Sweet salted caramel meets moist, cinnamon-scented quick bread in this easy recipe for Salted Caramel Banana Bread. It’s an easy, sticky, decadent dessert that will make your mouth happy!
*This recipe is sponsored by Dixie Crystals. Thank you for supporting the brands that make this site possible!*
Banana Bread with a Salted Caramel Twist!
Do you go through phases with your banana buying? I think most of us can relate – you buy a few bananas, they get eaten in one afternoon, so the next time you buy twice as many… and they sit on the counter until they’re kind of an unsightly mess! I guess bananas are one of those foods that you’re really in the mood for, or else really not.
But who could resist banana bread? That’s a whole different ballgame. Especially this banana bread, made extra-scrumptious with the addition of real homemade caramel sauce. Salted caramel and banana bread are a match made in baking heaven – you’ve got to try this! It’s sure to become a family favorite.
The List of Ingredients
This recipe basically combines banana bread with homemade caramel sauce. If you’ve never made your own caramel sauce, it’s super easy! You ony need five simple ingredients to make it, and it only takes about ten minutes.
For the Caramel Sauce
- Sugar: My go-to is always Dixie Crystals Granulated Sugar!
- Salt: A little bit of kosher salt adds that special salted caramel oomph. No kosher salt? Any salt will work!
- Water: To dissolve the sugar and salt.
- Butter: Cold unsalted butter, cubed.
- Cream: Heavy cream makes the creamy caramel sauce so rich and indulgent.
For the Banana Bread
- Flour: All-purpose flour is best in this recipe.
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda: To make the bread light and help it rise.
- Cinnamon: You can omit this if you prefer, but it adds a nice warmth to the batter.
- Salt
- Butter: While you need cold butter to make the caramel sauce, you’ll want softened butter for the bread batter.
- Sugar: Regular granulated sugar.
- Eggs: It’s best if the eggs are at room temperature before baking, but not crucial.
- Milk: Whole milk, also at room temperature.
- Vanilla: Pure vanilla extract has the best flavor.
- Bananas: To get one cup of mashed bananas, mash up about three large, ripe bananas.
- Caramel Sauce: Half a cup of your prepared caramel sauce will be stirred into the bread batter.
- Walnuts: Optionally you can stir in ⅓ cup finely chopped walnuts, or pecans.
What Bananas Are Best for Banana Bread?
Most people agree that the best bananas for banana bread are dark brown, or even black. You can definitely use yellow bananas, preferably spotted and speckled with brown. Green or pale yellow bananas can be used but will not have as good a flavor.
If you’re concerned that your bananas are too ripe, don’t be! The only way they can be too ripe is if they are moldy or otherwise rotten.
How to Make Salted Caramel Banana Bread
There are two components you’ll need to make, but neither one is difficult or time-consuming, so let’s dive in! First, you’ll make a quick stovetop caramel sauce, and second, you’ll make the bread itself, mixing in some of the sauce. Here are the steps, in order.
Make the Salted Caramel Sauce
- Dissolve the Sugar and Salt in the Water. To begin, combine your sugar, salt, and water in a medium saucepan. Swirl the pan gently to make sure that the sugar and salt are covered in water. Place the saucepan over medium heat, and bring it to a simmer without stirring.
- Simmer Until the Color Changes. Allow the mixture to continue simmering for five minutes or so, until the color of the mixture turns amber. Be careful not to overcook, or the sugar will suddenly begin to burn and you’ll have to start over. (If you’re using a candy thermometer, you want to cook the sugar to a temperature of 350°F.)
- Take Off the Heat, and Add the Butter and Cream. Once the sugar mixture is ready, take it off of the heat. Immediately whisk in the cold butter and heavy cream, being very careful because the hot sugar will bubble violently. Just whisk through this, and the bubbles will subside. Do not let the sugar mixture touch your hands, or it could cause serious burns.
- Cool and Divide the Caramel Sauce. Once the butter and cream are fully blended into the sugar mixture, set the sauce aside and allow it to cool. Divide the cooled sauce, reserving half a cup to mix into the bread, and the rest for drizzling.
Make the Banana Bread
- Preheat the Oven and Prep the Pan. To bake the bread, your first step is preheating the oven. Don’t forget this part! As soon as the batter is mixed, you need to bake the bread in a hot oven. Preheat to 350°F. Next, butter a 9×5 loaf pan, and line it with parchment paper as well to make the bread easy to unmold.
- Combine the Dry Ingredients. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set this aside.
- Combine the Wet Ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, use a hand mixer to cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Then add the eggs, one at a time, beating for about one minute in between each egg. Beat in the milk and vanilla after that.
- Fold the Dry Ingredients into the Wet Ingredients. Now, dump the flour mixture into the butter mixture, and use a spatula to gently mix until the batter is almost smooth. Add the mashed bananas and caramel sauce, and continue folding until you don’t see any more dry flour streaks. If you’re using chopped nuts, fold those in last.
- Bake. Immediately pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan. Place the pan on a baking sheet to catch any drips, and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the banana bread comes out clean.
- Cool and Serve. Let the banana bread cool completely before you slice it. Then use a butter knife to gently loosen the sides of the bread from the pan. Invert the pan onto a serving plate, and lift the pan and parchment off of the loaf. Slice, and drizzle with remaining caramel sauce. Enjoy!
Why Is My Banana Bread so Heavy?
Banana bread that’s heavy and chewy is most likely due to a lack of leavening, or to overmixing. Make sure your leavenings (in this case baking soda and baking powder) are fresh, and that you measure it correctly, to avoid under- or over-leavening the bread.
As for mixing, you want to be careful and follow the mixing directions carefully! If you mix the bread too much after adding the flour, the gluten will activate too much, giving your bread a dense, rubbery texture.
Handy Tips and Hacks
Nothing could be more decadent than rich, moist banana bread with a caramel twist, topped with additional homemade caramel sauce! And these handy tips will make this dessert even easier to make.
- Dark Color: Don’t be concerned if you notice that the bread is turning out darker than normal banana bread – the caramel sauce darkens the finished loaf.
- Don’t Burn the Sugar: When making caramel, be sure to stay with it until it’s done – sugar for caramel sauce can go from perfect to burned in just seconds!
- Use Caution with Caramel Sauce: When you add the heavy cream and butter, your caramel sauce will violently bubble up – so be ready. Just whisk through it and the bubbling will die down to a smooth sauce.
- Shortcut Caramel/Chocolate Sauce: If you want to save a few minutes, you can swap store-bought caramel sauce for homemade, or use a combination of caramel sauce and hot fudge sauce.
- Buttermilk Banana Bread: For a tangy twist, you can use buttermilk instead of regular milk – this will add a rich, cheesecake-like flavor to the bread.
How to Store Salted Caramel Banana Bread
If you have any leftovers (and to be honest, that’s a big “if!”) you can store in the fridge.
- The banana bread itself will keep, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap or foil, for 3 – 4 days.
- Leftover caramel sauce will keep refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 30 days!
Can I Freeze This Recipe?
Yes, you can definitely freeze this! Just cool it down, wrap it tightly in a layer of plastic wrap, and follow up with a layer of foil. Freeze for up to four months, and thaw to room temperature before serving.
Salted Caramel Banana Bread
Ingredients
For the Caramel Sauce
- 1 cup Dixie Crystals Granulated Sugar
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ cup water
- 4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cubed
- ½ cup heavy cream
For the Banana Bread
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup Dixie Crystals Granulated Sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- ¼ cup whole milk, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup ripe mashed bananas, approx. 3 large bananas
- ½ cup salted caramel sauce
- ⅓ cup finely chopped walnuts, optional
Instructions
Caramel Sauce:
- In a medium saucepan, add granulated sugar, salt, and water. Swirl to cover sugar and salt mixture with water.
- Over medium heat, bring sugar mixture to a simmer. Do not stir. Allow to simmer for approximately 5 minutes or until the sugar turns an amber color. The pot can be gently swirled once or twice during this process. Be careful to not burn sugar mixture. If using a candy thermometer, cook until 350°F.
- Once the sugar mixture is ready, remove from heat and immediately add cold butter and heavy cream. Beware: the mixture will bubble violently but whisk through this, it will subside.
- Once the butter and heavy cream are fully incorporated into the sugar mixture, set aside and allow to cool.
Banana Bread:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9×5” loaf pan and line with parchment paper for easy removal.- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, add flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Whisk together and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, using a hand mixer, cream butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs one at a time and mix for approximately 1 minute between each addition. Next, add milk and vanilla and mix until combined.
- Pour the flour mixture into the butter/sugar mixture. Using a spatula, mix until the batter is almost combined. Add the mashed bananas and caramel sauce. Fold together a few more times until no more dry flour remains. Fold in walnuts now if using nuts.
- Immediately pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Place loaf pan on a baking sheet. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Using a butter knife gently run the knife around the loaf pan. Flip the loaf pan onto a serving dish, slice and drizzle with leftover caramel sauce.
Video
Notes
- Dark Color: Don’t be concerned if you notice that the bread is turning out darker than normal banana bread – the caramel sauce darkens the finished loaf.
- Don’t Burn the Sugar: When making caramel, be sure to stay with it until it’s done – sugar for caramel sauce can go from perfect to burned in just seconds!
- Use Caution with Caramel Sauce: When you add the heavy cream and butter, your caramel sauce will violently bubble up – so be ready. Just whisk through it and the bubbling will die down to a smooth sauce.
- Leavening: To make sure your salted caramel banana bread rises properly, check the date on your baking soda. Fresh baking soda is very important for getting a good rise.
Nutrition
More Decadent Baking Recipes
- Oreo Cheesecake Cookie Cups
- Dark Chocolate Banana Bread
- Rumchata Pound Cake
- Apple Blondies Recipe
- Banana Cream Cheese Muffins
- Baked French Toast Muffins
- Easy Cinnamon Bread
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Salted caramel sauce makes everything better. It’s easy to sub out homemade caramel sauce for store-bought if you are short on time. I do this often. I like to add a small pinch of flaky sea salt at the end if my store is out of jarred salted caramel sauce. Just adds a little salty-sweet contrast at the end.
Can I buy caramels candy and melt them for my caramel sauce
No, because this is more of a sauce than caramel candy texture. However, if you don’t want to make the homemade sauce, you can use store bough caramel sauce!
Can I use store bought caramel sauce in place of the homemade caramel sauce? I need to use this up and thought it would be a great option.
Yes! It should still work! :-)