Blueberry Buttermilk Banana Bread
Moist, soft, and bursting with fresh blueberries. This simple Blueberry Buttermilk Banana Bread is the perfect bake when you have overly ripe bananas! Enjoy this for breakfast, brunch, snack or dessert!
If you love banana bread as much as I do, be sure to check out some of my other favorite banana bread recipes like Coconut Chocolate Chip Banana Bread, Almond Butter Banana Bread, Frosted Gingerbread Banana Bread, Vegan Pumpkin Spice Banana Bread, or Eggless Mini Chocolate Chip Banana Bread.
A Quick Look At The Recipe
- Recipe Name: Blueberry Buttermilk Banana Bread
- Ready In: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Makes: 1-pound loaf
- Main Ingredients: salted butter, cane sugar, bananas, all purpose flour
- Flavor Profile: sweet banana, tangy buttermilk and juicy blueberries
- Dietary Info: no seed oils, gluten free swap available
- Difficulty: Easy!
- Why You’ll Love It: ultra-moist, tender crumb perfect for breakfast, brunch, or dessert
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Burst of Freshness: Blueberry Buttermilk Banana Bread combines the sweet, comforting taste of banana bread with juicy blueberries, adding a refreshing burst of flavor into every bite!
- Moist and Tender: The natural moisture from ripe bananas and fresh blueberries creates a delightfully soft and tender crumb, making this bread irresistibly moist and perfect for any time of day.
- One Bowl Recipe: This homemade banana bread comes together effortlessly in one bow. Whether you want to use a stand mixer, hand mixer or just mix by hand, it's quick and easy!
Ingredients
- Light Brown Sugar: I use my homemade light brown sugar, but store bought also works. Light brown sugar gives this loaf lots of flavor and moisture.
- Bananas: Make sure to use overripe bananas that are black in some way! Overly ripe bananas are best for baking because the starches have had time to turn to sugars. This makes them really easy to combine into batters, but also gives them more flavor and sweetness.
- Buttermilk: I use organic buttermilk, if you can't find it you can easily make your own with my Organic Buttermilk Recipe. The buttermilk provides a subtle tang that is so good here.
- All Purpose Flour: My favorite is Cairnspring Mills, it's what I used here. They are a fresh flour mill up in Washington, making the best organic flour!
- Cinnamon: I use organic Korintje ground cinnamon, which is my favorite kind. If you want to learn more about the different cinnamons, check out my post Best Cinnamon to Bake With.
- Baking Powder: I use baking powder because this is a cake, which is a slow rise bake. If you want more info on leavening agents, be sure to read my post the Difference Between Baking Soda and Baking Powder.
- Blueberries: You can use fresh blueberries or frozen, either works. And, if using frozen you can just dump them right into the batter (don't need to thaw). I have tested this and it makes it super easy!
*For a full list of ingredients and measurements, visit the recipe card below.
Baker's Tips
- Make sure your butter is soft. This should be soft enough that if you poked it, it would leave an indent. I like to leave butter out on the counter overnight before baking with it, as it allows it to soften naturally at room temperature. If you need to microwave it, only do 10 seconds per half cup at once.
- Use overly ripe bananas! If they are black, they are perfect for banana bread.
- If you don't have buttermilk, you can make your own with my Organic Buttermilk Recipe. You could also use milk or heavy whipping cream instead.
- You can use fresh or frozen blueberries here. It's totally up to you! I like to reserve a few extra blueberries to add on top of the bread too so you see blueberries poking out of the top.
- Lining your loaf pan with parchment paper really helps it come out easily. If you're not using parchment paper, be sure to grease it well. Or, make sure you are using a high quality loaf pan like the Caraway Loaf Pan that I used here, this one releases perfectly no parchment or greasing needed!
- Gluten Free: Replace the all purpose flour with 191 grams gluten free flour blend. I used the Namaste Organic Perfect Flour for testing.
- High Altitude: Bake at 350°F for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
How to Make Blueberry Buttermilk Banana Bread
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 1-pound loaf pan with parchment paper, letting it fold over the sides for easier removal. (Or use a nonstick pan or grease it well). To make the batter: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, light brown sugar, and bananas and mix on low until combined and there are no chunks of butter.
- Add the buttermilk and eggs.
- Mix on low until combined.
- Add flour, cinnamon, baking powder, cinnamon, and sea salt into the mixing bowl in that order.
- Mix on low until combined, and you have a smooth batter.
- Fold in the blueberries.
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan and spread out evenly.
- Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Once the loaf has cooled, remove it from the pan. (if you're baking at high altitude, be sure to check the Notes at the bottom of the recipe for high altitude baking instructions).
What to Serve With Buttermilk Blueberry Banana Bread
- Enjoy with an Iced Blueberry Latte for a mid morning snack or lazy girl breakfast.
- Treat yourself to an afternoon snack with a slice of this and Strawberry Watermelon Smoothie With Collagen or Berry Protein Smoothie Without Banana for a sweet treat with protein!
- Have for dessert with a scoop of ice cream like Salted Caramel No Churn Ice Cream as the flavor pairs beautifully with the banana and blueberries.
Recipe FAQ's
Buttermilk provides a subtle tang to this banana bread. It compliments the berries so well with contrasting sweet bursts in every bite!
You can use whole milk in place of buttermilk, but it just won't have that little tang that the buttermilk provides.
As the bananas ripen, the starches turn into sugar. This sugar is what gives bananas their flavor and also lends well to to baked goods, such as banana bread. Using overly ripe bananas will produce a sweeter and moister banana bread. If you've ever eaten a banana that wasn't ripe yet, I'm sure you've tasted the starchiness, and it's not good. That's why you don't want to bake with those bananas either! So, while bananas for eating are best in the middle – the ones for baking are best overly ripe. So, save those bananas and make something with them.
Yes, simply replace the all purpose flour with 191 grams gluten free flour blend. I used the Namaste Organic Perfect Flour for testing.
Yes, fresh or frozen work! You can just add the frozen right in if using frozen, I've tested both ways.
Yes, but let them thaw completely before using. You can let them thaw in the fridge overnight or you can also let them thaw at room temperature before beginning the recipe.
Over mixing the batter can cause it to thin, then it can't hold the weight of the blueberries so they can sink.
Don't over mix the batter and lightly fold in the blueberries to prevent more moisture from releasing.
If you under baked it or if you didn't let it cool completely before slicing. Both of these things can make your banana bread gummy.
Yes, let it cool completely before slicing for nice clean cuts and to ensure that the bread is not gummy.
Yes, you can make this into muffins by scooping into a lined muffin tin instead of a loaf pan. You'll only want to bake the muffins for about 20 to 25 minutes.
Banana bread is moist and fluffy, just like cake. So it needs to be stored in an airtight container to retain that moisture and keep its texture. I like to keep my banana bread in a cake dome. A tupperware or zip bag will also work!
Yes, you can freeze the whole loaf or individual slices. Wrap the loaf (or slices) tightly in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months. Just thaw and enjoy!
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Blueberry Buttermilk Banana Bread
Equipment
- Digital Food Scale
- Stand Mixer (or hand mixer)
- 1-pound Loaf Pan
- Parchment Paper Sheets
Ingredients
- 113 grams salted butter (softened)
- 170 grams light brown sugar (packed)
- 2 large bananas (very ripe)
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 2 large eggs
- 191 grams all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 113 grams blueberries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 1-pound loaf pan with parchment paper, letting it fold over the sides for easier removal. (Or use a nonstick pan or grease it well).
- To make the batter: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, light brown sugar, and bananas, and mix on low until combined and there are no chunks of butter.
- Add the buttermilk and eggs and mix on low until combined.
- Add flour, cinnamon, baking powder, cinnamon, and sea salt into the mixing bowl in that order. Mix on low until combined, and you have a smooth batter. Fold in the blueberries.
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan and spread out evenly. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Once the loaf has cooled, remove it from the pan.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 7 days.
Video
Notes
- Make sure your butter is soft. This should be soft enough that if you poked it, it would leave an indent. I like to leave butter out on the counter overnight before baking with it, as it allows it to soften naturally at room temperature. If you need to microwave it, only do 10 seconds per half cup at once.
- Use overly ripe bananas! If they are black, they are perfect for banana bread.
- If you don't have buttermilk, you can make your own with my Organic Buttermilk Recipe. You could also use milk or heavy whipping cream instead.
- You can use fresh or frozen blueberries here. It's totally up to you! I like to reserve a few extra blueberries to add on top of the bread too so you see blueberries poking out of the top.
- Lining your loaf pan with parchment paper really helps it come out easily. If you're not using parchment paper, be sure to grease it well. Or, make sure you are using a high quality loaf pan like the Caraway Loaf Pan that I used here, this one releases perfectly no parchment or greasing needed!
- Gluten Free: Replace the all purpose flour with 191 grams gluten free flour blend. I used the Namaste Organic Perfect Flour for testing.
- High Altitude: Bake at 350°F for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Nutrition
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Can I use Einkorn flour instead of all purpose flour? If so how would you recommend adjusting the ingredients?
hi Jai, I haven’t tested this with Einkorn flour. But, typically einkorn flour can be used in place of all purpose flour, but you may need to adjust the liquid slightly as einkorn absorbs liquid more slowly and has weaker gluten, so you might need to use slightly less liquid. It’s best to use “all-purpose einkorn flour” which has some of the bran removed for better results. You can try your einkorn flour and only use 1/2 cup of buttermilk to start, see how your batter looks. If it looks very dry or its really stiff, you can slowly add a bit more. Banana bread batter should be fairly runny and easy to pour into the loaf pan. You may have to test the recipe a couple times to get it right. Let me know if you do!
The buttermilk adds such great flavor to this banana bread! Combined with the blueberries you get a little burst of sweetness and tang in every bite!
Perfectly moist and delicious.
thanks Mary!
Just love the combination of blueberries in banana bread! The buttermilk added a special punch as well! So yummy.
This is a great twist to traditional banana bread, love the buttermilk and blueberries!