The taste of sweet coconut alongside macadamia nuts and banana bring you this delicious and fluffy bread for all to enjoy! Say hello to my Coconut Macadamia Banana Bread!
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I once worked on a cookie recipe that combined coconut and bananas along with vanilla wafers, but this was early in my recipe development journey so the recipe never came to fruition. However the ingredients - coconut, macadamias and banana - stuck with me for quite some time. I finally began to work on this recipe over the summer which was not easy to do because bananas do not last long in my house! My husband and son are banana fiends so it's hard to keep enough bananas on hand to work on recipes and feed them. Luckily I finally managed it and it left us with this delicious new banana bread recipe!
I recommend also trying my Maple Pecan Banana Bread or my Banana Apple Bread. I also highly recommend my Marionberry Jam cookies for another sweet but very moist cookie that does well for breakfast.
Jump to:
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Lots of Flavor! The sweetness of coconut combined with the fruity flavor of banana and then topped off with roasted macadamia nuts truly make this bread one of a kind!
- Soft And Moist. The combination of all the ingredients give this coconut banana bread such a light and airy texture. And it is so deliciously moist!
- Easy To Make! This coconut macadamia banana bread recipe comes together in only a few bowls! You only need to worry about the eggs being room temperature which makes this recipe a piece of cake!
Baking Tips
Weigh Your Ingredients. You will have a better chance of success with this recipe if you weigh your ingredients. A kitchen scale is a low cost investment - as low as $10 if you purchase a simple one on Amazon. Volume measurements are provided for your convenience as well.
Use Ripe Bananas. Or in other words, brown spotted bananas. The bananas need to be ripe in order to work well within the batter and lend to a moist bread. Using non-ripe (green or all yellow) bananas may leave the bread tough and not as moist as it could be.
Loaf Pan. You can either butter and flour the loaf pan, or spray with baking spray and lay a piece of parchment inside. Spray with more baking spray and then add in batter.
Don't Skip On The Nuts. Yes, Macadamia nuts can be pricey but they really help elevate the taste factor in this recipe. I found Target to be a good place to get some affordable roasted macadamia nuts! Amazon also had Mauna Loa roasted macadamia nuts that were really delicious - no affiliation here! Just sharing what I tried and recommend for flavor!
Ingredients
Please read through the ingredients list so you can familiarize yourself with each ingredient, along with suggestions or recommendations during the preparation or baking process. Please see the Recipe Card for all details.
Bananas. The star of the show has some rules we need to try and follow to help make this recipe delicious. First - the bananas need to be very ripe. I mean almost spotted brown ripe (as shown in photo). You want your bananas to be very ripe because it will mean a sweeter banana. Check out this guide from Southern Living that helps break down more details on a ripe banana.
Sour Cream. This ingredient helps lend a bit of a tang into our bread while also helping to provide added moisture. You can substitute with Greek yogurt if need be.
Macadamia Nuts. I tried both plain and roasted with sea salt, and while both were delicious I leaned on the side of the roasted with sea salt. But both will work!
Coconut. I used unsweetened shredded coconut for this recipe, but sweetened will work fine too! I have not tested this recipe with the coconut flakes, but if you do please let me know how the recipe turns out!
Sugars. This recipe is balanced with ⅔ granulated sugar and ⅓ brown sugar. I use light brown sugar but you can substitute with dark brown sugar as 1:1.
Let's Make Some Delicious Bread!
This recipe uses baking tools and ingredients that can be found in most homes. Please see recipe card for full list of equipment and ingredients.
Step 1: Whisk all purpose flour, baking soda, salt and coconut. Set aside.
Step 2: In a small bowl, melt butter and allow to cool.
Step 3: Combine butter, bananas, sour cream, sugars, eggs and vanilla into one bowl and whisk well. Make sure to combine all ingredients well.
Step 4: Add dry ingredients and fold in with rubber spatula. Fold until only a few streaks of flour remain.
Step 4
Step 5
Step 5: Add macadamia nuts and fold into batter gently. Do not over mix.
Step 6: Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 9x5 loaf pan with parchment paper or butter and flour.
Step 7: Pour batter into loaf pan, and then top with a few more macadamia nuts and shredded coconut.
Step 8: Bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with only some batter on it. Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 60 minutes in loaf pan before removing and letting cool on cooling rack.
Troubleshooting
Gummy Bread. Yikes, no one wants gummy banana bread. But unfortunately it happens to the best of us (it happened to me!). Over mixing is going to overdevelop the gluten and cause the bread to get gummy. So make sure when folding in the dry ingredients you do it gently and stop when you see just the barest of flour streaks remaining. This will help ensure you get a soft and moist bread all throughout.
Dry Bread. The culprit here might be the bread was over baked which can easily happen in an overly hot oven. I recommend an oven thermometer, but you can also watch for signs of doneness. Look for the bread pulling away from the sides, and you can insert a toothpick to the center - if it pulls away with only a bit of crumbs or banana than your loaf is done. Remove from oven and allow to set in the loaf pan for at least an hour.
Storage
The flavors of this banana banana bread recipe really come alive the next day, and the following 2 to 3 days after. To keep the bread fresh store in a ziplock bag, or airtight container at room temperature. It will keep at room temperature for up to 3 days. You can also freeze the bread in a freezer safe ziplock bag or container for up to 3 months. To defrost remove from freezer and allow to come to room temperature in the bag/container - do not open. Microwave your slice of banana bread between 5 to 10 seconds before enjoying.
Other Recipes To Enjoy
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Coconut Macadamia Banana Bread
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Equipment
- mixing bowls
- rubber spatula
- whisk
- kitchen scale optional but recommended
- parchment paper optional
- 9x5 baking loaf pan
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cup all purpose flour 230g
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted 113g
- ½ cup sugar 100g
- ¼ cup light brown sugar, packed 50g
- 2 large ripe bananas
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 3 tbsp full fat sour cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- ¾ cup unsweetened coconut, shredded plus extra for topping
- ½ cup roasted chopped macadamia plus extra for topping
Instructions
- Whisk all purpose flour, baking soda, salt and coconut. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, melt butter and allow to cool.
- Combine butter, bananas, sour cream, sugars, eggs and vanilla into one bowl and whisk well. Make sure to combine all ingredients well.
- Add dry ingredients and fold in with rubber spatula. Fold until only a few streaks of flour remain.
- Add macadamia nuts and fold into batter gently. Try not to over mix.
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 9x5 loaf pan with parchment paper or butter and flour.
- Pour batter into loaf pan, and then top with a few more macadamia nuts and shredded coconut.
- Bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with only some crumbs on it.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 60 minutes in loaf pan before removing and letting cool on cooling rack.
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