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Banana Bread Without Baking Soda (Easy Recipe with Baking Powder)

Stack of banana bread slices on a serving board.
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5 from 35 reviews

Banana bread without baking soda is soft, moist, and well-risen. This easy recipe uses baking powder instead of soda and comes together in one bowl.

Ingredients

Scale

For the bread batter:

  • 5.3 oz. (150 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup (200 g) brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 2/3 cups + 4 tablespoons (240 g) all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons (10 g) baking powder
  • 10 oz. (285 g) bananas, mashed 
  • 2 tablespoons (30 ml) dark rum

For the crumb topping (optional)

  • 5 tablespoons (40 g) all-purpose flour
  • 6 1/2 tablespoons (40 g) almond flour
  • 5 tablespoons (40 g) icing (powdered) sugar
  • 1.4 oz. (40 g) cold salted butter 

For the decoration (optional):

  • flaked toasted almonds
  • icing (powdered) sugar

*Don't you have the correct baking pan on hand right now? Try this simple Cake Pan Converter!

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Instructions

  1. To make the batter, preheat the oven to 300°F/150°C. Butter and flour or line a nonstick loaf pan with parchment paper. 
  2. Beat softened butter and brown sugar for 5 minutes using an electric mixer. Add all-purpose flour (1 2/3 cups + 4 tablespoons/240 g) mixed with baking powder and eggs, and delicately mix with a rubber spatula.
  3. Mash bananas with a fork and fold them into the principal preparation. Add rum and mix with a spatula just until combined. Place the bread batter in the fridge while making the streusel.
  4. To make the crumb topping (optionally), in a separate bowl, mix all-purpose flour (5 tbsp/40 g), almond flour, icing (powdered) sugar, and chilled salted butter cut into pieces. Make the crumbly dough by hand. It has to look like wet sand.
  5. Pour the batter into the pan, sprinkle the streusel on top, and bake for 90 minutes. The bread is ready when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Sprinkle the top of the bread with flaked toasted almonds and dust with icing (powdered) sugar.

Notes

  1. Soften unsalted butter by taking it out of the fridge for 2 hours before cooking.
  2. Replace dark rum with some juice if you serve the cake to kids.
  3. Mash bananas with a fork, an electric handheld mixer, or a potato masher.
  4. Do not overmix the bread batter when you add crushed bananas. Instead, gently mix to combine.
  5. Split the recipe into four small loaves or make banana bread mini muffins if you prefer.
  6. Adjust your oven's baking time: I tested and retested, and the cake is ready in 90 minutes.
  7. Test the cake for readiness! Use a toothpick: if inserted in the middle of the cake and it comes out clean, the bread is ready. If it still has the batter on it, add another 3 to 5 minutes and test again.
  8. Cool the baked banana bread completely before slicing.
  9. Serve with a dollop of mascarpone or slabs of salted butter.  

Nutrition

Find it online: https://www.bakinglikeachef.com/banana-bread-christophe-michalak/