Sourdough Discard Banana Bread
This banana bread takes a little bit of time to bake, but it’s worth every second. It’s a moist, flavorful, special loaf of bread that the whole family will love. Banana bread is one of those dishes that can be made in any season, for any meal. We eat this for breakfast, an after-lunch snack, or even dessert. My hope is that this will become a delicious staple in your home.
❤️ Why You’ll Love Sourdough Discard Banana Bread
Banana bread is one of those special dishes that can be enjoyed in every season, and for every meal. My whole family loves this loaf, the only complicated thing about it is getting the bananas to brown enough before they get eaten. We’re a big banana family – which means we’re a banana bread family.
🍲 Ingredients
Sourdough Discard – unfed, inactive sourdough starter either room temperature or straight from the fridge.
Butter – 1 stick of browned melted butter.
Brown Sugar – this adds a sweet molasses flavor that pairs so well with banana bread.
Bananas – It wouldn’t be banana bread without bananas, and the riper the better.
Flour – unbleached, all-purpose flour.
White Chocolate Chips – we’re a big white chocolate chips family, it’s our favorite kind of chocolate. But this is a great base banana bread recipe where you can switch out the chocolate flavors to whatever you like.
Baking soda + baking powder – the leavening agents for the loaf.
Cinnamon – optional, but I think it belongs in almost every banana dish there is 🙂
👩🍳 How to Make White Chocolate Banana Bread
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, brown your butter for 3-4 minutes. Careful not to burn it.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon) in a mixing bowl and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, mash down the ripe bananas with a fork. Add in brown sugar, eggs, browned butter, vanilla extract, and sourdough discard. Whisk together until there are no streaks left.
- Add in all the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together until there are no dry bits of flour. Add in the white chocolate chips and mix together until everything is incorporated.
- Cover the batter and let rest for 15 minutes. This will relax the gluten in the batter and create a fluffier texture in the bread. If you can’t do this step, it’s okay. But if you have time, it’s worth it.
- Transfer to a buttered/ greased loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes – 1 hour until the loaf passes the toothpick test.
- Serve with a healthy smear of butter and a drizzle of honey!
🪄 Tips and Tricks
- Letting the batter rest for 15 minutes makes a world of difference in texture, if you can’t do it – it’s okay. But if you can – it’s worth it.
- Try not to overmix, the more you mix the denser the bread will be.
🗒 Variations
I think the beauty of this loaf is that it’s a solid base recipe where you can add any flavors you want to it. My family loves white chocolate chips, but this could work with the flavors you love!
- Peanut Butter Banana Bread.
- Strawberry Banana Bread.
🗒 Substitutions
There are many swaps that can happen and still make a delicious banana bread!
- Brown Sugar – Granulated sugar or Maple syrup
- White Chocolate chips – your favorite chocolate chips
🗒 Best served with
- Breakfast
- Dessert
- Butter and Honey
🤔 Common Questions
No! This recipe uses inactive or unfed sourdough discard, so it doesn’t need to be bubbly or strong. You’re using it for flavor and moisture—not for leavening.
Sourdough discard is the portion of starter you remove before feeding your sourdough. Instead of throwing it away, you can use it in recipes like banana bread to add flavor and reduce waste.
Sourdough Discard Banana Bread
Equipment
- Sauce pan
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ cup melted butter browned
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 – 3 ripe bananas
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup sourdough discard
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- In a sauce pan over medium heat, brown your butter for 3-4 minutes. Careful not to burn it.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon) in a mixing bowl and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, mash down the ripe bananas with a fork. Add in brown sugar, eggs, browned butter, vanilla extract, and sourdough discard. Whisk together until there are no streaks left.
- Add in all the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together until there are no dry bits of flour. Add in the white chocolate chips and mix together until everything is incorporated.
- Cover the batter and let rest for 15 minutes. This will relax the gluten in the batter and create a fluffier texture in the bread. If you can't do this step, it's okay. But if you have time, it's worth it.
- Transfer to a buttered/ greased loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes – 1 hour until the loaf passes the toothpick test.
- Serve with a healthy smear of butter and a drizzle of honey!
