31 Banana Recipes to Put That Ripe (Or Overripe) Bunch to Work
Sure, we love a nice loaf of banana bread, but there are many other creative ways to use that spotted yellow bunch. Our best banana recipes include breakfast favorites like pancakes and strawberry-banana smoothies to start your morning right. There are desserts aplenty, including a refreshing take on British favorite banoffee pie and a simple skillet cake recipe with a sticky glaze. You’ll also find a few fun twists on banana bread here, like crumb-topped muffins and a vegan version loaded with chocolate chunks and glazed in caramel.
Many of our favorite banana recipes call for overripe bananas, and we’re here for it. Despite our best efforts to slice the fruit over cereal or slather it with peanut butter, a couple of stragglers always end up crossing over to the dark side. But don’t toss that browning bunch: As bananas ripen, their starches transform into simple sugars, resulting in a jammy sweetness, heightened banana flavor, and moisture that actually enhances quick breads and cakes. Let’s get mashing.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Drew Aichele1/31Banana Muffins With Brown Sugar Streusel
Reminiscent of a fruit-studded coffee cake, these banana bread muffins are rich and nutty from brown butter, delicately spiced with cinnamon and freshly grated nutmeg, and crowned with a brown sugar oat streusel. Bake this banana recipe over the weekend, and keep the muffins on hand for a quick breakfast or snack.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Micah Marie Morton2/31Banana Cream Pie With Bourbon Whipped Cream
Give banana cream pie a taste of Southern hospitality by spiking the whipped cream with a splash of bourbon.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Prop Styling by Gerri Williams, Food Styling by Judy Haubert3/31Banana Milkshake
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne4/31Banoffee Pie
If you prefer slightly less sweet desserts, take a page out of British baking icon Prue Leith’s book: Swap digestive biscuits for a ginger nut biscuit crust, halve the amount of condensed milk toffee, and flambé the bananas with a splash of brandy.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, food styling by Rhoda Boone5/31Classic Easy Banana Bread
This banana nut bread will forever be our favorite way to use a pile of overripe bananas. After testing round after round of the classic loaf, this version stood out for its supremely moist, tender crumb. Make it your own by leaving out the walnuts, swapping them for pecans, or adding chocolate chunks or a ribbon of cream cheese.
6/31Bananas Foster
This New Orleans favorite highlights halved bananas, brushed in lemon juice to maintain their freshness, then flambéed in a syrupy (but not cloyingly sweet) white rum sauce. For serious wow factor, light the dessert aflame tableside. Don’t forget the vanilla ice cream.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Lillian Chou7/31Banana Pudding Cheesecake Bars
Banana pudding meets cheesecake in these sliceable banana bars, featuring a Nilla wafer crust, velvety fresh-banana cheesecake, and fluffy sour cream whip.
Photo and Styling by Joseph De Leo8/31Plátanos Horneados con Crema y Queso (Baked Banana With Crema and Cheese)
You don’t need fancy techniques or gadgets (looking at you, kitchen scale) to make a great dessert. Case in point? This simple baked banana dish, which calls for just three ingredients.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Drew Aichele9/31Sticky Banana and Chocolate Skillet Cake
If you like your cakes sticky, gooey, and full of chocolate, you’ve come to the right place. This skillet cake is baked in a non-stick pan and is topped with caramelized bananas and vanilla cream.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Micah Marie Morton10/31Vegan Banana Bread With Chocolate and Miso
Miso adds a slightly savory note to this chocolate chip banana bread, which also happens to be vegan. Bake in a muffin tin for just-sweet-enough chocolate banana muffins.
Photo by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Micah Marie Morton11/31Khao Niao Ping Sai Kluai (Grilled Sweet Sticky Rice With Banana Filling)
For this traditional Thai recipe, seek out nam wa bananas, which are sweeter and tangier than other varieties you’ll find at the grocery store.
Photo by Oriana Koren12/31Hummingbird Cake
Now a staple of the American South’s baking canon, the hummingbird cake originally hails from Jamaica. This version from chef Kelly Fields boasts the usual cinnamon and cardamom and gets a dose of ground rose petals for a floral note.
Photo by Evi Abeler13/31Almond Butter and Banana Pancakes
Mashed bananas and smooth almond butter form the base of this four-ingredient, gluten-free pancake batter. Top the finished flapjacks with sliced bananas and cocoa nibs.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne14/31Capirotada
This Mexican bread pudding is traditionally served at Lent, but we’d make a case for this sweet-and-savory, peanut and coconut–studded dish to be enjoyed year-round.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Judy Kim15/31Banana Pudding Custard Pie
Borrowing elements from both banana pudding (a crispy, golden vanilla wafer crust) and banana cream pie (a silky custard filling), this custard pie is a banana lover’s dream.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson16/31Peanut Butter Banana Muffins
High in fiber and full of vitamins, wheat germ boosts the nutrition in this whole-grain, kid-friendly peanut butter muffin recipe. Bonus: It adds a lot of nutty flavor, too. If you're hoping to sneak some chocolate in, try our banana chocolate chip muffins.
Photo by Sidney Bensimon17/31Vegan Banana Ice Cream
Use an immersion blender to transform coconut milk and cashew milk (yes, you need both), plus a few other pantry ingredients, into a creamy vegan ice cream base, then add in freshly-roasted bananas and toasted walnuts.
Romulo Yanes19/31Banana Tartes Tatin
To make these impressive little banana desserts, you’ll need only four ingredients: unsalted butter, brown sugar, ripe bananas, and puff pastry. Serve with a generous scoop of ice cream.
Photo by Haarala Hamilton21/31Bananas and Ice Cream With Brandy Syrup on Panettone
Give that half-eaten holiday panettone new life with the help of this bananas Foster-inspired recipe from Great British Bake Off judge Prue Leith.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Katherine Sacks22/31Banana-Pecan Ice Cream Bread
This fun dessert magically transforms store-bought ice cream into bread with the help of self-rising flour. Using butter pecan ice cream does double duty, adding caramelly sweetness and nutty crunch.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Styling by Ali Nardi23/31Banana-Stuffed French Toast
This banana-stuffed French toast will be the star of your next brunch: Cut each slice of bread almost all the way through, then stuff each pocket with four to six banana slices before soaking them in custard. Don’t forget the maple syrup.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Prop Styling by Dayna Seman, Food Styling by Jesse Szewczyk24/31Creamy-Dreamy Strawberry-Banana Smoothie
Keep this straightforward smoothie plain for a milkshake alternative, or load it up with your favorite add-ins like protein powder, collagen, or chia seeds.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Micah Marie Morton25/31Dr. Bird Cake
Spiced banana-pineapple layer cake, commonly called hummingbird cake in the States, goes by the name Dr. Bird Cake in Jamaica. This version uses whole wheat flour for nutty complexity, coconut oil to heighten the tropical flavor, and swoops of cream cheese frosting for ultimate richness.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson26/31Banana Coconut Muffins
This easy recipe relies on mashed bananas and flaked coconut for sublime texture and tropical-leaning flavor. Want more delicious recipes for muffins? We have a gallery for that.
Photo by Myles New27/31Raspberry & Banana No-Knead Breakfast Loaf
How can you upgrade even the best banana bread recipe? Fold some raspberries into the loaf. They’ll give it a welcome pop of color, and the tart berry flavor pairs wonderfully with the sweet bananas.
Photo by Ted Cavanaugh28/31Banana Split Ice Cream Cake
Turn the classic banana split into an epic ice cream cake layered with caramel banana jam, maraschino cherries suspended in vanilla ice cream, and crushed peanuts.
Photo by Colin Price30/31Blueberry Muffin Smoothie
This smoothie recipe channels the flavors of classic blueberry muffins into a cooling breakfast for the whole family. Use fresh or frozen blueberries and bananas, and feel free to add chia or flax seeds for an extra nutritional boost.
Photo by Elizabeth Coetzee, Food styling by Mira Evnine31/31Chocolate-Covered Frozen Bananas
Our easiest banana recipe calls for just three ingredients: Skewer bananas on popsicle sticks, dip them in chocolate, and freeze for a fun, hand-held dessert or snack. Don’t skip the sprinkles.
