Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread
Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread is a moist and soft quick bread with a cinnamon-sugar swirl inside. This delicious banana bread requires simple ingredients and does not need a stand mixer! Buttery with some delightful crunchy, sugary edges, and bits of melty chocolate chips, this is definitely a household favorite.
This Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread is winning our hearts. Imagine a luscious banana bread with some chocolate chips for decadence. Then add a sweet swirl of cinnamon all throughout the bread, giving it a touch of sweetness and flavor in every bite.
This moist cinnamon banana bread recipe has definitely won a spot of my daughters’ school lunch boxes, and the place of a simple dessert for everyone at home. I am loving baking quick bread and muffins lately. The process and ingredients are fairly simple yet it results in a lovely anytime sweet treat. Have you tried my Banana Chocolate Chip Cake with Oatmeal Crumbs or Chocolate Banana Bread?
Needless to say, Banana bread is a nice baked good to have in the counter. Give it a day or two and it is usually gone. Finish and enjoyed!
The Simple Ingredients
- The Cinnamon Sugar Mixture. This is made of cinnamon and sugar mixed together, and is sprinkled in layers in the batter to create the swirl.
- The Dry Ingredients. These are the all-purpose flour, baking soda and salt.
- The Wet Ingredients. This will be made up of the melted unsalted butter, the egg, the white sugar, brown sugar, sour cream, mashed bananas (use ripe bananas for optimal banana flavor) and the vanilla extract.
- Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips. I added a small amount of chocolate chips giving the bread some scattered bits of melty chocolate in every bite. So decadent!
Let’s Make Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread
Make the Cinnamon Swirl. In a small bowl, whisk together the cinnamon and sugar until uniform in color. Set aside.
Make the Cake Batter. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan with baking spray. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, pour butter, the egg and the white and brown sugars. Use a wire whisk and beat until combined and smooth. Add the sour cream, mashed banana and vanilla extract. Beat again until the ingredients are incorporated and the mixture is uniform in color.
Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients. Use the whisk to mix, just until the mixture is combined. Do not overmix. This is a thick batter. Switch to a rubber spatula and fold in the chocolate chips.
Layer the Batter and Cinnamon Sugar. Drop half of the batter in dollops all over the surface of the loaf pan, then use an offset spatula to smoothen and even it out. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar swirl mixture over the batter, reserving about 1 tbsp.
Again, drop the remaining batter in dollops over the cinnamon, then use the offset spatula to even it out. Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon mixture over the cake batter.
Swirl! Use a knife to make one swirling motion in the batter, being careful not to scrape the bottom surface of your pan to avoid damage to it.
Bake the Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread. Bake the quick bread at 350 ℉ for 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted at the center comes out clean. You can tent the loaf pan with foil during the last ten minutes of baking to avoid overbrowning.
Cool the Bread. Let the pan cool on a wire rack for about an hour. Then, remove the cake by first gently pressing down the sides, and/or loosening the sides with a wooden spoon or knife. Let the bread cool completely, or cool enough before slicing.
Serving and Storing Leftovers
- I usually slice my banana bread as soon as it is warm enough. Oh that warm, fresh goodness out of the oven is just top-notch! To store leftovers, I keep them in a sealed containers at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- To re-heat, I warm a slice or two in the microwave for 10 seconds.
Also try:
Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread
Equipment
- 1 9×5 inch loaf pan affiliate link
Ingredients
For the Cinnamon Swirl
- ¼ cup (52.83 g) white granulated sugar
- ½ tbsp. (3.9 g) ground cinnamon
For the Banana Bread Batter
- 1 ¾ cup (231.15 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup (113 g) melted butter
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- ½ cup (105.67 g) white granulated sugar
- ½ cup (116.24 g) brown sugar
- ¼ cup (62.5 ml) sour cream room temperature
- ¾ cup mashed banana about 2 large bananas
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup (95.1 g) cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
Make the Cinnamon Swirl
- In a small bowl, whisk together the cinnamon and sugar until uniform in color. Set aside.
Make the Cake Batter
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan with baking spray. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In another bowl, pour butter, the egg and the sugars. Use a wire whisk and beat until combined and smooth. Add the sour cream, mashed banana and vanilla extract. Beat with the wire whisk until the ingredients are incorporated and the mixture is uniform in color.
- Add the wet mixture to the flour mixture, Use the whisk to mix the two, just until the mixture is combined. Do not overmix. This is a thick batter. Switch to a rubber spatula and fold in the chocolate chips.
- Drop half of the batter in dollops all over the surface of the loaf pan, then use an offset spatula to smoothen and even it out. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar swirl mixture over the batter, reserving about 1 tbsp.
- Again, drop the remaining batter in dollops over the cinnamon, then use the offset spatula to even it out. Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon mixture over the cake batter.
- Use a knife to make one swirling motion in the batter, being careful not to scrape the bottom surface of your pan to avoid damage to it. Bake the quick bread at 350 ℉ for 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted at the center comes out clean. You can tent the loaf pan with foil during the last ten minutes of baking to avoid overbrowning.
- Let the pan cool on a wire rack for about an hour. Then, remove the cake by first gently pressing down the sides, and/or loosening the sides with a wooden spoon or knife. Let the bread cool completely, or cool enough before slicing.
Moist and soft! A family favorite!