Ingredients
- 3 very ripe large bananas (about 1 pound)
- ⅔ packed cup/146 grams light brown sugar
- ½ cup/115 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), melted and slightly cooled
- ⅓ cup/75 grams sour cream or whole-milk Greek yogurt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups/256 grams all-purpose flour
- 1½ tablespoons instant espresso powder (see Tip)
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom, preferably freshly ground
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
- 3 ounces/85 grams dark (bittersweet) chocolate, chopped (about ½ cup)
Steps
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper to form a sling that hangs over the two long sides.
- In a large bowl, mash the bananas with a fork or potato masher until mostly smooth (a few lumps are okay). Add the brown sugar, melted butter, sour cream, eggs and vanilla extract and whisk to combine.
- Add the flour, espresso powder, cardamom, baking soda and salt and stir until just combined; do not overmix. Stir in the chocolate.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread into an even layer. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs attached, 55 to 65 minutes.
- Let cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Meanwhile, make the coffee drizzle, if using: While the banana bread is cooling, combine espresso powder and 2 teaspoons water in a small bowl to dissolve. Add the powdered sugar and stir with a fork until smooth.
- Run a knife around the sides of the bread to loosen it then grasp the parchment paper sling and lift the bread out of the pan onto a wire rack (see Tip). Peel off the parchment paper from the sides of the bread and drizzle the glaze over the top, if using (any excess will fall onto the peeled-off parchment). Let cool completely before removing the parchment paper from the bottom of the bread and slicing.