Banana Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting
Say goodbye to banana bread, because after trying these banana bars, this may likely be the only recipe you’re going to want to use those prime, overripe, generously speckled bananas for. I’m pretty sure I could have finished the whole pan on my own! These bars are so amazingly moist, with the perfect combination of flavors. You get tons of banana flavor (notice there’s nearly equal portions of banana to flour) with a pinch of warm cinnamon flavor. Then you get just a hint of richness from the sour cream and cream cheese along with the perfect balance of sweetness, then to finish an ever so slightly salty crunch from the pecans. I love the simplicity of this banana bars recipe. I created it to be a one bowl recipe (granted, you’ll have to wash the bowl to make the frosting). All you have to do is toss all the ingredients into one mixing bowl, stir for 2 minutes and bake, bada bing bada boom! Love it. I thought about creating this recipe to be a sheet pan size, but good thing I didn’t because I would have had a very hard time restraining myself from being engorged by these banana bars.
Banana Bars Ingredients
These frosted banana bars are incredibly simple to make and can be made using items already in your pantry. For the banana bars, you’ll need:
All-purpose flour Granulated sugar Baking powder and baking soda Salt Sour cream Vegetable oil Applesauce Egg Bananas Chopped pecans
And for the homemade cream cheese frosting, you’ll need:
Cream cheese Butter Vanilla extract Cinnamon Powdered sugar
How to Make Banana Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine all ingredients (except pecans and cream cheese frosting) in a large bowl and mix until combined. Bake in 13×9-inch pan for 25 minutes. While the banana bars cool, make the cream cheese frosting. Frost the bars when completely cool.
Can I Use a Sour Cream Substitute in These Bars?
Without having tested it myself, I can’t say for sure whether a sour cream substitute would work in this recipe. But you may be able to achieve the same results with plain Greek yogurt.
Can I Make These Banana Bars in a Smaller Pan?
Yes, you can also make these banana bars with cream cheese frosting in a 9×9-inch pan (you’ll need to increase the cook time, though!).
Can I Make These Gluten-Free?
I’ve only made these banana bars with sour cream as written, so I’m not sure if you can make them gluten-free. However, a few readers have reported success using gluten-free flours like Cup4Cup. If you make these banana bars gluten-free, please leave me a comment!
How to Store Banana Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting
Since these are banana bars with cream cheese frosting, you’ll need to store them in the fridge. Keep them tightly sealed or store them in an airtight container to prevent them from drying out.
Tips for the Best Banana Bars
For thicker, cake-like bars, either bake these in a 9×9-inch pan or make 1.5 the recipe and bake in a 13×9-inch pan. Use overripe, almost black bananas for the richest flavor. If you don’t have applesauce on hand, you can add extra vegetable oil to this recipe instead.
More Banana Desserts You’ll Love:
Classic Banana Bread Homemade Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Banana-Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies Banana Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting Banana Cream Pie Cups with Salted Caramel Sauce Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
