I Tried Chrissy Teigen’s Famous Banana Bread Recipe, and I’ll Never Make It Another Way

If there’s one thing my family is really good at accomplishing, it’s saying we’re definitely going to eat bananas with our breakfasts only to have our bananas sit and stare at us in the hubbub of fast-moving school mornings and slowly turn black. And if your kids are anything like mine, the moment the bananas show even the slightest brown on their yellow exteriors, they are definitely not going to make it anywhere close to the breakfast menu.

That was until I discovered Chrissy Teigen’s Ultimate Banana Bread recipe. And now, my family has a legitimate excuse for letting our bananas fade.

Get the recipe: Chrissy’s Ultimate Banana Bread

While this recipe is rather old compared to some of her other recipes, a recent Instagram post declares this banana bread the “undisputed GOAT of cozy bakes.” While I don’t claim to be a banana bread connoisseur, I can’t find much to dispute that when it comes to banana bread recipes, this one proves to be a family favorite time and time again.

Before you’re too quick to say that all banana bread recipes are the same, I want to say that prior to making Teigen’s version, I would have agreed with you 100%. But after her recipe? Well, there’s no going back to my previous recipes.

The ingredients for this banana bread are similar enough to other recipes: well-aged bananas, flour, eggs, oil, sugar. But Teigen adds a couple ingredients that I never would have thought of prior to sampling her version, including vanilla instant pudding mix and shredded coconut. Obviously if coconut isn’t your cup of tea, you’re welcome to omit it. (I personally think it adds the perfect texture to what can be somewhat mushy bread, but you’ve got to do what works best for you.)

However, when it comes to the pudding mix, do not, I repeat, do not leave this out. While banana bread isn’t susceptible to being too dry like other quick breads, the addition of the pudding mix truly makes for a moist, almost melt-in-your-mouth experience. And the coconut within the batter? Well, it just raises the flavor of this bread beyond banana. You can think of it a bit like a tropical escape while you sign homework and find that shoe that always goes missing right as you’re ready to walk out the door.

For my kids, this is the ultimate breakfast treat. While I get that it might not be the healthiest option available, I also don’t feel like it’s the worst. And while I haven’t experimented myself, you could certainly substitute some of the ingredients for healthier alternatives, like whole wheat flour or applesauce for the oil. I also love that the recipe itself is simple to make and doesn’t require a mixer. My 9-year-old can be entrusted to make it with limited assistance, which makes for a great learning experience for him and full and happy tummies for the rest of the family.

Get the recipe: Chrissy’s Ultimate Banana Bread