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Mocha banana bread makes a delicious twist on classic banana bread! If you’ve never added chocolate to your banana bread, I’m here to tell you that you’ve been missing out on a truly wondrous experience. To really shake things up, I gave the classic banana loaf a makeover with a shot of espresso and a double dose of chocolate.
Espresso intensifies the rich chocolate flavor and is an easy fit with banana; coconut oil and buttermilk give the honey-sweetened loaf the ideal springy texture. Topped with chocolate chips for a bit of indulgence, this is the way to do breakfast!
And if you prefer your banana bread without coffee, simply omit the espresso for chocolate banana bread. 🙂
Craving more banana bread? Try banana bread muffins next!
How to Make Mocha Banana Bread
Room temperature ingredients – Bring buttermilk and egg to room temperature before baking. Room temperature ingredients incorporate more easily into the batter and give this quick bread a tender crumb.
Bananas – My favorite bananas for banana bread are ripe and speckled (not blackened). For this recipe, you’ll use 1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana. Place the ripe bananas in a bowl and mash with the back of a fork or potato masher until completely mashed.
Mix just until combined – Don’t overmix the batter! Gently fold the wet and dry ingredients together until almost incorporated, then gently fold in chocolate chips. The finished batter is textured and visibly lumpy.
Bake – Bake the loaf for 60 to 75 minutes, until the top springs back to the touch. Bread is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few crumbs attached; baking time may vary based on moisture content of the bananas.
Freezing Tips
Cool banana bread completely on a wire rack, then place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze flat for 1 hour. After 1 hour, wrap the bread well with a layer of plastic wrap and a layer of foil (or place in a freezer bag). Freeze bread for up to 2 months.
When you’re ready to enjoy, defrost the banana bread at room temperature (still covered to prevent condensation from forming).
To freeze banana bread slices, use a serrated knife to slice the bread and wrap each slice in plastic wrap. Store the slices in a freezer bag for up to 2 months.
More delicious banana bread recipes:
Did you try this Mocha Banana Bread Recipe? Let me know by leaving a comment and rating below!
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Chocolate Mocha Banana Bread
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Yield: 1 loaf, 12 slices
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
Mocha banana bread is a delicious twist on classic banana bread! With rich mocha flavor and a delicious chocolate chip topping, you’ll love this easy bread.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana
- 2/3 cup honey
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted and slightly cooled
- 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk, at room temperature
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 Tbsp instant espresso, dissolved in 1 Tbsp hot water
- 1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Topping
- 3 Tbsp semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper, letting excess extend over sides of pan. Spray parchment paper lightly with nonstick spray.
- Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the mixture. Combine banana, honey, coconut oil, buttermilk, egg, vanilla, and espresso in a medium bowl; add to flour mixture and fold in just until combined. Fold in chocolate chips.
- Spoon batter into prepared pan and smooth top with an offset spatula. Tap pan sharply and top with remaining chocolate chips.
- Bake for 60 to 75 minutes (see note below), rotating pan halfway through. Bread is done when center is set, loaf springs back to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes; carefully lift bread from pan and cool completely.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.
Notes
Baking time will vary based on moisture content of the bananas. Begin checking bread after 60 minutes. If using bananas that were previously frozen, baking time may be up to 75 minutes.
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This is my absolute favorite banana bread recipe! I love adding chopped walnuts and dark chocolate too – yum!
Thanks so much, Ryanne! Love the sound of the walnut and dark chocolate additions!
I have made a version of this and love love the flavor of chocolate with the banana bread. It is so delicious and prefer it over regular banana bread.
This is one of my favorites too! 🙂 Hope 2023 is off to a wonderful start for you, Joan!
We enjoyed this bread! A lot of the color comes from the instant espresso, which makes it a rich brown color. We added chopped pecans, and next time I will try additional honey – it could have been a bit sweeter for our taste. I have my own beehives, so I’m always looking for ways to incorporate honey into our baking. We may try substituting maple syrup, too – we tap our trees, so always have some extra.
Thanks so much for your feedback, Michaela. Love the pecan addition!
I have made this banana bread a few times and it is so good! I use olive oil instead of coconut oil.
Thanks so much, Cassie! Olive oil is a great choice too!
How is this cake so dark? What brand of cocoa powder did you use in this cake photo?
Hi Tanya, my favorite cocoa powder to bake with is Rodelle Gourmet Baking Cocoa.
Hi there! I really want to make this but I don’t have buttermilk. Will low fat lactose free milk or greek yogurt work? If so how much? Thanks!
Hi there! I would try the low fat lactose free milk as an equal substitute for the buttermilk.
Can you freeze this bread?
Hi Marilyn! Yes, once the loaf is fully cooled, you can freeze this bread. I like to pre-slice it, wrap the slices individually in plastic wrap, and then place in a freezer bag for storage.
My lil one declared – I want banana-baked-something and the banana should just disappear into the chocolate. He is 5, about to start online kindergarten! Right now, his word is my command 🙂 And so I landed on your recipe!! Love it. I made a few substitutions. We are tired of digging into the white and brown sugar jars, and so we used 1/3 cup maple syrup and 1/3 cup dark molasses instead. One banana out of four was not just dark, but a goner. So we used applesauce to make it all come upto the 1.5 cups mentioned. I ended up with a slightly wet batter. We baked it in regular sized muffin tins for about 20 mins. They are addictive! Also we used 2/3 cup of 70% chocolate chunks. Cos my 5 yr old is serious of chocolate !! Thank you for the great idea and a solid recipe.
I love that, thank you Shil! 🙂
I don’t have instant espresso, can you substitute with real espresso shots? Should I reduce the milk to adjust for the liquid?
Hi Tana! You can definitely add an espresso shot. I would leave all of the other measurements the same. 🙂
Another ridiculously delicious recipe from you!! So moist and chocolatey! I LOVED it!
Thank you so much, Jackie! Glad this recipe was such a hit! 🙂