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This Carrot Banana Bread recipe post is sponsored by Danish Creamery.
Simple to make and so delicious, this carrot banana bread is perfect for an easy breakfast, snack or dessert. Wonderfully moist and full of flavor, this quick loaf is full of texture and flavor.
The butter in this recipe truly makes the banana bread better! That’s because Danish Creamery. European Style Butter is slow churned in small batches. That gives it a velvety texture and rich flavor that is preserved in foil.
Ingredients & substitutions
- Carrots: Use freshly grated carrots rather than pre grated for the moistest and tastiest bread.
- Banana: Use a ripe or overripe banana. They are naturally sweeter and contain more antioxidants.
- Egg: To bind the ingredients together. You can swap with two flax eggs instead.
- Butter: Using butter and a high quality one makes all the difference in creating a rich taste with a perfectly moist texture in quick breads. Danish Creamery European Style Unsalted Butter, used in this recipe, is made from a high quality cream from pasture-raised cows. It has 85% butterfat, which means it adds a richness and a truly buttery flavor that you just can’t get from oil or yogurt.
- Flour: Use all purpose flour for this recipe or you can swap with a 1:1 gluten-free flour.
- Baking soda and salt: To allow the bread to rise when it’s baked.
- Dark brown sugar: The molasses in the sugar adds a deep rich flavor to your loaf. You can use light brown if you are in a pinch, but it won’t be quite as flavorful.
- Applesauce: Use unsweetened applesauce to add moistness to the bread.
- Cinnamon and vanilla extract: For flavor and sweetness.
- Pecans: Optional, but they add a great texture to each bite.
How to make carrot banana bread
- Place the butter and sugar into a bowl.
- Whisk together until light and fluffy.
- Mix in the wet ingredients and then the dry. Add in the carrots and pecans.
- Fold in carrots and pecans until combined.
- Pour the batter into a loaf pan.
- Bake until cooked through and golden brown.
Tips for making carrot quick bread
- Soften the butter before creaming with the sugar, but don’t melt it. Softened butter allows the fat to distribute more evenly into the batter, which makes it more moist in the end. If it’s melted or too warm, it doesn’t cream as easily.
- Skip peeling the carrots. As long as the carrots are scrubbed clean, you don’t have to worry about peeling the carrots. And make sure not to use peeled baby carrots as the taste and texture are different.
- Don’t over mix the bread dough once you add the flour. It should be well combined with no dry flour, but if you over mix it, the gluten can over develop and result in a very chewy loaf.
- Let the bread cool fully before slicing and serving. If you cut it when it’s still warm, it is likely to crumble apart. Be a little patient!
Frequently asked questions
Once your carrot banana bread has fully cooled, keep it in an airtight container or wrap in foil. It will keep at room temperature for around 3 days and in the fridge for up to a week.
Yes, this bread freezes really well, and will keep for up to 3 months. You can either freeze individual slices or the whole loaf. Wrap in parchment or plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag to freeze.
A slice of this carrot banana bread is perfect by itself with a hot cup of coffee. It’s delicious with some butter and honey or your favorite jam. You can also frost the loaf if you like with some cream cheese frosting.
This carrot banana bread is all kinds of delicious! It’s the perfect mix of carrot cake and banana bread and it’s so rich and moist. Be sure to make a double batch, as it will disappear quickly!
More quick breads to try:
- Cinnamon Apple Bread
- Lemon Zucchini Bread
- Pistachio Bread
- Sweet Avocado Quick Bread
- Strawberry Banana Bread
- Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread
- Chocolate Cinnamon Banana Bread
- Lemon Blueberry Bread
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread
If you’ve tried this healthy-ish feel good Carrot Banana Bread recipe or any other recipe on FeelGoodFoodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories!
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Carrot Banana Bread
Video
Ingredients
- Nonstick cooking spray
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup Danish Creamery Unsalted European butter
- ¾ cup dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 medium ripe bananas mashed (about 1 cup)
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup shredded carrots about 2 ½ medium
- ½ cup chopped pecans optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and spray a loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer with a whisk attachment or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, mix butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, until incorporated. Add the bananas, applesauce and vanilla extract and mix to combine. Add dry ingredients and mix until no streaks remain. Fold in carrots and pecans until combined.
- Pour into prepared pan and bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean, 50-55 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow the bread to cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Can I substitute the butter and use oil instead?
Hi there! This recipe relies on the creaming method to give it a light and moist texture so I would suggest using softened butter for the best possible outcome.
Excellent! Reduced the amount of sugar a little and added walnuts instead of pecans, then baked in muffin tray (reduced the baking time). Full of flavor, moist, just delicious.
Thanks for sharing!
This recipe was EXCELLENT! I substituted the applesauce for plain Greek yogurt, and added it in 3 tablespoons of hemp hearts for an extra little boost. It was so good, super moist and full of flavor!
Love the tweaks you made, thanks for sharing!
I tried the recipe immediately as I had all the ingredients necessary to bake the Banana Carrot bread. And my, it was wonderful. Sooo moist and just the right amount of sweetness!
So happy to hear it came out well for you!
Can I replace the banana with more applesauce?
I haven’t tried that in this recipe, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work!
Hi! Is there something I could substitute for the apple sauce?
The applesauce is used in this recipe in place of a fat, so you can use vegetable oil at a 1:1 ratio.
Hi Yumma , just wanted to share , i made the Carrot Banana bread today , and OMG the kids and the whole family loved it ,it was so delicous 🙌 Will continue making it for sure 😊👍
Yay! So glad you and the kids enjoyed!
Wonderful inspiration! I can’t rate the recipe as I made alterations, yet I’d still give it 5 Stars!
I used whole wheat flour, added 1/2 tsp nutmeg and pinch of ginger. I was out of eggs but it didn’t need it. I baked these in mini muffins for 11-14 minutes. Perfect bite size and easy to grab on the go.
2nd pan I added shredded coconut and dried currants.
Thank you so much! So glad it worked out that way too!
It was so good I never baked a cake this was my first time 😍 so clear super easy 💕
5 stars for sure 💕
Thank you!
I’m so glad you gave this a try! Yay!!
So delicious! I didn’t have applesauce so I used another banana, and the result was just so good! Would 100% recommend!
I’m glad it still turned out good! Yay!!
This recipe is absolutely delicious! I made it to end iftar on a sweet note and my bf loved it!! Thank you for sharing, I will definitely be making this again!!
That’s such a great idea! You’re so welcome! Ramadan Mubarak!
Made this yesterday to eat for breakfast this morning and OMG! I can’t explain enough how happy my belly is !! Ty for this amazing recipe Yumna! Guys try and make this recipe it’s so easy and ingredients that everyone should have laying around 🙂
I absolutely love that! You’re so welcome!
I used a slightly smaller pan (8×4) and just poured the leftover batter into a muffin tin, so I had some testers/snacks that I pulled out about 15 minutes before the loaf. It works great as muffins too! Bonus: you can sample your work and still show up to dinner with your bread intact. Lol
That makes me so happy to hear! I love that!!
Hi, the recipe looks amazing! Could I substitute butter for coconut oil and sugar for honey?
Thank you so much! You could try those substitutions – let me know if you do! However, for best results, I’d follow the recipe as is because the butter adds a richness and a truly buttery flavor that you just can’t get from oil or yogurt. Also, as for the sugar, the molasses adds a deep rich flavor to your loaf. You can use light brown if you are in a pinch, but it won’t be quite as flavorful.
Hi Yumna, I tried out the recipe yesterday – using coconut oil and honey (as healthier alternatives) – it turned out amazing, fluffy and moist! I definitely recommend it. Next time I will try the original with butter and sugar too so I have a comparison. 🙂
How much honey did you use?
Can I use a substitute for flour?
While I use all purpose flour for this recipe, you can swap it out for a 1:1 gluten-free flour for best results!
hi! This looks amazing..what can I use instead of applesauce? thanks
Thank you! While I haven’t tried it with a substitute yet, I think more mashed banana or yogurt will work.
How can I modify the recipe for multigrain flour? And without applesauce
You could try a 1:1 substitution for the multigrain flour. While I haven’t tried this recipe with an applesauce substitute, I think more mashed banana or yogurt will work.
What other brand of butter would be good for this recipe? Danish Creamery isn’t available in my area?
I used Vital Farms Pasture Raised Unsalted Butter. It has the same 85% butterfat just like the butter she states to use.