Raisin Banana Bread is a great way to use ripe bananas. This is not your one banana bread though, but you could use only one banana.
This is a at least a 3 banana bread recipe which uses overripe bananas, flour, raisins, and cinnamon in this yeast rising bread. Not so sweet, this cinnamon raisin banana bread makes the perfect toast for morning, a bread that you can toast and spread butter or jam on.

Jump to:
- Can Raisins go in Banana Bread?
- What can you make with ripe bananas?
- How do I Know When my Banana Bread is Cooked?
- Ingredients Needed to Make Banana Raisin Bread
- Instructions on How to Make Banana Raisin Bread
- Top tip
- Substitutions and Varitions
- Equipment
- Storage
- Food Safety
- Other Desserts and Snack Ideas
- PIN It Here
- Recipe Details
- Comments
Can Raisins go in Banana Bread?
Sure, you can put raisins, cinnamon and brown sugar in this banana bread recipe. You can make a chocolate chip version as well.
Use a bread recipe as your base and add any of your favorite ingredients. For ideas, see the substitutions and variations section.
What can you make with ripe bananas?
This recipe for delicious banana bread was inspired by my recipe for Banana Loaf which is a much sweeter loaf.
There are so many other things you can make with ripe bananas, like:
- Gluten Free Banana Muffins
- Cake
- Pancakes
- Banana Oatmeal
- Smoothies
I'm sure there are so many more recipes you can make with bananas. They are so versatile and add so much flavor to whatever you cook or bake.
How do I Know When my Banana Bread is Cooked?
You will know when your banana bread is cooked because it will be hard to the touch.
If you give it a tap, it should sound hollow. You can stick a wooden skewer inside and if it comes out dry and not sticky then it's cooked.
You could also stick a thermometer in the centre and if it reads between 374 F and 392 F, then it should be done.
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Everyone likes dessert, right? How about easy desserts to impress at a party, this easy coffee cake or Nutter Butter Sandwich Cookies.
Ingredients Needed to Make Banana Raisin Bread
- Overripe Bananas
- Warm Water
- Yeast
- Sugar
- All Purpose Flour
- Raisins
- Butter
- Brown Sugar
- Cinnamon
- Salt
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions on How to Make Banana Raisin Bread
Place warm water, sugar and yeast in a small bowl for 10 minutes. Puree your banana and set aside.
Once you know your yeast is active add pureed banana, salt and start to add the flour one cup at a time, using a whisk to combine ingredients at first.
Continue to add the flour using a spatula to fold the ingredients until the dough looks like it could be picked up and kneaded. Do not knead. Let rest in bowl covered with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. Let rise for about 30 minutes. Punch the dough and roll it out onto a floured surface. Using a dough scraper helps to keep your hands clean.
Knead it, using as much flour as needed. Once you are able to handle the dough, roll it out into a square that it is the width of your loaf pan.
Sprinkle cinnamon and brown sugar on the dough, then roll it up and place it back in your pan to rise again, covered.
Let rise for about 30 minutes, then bake at 375 F for about 50 minutes. Brush the top surface with butter, every 10 minutes. Let cool before slicing.
Top tip
Use a bowl and a spatula to mix the ingredients together initially. When you are ready to roll out and knead the bread, use a dough scraper.
Hint: Using a dough scraper helps keep your hands clean and free of loose dough.
Substitutions and Varitions
Here are some ideas to make this loaf different and unique:
- Banana nut bread - add nuts to your bread for a nutty taste.
- Chocolate Chip Banana Bread - if you are a chocolate lover, add chocolate chips to your banana bread
- Oats - add oats to your dough to make a raisin oatmeal loaf.
- Banana Cake with Frosting - make your banana cake more moist and cake like and add frosting.
Can you think of any other way to make this different? Go ahead and try it and let me know how it turned out!
Equipment
Equipment has an impact on what you make. You'll need a non stick loaf pan or a glass loaf pan to cook your loaf. A dough scraper comes in handy too.
Once your loaf is done baking, you will need a cooling rack to let it cool down.
Storage
Store this cinnamon raisin banana bread in it's loaf pan wrapped in parchment paper and plastic wrap.
If you don't think that you will consume the whole loaf within a week, cut it in half and store half in the freezer wrapped in parchment paper and foil. Slice the loaf into individual slices before freezing for easy thawing. Consume within 3 weeks.
Food Safety
Note that the storage guidelines provided on this page and site are estimates from personal experiences. We are all adults and as an adult you are responsible to ensure that the food you eat is safe to eat. Since, I'm not a food safety expert, you are responsible to review your local guidelines on food storage prior to storing any food left-overs.
Remember to:
- Not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
For Canadian Guidelines check Government of Canada's Food and Safety Guidelines, see more guidelines at USDA.gov.
Other Desserts and Snack Ideas
PIN It Here
Recipe Details
Raisin Banana Bread
Ingredients Â
- 3 overripe bananas pured
- 1 cup warm water
- 1 tablespoon dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 5 cups of all purpose flour
- ½ cup raisins
- ½ cup melted butter divided into 2
- â…“ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon of cinnamon
InstructionsÂ
- Place warm water, sugar and yeast in a small bowl for 10 minutes.
- Puree your banana and set aside.
- Once you know your yeast is active add pureed banana, salt and start to add the flour one cup at a time, using a whisk to combine ingredients at first.
- Continue to add the flour using a spatula to fold the ingredients until the dough looks like it could be picked up and kneaded. Do not knead. Let rest in bowl covered with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. Let rise for about 30 minutes.
- Punch the dough and roll it out onto a floured surface. Knead it, using as much flour as needed.
- Once you are able to handle the dough, roll it out into a square that it is the width of your loaf pan.
- Sprinkle cinnamon and brown sugar on the dough, then roll it up and place it back in your pan to rise again, covered.
- If there is excess flour on top, use a brush to brush it off.
- Let rise for about 30 minutes, then bake at 375 F for about 50 minutes.
- In the last 20 minutes, brush the top surface with butter, every 10 minutes (twice).
- Remove once the bread is cooked. You can use a souvlaki stick poked in the centre and if it comes out dry, then it's done.
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