Description
These Chocolate Chip Banana Bars are moist, flavorful, and easy to make, combining ripe bananas with rich mini chocolate chips in a tender, buttery batter. Perfect for a snack or dessert, these bars bake up soft and delicious with a delightful chocolatey finish.
Ingredients
Scale
Wet Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter (113 grams), melted (1 stick)
- 1 cup granulated sugar (200 grams)
- 2 large eggs (100 grams), room temperature
- 3 ripe bananas, mashed
- ¾ cup buttermilk (170 grams), room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract (8 grams)
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (240 grams)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder (8 grams)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda (6 grams)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt (3 grams)
Chocolate Chips
- 1½ cups mini chocolate chips (266 grams), divided
Instructions
- Preheat and Prepare Pan: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and grease a 9×13-inch baking pan with nonstick spray to prevent sticking.
- Mix Butter, Sugar, and Eggs: In a large bowl, use a whisk or hand mixer to beat together the melted butter, granulated sugar, and eggs until well combined and smooth.
- Add Bananas, Buttermilk, and Vanilla: Stir in the mashed bananas, buttermilk, and vanilla extract until the mixture is fully incorporated and smooth.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and kosher salt.
- Fold Dry Ingredients into Wet Mixture: Gradually stir the dry ingredients into the wet banana mixture just until combined to avoid overmixing which can toughen the bars.
- Add Chocolate Chips to Batter: Gently fold 1¼ cups of the mini chocolate chips into the batter, distributing them evenly.
- Pour Batter into Pan and Top: Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and spread it evenly. Sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup of chocolate chips evenly over the top for a chocolatey finish.
- Bake the Bars: Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, indicating they are fully baked.
- Cool and Serve: Allow the bars to cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before cutting them into 12 squares to ensure they hold together perfectly.
Notes
- The riper the bananas, the sweeter and more flavorful the bars will be.
- If you don’t have buttermilk, substitute by adding 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to ¾ cup milk and let it sit for 5 minutes to thicken.
- Do not overmix the batter; the dry ingredients should be just combined to keep the bars tender.
- Allow the bars to cool completely before cutting to prevent crumbling.
- Store bars in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, refrigerated for up to 1 week, or frozen for up to 2 months.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bar (approx. 70g)
- Calories: 280 kcal
- Sugar: 20 g
- Sodium: 220 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 7 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 38 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 50 mg
