Salted Caramel Banana Bread

What if I told you your basic banana bread could be made THAT much better, just by keeping the recipe the same an adding in something snazzy?

Would you be down to try it?

Last week, I showed you exactly how to make bourbon caramel sauce. And remember, I showed you how to make it non-bourbon caramel sauce by simply omitting the bourbon.

It’s safe to assume you’re all homemade caramel pros now, correct? Perfect! Let’s get to making some recipes that use your new talent for extra good!

Today is my beloved husband’s birthday (hi, Matty!). He’s 31! And we’re celebrating in a… Not so epic way this year.

You may recall that last year, we took a super awesome trip to Nashville where we ate hot chicken, allofthedessert, and drank a lot of beer.

Oh, and then we came home and had planned to go indoor skydiving but then I invited 20 of our friends and surprised him there, and thennnnn we all went out for drinks and dinner, where another 30ish people met up with us.

The year before that, I threw him a surprise dinner party (he only turned 29, but it was a giant year for him). 

Yeah, we like to celebrate big, but this year… It’s a bit on the slower side.

We’re adjusting to a new life with me completely self-employed, not to mention, I just barely stepped off an airplane from a Mediavine conference that ended over the weekend. 

Just a breakfast date and some cake for us, please!

This salted caramel banana bread, however, is totally in honor of Matt’s birthday. You’ll read in my post about my classic banana bread that this recipe came from my MIL, the amazing woman who birthed my amazing husband. 

So it only seemed right this epic banana bread was published on his birthday, and I can tell you that he consumed about 75% of this bread when I made it last week.

I can tell you there is nothing nutso about this salted caramel banana bread. It is literally my classic banana bread with caramel sauce in it. 

Buuuuut not just put in, swirled in. I guess that’s the magic.

Mix up your banana bread batter, then pour in 1/2 cup of your bourbon (or not bourbon) caramel sauce.

Then, stir it a few times to make swirls.

Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan, and… You’re all good!

Once it’s done baking, you’ll notice some of the caramel sauce on the top is suuuuuper caramelized. And OMG, friends, those are the best bites.

Drizzle with additional bourbon caramel sauce, or don’t. Whatever floats your banana bread boat.

We chose to drizzle and dip and soak and had NO REGRETS.

If you love banana bread and you love caramel, this bread is for you. It brings a whole new level to banana bread and one that I’m going to have a hard time giving up next time I have a bunch of ripe bananas.

Maybe I can alternate between classic and caramel? Really, how could you ever not be happy with banana bread in your future? Amirite?

So which will it be? Salted caramel sauce or bourbon salted caramel sauce (remember– the difference is JUST DON’T ADD THE BOURBON) for your next loaf of banana bread? 

Print Recipe

Salted Caramel Banana Bread

Classic banana bread gets swirled with salted bourbon caramel sauce for a jazzy take on the original.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 15 mins

Servings: 10 servings

Ingredients

• 1and ⅔ cup all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened to room temperature
• 2 large eggs
• 3 medium bananas mashed (about 1 and ½ cups)
• ⅓ cup water
• 1/2 cup homemade salted bourbon caramel sauce + more for drizzling can also be made without bourbon, store bought is also fine

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Spray a loaf pan with non-stick spray. Set aside.
• In a medium size bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.
• In a large bowl with a handheld mixer, or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat both of the sugars and butter on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs and beat again until completely incorporated. Add the banana and the water and beat again until everything is combined.
• Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add the dry ingredients, stopping when everything is just incorporated.
• Slowly drizzle the caramel sauce into the batter then stir a couple times to swirl the caramel around. There is no need to make sure it's fully incorporated.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake the loaf for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean. Allow loaf to cool in the pan on a wire cooling rack before serving. Drizzle with more bourbon caramel sauce, if desired, before serving. Loaf stays fresh, covered tightly at room temperature, up to 5 days, or in the refrigerator up to 1 week. Loaf freezes well. Remove from pan and wrap tightly in plastic wrap and foil, and freeze up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature.

Notes

Adapted from Classic Banana Bread