Pumpkin Banana Bread with Apples - perfect recipe for the Fall season and the holidays. This is a low-fat recipe with only 2 oz of butter (4 tablespoons) used to make a whole loaf ( 9×5 inch loaf pan), the rest of the butter is replaced with pumpkin puree, mashed bananas, and Greek yogurt.
This is one of my favorite dessert and breakfast recipes to make in the Fall and in the Winter. This PUMPKIN banana bread is stuffed with apple chunks, flavored with cinnamon and vanilla, and baked to perfection, with a gorgeous top crust! This recipe rivals my other Fall favorite: Banana Apple Bread with Caramel Sauce and Pecans.
Pumpkin Banana Bread - moist and low-fat recipe
- This recipe combines so many of my favorite things: bananas, pumpkin, apples, cinnamon, vanilla, and Greek yogurt. Yes, since I mentioned Greek yogurt, that means that this bread is also low-fat, with only 4 tablespoons of butter (2 oz) used for a whole loaf!
- If you bake lots of banana breads, you know that ripe bananas and Greek yogurt work great as butter replacement. We're keeping only 2 oz of butter (4 tablespoons of butter) in the whole loaf (for texture). In place of butter, I am using mashed bananas, Greek yogurt, and pumpkin puree - all of these ingredients make this bread really moist, soft and tasty.
Recipe notes
- Do not over mix banana bread batter. The lumps will work themselves out during baking.
- Use a 9×5 inch bread loaf pan. You can also use a smaller, 8×4 inch loaf pan, and pour the remaining banana bread batter into 3 muffin cups. You can also, of course, use mini loaf pans.
- Butter a loaf pan. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper, butter the parchment paper too. Lining the bottom of the pan with parchment paper ensures that the bottom of the bread will not get stuck.
What kind of apples to use in pumpkin banana bread?
- You can add any kind of apples, as long as they are crisp (not soft or mushy).
- Use sweet kind of apples (such as Gala), and you'll get a sweeter loaf.
- Use tart apples (such as Granny Smiths), and you'll get a sweet loaf too, with a touch of pleasant tartness from baked apples.
For this pumpkin banana bread loaf, I actually used 2 completely different apples: one very tart Granny Smith apple and one very sweet Gala apple. Chopped up into chunks and folded into the cake batter, these sweet and tart apple chunks add an unforgettable contrast of flavor! You don't even need to peel the apples: after being baked in the bread for about an hour, they get very soft, including the peel, there is really no need to peel them. Plus, I think the peel holds the apple chunks together better: they don't get so mushy.
Why make this recipe
Dear friends, please try this Fall pumpkin banana bread: you won't be disappointed! The pumpkin flavor is so subtle and perfect in this bread, I am convinced this could become a favorite recipe even for those who don't like pumpkin in their desserts: try this recipe and you'll change your mind! And, don't even get me started on what a great breakfast this bread makes!
Other pumpkin banana bread recipes
If you enjoyed this pumpkin banana bread, you might like these recipes:
Pumpkin Banana Bread with Apples
Ingredients
- 2 oz unsalted butter (4 tablespoons butter), very soft, room temperature
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 bananas , very ripe, mashed
- ½ cup Greek yogurt
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour , sifted
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 cups apples , sliced into chunks
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit.
- In a medium bowl, using electric mixer, beat 4 tablespoons of butter and 1 cup of white sugar on high speed for 1 minute until well-combined. You will get coarse looking mixture (not creamy).
- Add 2 eggs to the butter-sugar mixture and continue beating for another minute until very creamy and very smooth.
- Add mashed bananas, Greek yogurt, pumpkin puree, and vanilla extract to the butter-sugar-eggs mixture, and continue beating, using electric mixer, until well combined – for about another minute.
- In a separate medium bowl, combine sifted flour (do not overpack the flour, when measuring it using measuring cups!), baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon. Mix until well combined.
- Add dry ingredients into wet ingredients, and mix, using large spoon, just until combined. DO NOT OVERMIX. If there are lumps – they will work themselves out during baking. Fold in apple chunks.
- Butter a 9×5 inch loaf pan. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper, butter the parchment paper too. Note: lining the bottom of the pan with parchment paper ensures that the bottom of the bread will not get stuck.
- Pour the batter in the pan. Bake for 1 hour. Cool on a rack. Remove from pan and slice to serve.
- Note: I have also used a 8×4 inch loaf pan, plus 3 muffin cups with this recipe. You can also, of course, use mini loaf pans.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
This recipe was originally published on October 9, 2013, and republished in November 2018 with updates.
Luv What You Do
This bread looks amazing! I can't wait to make a loaf!
Kiersten @ Oh My Veggies
Ooh, this looks so moist and perfect! Apples and pumpkin together makes me so happy. 😀
Pam Wooldridge
I made this yesterday. BEST banana, pumpkin bread EVER! My whole family loves it! Even my son who doesn't like ANY baked goods...I mean he doesn't like cupcakes, muffins, cookies, cakes, any of it. He even said this was pretty good. 🙂 Thank you!!!
Julia
Pam, I am so glad to hear this! Your words made my day! Thank you so much for stopping by and letting me know how this recipe turned out for you - it means a lot to me. 🙂
Brook
looks so yummy i want to try but question, can i use whole wheat floor instead of all purpose? would this effect the recipe?
Julia
I think you can safely use whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour. Should not affect the recipe at all. There are so many flavors going on in there, I don't think you'll taste any difference in flour :). Just make sure to sift it so that you don't overpack too much flour into a measuring cup - that could make the bread too dense.
Nami | Just One Cookbook
I'm loving your pumpkin and fall ingredient posts! Pumpkin and banana - that's new combo that I need to try!
Jeanette
Have you ever tried to cut down on the white flour and sugar? If I wanted to do that, do you have any suggestions?
Julia
You can safely cut down sugar to 3/4 cup or 2/3 cup (maybe even 1/2 cup if you're OK with less sweet bread). As long as you use very ripe bananas (black on the outside) - they will add a lot of sweetness. Also, use very sweet apples - in fact, when I did, I thought my bread was too sweet with 1 cup of sugar because very sweet apples (not Granny Smiths) added so much sweetness. I don't think you can cut down the flour, but replacing it with whole wheat flour should work fine.
lindsey @ American Heritage Cooking
I was wondering the other day if pumpkin would be a good addition to a banana bread or a complete miss, so thank you for trying it first! I trust you, and now I absolutely must make this bread! It looks so healthy yet moist and flavorful!
Julia
Lindsey, thanks for the trust. 🙂 But remember: Trust But Verify. 🙂
Vadim (@NatashasKitchen)
"Loaded" that's one way to describe this banana bread. I make banana bread on regular bases but it's always the same recipe, but this one sounds exciting with different fruit and pumpkin; I have all the ingredients on hand except the two bananas which I'm sure can be found once I make couple phone calls to few of the relatives :).
Julia
Ha-ha! Relatives can be quite resourceful. I wanted a Fall pumpkin recipe that was not just about pumpkin because pumpkin desserts can have an overwhelming pumpkin flavor. Well, in this one, I love the balance: bananas, pumpkin, apples. I use VERY RIPE bananas: they are all black on the outside and very mushy (like a puree) on the inside. Most people would throw such bananas in a trash, but not me: they go into my banana breads. 🙂
Laura Dembowski
Forget about a piece of this, I want a whole loaf! This looks crazy good, Julia! I want to dive right in.
The Café Sucré Farine
I love banana bread, love pumpkin bread and love apple bread and now you've gone and put them all together, very yummy Julia!
Julia
Yes, that was the idea! To put everything together! It worked!
Kiran @ KiranTarun.com
This looks so delicious and moist! I'm loving all the ingredients here 🙂
Tina @ Tina's Chic Corner
Not only does this look delicious but when you don't know which to make first (pumpkin, banana, or apple) you can combine all 3 great flavors in 1! Awesome idea. 🙂
Ashley
It looks so moist!! I love that you used two different types of apples in the loaf - such a great idea!
Jen @ Savory Simple
Sounds wonderful!