Banana Chocolate Chip Bars Recipe

Banana Chocolate Chip Bars cut into squares on a paper lined chopping board.

5 from 1 vote

These Banana Chocolate Chip Bars have the texture of blondies that taste like banana bread. Easy and quick to make, these chewy, moist chocolate, walnut studded bars will fast become a family favourite.

Prep Time20

Cook Time30

Total Time50

Course: Bars

Cuisine: American

Servings: squares

Calories: 263kcal

Author: Emma Duckworth

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

Metric - US Customary

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.

Notes

Step-by-Step Photos: My blog post includes helpful step-by-step photos to help guide you through making this recipe.

To Store: Store the Banana Chocolate Chip 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.

Tip 1: 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.

Tip 2: Measure out the ingredients using a scale. Weighing ingredients provides far more accurate results - especially regarding flour. If you do have to use measuring cups, then spoon the flour into the cut and level off with the back of a knife.

Tip 3: 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.

Tip 4: Let the cake cool before cutting. You'll get neater slices that way.

Nutrition