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A slice of snickerdoodle banana bread with a golden cinnamon sugar crust, sitting on a wooden table with breakfast nearby.

Easy Snickerdoodle Banana Bread

This cozy Snickerdoodle Banana Bread is soft, tender, and topped with a sparkly cinnamon-sugar crust. It’s warm, buttery, and irresistible—perfect for breakfast, gifting, or whenever you have ripe bananas to use.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings: 10
Course: Breakfast, Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 291

Ingredients
  

Dry Ingredients
  • 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon fine salt
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg optional but adds warmth
Wet Ingredients
  • ½ cup unsalted butter melted and slightly cooled
  • ¾ cup brown sugar
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 very ripe bananas mashed (about 1 ¼ cups)
  • ½ cup sour cream or full-fat Greek yogurt
Cinnamon-Sugar Topping (Snickerdoodle Style)
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • Optional: 1 tablespoon melted butter for brushing the top before sprinkling sugar creates a crunchier crust

Equipment

  • Mixing bowls
  • Whisk

Method
 

Prep
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×5 loaf pan and line with parchment for easy lifting.
Mix the Dry Ingredients
  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together: flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg(if using). Set aside.
Mix the Wet Ingredients
  1. In a large bowl, whisk together: melted butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar. Add eggs and whisk until smooth. Mix in vanilla, mashed bananas, and sour cream.
Combine
  1. Pour dry ingredients into wet. Fold together gently just until no dry streaks remain. Do NOT overmix.
Make the Snickerdoodle Topping
  1. Stir sugar + cinnamon together.
  2. (If using melted butter, brush the loaf batter surface lightly so the cinnamon sugar sticks and crisps.)
Bake
  1. Pour batter into loaf pan.
  2. Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar evenly over the top. Swirl the topping into the batter gently using a toothpick.
  3. Bake for 55–65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with only moist crumbs.
Cool
  1. Let the bread cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Notes

       - Use very ripe bananas for the sweetest flavor and softest texture.
  • If your butter is too warm, it may affect the texture of the loaf—cool melted butter is best.
  • For a crispier snickerdoodle crust, don’t skip the optional melted butter under the topping.
  • To make muffins, divide batter into a lined muffin tin and bake 18–22 minutes at 350°F.
  • This banana bread freezes beautifully—wrap slices individually for easy thaw-and-eat snacks.
  • Brown butter adds extra depth. If using, cool it completely before mixing into the batter.
  • A 1:1 gluten-free flour blend can be used without changing the measurements.