I firmly believe that almost every good banana bread needs a healthy dose of chocolate. I mean chocolate and banana are the ultimate sweet combination. This banana bread brings together these two elements creating a chocolate-banana crumb with a gorgeous chocolate marble effect. The chocolate parts are rich, while the banana sections are lighter in taste. The two sections bring out the best in each other.
When making banana bread, you want to use the ripest bananas you can. The mushier and darker they are, the sweeter and more flavorful your bread will be. There is no such thing as using "too ripe" bananas. As long as there aren't any moldy spots on your bananas, you're good. Typically in banana bread recipes, eggs act a leavening agent along with baking soda. Since this recipe is eggless, the baking soda and powder are the leavening agents.
Unlike our Perfected Banana Bread recipe, this Marble Banana Bread isn't a one-bowl recipe. I know everyone loves a good one bowl recipe since it makes cleaning a million times easier, but in this case, using two bowls is totally worth it. We have to separate the batter in two bowls in this recipe so we can add cocoa to one, to get that gorgeous marble swirl.
TOTAL TIME: 1 hour 25 minutes
SERVINGS: 8 slices
INGREDIENTS:
4 very ripe bananas
1 ½ cups all purpose flour (180 grams) (divided)
1/4 cup cocoa powder
¼ cup melted butter (half a stick)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda (divided)
1 teaspoon baking powder (divided)
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon sea salt
RECIPE:
Preheat your oven to 350° F and line a 8 ½'' x 4 ½'' or 9 ½" x 5 ½" loaf pan with cooking spray and parchment paper.
In a bowl, mash your bananas. Mix in the butter, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt. Then separate the mixture into two separate bowls.
In the first bowl: add the cocoa powder, granulated sugar, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder. Add 1/2 cup and two tablespoons of flour and mix until just combined.
In the second bowl: add the brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, and 3/4 cup flour.
Using a large spoon or ice cream scoop, alternately drop spoonfuls of the two batters into the loaf pan. This will give you the marble effect.
Bake for 55-65 minutes at 350° F. Let it cool before slicing the loaf.