Level up your classic banana nut bread recipe with authentic chai spices plus easy homemade whipped honey butter for the perfect finishing touch!
If you're here for an easy spiced banana bread recipe, you in the right spot, boo! My chai banana nut bread comes together in less than an hour with layers of flavor so you'll want to make it again and again. Let's get into it.
And if you enjoy this recipe, you'll also love my Carrot Cake Loaf with Praline Cream Cheese Frosting or this Applesauce Quick Bread!
What does it taste like?
This is a fall flavored banana bread with sweet warm spices. It's nutty, buttery, and you'll also taste very subtle citrus and pepper notes. Texture-wise it's soft and chewy with crunchy walnut bits.
And the banana flavor can be dialed up or down depending on how many you use. For example, with just one, this is a great banana bread for people who don't even like bananas like that.
More Unique Banana Bread Recipes
Honey and Poppyseed Banana Bread
Vegan Harvest Banana Bread with Carrot and Apple
What You'll Need for this Recipe
Bananas Why do I need ripe bananas for banana bread? For both flavor and texture. Overripe bananas are sweeter, thus you won't need to add as much sweetener to the batter. They are also easier to mash and incorporate into the batter.
Walnuts are my favorite nut for baking banana nut bread. Use halved walnuts or pieces. If you don't have access to walnuts, you can leave them out altogether or substitute with pecans.
Brown Sugar perfectly complements the flavors in this recipe so I recommend it instead of granulated sugar. Light or dark brown sugar will work.
Vanilla Extract plays a background role but you'll definitely notice if it's missing so don't skip it! Use pure vanilla extract, if possible, over imitation vanilla or vanilla flavoring.
Chai Spice Mix for baking is slightly different from what you would use for teatime. We need ground spices for this recipe rather than whole cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks, etc.
Check out the recipe card below for full ingredients list, measurements, and step-by-step instructions!
Tips & Tools
Grab two mixing bowls, a whisk, and a silicone spatula or kitchen spoon. You'll also need a loaf pan for classic banana bread vibes.
How to store it? Store banana bread in plastic wrap or wrapped in paper towel and sealed in an airtight container to keep it fresh and soft.
How long does homemade banana bread keep? Banana bread made at home keeps for up to five days at room temperature when stored properly. To keep it longer, I recommend freezing.
Making the Whipped Honey Butter
While the banana bread cools, whip up your own homemade honey butter for extra flavor points. Simply combine the honey butter ingredients in a bowl and beat with a hand mixer or stand mixer until smooth and fluffy.
How to Serve
Cut the banana bread into thick slices--about one inch each--and slather on the honey butter. This is a great treat to enjoy for snack or dessert with a warm mug of tea.
As much as I would love to eat this bread for breakfast, it doesn't quite cut it in the protein department. Try my Banana Nut Bread Oatmeal Bites for that!
More Favorite Recipes with Chai
Homemade Instant Chai Dry Blend
Banana nut bread is a classic staple that everyone should know how to make and now you have the perfect banana bread for fall in your arsenal. And sharing is caring so be sure to pin this recipe for later and follow me over on Pinterest. Thanks for reading!
Chai Spice Walnut Banana Bread Recipe
Chai Spiced Banana Nut Bread with Honey Butter
Equipment
- 2 mixing bowls
- 1 whisk
- 1 loaf pan
- 1 hand mixer or stand mixer
Ingredients
For the Chai Spiced Banana Nut Bread
- 1 ½ cup flour
- ½ cup walnuts
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon cardamom
- ⅛ teaspoon ground clove
- ⅛ teaspoon allspice
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 bananas (the riper the sweeter and easier to work with)
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup butter melted
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 egg
For the Whipped Honey Butter
- ¼ cup honey
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon milk ice cold
- 1 pinch sea salt
Instructions
To Make the Chai Banana Nut Bread
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line loaf pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- Add flour, walnuts, baking soda, sea salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, clove, allspice, and black pepper to a mixing bowl and stir until uniform, making sure to coat the walnuts in the dry mixture.
- Peel two bananas and place into another mixing bowl. Mash bananas into a kind of puree or paste using a kitchen spoon or the back of a fork.
- Add brown sugar, melted butter, milk, vanilla extract, and egg to mashed banana and mix until combined.
- Add wet mixture to dry mixture and stir until just combined. Some bits of flour will remain around the walnuts and that's OK.
- Transfer batter to prepared loaf pan. Peel remaining banana then cut it down the middle, lengthwise (as you would for a banana split). Lay the pieces, cut side up, on top of batter and gently press.
- Place pan on center oven rack and bake for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool for at least 15 minutes before removing loaf from pan.
To Make the Whipped Honey Butter
- While banana bread cools, combine honey, butter, milk, and sea salt in a bowl and beat with hand mixer or stand mixer until smooth and uniform.
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