Rich and moist, this banana gingerbread is full of warming gingerbread spices, bananas, and molasses. Perfect for the holiday season.

An easy banana bread recipe is always a hit, but sometimes a change to a classic is nice. This spiced banana bread is a gingerbread banana loaf combination.
It contains the texture of classic moist banana bread, combined with the warming spiciness of an old-fashioned gingerbread loaf. It's deliciously decadent.
Try this brown butter banana bread next!
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About this bread
This is a quick bread because the batter can be mixed up in less than 10 minutes!
However baking time takes a little longer. It's baked in a loaf tin, which, because of its restricted size, means it takes its time to cook right through.
It has the taste and moist texture of banana bread but it's also spicy and super flavorful thanks to deep molasses, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. The perfect bread to bake over the winter holidays and it will make the house smell wonderful.
The ingredients
The ingredients are listed in the recipe card below but here is a run-through of them with a few extra details.
- Large bananas - Mashed bananas are an obvious must-have in a banana gingerbread loaf. Overripe bananas are best. They provide natural sweetness and flavor to the recipe as well as add moisture to the bread.
- Soft brown sugar
- Unsalted butter - melted butter provides flavor and moisture.
- Eggs - Large eggs provide some of the structure.
- Vanilla - Always a good idea.
- Spices - ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves give the warming gingerbread flavor.
- Molasses - Unsulphered molasses. This gives a rich dark color and adds moisture.
- Flour - an all-purpose flour is the base of the loaf.
- Baking soda - The rising agent needed in the loaf.
- Salt - a flavor enhancer
- Boiled water - Adding hot water to the batter creates a more moist loaf.
Equipment
You'll need a 9x 5-inch loaf pan (23x16cm.)
The method
Preheat the oven to 350°F (176°C) and line a 9x5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, spices, salt, and baking soda until no clumps remain. Set this aside.
Melt the butter in a large microwave-safe large bowl. Add in the bananas and mash them well.
Add in the sugar, vanilla, eggs, and molasses.
Whisk until combined.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk together. Pour over hot water.
Stir it together carefully until combined into a pourable cake batter.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Slice the extra banana lengthwise and place the sliced banana on top of the batter.
Baking
Bake in a preheated oven for approximately 60 minutes until the center of the bread is cooked through. The cooking time will depend on your oven and the pan used. A skewer inserted into the center of the loaf should come out clean.
Remove the banana gingerbread loaf from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan for 5 minutes.
Lift it from the pan and allow it to cool further on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes before slicing.
Serving and storing
This makes a lovely afternoon treat, or enjoy with a cup of tea or your morning coffee.
This delicious loaf cake stays fresh at room temperature for up to 3 days. It can also be wrapped tightly and frozen for up to three months.
Additions and substitutions
Banana bread is a great recipe that can easily be adapted to suit your tastes. Texture can be added with seeds and nuts, flavors can be changed with spices and fruits. Sugars and flours can be switched up too.
- Walnuts, pecans, or almonds can be chopped and added to the batter. In the case of nut allergies, seeds can be added instead. Pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds give a great crunch to the moist bread.
- Stir in finely chopped candied ginger for extra spice.
- Swap the spices with 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice.
- Spices, fruits, chocolate - This gingerbread banana bread is already full of spices, but these can be changed too. Cardamom and all-spice can be added, or orange zest too. Dark chocolate chips are a delicious addition too, especially when the bread is still warm and the chocolate has melted.
- ½ the all-purpose flour in this recipe can be switched to whole wheat flour for a healthier touch.
Related recipes
Want more sweet bread recipes? Try this cinnamon glazed apple bread or these delicious brioche cinnamon rolls.
Homemade cultured butter is another great thing to try to make and spread on your loaves.
This recipe is written using grams as the main measurement.
If you don't have a kitchen scale US* cup equivalents are also included, however, using a kitchen scale to measure grams will give the best, and most consistent results. *US cup sizes are smaller than metric cup sizes.
Full Recipe
Banana Gingerbread with Molasses
Thick and moist with rich flavor, this ginger banana bread is full of warming spices, bananas and molasses.
Ingredients
- 113g (½ cup) unsalted butter
- 240g (2 large) extra ripe bananas
- 2 large eggs
- 150g (¾ cup) soft brown sugar
- 95g (⅓ cup) unsulphured molasses
- 1 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract
- 250g (2 cups*) all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 240g (1 cup) hot boiled water
Topping
- 1 banana (optional)
- Turbinado sugar (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 356 °F (176°C). Grease and line a 9x5-inch (23 x 16cm) loaf pan.
- Melt the butter in a large bowl. Add in the bananas and mash them well. Add the sugar, vanilla, egg, and molasses and whisk until combined.
- Whisk together the flour, spices, salt, and baking soda in a separate bowl.
- Add the dry ingredients to the banana mixture and whisk together until combined.
- Pour over the hot water and stir it carefully until combined into a pourable cake batter. There will be lumps from the mashed banana and that's okay.
- Pour the batter into a prepared loaf pan.
- Slice the extra banana lengthwise and place the sliced banana on top of the batter. Sprinkle with a little turbinado sugar.
- Bake in a preheated oven for approximately 60 minutes until cooked through and a knife inserted in the loaf comes out clean.
- Remove the loaf from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan for 5 minutes.
- Lift it from the pan and allow it to cool further on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes before slicing.
Notes
*The cup sizes given are for US cups. Note that these are smaller than metric cup sizes. For best results, use grams.
The banana gingerbread stays fresh at room temperature for up to 3 days. It can also be wrapped tightly and frozen for up to three months.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 168Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 32mgSodium: 194mgCarbohydrates: 26gFiber: 1gSugar: 6gProtein: 3g
Daniela says
The ingredients mention light brown sugar, but the instructions don't. Is this added to the dry ingredients?
Elien says
Fixed that now 🙂
Ann says
This turned out beautifully! I used turbinado sugar but I might try light brown sugar next time. But it’s has a wonderful fluffy texture and flavor.
Bill says
Do you mean boiled water that has been cooled which seems to make more sense than adding freshly boiled water. Can't find any reference to water temp so will go with cold water if I don't hear back.
Do like the metric measurements BTW.
Elien says
Hey Bill I mean hot water that has just been boiled 🙂
Bill says
Oops. I used cool water from the kettle but glad to say it came out delicious. Even banana bread haters in the family ate it.
I'll give it a shot your way next time.
Baked it in a 9x11 pan because no bread pan handy. Cooked in 40 minutes.