Apple Banana Bread

By Elizabeth Waterson // Oct 3, 2021 (Updated Jun 8, 2025) // Leave a Comment

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This moist and delicious apple banana bread is easy to make and loved by all. Step-by-step photos teach you how to make this quick bread recipe. Warm cinnamon and apples give banana bread a delicious fall flavor.

sliced pieces of apple banana brad on a wire rack on a light brown surface with a blue linen

As we enter the fall season I find myself yearning to bake with apples and pumpkin. Baked apples are truly one of my favorite things, so I decided to take my love of banana bread (check out all my banana bread recipes here) and combine it with my love of baked apples.

This recipe was based on my classic banana bread recipe, tried and true! The recipe was tweaked a bit due to the high level of moisture apples release as they bake.

Let's get to the recipe

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Ingredients
Instructions
How to freeze
Can you double
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Ingredients

For this easy quick bread recipe you'll need:

Unsalted Butter. No need to wait for it to soften, we just need melted butter.
Sugars. A blend of regular white granulated sugar and light brown sugar is my preference. But you can use all of one if you'd prefer.
Large Eggs. For the eggs to evenly incorporate into the batter you'll want them at room temperature. Place the eggs in a bowl of warm water for 5 minutes before cracking them to bring them to room temperature.
Pure Vanilla Extract. Vanilla pairs perfectly with the apples and cinnamon.
Ground Cinnamon. While I personally don't usually add ground cinnamon to my plain banana bread because this is an apple banana bread I felt the warmth would add something and it totally did. So, good!
All-Purpose Flour. Make sure you measure your flour properly. Too much or too little can drastically alter the texture of the bread.
Baking Soda. This helps the banana bread rise in the oven. If your bread doesn't rise properly check that your baking soda is active, after a few months you should be replacing your baking soda.
Salt. This helps balance the sweetness and helps the other ingredients flavor profile.
Sour Cream. This delicous ingredient helps tenderize the bread and add tons of moisture! Make sure its at room temperature. You could also use full-fat Greek yogurt.
Very Ripe Bananas. The browner the better!
Granny Smith Apples. You'll need to core and dice roughly 2 medium size apples, you'll want approximatley 1 ½ cups of diced apples. You can use any cooking apples: Granny Smith, Honey Crisp, Fuji, Gala, Braeburn, Cortland.

banana apple bread batter poured into a loaf pan on a light brown surface

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F/180C and grease a 9-inch X 5-inch loaf pan with baking spray.

In a large bowl mix together the butter, sugars, eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream, and cinnamon.

bowl of wet ingredients for banana bread in a glass bowl on a light brown surface with a blue linen

Add mashed bananas and mix to combine.

mashed bananas added to wet ingredients in a glass bowl on a light brown surface with a blue linen

Now for the dry ingredients, gently fold in the flour, baking soda, and salt.

dry ingredients added to wet ingredients in a glass bowl on a light brown surface with a blue linen

Finally, gently fold in the apples, you don't want to overmix the batter.

diced apples added to banana bread batter in a glass bowl on a light brown surface with a blue linen

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle optional brown sugar and ground cinnamon on top, trust me it's delicious!

brown sugar and ground cinnamon added on top of banana apple bread batter on a light brown surface

Bake for the bread for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes before removing from pan. Then invert and let cool on a wire rack. Store the bread at room temperature unless you live in a warm climate store it in the fridge.

If you like this check out my apple cinnamon oatmeal next!

banana apple bread cooling on a wire rack on a light brown surface with a blue linen with some green apples and bananas

How to freeze

Apple banana bread is the perfect treat to freeze. Once the quick bread is baked let it cool completely then slice it or leave it whole and wrap it in plastic wrap tightly twice. If the banana bread is whole then wrap it in foil after the plastic wrap, if the banana bread is in slices place the plastic-wrapped slices in a freezer-safe bag.