Banana Bars are in my Top 3 of Best Desserts Ever. They are super delicious, easy to make and the best way to use up ripe bananas!
Original post: January 2016 | Updated: July 2020
Some weeks we go through bananas like crazy and other weeks I feel like I should open a Geriatric Banana Nursing Home in the far corner of our kitchen. This was an elderly banana nursing home week.
An alarming number of ailing yellow fruits were piled high in our fruit bowl and I knew I had to take action.
I made a batch of these banana bars, my favorite bars in all the world and as always my family and I devoured them. When I went to bed one night I saw there was about a quarter of the pan left in the fridge. When I peeked in the fridge the next morning, all that was left were crumbs.
This means that someone (or a couple someones) ate the rest of the pan before it was even time for breakfast. That right there is the best endorsement in the world.
They are moist and delicious, with the best banana flavor you can imagine. And the frosting.. Oh don’t even get me started on the frosting!
HOW TO MAKE BANANA BARS (AKA BANANA CAKE)
STEP 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8×8 square baking dish with parchment paper. Lightly spray with cooking spray and set aside. In a large bowl, cream the butter, light brown sugar, egg and vanilla. Mix until creamy.
STEP 2
In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Mix well and gradually add to batter. Mix until incorporated. Add 2 mashed bananas and stir until combined. Pour into prepared baking dish.
Spread the batter evenly in the pan with a spatula and bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool completely.
STEP 3
While the bars are baking and cooling, prepare the frosting. In a mixing bowl, combine the butter, powdered sugar, brown sugar, salt and vanilla. Mix well. Gradually pour in the maple syrup while mixing.
Beat on medium-high speed until frosting is fluffy and smooth, about 2 minutes.
Once the bars have cooled, spread the frosting evenly over the top. Refrigerate until ready to serve and cut into small squares. Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
RECIPE NOTES FOR BANANA BARS
- Half of the brown sugar in the bars can be replaced with granulated sugar, if desired.
- Add 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips to the batter for a chocolatey version of these bars!
- 1/2 cup peanut butter would be a delicious addition to the batter!
- Let both butter and egg sit at room temperature for 30 minutes if at all possible.
OTHER DELICIOUS BANANA RECIPES
- This Best Banana Bread recipe is tried, tested, delicious and EASY! Great way to use up those ripe bananas staring at you from your counter!
- Banana Crumb Muffins are a delicious way to use up ripe bananas. You will love the crumb topping with brown sugar as an afternoon treat on these tender muffins. So tasty you may want to find friends to send them too!
- Pumpkin AND bananas join forces in this tasty Pumpkin Banana Bread! This is a great fall treat and your house has never smelled so good.
- Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies – Adding bananas to Chocolate Chip Cookies is a great way to use up ripe bananas! These cookies are super moist and delicious!
- Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Banana Bread is my favorite delicious twist on Banana Bread! Cream cheese makes EVERYTHING better.
HOW TO STORE BANANAS
Leave bananas in their cute little bunches on the counter or hanging from a banana tree. Keeping them at room temperature is optimal when they are not yet past their prime.
Some grocery stores will do this for you, but if you wish to extend the life of the banana wrap the stems in plastic wrap.
Once they start to show signs of ripeness (brown or even black spots), throw them into the fridge if you know you’ll be using them in a recipe in the next few days.
If you don’t have a plan in the near future for overly ripe bananas, put them in the freezer instead. Before you freeze them, it is ideal to remove them from the peel first. It also works to just toss the entire fruit in the freezer, if you don’t want to mess with a peel at this point.
When you are ready to use them in a recipe, allow them to thaw completely before mashing and adding them to your next batch of baked goods.
Banana Bars with Maple Frosting
Ingredients
BARS
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 bananas mashed
FROSTING
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup real maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8×8 square baking dish with parchment paper. Lightly spray with cooking spray and set aside. Prepare the bars. In a large mixing bowl, combine butter, light brown sugar, egg and vanilla. Mix until creamy.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Mix well and gradually add to batter. Mix until incorporated. Add mashed bananas and stir until combined. Pour into prepared baking dish. Spread batter evenly in pan with a spatula and bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool.
- While the bars are baking, prepare the frosting. In a mixing bowl, combine the butter, powdered sugar, dark brown sugar, salt and vanilla. Mix well. Gradually pour in the maple syrup while mixing. Mix on medium speed until frosting is fluffy and smooth.
- When bars are cooled, spread frosting evenly over the top. Refrigerate until ready to serve and cut into small squares. Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Half of the brown sugar in the bars can be replaced with granulated sugar, if desired.
- Add 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips to the batter for a chocolatey version of these bars!
- 1/2 cup peanut butter would be a delicious addition to the batter!
- Let both butter and egg sit at room temperature for 30 minutes if at all possible.
These were great! I added a couple of handfuls of chocolate chips and made a cream cheese version of the maple icing, but the recipe itself worked beautifully.
The chocolate chips are a great addition! Never go wrong with cream cheese icing either. Thanks for sharing!
It really looks delicious.
I assure you, they are! Try it – you won’t be sad!
Geriatric Banana Nursing Home ?!!! That’s the perfect way to describe my banana situation on a weekly basis. But I use it as an excuse to freeze big batches of them for purely baking purposes-like these! I’ve never had or heard of banana bars they look absolutely delicious!
I love freezing bananas, too, Meg! It’s perfect for times when I just NEED some delicious Banana Bars. I hope you try these….they are one of my favorite desserts of all time. Sooooo good! Enjoy!
Megan
These look awesome. I’m always looking for new banana recipes — I’ll have to give this one a try!