Chocolate Chip Banana Bars are moist, rich, chewy dessert bars made with real bananas and chocolate morsels, a winning flavor combination!
Ripe bananas are the perfect ingredient for so many amazing desserts. While delicious Banana Bread is a go-to for a lot of us, it’s also fun to mix things up with a different tasty treat. This Bar Recipe is a delicious new way to enjoy banana flavor.
Sabrina’s Chocolate Chip Banana Bars
This bars recipe is the perfect easy dessert to bring to a potluck or serve to your family after dinner. It’s an easy recipe that you can make in just less than half an hour. Keep in mind that it does make a fairly large batch of banana bars, but they keep well and make a delicious snack to enjoy throughout the week. So, you don’t have to worry about waiting for some big occasion to make them.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 5 very ripe bananas , about 1 2/3 cup
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil , any type (we used coconut)
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1 3/4 cup flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips , divided
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 15×10.5-inch pan with non-stick spray.
- Add the bananas to a large bowl, mash well.
- Stir in brown sugar, oil, milk, and eggs until combined.
- Add in dry ingredients and stir.
- Fold in ½ the chocolate chips.
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle remaining chips on top.
- Bake 18-22 minutes, until a wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
- Cool completely and cut into squares.
Nutrition
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Table of Contents
About This Recipe
The combination of bananas, brown sugar, cinnamon, and just a few simple pantry ingredients makes the basic banana bars for the base of the recipe. Then adding mini chocolate chips to the batter and over the top makes more decadent chocolate banana bars.
Chef’s Note
If you want even more rich flavors for these delicious Banana Chocolate Chip Bars, you can add your favorite toppings. Serving them with a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream or a dollop of Whipped Cream always tastes amazing. If you’re a real chocolate lover, you can even drizzle some Hot Fudge on top.
Can this be Made Ahead of Time?
Yes, these bars can be made ahead of time. Once the bars have cooled completely, you can store them in an airtight container at room temperature, in the fridge, or the freezer. If you are storing the bars in the freezer, you will want to wrap them individually in plastic wrap or aluminum foil, and place them in a sealed bag to keep them fresh. When you are ready to serve the bars, simply remove them from the refrigerator or freezer and allow them to come to room temperature or warm them slightly in the oven.
How to Store
- Serve: Cool bars completely before you cut them into squares so they cut cleanly. You also want to cool before covering to prevent moisture build up.
- Store: If you have leftovers, you can keep them in a covered container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Alternatively, you can store the bars in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
- Freeze: Freeze bars on a baking sheet for 1 hour before storing them in an airtight storage container with parchment paper between each layer, or wrap them individually with plastic wrap or foil. They’ll stay good for 3 months. Bring to room temperature to enjoy.
FAQ’s
To ripen bananas quickly, place them in a brown paper bag and fold the top of the bag closed. The bananas will release natural gas as they ripen, which helps speed up the process. You can also place the bananas in a sunny spot or near a heat source (like your oven) to encourage ripening.
Yes, you can use frozen bananas in banana bars, just thaw them first until they are soft enough to mash. Keep in mind that the texture of the bars may be slightly different if you use frozen bananas, as they tend to release more moisture than fresh bananas when they are thawed. This could result in a slightly moister or softer texture.
Yes, you can double the recipe to make a larger batch of chocolate chip banana bars. Simply double all of the ingredients and bake the bars in 2 pans. The baking time may need to be adjusted slightly, so keep an eye on the bars as they bake and add additional time as needed.
Yes, you can make these bars into muffins. Simply divide the batter evenly among muffin cups lined with muffin liners and bake the muffins for 18-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Variations
- Easter Banana Bars: Make these delicious banana treats to serve for Easter by replacing the chocolate chips sprinkled on top with Cadbury mini eggs for an adorable and delicious holiday dessert.
- Spices: The ground cinnamon in the recipe does a great job balancing out the sweet flavors and complimenting the banana. For more warm spices, try adding ground nutmeg, ginger, cloves, allspice, or Pumpkin Spice Blend.
- Vegan: If you want to make these bars vegan-friendly, there are a few important changes to make. Firstly, you’ll want to replace the dairy milk with almond milk, oat milk, cashew milk, or your favorite milk substitute. For the eggs, you can use ¼ cup of applesauce for each egg or flax eggs. The only other ingredient you’ll need is dairy-free chocolate chips, which you can usually find in grocery store baking aisles.
- Healthy dessert swaps: There are lots of healthy dessert alternative ingredients if you want to make the banana bars a little healthier. Try replacing the sugar with coconut sugar or honey. You can also substitute the white flour with wheat flour. If you want to make the Banana Bars gluten-free use almond flour, or other substitutes, just keep in mind not all substitutes are one to one and may need additional raising agents or moisture.
- Other Mix-Ins: Some suggestions are nuts, dried fruit, or additional types of chocolate such as white chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate.
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At what step do you add the bananas?
Thank you for bringing this to my attention Charles. It’s the first step! I have updated the recipe. Add your bananas to a large bowl, mash well and then follow the steps in the recipe!
What is a CUP OF FLOUR? can we have proper measurements please?
Hi Sally, On the recipe card underneath the heading, “Ingredients” you can click on the word metric to assist you with measurements outside of the US. Hope that helps!