banana bars with cream cheese frosting (2024)

Why These are the Best Banana Bars

• All the flavors of banana bread in a fraction of the time. Mix this easy recipe in one bowl, then bake it in a 9×13 inch baking pan. It bakes in about a third of the time as typical banana bread.
• A professional recipe for a slightly chewy banana bar. Unlike other recipes out there, which are just banana bread baked into bars, I started with my blondie recipe. Using an egg yolk rather than a whole egg helps balance out the added moisture from the bananas!
• Moist, soft and flavorful. The brown sugar adds moisture and flavor to these super moist, tender bars. They are generously flavored with cinnamon and the perfect amount of banana.

Professional Tips for Making Banana Bars

• Use melted butter that is still warm but not hot. I have found that warm, melted butter produces bars (and one bowl brownies) with the best texture.
• Be careful not to over-bake. I bake these bars exactly 25 minutes. The very center of the bars still looks a little glossy but underneath it is fully baked. This keeps them moist for 4 days at room temperature without frosting.
• The cream cheese frosting is optional. I’m not ashamed to admit that my 3 person family devoured almost a full batch of these bars without the frosting! It is totally optional. Not only was it faster but just a little less decadent.

Ingredients & Possible Substitutions

For the Banana Bars:

• All-Purpose flour: I use all-purpose flour for this recipe like I do in my fudgy brownie recipe, but you could use cake flour. The resulting texture will be light and more like cake.
• Baking Powder: Baking powder provides a more even rise in this recipe than baking soda.
• Kosher Salt
• Ground Cinnamon
• Large Eggs: I use a combination of one egg and one egg yolk for a balance between chewy and cakey, but you could use 2 egg yolks instead.
• Vanilla Extract
• Ripe Banana: One cup of mashed banana is about 3 medium-small bananas. Use bananas that are anywhere between spotted to completely brown. I prefer the flavor somewhere in between.
• Granulated Sugar
• Dark Brown Sugar: You could use light brown sugar instead but the extra molasses and richness in the dark brown does make a difference in these bars like it does in butterscotch brownies.
• Unsalted Butter: The butter is melted so you could substitute coconut oil if you would like. This substitution will also make the banana bars dairy free because there is no sour cream or buttermilk like other recipes.

For the optional frosting:

• Cream Cheese: I find the brick-style full fat cream cheese to be best in frostings like my cream cheese frosting recipe. Low fat or whipped become too loose.
• Unsalted Butter
• Powdered Sugar
• Lemon Juice
• Vanilla Extract

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Possible Variations

• Add a Nutella or peanut butter swirl: Add some dollops of softened Nutella or your favorite nut butter then swirl like I did in this Nutella banana bread recipe.
• Bake the cream cheese in the bars instead! Why not just get all that flavor in one step. Mix the cream cheese with an egg and ¼ cup powdered sugar then swirl into the batter. It might bake just a little longer. You want to ensure the cream cheese swirl is set.
• Use a different frosting. Try spreading them with this cream cheese frosting for cookies, loosened slightly with cream or milk, or use a rich chocolate buttercream frosting! You can also use browned butter in the cream cheese frosting recipe below or in my cream cheese frosting recipe!
• Mix in some chopped nuts, chocolate chips and more! These bars would be nice with chopped walnuts, pecans or macadamia nuts, or make them more decadent with chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, or butterscotch chips like I did in these chocolate chip banana muffins or whole wheat chocolate chip banana bread.

How to Make Moist Banana Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

Use these instructions to make soft banana bars with cream cheese icing! Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below.

Bake the Bars:

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 325°F (no fan). Line a 9 x 13-inch pan with a piece of parchment paper overlapping up two sides.

Step 2: In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon). Set aside.

Step 3: In another large bowl, whisk the egg and yolk until no streaks of whites remain. Add the bananas to the eggs and whisk to combine.

Step 4: To the banana mixture add the sugar and vanilla. Whisk until smooth then pour in the butter. Whisk until combined. Once you add the butter, the mixture will thicken slightly.

See Also

The Best Old-Fashioned Banana Bread Recipe — Under A Tin RoofHealthy Convection Oven Easy Banana Bread & Recipe

Step 7: Cool completely and prepare frosting while the cake cools.

Prepare frosting & frost the bars:

Step 1: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with an electric hand mixer, beat together softened butter and cream cheese until smooth. It is important that both are softened or the resulting buttercream will be lumpy.

Step 2: Add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth. If your confectioner’s sugar is unusually lumpy, sift it into the cream cheese mixture. Add the vanilla extract and lemon juice and beat to combine.

Step 3: Dollop the frosting on the cooled cake and then spread with an offset spatula. You can make it perfectly smooth or swirl it decoratively.

Step 4: Slice into bars and serve.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments below! I love hearing from you and your comments make my day!

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Before You Go

I hope you enjoyed this professional chef tested dessert. Check out our other brownies and bars recipes or use up the rest of those bananas with this decadent chocolate banana bread, chocolate chip banana muffins or banana pudding!