Indulgent Olive Oil Banana Bread
Aug 24, 2023, Updated Apr 22, 2025
Jump to RecipeThis post may contain affiliate links. Please see our disclosure policy.
I've worked hard on this recipe for indulgent olive oil banana bread to make sure it’s fluffy and delicious. It uses a couple of surprising ingredients, but I guarantee they all work together beautifully! You'll love the moist, fluffy texture of this bread, and will want to make it on repeat.
If you love easy dessert recipes, make sure to check out my recipes for lemon olive oil cookies and this creamy rice pudding!
Ingredients
I hope you're as excited as I am to make this moist and fluffy banana bread! But before we get baking, let's talk about a few key ingredients that you can’t skip!
- Bananas: They're the star of the show, of course! For best results, use overripe bananas with black peels, as they improve the texture and incorporate into the batter more easily.
- Greek Yoghurt: I love using yoghurt as the dairy element in cakes to make them light and fluffy, and Greek yoghurt especially adds a lovely tang.
- Olive Oil: Using olive oil helps the bread stay extremely moist, while giving it a light, fluffy texture. I love to use any kind of olive oil in my baking, but for a lighter taste, I suggest using a light extra virgin olive oil.
- Walnuts: The one thing you can skip out on is the nuts, but that’s only if you’ve got an allergy; they're a great addition to this banana bread for flavour and texture.
See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Variations
- Gluten Free: Swap the plain self-raising flour for a 1:1 gluten-free baking flour blend, and add 1 teaspoon of gluten-free baking powder.
- Vegan: Replace each egg with a flax egg (Combine 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed with 2 ½ tablespoons of water, and let it sit for 5 minutes before using). Ensure your sugar is vegan also, as some brands process it with bone char.
- Dairy Free: Swap the Greek yoghurt for your favourite dairy-free yoghurt. Either coconut or almond milk yoghurts would be delicious!
How to Make Olive Oil Banana Bread
- Whisk the eggs and sugar, then mix in the olive oil and Greek yoghurt until smooth and slightly pale. Mash two bananas and stir them in, then sift in the dry ingredients and gently stir to combine. Add walnuts if using, pour into a prepared loaf tin, and top with a halved banana, pressing it slightly into the batter.
- Bake the banana bread until a skewer comes out clean when poked into the centre, which takes about 50 minutes. Cover with aluminium foil if it browns too quickly.
- Let the banana bread cool for 15 minutes in the tin, then turn it out and let it cool completely on a wire rack, about 1 hour.
- Slice this freshly baked olive oil banana bread and enjoy it with lots of softened butter!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, olive oil is a great substitute for vegetable oil in banana bread. That's why this olive oil banana bread works so beautifully! This oil adds a subtle richness and depth of flavour without overpowering the banana. Use the same amount as you would vegetable oil—just opt for a mild or light olive oil for the best result.
One of the most common mistakes is using bananas that aren’t ripe enough. The best banana bread gets its flavour, moisture, and natural sweetness from over-ripened bananas—ones with at least lots of brown spots, or more preferably, black skins. You can ripen bananas quickly by baking them on a tray at 150°C (300°F) until the peels turn black and the flesh softens—making them perfect for mashing!
Using overripe bananas, not over-mixing the batter, and including the right amount of leavening agents (either bicarb/baking soda or baking powder) help create a fluffy, moist texture. Using ingredients like olive oil and Greek yoghurt improve the texture as well, while baking it at the right oven temperature also makes a difference.
Absolutely! Once the bread has cooled, seal it in a zip-top freezer bag or an airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. (You can freeze the bread pre-sliced for easy snacking later!) Thaw at room temperature or reheat it in the microwave before serving.
Serving Olive Oil Banana Bread
Banana bread tastes best when enjoyed with a generous smear of salted butter on top! But it is also great with a drizzle of honey or sprinkle of cinnamon sugar as well. Serve it when it's still slightly warm from the oven (or reheat it in the microwave) along with a cup of tea or coffee to make it even more delicious.
This olive oil banana bread would make a wonderful addition to a brunch spread, along with favourites like these tomatoey garlic beans, breakfast toastie with bacon jam, or this Spanish tortilla.
Expert Tips
- Don't have any self-raising flour on hand? Use plain all-purpose flour and add 1 teaspoon of baking powder.
- Don’t have ripe bananas? There’s a secret trick to getting them more ripe - pop them on a tray into a 150°C (300°F) oven until their skins turn black.
- Line the loaf tin with parchment paper if desired for easy removal.
- Decorate the bread by baking banana halves on top. It looks beautiful and a bit quirky, and lets everyone know what sort of bread it is!
Other Dessert Recipes You'll Love
Have questions or want to leave a review? Please do so below the recipe card! I always love answering your questions and hearing your feedback.
If you make this recipe, please follow me and tag me on Instagram, Tik Tok, or Pinterest so I can see your wonderful creations!
Indulgent Olive Oil Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¾ cup light olive oil
- ½ cup Greek yoghurt, preferably at room temperature
- 3 overripe bananas
- 1 cup self-raising flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch salt
- ⅓ cup chopped walnuts, optional but recommended
- room-temperature salted butter, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat & Prep: Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F). Brush the base and sides of a 24 cm (10 inch) loaf tin with olive oil.
- Wet Ingredients: Whisk together the eggs and sugar in a large bowl until they're combined and slightly pale, then whisk in the olive oil and Greek yoghurt. Mash 2 of the bananas with a fork until they're smooth, then stir them into the mixture.
- Dry Ingredients: Sift the flour, cinnamon, and salt into the wet ingredients and gently stir with a spatula. Add the walnuts if using and mix until all ingredients are well combined and no pockets of flour remain, but be careful not to overmix.
- Decorate: Dump the batter into the prepared loaf tin and smooth the top with a spatula. Peel the third banana and cut it in half lengthways, then place on top of the loaf and gently push it down until the banana is poking out of the batter.
- Bake: Bake the bread until a skewer comes out clean when poked into the centre, about 50 minutes. If the cake is browning too much on top, cover with aluminium foil while it bakes.
- Cool: Remove the tin from the oven and let the cake sit in the tin for 15 minutes. Carefully remove the cake from the tin and let it cool completely on a cooling rack, about 1 hour.
- Serve: Slice and serve with warm butter. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Don't have any self-raising flour on hand? Use plain all-purpose flour and add 1 teaspoon of baking powder.
- Don’t have ripe bananas? There’s a secret trick to getting them more ripe - pop them on a tray into a 150°C (300°F) oven until their skins turn black.
- Line the loaf tin with parchment paper if desired for easy removal.
- Decorate the bread by baking banana halves on top. It looks beautiful and a bit quirky, and lets everyone know what sort of bread it is!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
I love the idea of using olive oil in banana bread! The combination of it with the yoghurt would make this really moist, which is great. Thanks for sharing this easy recipe!
How imperative is the self-rising flour? Am I able to use all-purpose for the same effect?
You could use all purpose flour but just add some baking powder! 1 tsp to be exact.
In your ingredient picture there is a cup of something white, could be white sugar or salt but in the entire recipe I don’t see a use of either of those. Is something missing? Because I just followed the recipe and made it today.
It's salt but I would just use a pinch and it's optional! No need to worry if it was left out.