Moist, tender banana bread studded with melted chocolate chips. This easy one-bowl recipe uses ripe bananas and pantry staples to produce a bakery-style loaf that’s perfect for breakfast, snacks, or dessert.
Preheat & prepare pan: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan or line it with parchment paper.
Combine dry ingredients: In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
Cream butter and sugar: In a large bowl, beat the softened butter with the sugar until pale and slightly fluffy (about 2–3 minutes by hand or with an electric mixer).
Add eggs, banana & vanilla: Beat in the eggs one at a time. Stir in the mashed bananas and vanilla extract until combined.
Add dry ingredients: Fold the flour mixture into the wet ingredients in two additions, mixing gently until just combined. Avoid overmixing.
Fold in chocolate chips: Fold most of the chocolate chips into the batter, reserving about 2 tablespoons for the top. If using nuts or other add-ins, fold them in now.
Transfer to pan: Pour batter into prepared loaf pan, smoothing the top. Sprinkle reserved chocolate chips evenly over the surface.
Bake: Bake for 55–65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs (a few melted chocolate streaks are okay). If the top browns too quickly, tent loosely with foil after 35–40 minutes.
Cool: Let the loaf cool in the pan for 10–15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing. Cooling helps set the crumb and makes slicing neater.