Chocolate Chip Pecan Banana Bread (without Butter)

This delicious banana bread recipe with pecans and chocolate chips is hands-down the best I've ever had.

It's super soft and moist, loaded with banana flavor, and a really easy recipe to make in one bowl.

No need to separate the wet ingredients from the dry ingredients -- you just mix them all together!

If you're wondering if you can use frozen bananas for banana bread -- yes, absolutely! I'll show you how.

Another bonus? This banana bread is made without butter.

Whether you're out of butter or the sky-high price of butter has you searching for other alternatives, rest assured, you can make this banana bread without butter and not miss it.

Now, about the chocolate chips and pecans. Where you put them is totally up to you.

I'm not as much of a fan of nuts in things as much as on things. So I like them as a topping. Same with the chocolate chips.

I wanted to keep the banana bread in its pure and perfect form .. but I also wanted chocolate, lol.

So I put them both on top of the bread. I love the way it looks and tastes.

You can mix them into the batter at the very end, put them all on top like I did, or BOTH!

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Perfect recipe for soft, moist banana bread without butter

Simple recipe for one bowl banana bread you can stir together in minutes

Easy banana bread recipe you can make with frozen bananas

Beautiful and delicious pecan and chocolate chip topping

All you need are these basic ingredients.

Bananas. You'll need 2 full cups of mashed bananas, which is about 4 medium bananas. Use dark brown overripe bananas. Frozen overripe bananas also work.

Oil. Banana bread without butter stays soft and moist by substituting the butter with canola oil.

Brown sugar. Many banana bread recipes call for all white sugar. I swapped out some of it for brown sugar for even more moisture and delicious molasses flavor. I always use dark brown sugar, but light brown sugar also works.

Eggs. Let the eggs come to room temperature before adding them to the batter. This will help everything blend cohesively together.

Sour cream. Sour cream makes this banana bread exceptionally moist. Use room temperature sour cream. Plain full-fat Greek yogurt also works.

All purpose flour. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup rather than scooping it straight from the bag or canister. Too much flour can cause banana bread to become dry.

Pecans. Nuts are optional and where you put them is also your choice -- in the batter or on top of the loaf. If you mix them into the batter, feel free to up the quantity to ½ cup or more!

Mini chocolate chips. I use mini chocolate chips as a topping because I get more coverage from those tiny little morsels. You can use regular semi-sweet chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips, or none at all. If you prefer to stir them into the batter, up the quantity to ½ cup.

Swapping out oil for butter in this no butter banana bread recipe is really easy to do.

Replace ¾ of the amount of butter with olive oil, canola oil, or vegetable oil. So if your recipe calls for 1 cup of butter, use ¾ cup of oil instead.

This banana bread recipe without butter turned out perfectly with ½ cup of canola oil. Of course, there's plenty of bananas, some brown sugar, and sour cream that also keep it super soft and moist.

Can you use frozen bananas to make banana bread? Yes!

When bananas hit that perfect overripe state -- brown, almost black -- no need to feel pressured to make banana bread yet. Just throw whole brown bananas into the freezer, with the peels on. When you're ready to bake with them, defrost them on a plate at room temperature or in the microwave.

To defrost bananas in the microwave, place them on a microwave-safe plate and heat at 50% power for 3-4 minutes, or until completely thawed. They'll be verrrrry soft and watery.

Before using the bananas for banana bread, mash them and strain off the liquid.

I've seen plenty of articles saying otherwise -- even that the liquid has an added benefit of improving the texture and flavor of banana bread.

But then I read this article from Sally's Baking Addiction. Her argument that the extra liquid makes baked goods "overly dense and heavy," along with photographic evidence of such, built a compelling case for straining the liquid.

So that's what I did and it worked perfectly. And look at how much liquid I got from 4 bananas!

The advice to strain comes with some caveats like using the strained liquid to replace some of the liquid in a recipe. And if you're following a frozen banana bread recipe that was written specifically to include the liquid, by all means, follow the recipe.

When straining frozen bananas for banana bread, the thawed, mashed, strained banana you are left with should have the same texture as ripe bananas that have not been frozen.

Yes, you can use white or brown sugar in banana bread -- or both, like this recipe.

Brown sugar will add a little moisture, rich molasses flavor, and a slightly darker color to the finished product.

I always use dark brown sugar because it is more flavorful, but light brown sugar also works.

Yes, you absolutely should use overripe bananas for banana bread.

Bananas that are at the perfect ripeness for banana bread are way beyond anything you'd put in a lunchbox or smoothie and just under the fruit fly radar.

Overripe bananas for banana bread should be very dark brown and even black in places.

If there is any mold or an off-putting odor, they've gone too far and you shouldn't eat them.

1. Preheat the oven and prepare the loaf pan.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Line a 9x5 inch bread pan with parchment paper. This makes it easy to lift banana bread with toppings right out of the pan. If you're not adding toppings, grease the pan with nonstick spray.

2. Make the banana bread batter.

Lightly mash bananas in a large bowl. Keep the banana a little chunky, you don't want it to be completely smooth.

If you're using frozen bananas, strain off the liquid before using. See more tips for "How to Make Banana Bread with Frozen Bananas" above.

Add the oil and sour cream to the mashed bananas. Stir.

Mix in the baking soda and salt.

Stir in the sugars, beaten eggs, and vanilla extract.

Mix in the flour. Stir until just combined, do not overmix.

3. Transfer the batter to the loaf pan and add toppings.

Pour batter into the prepared pan.

Sprinkle the chocolate chips and pecans in an even layer over the top of the loaf.

4. Bake, cool, dig in!

Bake for 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes back clean or with a few moist crumbs, or the internal temperature reads 200-205 on an instant read thermometer.

Tent with foil toward the end if it looks like it's getting too brown.

Cool for 10-15 minutes on a wire baking rack. Remove the loaf from the pan and allow it to cool completely.

Store banana bread at room temperature covered in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap for 3-4 days.

Banana bread freezes really well -- by the loaf or in slices.

Before you freeze banana bread, be sure to cool it completely. Wrap a full or partial loaf or individual slices in 2 layers of plastic wrap and again in aluminum foil. Place the foil packet into a large freezer bag or freezer safe airtight container.

Freeze the loaf or slices for up to 3 months. Thaw banana bread at room temperature.

Line the pan with parchment paper so it's easy to lift the warm loaf out of the pan.

Sprinkle the pecans and chocolate chips over the batter in an even layer so they'll stick once the loaf has baked and cooled.

As an option, add up to 1 cup of pecan and/or chocolate chips to the batter. Just fold them before you pour the batter into the pan.

Use room temperature eggs and sour cream.

Banana bread stored in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap will stay fresh on your counter for 3-4 days. Freeze it by the loaf or slice for up to 3 months.

Banana bread is done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean or when an instant read thermometer reads 200-205 degrees.

Oil is an excellent replacement for butter in banana bread. Use a 3:4 ratio when making the substitute. If the recipe calls for 1 cup of butter, replace it with ¾ cup of oil.

This heavy, non-stick 9x5 bread pan from Wilton works perfectly for this homemade banana bread recipe.

Parchment paper sheets are handy to have in the kitchen for baking breads, cakes, and cookies and setting chocolate dipped treats on to set.

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