pecans) in a large mixing bowl, mix with an electric mixer on low speed for 2 minutes. Pour mixture into a buttered 13x9* baking dish and spread evenly into pan. Bake 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool completely, about 1 hour (I'd recommend covering with saran wrap after cooling 20 minutes to help retain moisture). Frost with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting and sprinkle optional chopped nuts evenly over top. Cut into bars.
- Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl, mix until smooth and fluffy 1-2 minutes.
Notes
*A few people have commented below mentioning that these bars seem a bit thin. If you want a thicker, more cake like bar then either make 1.5 the recipe in a 13x9 pan or do just 1 of the recipe in a 9x9 pan and bake a bit longer. I personally like the thinness (it makes them more bar-like) so I make them just as listed, but make them according to what you prefer.
Amalia: Wow, this definitely looks better than banana bread! It looks so delicious and moist, the perfect dessert! And the equal ratio of flour to banana is genius; it makes for a more flavorful cake. But my favorite part is that cinnamon cream cheese frosting, oh-my-gosh it looks amazing!! I would eat the whole pan too :) Great recipe! January 18, 2012 at 5:42pm
Mary: These really look delicious. I am new to your blog, so I spent some time browsing through your earlier posts. I’m so glad I did that. I really like the food and recipes you share with your readers and I’ll definitely be back. I hope you have a great day. Blessings…Mary January 19, 2012 at 2:39pm
Jenn @ Peas and Crayons: ooh they look SO FLUFFY! =) I’m awful at making banana bread but maybe I could successfully whip these up instead! January 19, 2012 at 4:19pm
Marissa Grace: Wow, these look amazing! I’ll have to try these out! January 20, 2012 at 10:16am
pureglow*16: these look delicious!!!! i will have to make up my own version sometime :D January 20, 2012 at 12:39pm
Nats: I just made this and it is soooo tasty and moist! January 20, 2012 at 7:57pm
Jaclyn: Thanks everyone for your comments! I hope you get a chance to make these! I made them twice this week =). And Nats, I’m so glad you liked them thanks for your comment! January 20, 2012 at 10:34pm
Hayley: Wow, I love banana and these look SO amazing. January 22, 2012 at 1:32pm
Marie Tashkoff: Gorgeous banana bars! I especially like how you’ve mixed banana bread with cream cheese and nuts. Thanks for the lovely post! :) January 23, 2012 at 2:44pm
Diane: I just took this out of the oven & tried a little bite with a spoonful of the icing (couldn’t wait for the whole cooling thing)and it is yum! I usually sub all applesauce for oil but was out so will try that next time. Thanks for the recipe! March 25, 2012 at 3:20pm
Jaclyn: Diane – thanks for your comment! I always do the same thing, I can never wait. It’s hard enough waiting the entire time it’s in the oven =). Youre welcome, I’m so glad you enjoyd! March 25, 2012 at 7:56pm
Anonymous: I made mine in a 9×13 pan as directed but they came out EXTREMELY thin…did you mean that or 9×9 pan? April 3, 2012 at 3:37pm
Jaclyn: Anonymous – these are meant to be fairly thin, that’s why they are bars rather than cake =). They should be about 1 1/2 (before being frosted) if I’m remembering right. I’ve made them about 5 times though in the last 2 months so I hope that guess is close. Basically they should be about half/third the size of a 13×9 cake. Hope that helps! April 3, 2012 at 7:22pm
Shannon McCarthy: Love the blog. This is my first time commenting. These banana bars looks great – especially the addition of the cinnamon frosting =) I’ve been looking for various banana cake recipes to try! I recently made banana flavored cup cakes from a recipe I found on recipes.com. For Easter, we ordered
Banana flavored New York Style Crumb Cake from an online bakery called Crumb Cake Creations! To die for. Thanks for sharing yours. I look forward to future posts. April 16, 2012 at 11:59am
Anonymous: These bars were amazinggggg! My family could not get enough! I also thought they were thin in a 13 x9 pan…do you think this recipe could work in a 9×9 or even a loaf pan? April 26, 2012 at 12:21pm
Jaclyn: Glad you enjoyed! These would probably work in a 9×9 pan as well they would just need to be baked a bit longer I think. Thanks for your comment! April 26, 2012 at 12:51pm
Sara: Mine did not come out as fluffy and cake-like as yours. Mine were a lot more dense, much like a bar, which is what you’ve said in other responses. Maybe the picture is throwing me off. Is the photo you posted what yours look like regularly? July 25, 2012 at 12:29pm
Jaclyn: Sara – mine have always turned out like the ones pictured, they are usually the texture between banana bread and cake. Somewhere in the middle I think. They are definitely more dense than your average cake which is one thing I do love about them. I have a banana cake posted that is definitely much fluffier and cake like if you’d like to try that, it’s the banana split cake. July 25, 2012 at 6:18pm
irene hoffman: i would like the recipe for banana split cake April 4, 2013 at 5:39pm
Jaclyn: Hi Irene – here is the link:
http://www.cookingclassy.com/2012/01/banana-split-cake/
Just for future note there is a search box up in the top right corner of my blog (along the toolbar, that white box with a magnifying glass). I hope you enjoy the cake! April 9, 2013 at 6:28pm
Anonymous: I whipped these up faster than my oven could preheat! Looking good in there!
Angie July 30, 2012 at 12:33pm
stacielk: Jotting this recipe down. Making them for this weekend cuz I have TONS of bananas waiting to be used up in the freezer. Can’t wait to try this recipe out! August 15, 2012 at 11:48am
stacielk: Coming back to give a review. LOVED these bars. Super moist, fluffy and delicious. Brought them to church for coffee time and got some rave reviews. I made 1 1/2 the ‘bar’ part b/c of the few comments you got on them being too thin. I think doing that turned them into more of a cake than a bar, so depending on what you want, I would suggest lvg the recipe as is for a bar or maybe even doubling it (at least 1.5 the recipe) for more of a cake. Thanks for the recipe! August 20, 2012 at 3:30pm
Jenny: I made these in a flash last night and they are sooooo good! I made them in a 9×9 baking pan. Turned out great! August 23, 2012 at 6:02am
Jaclyn: stacielk – great review and recommendation for others with complaints of bar being too thin. Great idea! Thanks!
Jenny – also another wonderful recommendation for a thicker bar, I should just add these ideas to the recipe, thanks! August 23, 2012 at 5:52pm
Anonymous: Made them in the 9×9, my husband is super picky about food and he even loved them. Thanks for this awesome recipe they are sooooo good September 2, 2012 at 2:09pm
Anonymous: made these with my 3 year old. we both loved them :) September 28, 2012 at 4:01pm
Anonymous: DEEEEELICIOUS! I added nutmeg and cinnamon to the cake and frosting. SO good! Thanks! September 29, 2012 at 5:36am
Anonymous: Do you refridgerate these or just put them in an airtight container? We live in Australia and it’s starting to warm up here…. Cheers! September 29, 2012 at 5:39am
Jaclyn: Anonymous – I just store them at room temperature in an airtight container, I don’t refrigerate them but may be a good idea if your house is real warm. I would recommend letting them rest at room temperature once removing from the fridge before enjoying. September 29, 2012 at 7:54am
Cupcakes on St Marks: [...] week I stumbled across this recipe on my favorite food blog, CookingClassy.com, and decided I had to try it. Considering I [...] January 13, 2013 at 4:12pm
Krystyna Cooks In Sydney Australia: G”Day Jaclyn (Famous Aussie/Australian way of greeting a mate/friend) I am in like with your recipes this is my 2nd recipe from your blog that I have made in the last week-On Feb 17 2013 I made your extremely yummy Chinese Orange Chicken I have not stopped raving to people about the dish
Today I’ve just finished baking the Banana Bar recipe You say to bake it in a 13×9* baking dish – I baked mine in a 12″ X 8″ cake tin My cake ONLY rose 1/2″ Is that what some of the other reviewers mean when they say “these bars seem a bit thin”? In your photos it seems to be a lot bigger height wise I did not have applesauce so I used the extra 2 Tablspn Oil – The toothpick came out clean so I assume it was cooked thoroughly It tastes great YET it looks moist almost still RAW when I cut it I would certainly appreciate ANY FEEDBACK Many Thanks February 20, 2013 at 10:45pm
Jaclyn: Krystyna – That is so great to hear you enjoyed the chinese orange chicken! Did you increase the baking time for the banana bars since you decreased the pan size slightly? If you want a thicker bar you can do 1 1/2 or double the recipe and bake them for a longer period of time, or you could use the 8×8 and bake them for a longer amount of time. They definitely shouldn’t be gooey, so I imagine it’s just the baking time. I hope that helps! February 27, 2013 at 10:40am
Julie: These bars are amazing! I don’t think they should be any thicker than what the recipe calls for…they are bars. Well done, Jaclyn! This recipe is a definite keeper! March 6, 2013 at 4:59am
Jaclyn: Thanks Julie =)! I’m so glad you enjoyed these! March 8, 2013 at 5:00pm
Liz: Thanks again for the nice recipes. May 17, 2013 at 1:33pm
Jaclyn: You’re welcome :)! May 17, 2013 at 3:43pm