Chocolate-Maple Banana Bread is moist and dense, sweetened with maple syrup, and made extra chocolaty with mini chocolate chips.
Why you'll love this recipe
This versatile recipe can be made with our without bananas. Either way the resulting loaf is full of flavor with a dense, chewy texture.
The banana choice can depend of taste, allergies or what time of year you might ship this loaf in a care package. It's not a good idea to mail banana bread in hot weather.
The high moisture and sugar content of banana bread, combined with warmth, can very quickly produce mold. You can safely send this loaf by leaving out the banana.
Is this is a banana bread masquerading as a chocolate cake? Or is it a chocolate cake masquerading as banana bread? Take a bite (or two) and decide.
Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. The full instructions are in the recipe card below.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter. Add the sour cream and continue mixing until combined. If using bananas, mix in the mashed bananas.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing thoroughly. Beat in the maple syrup, vanilla, and maple flavoring. At a low mixing speed, gradually add the flour mixture and continue mixing just until combined. Stir in chocolate chips.
- Put the batter into a loaf pan lightly coated with cooking spray. Bake for 50-60 minutes. The loaf is done when a toothpick/cake tester comes out clean of batter (some melted chocolate from the chips is ok).
Storage
Store in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 3 days for Chocolate Maple Banana bread (longer if refrigerated) and 5-7 days for Maple-chocolate without banana.
More quick bread recipes
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Oatmeal Raisin Quick Bread is a soft, tender loaf that tastes like a chewy oatmeal cookie.
Chocolate Chip Coconut Milk Pound Cake is soft and fluffy with a delicate coconut flavor speckled with chocolate chips.
Italian Lemon Pound Cake is double glazed for intense lemony flavor and a moist texture. You are going to love this bakery recipe!
The beautiful pink glaze make Cherry Bread the perfect choice for brunches, teas, and holidays.
This moist Honey Cake Loaf made with applesauce is a year round reader favorite. Make it as a loaf, muffins, or as a bundt cake!
If you love baking with maple flavor, next time give crunchy Maple Crisp Cookies a try!
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Chocolate Maple Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup cocoa powder I prefer fairly traded Whole Foods 365 brand
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ cup butter softened
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon natural maple flavoring
- 1¼ cups maple syrup
for Chocolate Maple Banana Bread
- ½ cup sour cream room temperature
- 2 bananas mashed
For Chocolate Maple Bread (no banana)
- 1 cup sour cream room temperature
- ½ cup mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat the inside of a 9”x5” loaf pan with butter or cooking spray and lightly coat with flour.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter. Add the sour cream and continue mixing until combined. If using bananas, mix in the mashed bananas.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing thoroughly. Beat in the maple syrup, vanilla, and maple flavoring.
- At a low mixing speed, gradually add the flour mixture and continue mixing just until combined.
- Stir in chocolate chips.
- Put the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes. The loaf is done when a toothpick/cake tester comes out clean of batter (some melted chocolate from the chips is ok).
- Cool for 20 minutes in the pan then remove from the pan and place on a wire rack to cool completely before wrapping.
- Store in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 3 days for Chocolate-Maple Banana bread (longer if refrigerated) and 5-7 days for Maple-chocolate without banana.
Notes
- The high level of moisture and sugar provided by the bananas will mold easily in warm weather.
- The Chocolate-Maple Bread with no bananas is a better choice for shipping.
- Both versions will retain freshness better if shipped unsliced, wrapped in one layer of foil, followed by one layer of plastic wrap.
Nutrition
First Published: February 25 2015. Last Updated: March 23, 2022. Updated for additional information and better reader experience.
shannon
for whatever reason, i've been on a chocolate kick lately: this almost never happens to me, and I can only blame the cold weather, the snow, and the sight of waves freezing mid-wave (that's SO FREAKY). That being said, this bread is on my short list of things to make me and the wee one: she's also been on a chocolate kick, and I like to throw something halfway decent for her in there, and you said banana, soooo...done. 🙂
themondaybox
Chocolate is comforting. Whether its life stress or weather stress, chocolate soothes the soul. Banana and chocolate is just down right tasty. I hope the Wee One gets to eat this for breakfast. 🙂
Ashley
I've been on such a banana bread kick lately - which is so unexpected since it's not usually my thing! I haven't made a chocolate version yet though - this sounds just wonderful!
themondaybox
Thanks, Ashley! Maybe you are low on potassium and that is why you are craving bananas? I would take banana bread over a vitamin pill any day! Or maybe you just know delicious when you see/taste it! 🙂
Tricia @ Saving room for dessert
This is soooo pretty! The chocolate is so deep and rich looking - I don't think I would care if it had banana or not! Yum, yum, yum!
themondaybox
Thanks so much, Tricia! I used the Hershey's Special Extra Dark rather than my usual Droste's Cocoa and was delighted with both the color and the flavor. The yum, yum quickly turned into munch, munch around here!
Paula K.
Wendy, off topic but I just wanted to let you know the soldier I sent the 3-2-1 Hot Chocolate microwave cake let me know that they really liked them, microwaved it 45 seconds and she and her friends thought they were great!
themondaybox
Fantastic, Paula!! It makes me smile just imagining the soldiers zapping and enjoying their fresh and gooey 3-2-1 Hot Chocolate Cakes!! You are so kind and thoughtful to send them the ingredients for a party! Any suggestions and/or tips you may have for my future care packages are very welcome! Thank you so much for sharing ! 🙂
Paula K.
Wendy how about a spice cake cake mix with the angel food cake mix, add apple pie filling and drizzle with caramel topping? Sounds good to me.
Paula K.
themondaybox
I love that idea, Paula! I have a "recipe" Caramel Apple 3-2-1 cake on the blog, but I made it with vanilla cake. The spice cake version with caramel on top sounds great, plus it's all shelf-stable ingredients which makes it care package perfect! There are so many 3-2-1 possibilities! Thanks for the delicious suggestion!
Monica
I have really come to love banana bread and banana-baked goods in the last few years but I love how you give an option for with and w/o bananas here. It's also a good point about not shipping banana bread in warm weather. All things duly noted, Wendy! This reminds me of the chocolate banana bread from Smitten Kitchen...so good! You can't go wrong with everything you have going on. The maple factor is so interesting. I just baked some oatmeal cookies that have maple syrup in them. You can't taste the maple flavor but the liquid sugar does something for the texture, I think...
themondaybox
Maple in an oatmeal cookie sounds really good to me, Monica! You found the same elusive flavor issue with the maple syrup in your cookies. I have worked with a handful of maple syrup recipes now and all of them had no maple flavor with just the syrup. It took maple flavoring or King Arthur maple flavor bits to bring the maple-y flavor to anything I baked. Interesting about the texture though. More chewy? I didn't know Smitten Kitchen had a chocolate banana bread! I would have started there. I love Deb's recipes! Now I am going to have to bake her's also and compare. 🙂 But first oatmeal cookies. For some reason, I have an oatmeal cookie craving! 😉