35 Banana Dessert Recipes That Go Way Beyond Banana Bread
Buy bananas. Wait for them to turn black. Bake obligatory banana bread. Repeat. Allow us to be the first to say it: Bananas deserve way more respect and attention than we give them. There are so many more treats to tackle than you realize, from banana chocolate cake to homemade ice cream. And you don’t even have to wait for them to be borderline rotten to turn them into something delicious. Presenting 35 banana dessert recipes that are easy, quick and delicious. (Heck, some of them are even healthy.)
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1. Classic Banana Bread
Let’s get the standard out of the way, shall we? Our recipe leans on sour cream for tang and moisture, but you could easily substitute plain yogurt, mascarpone cheese or even buttermilk.
2. Banana Tarte Tatin
Bananas, but make it fashion. Think sticky caramelized bananas tucked into a crispy bed of puff pastry. Even better, it all comes together in a single skillet.
3. Cheater’s Bananas Foster
What’s buttery, sugary and ready to devour in less than ten minutes? Our rendition of NOLA’s signature dessert, which skips the whole alcohol-fueled flames bit and calls on just four ingredients (plus vanilla ice cream, of course) to reach banana heaven.
4. Old-Fashioned Vegan Banana Cake with Creamy Cashew Frosting
We like to think of this lighter, fluffier take on banana bread as a snacking cake, so feel free to scarf down a piece (or two) for breakfast or with your afternoon coffee.
5. Chocolate Banana Bread Babka
Not only are there mashed bananas in the babka dough, but they also make their way into the brown sugar-cocoa streusel on top.
6. Banana Split Cookies
Strawberries, walnuts, chocolate, butterscotch—all that’s missing is a few scoops of ice cream and a mountain of whipped cream. Dry the strawberries thoroughly before placing them, so they stay in place as they bake.
7. Hummingbird Cupcakes with Pineapple ‘Flowers’
This lightly spiced pineapple-banana cake has been a Southern classic for decades. We upped the summery ante by crowning each mini cake with a dried pineapple round.
8. Upside-Down Banana-Caramel Bread
Butter, brown sugar and banana’s natural juices create a decadent caramel sauce that you’ll straight-up want to bathe in. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.
9. Banana Sushi
These cuties are coated in creamy peanut butter before being enrobed in dark chocolate. Roll them in any toppings your heart desires, like chopped pistachios, coconut flakes, sesame seeds or freeze-dried raspberries.
10. Charcoal Banana Bread
Sure, activated charcoal is touted for its medicinal and cosmetic purifying properties. But at the very least, this dusky gray baked good will look stunning on your breakfast table.
11. Two-Ingredient Banana-Peanut Butter Ice Cream
Don’t worry about buying a fancy ice cream machine just to get your licks in. This cool summer treat comes together in a food processor or blender.
12. Homemade Banana Pudding
As if from-scratch banana pudding isn’t already drool-worthy enough, each cup is topped with torched meringue and vanilla wafers for good measure.
13. Banana Bread Chocolate Fudge Swirled Cheesecakes
Fresh banana bread + mascarpone-cream cheese filling + homemade hot fudge = a revelatory confection for the books.
14. Vegan Banana Bread Cinnamon Rolls
The best kind of breakfast is one that doubles as dessert. How do these work without eggs, you ask? Bananas are actually a great substitute for them.
15. Brown Butter Banana-Chocolate Chip Sheet Cake
Greek yogurt and extra-ripe bananas make for an impossibly moist, tender texture. The cream cheese frosting is just the cherry on top.
16. Banana Bread Churro Bites
Five words: Fried. Chocolate. Coconut. Banana. Bread. The crispy cubes of deliciousness are rolled in cinnamon sugar before being served with a side of affogato for dipping.
17. Banana Bread Donuts with Browned Butter Caramel Glaze
There’s no need to brave a pot of spitting oil to make these rings of bliss. They bake to perfection in the oven instead.
18. Banana Bars
Each bar contains about 100 calories and only 4 grams of fat. Go ahead, have two (or three).
19. Homemade Banana Cream Pie
Between the chilling time and homemade pie crust, this beauty is a labor of love and patience. Save time by making a graham cracker crust (or better yet, by using a store-bought one).
20. Healthy Banana Split
Trade ice cream and hot fudge for Greek yogurt, summer berries, granola and melted peanut butter. Go wild with toppings like cacao nibs, chia seeds or shredded coconut.
21. Coconut Banana Cake with Chocolate Frosting
This isn’t your run-of-the-mill chocolate frosting, friends. It’s tangy and bursting with tropical sweetness, thanks to cream cheese and canned coconut cream.
22. Healthy Soft Banana Bread Cookies
Coconut oil, almond flour and coconut flour make these cuties both vegan and gluten-free. Spring for vegan cream cheese and plant-based butter for the frosting.
23. Banana Coffee Cake
We can’t decide what we fell for first: the cinnamon-sugar swirl or the buttery crumb topping.
24. Raw Banana Brownie Bars
Chocolate extract and a generous amount of cocoa powder up the dessert factor on these healthy bars, which call for raw almonds, chia seeds, dehydrated bananas and a ton of dates.
25. 5-Minute Chocolate Chunk Banana Bread Mug Cake
A baked good that doesn’t require turning on the oven? Sign us up. Feel free to go off script by adding caramel candies, chopped nuts or butterscotch chips to the mix.
26. Picnic Pudding Jars
The standard recipe calls for lemon pudding and vanilla wafers, but using vanilla pudding, sliced bananas and Nutter Butter cookies instead would be just as delicious.
27. Banana Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
Gild the lily by finishing each cupcake with a drizzle of store-bought salted caramel and crispy banana chips.
28. Salted Caramel Banana Shortbread
Choose a gooey, rich jarred caramel to fill the melt-in-your-mouth cookies with, or substitute your favorite fruit jam, chocolate ganache or cheesecake filling.
29. Bananas Foster Cheesecake
Be still our banana-loving heart. The crust is sugary and slightly spicy, thanks to cinnamon and ground ginger. But we’re most excited about the brown sugar-banana rum sauce on top.
30. Banana Ice Cream
The recipe starts with a classic custard base and a dash of dark rum, which keeps the ice cream from getting too hard since alcohol doesn’t freeze.
31. Banana and Chocolate Chia Cream Pie Parfaits
Homemade chocolate chia pudding meets vegan coconut-banana cream. Don’t even get us started on the crunchy caramelized buckwheat-oatmeal topping.
32. Banana Pudding Pie
Why should graham crackers get to have all the fun? The crust on this crowd-pleaser calls for a whole box of vanilla wafers instead.
33. Banana Blondies with Chocolate-Peanut Butter Ganache
Don’t look now, but we’re drizzling the three-ingredient ganache on *everything*, from berries and ice cream to cheesecake and churros.
34. Banana, Coconut and Honey-Cream Tarts
Be careful not to place these on the table until after dinner is served. You wouldn’t want to make the main courses too jealous.
35. Banana Split Sundaes
When your sweet tooth is craving something extra special, but you only have five minutes’ worth of prep in you, turn to this ice cream shop classic.
RELATED: How to Quickly Ripen Bananas at Home
For even more great recipes, check out our first cookbook, Only the Good Stuff.
