Fluffy Banana Zucchini Bread with Brown Sugar Glaze
Can’t decide between banana bread and zucchini bread? Or you just have a couple of brown bananas and some zucchini to use up?! This banana zucchini bread is the answer. She’s fluffy, moist, perfectly spiced and topped with the best brown sugar glaze!
Last but certainly not least of my zucchini bread recipes, I made a banana zucchini mash-up. These types of recipes are so perfect for when you have a few brown bananas or just a little bit of zucchini to use up. I did the same with my pumpkin banana bread recipe as well, a little of everything makes a lot of goodness.
I said I didn’t have a favorite…that’s because when I wrote my other zucchini bread posts I hadn’t made this one yet. Looking back I’d say the double chocolate is a close second but this banana zucchini bread TAKES. THE. CAKE. I think it’s my favorite bread/loaf cake situation I have on my website.
How To Make The Best Banana Zucchini Bread
Again, just like my original Zucchini Bread recipe, it’s quite simple – mix the wet ingredients well. I like to add the eggs in one at a time and beat really well between each one. Then add the dry ingredients followed by the shredded zucchini.
The extra step here is that I mashed some bananas and mixed those into the batter in place of the greek yogurt and some of the zucchini.
Then I made a GORGEOUS brown sugar glaze to go on top that I stole from my Carrot Cake Loaf. I sort of want to put this on everything now.
The most tedious part is just shredding the zucchini so I definitely recommend a Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer Shredding Attachment. It’s fairly inexpensive and so useful for so many recipes!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Zucchini: I had very large zucchini and made several recipes from one. Some zucchinis can be more dry than others but if you weigh the amount, this shouldn’t matter too much. If you’re a little short on zucchini, you can also make up the difference in weight with more banana, apple sauce or yogurt.
- Flour: I use all purpose flour in most of my recipes and I HIGHLY recommend using a digital scale, as flour is so often over measured.
- 1:1 Gluten-free flour substitutes should also work fine.
- Baking Powder/Soda: I use both baking powder and baking soda to get a nice rise on the heavy batter.
- Sugar: I use granulated sugar in the bread. For the glaze I used brown sugar and powdered sugar.
- Oil/Butter: My zucchini bread recipes work with both oil and butter, but with the bananas and zucchini, I felt like olive oil was the way to go here.
- Eggs: I use room temperature, large eggs. Place them in hot water for a few minutes if they’re cold.
- Bananas: I used two small bananas – I always recommend weighing this so it’s accurate, I also weighed the zucchini to give you exact measurements. Use ripe or slightly overripe bananas for this. If you’re a few grams off on the bananas, you can replace the weight with more zucchini, apple sauce, yogurt or even a little water.
Step-by-Step Instructions with Photos
- Shred the zucchinis (with the peel is fine). Small seeds are fine but I discard the large ones.
- Mash the bananas until it’s mostly smooth and there are no large chunks.
- Whisk together the sugar and olive oil until they’re well combined.
- Whisk in the eggs and vanilla. For extra fluffy bread, add one egg at a time, whisking until each one is completely combined. Then add the other egg, etc.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients and then add them into the wet ingredients, whisking just until they’re completely combined.
- Fold in the shredded zucchini just until it’s combined.
- Spread the batter in the prepared pan and bake for about 60-70 minutes, until you insert a knife in the center and no wet batter comes out. Allow to cool for at least an hour before icing.
- Heat the butter, brown sugar and heavy cream just until it starts to bubble and the sugar is dissolved.
- Pour half of it over the powdered sugar and cinnamon, mix, then pour the other half & mix. Stir in the vanilla and drizzle over the bread.
Pro Tips for the best banana zucchini bread:
- Make sure to use the right pan for this bread. I recommend a 9×5” metal loaf pan. If you’re using a glass pan it may not bake properly.
- Don’t swap or reduce any of the ingredients if I didn’t mention them in the ingredient section above.
- Use a digital scale to measure your ingredients for the most accurate measurements. If your zucchini or banana doesn’t add up to the exact weight, you can make it up with the other one (like a little more zucchini or banana if you’re a little short on one) or you can add a little applesauce, yogurt or even water, to make up the difference.
Frequently Asked Questions
I stick a knife all the way down the center (the tallest part) and if it comes out with moist crumbs instead of gummy batter it’s done baking.
You can also check the temperature with a digital thermometer – you want it around 200F (93C).
I made zucchini bread into like 5 flavors and tested them all as muffins – I won’t double post the recipe as muffins lol but they do work perfectly if you follow the baking instructions of my pumpkin banana muffins (rest for about an hour, bake 12 large muffins at 425F and then 375F).
How to store banana zucchini bread
I place the bread under a cake dome or in an airtight container or baggy at room temperature for 2-3 days. If it’s longer you can refrigerate it for a couple of days but it may dry out quicker in the fridge, so I recommend freezing instead.
You can freeze the whole thing or each individual slice with plastic wrap and then place them in a freezer bag. Bring back to room temperature before serving.
Thanks so much for reading today’s post, if you have any questions just comment down below.
If you’re as obsessed with this banana zucchini bread as much as I am, I would appreciate it if you left a 5-star rating or a review below lol & don’t forget to save on Pinterest!
As always, have a blessed day and happy baking!
Love, B
