Go big or go home. Are you on board with that? Because that's what we're doing here today - going BIG.
You better believe that if I'm going to swirl peanut butter and nutella into my banana bread, I'm gonna do it with gusto. No skimping on the peanut butter and definitely no skimping on the nutella. And just to put this bread on a whole new level, we're making it with brown butter. And brown sugar. Holy Yum.
I love being adventurous with my baking, but sometimes I get a craving for something reliable, something that I know will be good. I like to think of it as "classically delicious", as in cut-me-a-thick-slice-for-breakfast classically delicious. When this kind of craving strikes, I think it's only a natural next step to pull out the peanut butter and nutella jars, am I right? And then you reach for the bananas, because peanut butter + nutella + bananas = a triple match made in heaven. Does it even matter what we're making at this point? I'm already sold.
The bread turned out like something from my dreams: tender without being overly moist, rich in flavor but light in texture, and loaded with all kinds of PB & N (peanut butter and nutella) goodness. And the background flavors - whole wheat flour, brown sugar, and brown butter (aka hazelnut butter aka best thing ever) - subtly add to all the deep, nutty flavors. Basically this is comfort food in bread form, to the max.
Did you know that March 1st is National Peanut Butter Lover's Day? I think this recipe is a pretty appropriate way to celebrate. Then again, it's also National Fruit Compote Day. Whhatt?? American food holidays = out of whack.
Peanut Butter and Nutella Swirled Banana Bread
This is a tender, richly flavored banana bread made with brown butter and swirled with a heavy dose of peanut butter and nutella. One bite is guaranteed to leave you craving more!
- Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 9 x 5 inch loaf 1x
Ingredients
- 3 ounces butter, cut into tablespoons (6 tablespoons)
- 8 ½ ounces all-purpose flour (2 cups, spoon and sweep)
- 3 ⅛ ounces whole wheat flour (¾ cup, spoon and sweep)
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 5 ⅝ ounces brown sugar (¾ cup, packed)
- 2 eggs
- 4 ¼ ounces plain yogurt (½ cup)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 12 ¾ ounces very ripe mashed banana (1 ½ cups)*
- 4 ½ ounces creamy peanut butter (½ cup)
- 5 ¼ ounces nutella (½ cup)
Instructions
- Brown the butter: Warm a small, light-colored skillet on the stove over medium-low heat. Add the cut up butter and let it melt. Whisk frequently as it melts and starts to foam up. Once bubbling or foaming, whisk fairly constantly as the butter turns a rich hazel color. Once it gets to this point, remove from the heat and immediatley place on a cool surface. Whisk briefly for another 30 seconds or so, and then set aside to cool for 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375° F. Grease a 9" x 5" loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.
- In a medium to large bowl whisk together the all-purpose and whole wheat flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a separate, large bowl, whisk together the cooled brown butter with the brown sugar until well-combined and lighter in color. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until smooth. Beat in the vanilla extract and yogurt until smooth. Whisk in the mashed banana. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined, with the dry no longer visible; DO NOT OVERMIX!
- Place the peanut butter and nutella in two separate, microwave-safe bowls and microwave for 5-10 seconds each, until they've reached a somewhat pourable consistency but aren't too thin.
- Pour half of the batter into the prepared loaf pan, making sure that it covers the entire bottom, and smoothing it in an even layer. Drizzle half each of the warm peanut butter and nutella evenly over the first layer of batter. Add the remaining batter, spreading it out to cover the first two layers and smoothing out the top. Then, drizzle over the remaining peanut butter and nutella evenly over the entire top surface of the bread batter. Use a firm wooden skewer or a knife to swirl the batter around briefly.
- Bake the loaf in the preheated oven for about 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf (or a crack in the top) comes out clean. Cool in the loaf pan for about 15 minutes, and then carefully transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling - before slicing! Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and (preferably) store in an airtight ziploc-type bag. Slices of bread can be warmed up in the microwave for about 25 seconds. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
*The banana doesn't need to be pureed; just mash it by hand so there aren't any huge chunks remaining and you can measure it out.
What's your favorite way to have your peanut butter? Do tell. :)
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Hatty says
HI! I just discovered your recipe and OMGOODNESS this bread tastes so damn good! My loaf pan was a tad small so I made muffins using the leftover batter and I swtiched the nutella for homemade salted dulce de leche. One word- WOW! Thanks so much for creating this recipe, I've bookmarded it :)
alexandra says
Haha thanks! The dulce de leche addition sounds amazing!! I'm glad you liked the recipe. :)
Amy Hayes says
So....I am desperate to try this baby! I have everything in the house except the yoghurt, could you suggest a substitute, or could I omit it? I'm thinking maybe just add some extra banana?
alexandra says
Do you have sour cream? That would be the best substitute. Definitely don't flat-out omit the yogurt; it will mess up the balance of ingredients. You could also try just adding another 1/2 cup mashed banana, but sour cream is your best bet.
Natalie Avadis says
i hope you have this when i come to breakfast tomorrow :-)
alexandra says
Nope it's long gone! Sorry :( But we have carrot cake with cream cheese glaze and it's really good. :)
Laura (Tutti Dolci) says
Yes please to PB & Nutella!
Ashley says
Oh my gosh peanut butter and nutella?! haha I love it! I'm not a huge banana bread person but this is so pretty with that swirl! And I do love me some pb and nutella : )
alexandra says
Yes; pb&nutella! You can't go wrong. Banana bread is one of those things that some people just aren't into, so I get that. :)
Erika says
Okay wait. So I was wondering where all your posts were and I realized that a bunch came out, but I didn't receive the new post email notifications. So weird! I'll re-subscribe I suppose, but not sure what changed! Anyway, this banana bread looks FABULOUS and as always, you totally sold me on the description. Yum yum. Can't wait for my bananas to brown so I can make this!!!
PS. I love that you say holy yum :) I think it just works so perfectly sometimes!
alexandra says
Hah, thanks! I just say what comes to my mind. :D
That's really weird that you haven't been getting the e-mails. Have you checked your spam folder? Sometimes the WordPress emails from blogs I follow get in my spam folder randomly. If you find them there you can probably tell your email system it's not spam so it doesn't happen anymore! Otherwise, do try resubscribing! Let me know what works.
Save those bananas so they can brown. :)