Salted Caramel Banana Bread
Whole banana slices lathered in salted caramel make this sticky, glossy, upside-down banana bread unforgettable.
Jump to recipe ↓This is a banana bread that gets built upside down. A thin pour of salted caramel goes into the bottom of the pan, then a row of banana slices line the pan cut side down right. Those banans get covered in more caramel and the batter goes on top. When it comes out of the oven and rests for an hour or so, it gets flipped, and that caramel and banana layer becomes the top — glossy, sticky, and impossible to ignore.
The cake itself is simple: dark brown sugar for depth, a hit of cinnamon, and mashed ripe banana folded straight into the batter. It's the caramel that does the heavy lifting, so don't rush it — a real medium amber, not a shortcut blonde one.
Chef's notes
- Watch the caramel, not the clock. Every stove runs differently — go by color. You want a medium amber before the butter goes in.
- Keep stirring once the butter's in. Constant motion is what keeps the caramel from splitting. Don't walk away.
- Add the cream slowly. Three additions, off high heat, stirring in each before the next — it'll bubble up fast if you dump it all at once.
- Trim the bananas to fit. Save the trimmed ends — they go straight into the batter with the rest of the mashed banana, nothing wasted.
- Let it cool before you flip it. A full hour on the counter lets the caramel set up just enough to turn out clean instead of sliding and spilling everywhere.
The recipe
For the cake
- 160 g flour
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ¾ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- 125 g dark brown sugar
- 84 g butter, room temperature
- 2 eggs
- 320 g ripe banana
- ¾ tsp vanilla bean paste
- 3–4 bananas, for the top (depending on size)
For the salted caramel
- 150 g sugar
- 50 g butter, room temperature
- 50 g heavy cream
- 1 tbsp sea salt
Method
- Line an 8.5 × 4.5 in loaf pan with parchment paper. Spray or butter the pan. Set aside.
- Make the salted caramel: heat the sugar in a pot over medium heat, stirring carefully with a spatula until all grains dissolve into a medium amber caramel.
- Immediately add the room temperature butter and stir constantly until combined — keep stirring continuously so the caramel doesn't split.
- Reduce heat to low and add the heavy cream in 3 parts, stirring in each addition before adding the next.
- Once incorporated, stir in the sea salt.
- Pour a thin layer of the hot caramel onto the parchment paper in the bottom of the loaf pan.
- Cut the 3–4 whole bananas in half lengthwise. Trim the sides so each piece matches the width of the pan, saving the trimmings to use in the batter.
- Line the loaf pan with the banana pieces, cut side down, in a row. Pour the remaining salted caramel on top of the bananas. Set aside.
- For the cake: combine the dark brown sugar, room temperature butter, salt, and cinnamon in the bowl of a stand mixer and cream until combined.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing until combined.
- Add the flour, baking soda, and bananas and mix on low just until no flour streaks remain.
- Pour the batter on top of the salted caramel and bananas and smooth the top with an offset spatula or spoon.
- Place on a baking sheet and bake at 325°F for 45 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let the loaf cool on the counter for an hour.
- Turn the loaf out onto a cutting board, remove the parchment, salted with extra sea salt and enjoy.
Don't feel like baking?
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