Cake Mix Banana Bread is a an easy cake mix hack dessert treat that you can serve for brunch or dessert, made from cake mix and super ripe bananas.
The richness of the cake mix blends perfectly with the banana flavor and makes for a treat you can enjoy for breakfast or even dessert. If you like this recipe, you should also try out my Chocolate Zucchini Bread, Banana Nut Bread and Easy Banana Bread.
CAKE MIX BANANA BREAD
Banana bread is delicious and so is cake, so the best of both worlds is Cake Mix Banana Bread. All you need are slightly more than ripe bananas, a box of your favorite cake mix and a craving for easy banana bread. The cook time is short for bread and the prep time is super short, so you’ll be enjoying a delicious loaf of homemade bread before you know it.
If you have overripe bananas (and if you have kids you almost always have overripe bananas because they swear they want bananas then don’t actually eat them!), make banana bread. If you have overripe bananas and cake mix, make this yummy, easy recipe.
Box Mix hacks are generally pretty looked down upon on Pinterest (they’re the source of a lot of Pinterest fails) but we’ve enjoyed testing baking with them with our Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies and our Classic Cake Mix Cookies (4 Ingredients!). You can also make this banana bread into muffins instead of baking it into a loaf. It makes 24 muffins, just bake them for 15-18 minutes at 350 degrees.
If you decide that you can’t resist the call of the cake mix, check out my Boxed Cake Mix Hack before you start baking. This hack will help you make your cake mix taste like it’s made from scratch.
HOW TO MAKE CAKE MIX BANANA BREAD
- Preheat to 350 degrees and spray an 8×4 loaf pan with cooking spray.
- Add together all the ingredients in a large bowl and pour into loaf pan.
- Bake for 50-55 minutes.
- Set the bread on a cooling rack.
Create a free account to Save Recipes
VARIATIONS ON CAKE MIX BANANA BREAD
- Toppings and add-ins: Try putting some chocolate chips on top or, if you want delicious chocolate chip banana bread you can mix them into the batter. You aren’t just limited to chocolate chips though: you can also use peanut butter or butterscotch chips. To top off the bread, you can sprinkle cinnamon sugar, grown sugar or even chopped pecans.
- Muffins: Take the batter and divide it into a muffin tin. Make sure to keep an eye on them as they bake to make sure that they don’t burn, because the cooking time may be different due tot he shape and size of the pan.
- Fruit: You can top the bread with blueberries, chopped banana or strawberries for a delicious, juicy twist.
- Cake mix: You can change up the flavor of the banana bread by using different cake mixes. Try out white cake mix, butter pecan cake mix, chocolate cake mix, spice cake mix or a box yellow cake mix for delicious and fun results.
- Frosting: To make your cake mix banana bread into a proper dessert, spread some icing on top. Check out my recipes for Peanut Butter or Cream Cheese frosting, or try the vanilla glaze from my Iced Banana Nut Bread recipe.
THE TOOTHPICK TEST
When the timer dings and it’s time to take the bread out of the oven, how do you know if it has actually cooked all the way through or if the inside is still molten? Here’s an easy trick to see if the inside is done without having to cut it open.
Get a toothpick and stick it into the center of the bread and pull it out. If the toothpick comes out clean, it means that the center is solid and ready to be set out to cool. If the toothpick comes out covered in batter you need to put the bread back in for a few more minutes. Keep an eye on the bread when it goes back in to make sure that it doesn’t burn.
You can also (if you are slightly brave) touch the middle of the cake gently and see if it springs back. If it does, the cake is done, if it doesn’t the cake needs more time.
HOW LONG IS CAKE MIX BANANA BREAD GOOD?
- Serve: Banana bread is good at room temperature for about 2 days before it turns stale as a rock. Keep it covered with plastic wrap or in an airtight container to keep it fresh longer.
- Store: You can keep banana bread in the fridge for about a week. After that point you should really make a new batch before the old one will be mushy.
- Freeze: Banana bread lasts really well in the freezer for up to 2 months. Make sure that you let the loaf fully cool down to room temperature before freezing it or putting it in the fridge.
Ingredients
- 1/2 box Betty Crocker Yellow cake mix , (15.25 ounces)
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg white
- 2 medium bananas , mashed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat to 350 degrees and spray an 8x4 loaf pan with baking spray.
- Add together all the ingredients in a large bowl and pour into loaf pan.
- Bake for 50-55 minutes until bread springs back when touched.
Nutrition
Want to save this recipe? Create a free account to easily save your favorite recipes
I see where ppl say add water..I did not I did recipe as directed (except I added 1 tsp vanilla & I did 3 bananas) it was perfect with no water
Someone said they added water to this recipe, I didn’t see any listed. Hoe much water should I add?
Thanks
Hi! This recipe does not call for water.
Can I add fresh ripe banana to “quick bread banana bread mix”? Do any ingredients need to be adjusted?
Ingredients on the box:
3/4 cup water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 whole large eggs
Thanks
Hmm, I’ve not tested that so I’m not sure what would need adjusting. Usually when you add a bananas, you cut back on the butter or in this case oil by half. If you decide to try, I’d love to know what worked.
Am gonna give a try to this….
Just made this. Used little more than 1/2 box of spice cake mix and added maybe 2-3 tbs water and some chopped walnuts. Turned out perfect! I like taller loaves of sweet bread and often increase recipe ingredients by 1/2 again to achieve that. Next time I will try using whole box of cake mix, an additional banana and see what additional water or oil will be needed.
Thanks for the feedback, Jennifer.
This is the best banana bread recipe I’ve ever tasted! I have a question though, does it have to be Betty Crocker cake mix?
No, you can use any brand of mix. Enjoy!
Thank you for the great recipe. We really enjoyed it. Didn’t taste like anything from a box at all. So quick and easy to throw together. I’m gonna be using this recipe a lot!! It was delicious ?
So glad you enjoyed it, Nicole. I appreciate the 5 star rating.
Can I double this? If so, do I need to use 2 egg whites? Or can I use another whole egg?
You can always use the slider tool on the recipe card to adjust and it’ll let you know exactly what you need. Hover over the serving (in green) and a slider will pop up. To double, you’ll need to use 2 eggs and 2 egg whites. Enjoy!
I have always used a cake mix to make banana bread. The only change is when mixing the cake mix instead of using amount listed for water I use 1/4 cup less. And fold in mashed bananas and nuts if needed at the very end of the mixing. Delicious! Of course I use a Bundt pan and it turns out really nice.
Thank you so much for this banana bread recipe it was so delicious and so easy wow?
I’m glad you liked it and yes it’s amazingly easy!
Oh wow! What a fantastic hack! This bread looks and sounds amazing. Everything you post is delicious, so this is gonna be another must-try!
Thanks so much Jess!
Such a simple way to enjoy a family favorite! I never thought of using a cake mix to make banana bread.
So easy!
I am pleasantly surprised by how delicious this looks. As for topping, I would put peanut butter frosting on it. YUMMY!!
Sounds like a genius idea!
Ah wow, I love how easy this recipe is! Perfect for a quick fix 🙂
Definitely!
Such a light and moist bread! The perfect cure for my sweet tooth! Delish!
So glad you enjoyed it!
Can this be cooked in a square or rectangle cake pan?
I think your best bet is to use a 8 or 9 inch round pan instead.
Is the 15.25 oz for the entire box of BC cake mix? Or is that measurement for 1/2 box? I don’t have one to compare. Could a box of yellow cake Jiffy mix be substituted?
The entire box of cake mix is 15.25 ounces and you’ll want to use half of that. I’ve not tested it using a Jiffy mix so I’m not sure if that could be substituted or not. I hope you enjoy!