I’m not really a fan of bananas.
They’ve just never been a fruit that I particularly enjoy. Or ever crave.
But banana bread is a different story.
I love banana bread. And even if you’re like me, and don’t love bananas on their own, you need to try my delicious Banana Graham Cracker Bread.
Banana Graham Cracker Bread
So, why graham crackers in this banana bread?
Well, I initially developed this recipe right after we moved to our current home. I wanted to create a banana bread with almond meal in the batter. But even after unboxing all of our kitchen stuff, my almond meal was no where to be found.
But I did have some graham crackers.
So I pulverized them in the food processor, and stuck those graham cracker crumbs in my banana bread recipe where I’d initially envisioned using almond meal.
And wow, it’s an utterly delicious loaf. The graham cracker crumbs add an addicting sweetness and texture, and they pair great with the chocolate and cinnamon in this recipe.
Don’t worry, if you’ve got almond meal, you can use that in place of the graham cracker crumbs in my recipe. But obviously, it won’t be Banana Graham Cracker Bread anymore 😄.
Make Banana Graham Cracker Bread!
So next time the banana bread craving hits you, you know what to do. Yep, come right back here, and make my banana graham cracker bread.
A Few Things About Graham Crackers
This banana bread can easily be made gluten-free. Just use a gluten-free flour blend in place of the all-purpose flour–I prefer Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour–and gluten-free graham crackers.
Pamela’s Graham Crackers, which you can find here on Amazon [aff. link], are gluten-free, and are actually my favorite graham crackers period. These are the graham crackers I use whenever I make this bread gluten-free.
If you’re not making this bread gluten-free, I recommend using graham cracker crumbs that are, well, already crumbs. Save yourself a step! Graham cracker crumbs can be surprisingly difficult to find in the grocery store, so here’s the brand I recommend on Amazon [aff. link]. I use these graham cracker crumbs whenever I’m too lazy to pulverize Pamela’s Graham Crackers 😄, or not baking gluten-free.
Don't Forget the Cinnamon!
I recommend using Ceylon cinnamon in this recipe. Actually, I recommend using Ceylon cinnamon in just about any recipe that requires cinnamon. It’s sweeter, and it’s actually healthier for you than cassia cinnamon (that’s the cinnamon commonly found at the grocery store.) Check out my Vegan Persimmon Pudding recipe for more info about the different types of cinnamon out there, then head on over to Amazon and get my favorite Ceylon cinnamon by Simply Organic [aff. link].
Banana Graham Cracker Bread
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients:
- 3 ripe bananas
- 2 tsp vanilla
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- ⅓ cup canola oil
- 2 eggs
Dry Ingredients:
- 1 ½ cups flour, use a gluten-free flour blend to keep this bread gluten-free, I prefer Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour
- 1 cup graham cracker crumbs, substitute with 1 cup almond meal if needed (see notes)
- 1 ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon, (I prefer ceylon cinnamon here)
- 1 cup chocolate chips or chocolate chunks
Instructions
Mash the bananas
- Add the bananas to a large mixing bowl. With a fork or your hands, mash them up. You still want there to be texture, but mash the bananas until they’re pretty smooth.
Make the batter
- To the bowl with the mashed bananas, add the sugar, brown sugar, vanilla extract, oil, and the eggs. Whisk until everything is well combined and incorporated.
Add the dry ingredients
- Now add the flour, graham cracker crumbs (or almond meal), baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Stir until mostly combined, then add in the chocolate chips/chunks. Stir until the chocolate is just incorporated.
Bake the banana bread
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Oil TWO 8 inch by 4 inch loaf pans. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans. Gently shake each pan to ensure that the batter spreads evenly.
- Bake the loaves at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the middle will come out mostly clean.
Cool, serve, and enjoy!
- Let the banana bread cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing. Serve alone, or with a glass of almond milk.
29 Responses
I’m going to try this! Need to buy some graham cracker crumbs first but I have some over ripe bananas that need to be used! I love that you have vegan and non vegan options right in the recipe. So great. I’ll let you know how mine turns out
Oh awesome!!! I hope you enjoy the recipe! Thank you so much Jacquelynn, that means so much to hear! I love recipes that work with all kinds of eating and lifestyles, and do my best to create my recipes to be flexible. So so nice of you, and yes, please let me know how it turns out! ❣️
I made this recipe this morning. It’s AMAZING! Perfectly moist and flavorful. I used a real egg since I didn’t have the ground flax seed. I also food processed graham crackers to make the crumbs, not worrying too much if there were some minor chunks, and I used half milk and half semi-sweet chocolate chips. I don’t know if I should admit this, but my husband and I ate it for lunch. Yep! The ENTIRE loaf! Needless to say, this is now my go to recipe when I have ripe bananas. Fantastic!!!
Oh that is fantastic, thank you for trying the recipe! So glad you enjoyed it. Haha no shame at all, the same thing happens at my house whenever I make this bread. It’s too good to last long! (: Thanks again!
Wow! This is the best banana bread I have ever tasted! My husband asks me to make this all the time
Thank you so much, Anna! What a compliment. I’m so glad your family enjoys this recipe. 🙂
I’m with you on the banana bread train, Shannon! My mother always had banana bread around as a kid – in fact, I think bananas were a staple item on the grocery list just so they could sit out on the counter and turn brown for banana bread. I’ve made her recipe countless times over the years…but now I want to play around with adding graham cracker crumbs. What a genius idea! I know it was out of necessity (due to the missing almond meal), but I think you’ve stumbled onto something here…my mouth is watering!
Thanks David! The graham cracker crumbs were definitely a happy accident haha. 😆
I love banana bread, and always have room for a new recipe. Is it just me? Or do I see the bat-signal in your bread? 🙂
Thanks Jeff! Haha oh my goodness I didn’t see it before, but I totally see the bat signal now, that’s amazing haha!
I love all (well most) possible fruit, and I eat them a lot. In my case, a banana bread is a rare occasion. Moistly because they often tend to be with an underbaked, soggy texture to my liking. This banana bread looks fantastic though – just with the right level of moistness. And the addition of graham crumbs is a cool idea!
Thanks Ben! Oh I totally know what you mean! Bananas add so much moisture to baked goods, so it’s easy for a banana bread to get too moist. 😄. Luckily it’s not a problem here!
Made this last night and my husband ate half the loaf!!! I added nutmeg aswell. Love how the house smells!!
Thanks for commenting Misty! I am so happy the banana graham cracker bread was a hit. Haha my husband does the same thing when there’s a loaf of this bread in the house! 😄 Great idea to add nutmeg, yum!
Make this to use some very ripe bananas and Graham Crackers nearing expiration date. It was very good. Could the recipe be made using 1 cup pumpkin in place of the bananas?
Thanks for making this recipe R.C.! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. That is an excellent question, I’ve never tried subbing pumpkin for the bananas in this recipe, so I couldn’t tell you with certainty if the recipe would still work, although I imagine it would. I can tell you that my Pumpkin Cake with Spiced Buttercream is always a hit at our Thanksgiving table. If you’re looking for a good pumpkin cake recipe, you can find it here. 😋
Best banana bread I’ve ever had, thank you
Wow that’s so good to hear, thanks Jackie!
Absolutely amazing banana bread! Five stars! Love the smaller loaf pan.
Thanks Rachel!
This banana bread is to die for!
Hands down the best banana bread EVER!
I love this banana bread. It’s moist, flavorful, and the addition of graham cracker crumbs is genius. My kids request this recipe often!
Such a unique idea to use graham cracker crumbs so I had to make this banana bread. Absolutely delicious, this recipe is a keeper for sure!
Thanks for making the banana bread Joyce! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!
The best banana bread! I made it exactly as the recipe says. I really enjoyed the smaller loaf pan size as well. I will bake with them more often, thanks!
I’m so happy to hear Nadia, thanks for making the recipe!
Loved this banana bread. Easy and delicious!
So good to hear Bea, thanks for commenting!