These Banana Chocolate Chip Bars are a simple and delicious recipe using ripe bananas and store cupboard ingredients. Baked in 30 minutes, they make the perfect afternoon, easy snack to feed a crowd.
We've all had ripe bananas sitting on our countertop, gradually getting more spotty as the days pass. This Banana Chocolate Chip Bars recipe is the perfect go-to, easy-to-make recipe for those bananas.
It's fast become one of my favourites as it tastes just like your favourite banana bread recipe but with the texture of blondies. This recipe yields moist Banana Chocolate Chip Bars studded with dark chocolate and walnuts. The flavour profile is insane! Oh yeah, and like my Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars, they're super easy to transport, perfect for potlucks and picnics.
Make sure to try out my Banana Chocolate Oatmeal Muffins, Banana Ricotta Pancakes and Merry Berry's Banana Bread Recipe - they'll all be sure to satisfy your banana-loving sweet tooth.
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🌟 Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Uses basic ingredients. All the ingredients are basic pantry or fridge staples. Absolutely nothing out of the ordinary here making these Banana Chocolate Bars perfect to throw together last minute.
- Simple to make. Browning the butter is the hardest part, but I show you how, or you can use standard melted butter - the choice is yours!
- Crowd-pleasing favourite. Cut into 16 squares - there's a lot to go around. Have a hungry hoard of kids to feed after school? These Banana Bars make more than enough whilst having extra for seconds.
🧾 Ingredients Needed
The list of ingredients needed to make your soon-to-be favourite Banana Chocolate Bars (!) is filled with everyday items. However, below, I list some notes worth reading and any substitutions you can make.
- Bananas - I've used 2 large bananas to make 1 cup worth of mashed banana. Use as ripe bananas as you can, as the more over-rip, the sweeter they are, which intensifies the banana flavour in the bars.
- Butter - I recommend unsalted butter, or you can use salted- just omit the additional salt. Browning the butter adds an incredible nuttiness to the bars. This is optional but highly recommended! Check out my Guide to Brown Butter.
- Light brown sugar - substitute with brown sugar. The extra molasses adds moisture and a richer flavour.
- Walnuts and dark chocolate - I've included these two ingredients as they pair so beautifully with the banana flavour. It's a trilogy of flavours that ticks all the boxes in my book!
📖 Variations
- Add cinnamon: Add a teaspoon of warming cinnamon spices to the dry ingredients.
- Add peanut butter: Who doesn't love peanut butter and banana? Or is that just me? Once you've poured the batter into the baking pan, drizzle a couple of tablespoons of warmed peanut butter over the top and swirl through with the blade of a knife.
- Swap out the nuts: Any nuts will work great in the choc chip bar, for example, pecans, almonds, or macadamia nuts.
- Substitute with wholewheat flour for a robust flavour.
👩🏻🍳 How to Make
*Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full ingredients list & instructions!*
STEP 1. Brown the butter. Turn normal melted butter into a thing of nutty goodness in one simple step. Add the butter to a saucepan set over medium heat and allow the butter to melt.
Once melted, the butter will start to foam and bubble (Image 1). This is the point that the milk solids have separated from the fats and they'll start to caramelise on the base of the saucepan. Watch the yellow butter turn golden and then brown.
Once the butter is browned, take the pan off the stove and pour the butter into a bowl, scraping all the bits on the bottom too (Image 2). Set the butter aside to cool whilst preparing your pan.
STEP 2. Prepare your pan. Grease and line the base and sides of a 23 x 23cm (9x9-inch) square baking pan. Let the paper overhang the sides so that you can use it as a sling to lift the bars out later.
STEP 3. Mix sugar into the butter. While the butter is still warm, add the light brown sugar into a bowl (Image 3) and beat it together until the sugar is mixed in and the butter has cooled slightly (Image 4).
STEP 4. Add eggs and beat. Add the 2 eggs into the bowl and whisk until the batter is pale in colour and thickened. This can take a couple of minutes to achieve (Images 5 & 6). (Best to use a hand-held electric whisk for this).
STEP 5. Add in banana. Peel the bananas and mash them in a shallow bowl with a fork. Add the mashed banana and vanilla extract into the batter and beat until combined (Images 7 & 8).
STEP 6. Sift in the dry ingredients and add the flavourings. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt right onto your batter. Add in the chocolate chips, chocolate bar and chopped walnuts. Keep aside some of the walnuts and chocolate to sprinkle over the top in the next step.
Then, fold everything in with a rubber spatula- but only until you see some flour streaks remain. This ensures you don't overmix it! (Images 9 & 10).
STEP 7. Bake. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and level off with an offset spatula (Image 11). Sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, walnuts, and banana chips over the top. No need to press them in. Bake in a pre-heated 170C (340F) oven for 30 minutes.
The blondies are ready when the centre is set, and the edges have pulled away from the sides (Image 12).
🥣 How To Serve
Set the baking pan on a wire rack and let the bars cool completely. Then, use the paper overhang to lift the bars out of the pan. For super neat edges, refrigerate the banana bars for an hour.
To cut, use a sharp knife run under warm water to heat the blade and cut. After every slice, wipe the blade clean. With this trick, you'll achieve super clean, neat edges like a pro.
These are very rich, so trust me when I say a little square goes a long way.
💭 Recipe Pro Tips
- Use extremely ripe bananas! Seriously, don't throw those bananas out. The more spotted, the better- they'll have all the sweetness inside. Just make sure they aren't bruised.
- Measure out the ingredients using a scale. Weighing ingredients provides far more accurate results - especially when it comes to flour. If you do have to use measuring cups, then spoon the flour into the cup and level off with the back of a knife.
- Don't over-mix the batter. Over-mixing can overdevelop the gluten strands, which, teamed with the moisture from the bananas, can leave you with a gummy textured cake.
- Let the bars cool before cutting. You'll get neater slices that way.
📋 Recipe FAQs
If you find your bananas aren't quite ripe enough then pop the bananas, unpeeled, onto a baking tray and into a 180C/350F oven for 15 minutes. The skin will turn completely black, but the banana will soften and sweeten up.
Yes absolutely. Thaw at room temperature and mash making sure that there are still some chunks and that it doesn't mash into a soupy liquid. If there is excess liquid, drain it off before using.
❄️ Storage and Freezer Instructions
To store: Store the Banana Chocolate Chip Muffin Bars in an airtight container for up to 3 days or refrigerate for up to 5 days.
To freeze: Cool the bars completely and wrap them in plastic wrap and then foil. Alternatively, wrap individual bars. Freeze for up to 2 months and thaw at room temperature.
🧁 More Blondie Bars Recipes
If you tried this Banana Chocolate Chip Bars Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you go in the 📝 comments below. I love hearing from you!
📖 Recipe
Banana Chocolate Chip Bars Recipe
Ingredients
- 170 g unsalted butter
- 330 g light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 220 g mashed banana, 2 large
- 220 g plain flour (all-purpose)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- 150 g dark chocolate chips/ chopped dark 70% chocolate
- 75 g chopped walnuts
- 20 g banana chips
Instructions
- Brown the butter. Add the butter to a saucepan set over medium heat and allow the butter to melt. Once melted, the butter will start to foam and bubble. This is the point that the milk solids have separated from the fats, and they'll start to caramelise on the base of the saucepan. Watch the yellow butter turn golden and then brown. Once the butter is browned, take the pan off the stove and pour the butter into a bowl, scraping all the bits on the bottom too. Set the butter aside to cool whilst preparing your pan.
- Prepare your pan. Grease and line the base and sides of a 23 x 23cm (9x9-inch) square baking pan. Let the paper overhang the sides so that you can use it as a sling to lift the blondies out later. Preheat the oven to 170℃ (340℉).
- Mix sugar into the butter. While the butter is still warm, add the light brown sugar into the bowl with the butter and beat it together until the sugar is mixed in and the butter has cooled slightly.
- Add eggs and beat. Add the 2 eggs into the bowl and beat until the batter is pale in colour and thickened. This can take a couple of minutes to achieve. (Best to use a hand-held electric whisk for this).
- Add in the mashed banana. Peel the bananas and mash them in a shallow bowl with a fork. Add the mashed banana and vanilla extract into the batter and beat until combined.
- Sift in the dry ingredients and add the flavourings. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt right onto your batter. Add in the chocolate chips, chocolate chunks and chopped walnuts. (Save a coupe to sprinkle on top). Then, fold everything in with a rubber spatula- but only until you see some flour streaks remain. This ensures you don't overmix it!
- Bake. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and level off with an offset spatula. Sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, walnuts, and banana chips over the top. No need to press them in. Bake for 30 minutes.The bars are ready when the centre is set, and the edges have pulled away from the sides. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool for ten minutes before lifting the bars out of the pan using the paper overhang and set aside to cool fully on a wire rack.
All recipes are developed and tested in Metric grams. I strongly recommend that you bake using digital scales for a more accurate result. I have provided a conversion to US customary in the recipe but please note that I haven’t tested using this method.
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