Recipes › Simple bakes› Cardamom banana bread
Simple bakes · Easy · Serves 1

Cardamom banana bread

The banana bread you already love, with a small Nordic detour. Cardamom in the batter, butter on a warm slice, strong coffee on the side.

Anna Lind Harper
by Anna Lind Harper
Tested twice · Published 2026-06-05
A loaf of cardamom banana bread partially sliced on a cream speckled ceramic plate, the front slice tilted forward to show the soft golden crumb with visible darker banana streaks and tiny flecks of cardamom, a butter knife resting alongside, fresh green cardamom pods and a wrinkled brown banana skin scattered on the white marble counter, soft morning light from the right.
Prep
15 min
Cook
55 min
Serves
1
Difficulty
easy

I started adding cardamom to banana bread the year I tried to make my Mormor's recipe with the only warm spice I had in the cabinet that felt vaguely right. I have not gone back. Cardamom in banana bread is the kind of small detour that turns a familiar bake into a slightly Nordic morning ritual.

It's the recipe I bring to people on the first cold week of fall, on slow Saturday mornings, on the second day after I buy a too-ambitious bunch of bananas. One bowl, one loaf pan, seventy minutes mostly hands-off.

“A small Nordic detour for the banana bread you already love.”
Why this one earns a weeknight

What you'll love about it

  • 01One bowl, one loaf pan, mostly hands-off. The kind of bake that fits a Saturday morning.
  • 02Cardamom in banana bread is the Nordic detour you didn't know you needed.
  • 03Keeps beautifully on the counter for 3 days, and the second-day slice is somehow always better.
  • 04Forgiving, freezer-friendly, and an excellent way to use up too-ripe bananas.
A pair of hands in a cream cable-knit sleeve pouring thick toffee-colored banana bread batter, glossy with darker streaks of mashed banana and tiny flecks of cardamom, from a ceramic bowl into a parchment-lined loaf pan on the marble counter, with a small bowl of green cardamom pods, a cracked eggshell in a tiny dish, a wrinkled brown banana skin, and a butter wrapper nearby.
Pour into a parchment-lined pan. The batter should be thick but pourable, the color of toffee.
Ingredients

Dry

  • 1¾ cupsall-purpose flour
  • 1 tspbaking soda
  • ½ tspkosher salt
  • 1½ tspground cardamom, freshly ground if possible
  • ½ tspground cinnamon

Wet

  • 3very ripe bananas, mashed, about 1¼ cups
  • ½ cupsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
  • ¾ cuplight brown sugar, packed
  • 2large eggs
  • 1 tspvanilla extract
  • ¼ cupwhole-milk greek yogurt or skyr

For the top (optional)

  • 1 Tbspdemerara or turbinado sugar, for the crackly top
  • a pinchextra ground cardamom
Method

How I make it

  1. 01
    Heat the oven and line the pan.
    Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9x5-inch loaf pan with parchment, leaving an inch of overhang on the long sides so you can lift the loaf out later.
  2. 02
    Mash the bananas, spice the bowl.
    In a large bowl, mash the bananas with a fork until mostly smooth, a few lumps are fine. Grate or sprinkle in the cardamom right onto the warm mashed bananas while you're at it. The fragrance changes the whole room.
    A pair of hands in a cream cable-knit sleeve, gold ring visible, using a small brass-handled microplane to grate fresh green cardamom pods over a large speckled ceramic bowl of mashed bananas and melted butter on a marble counter, with a small pile of cardamom pods, a wrinkled brown banana skin, and a small jar of brown sugar nearby.
    Grate the cardamom right over the warm bananas. The fragrance is the moment the kitchen turns into a bakery.
  3. 03
    Whisk the wet.
    Whisk in the melted butter, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, and yogurt. Keep going until the mixture looks glossy and emulsified, about 30 seconds.
  4. 04
    Fold in the dry.
    In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and any remaining cardamom. Tip the dry into the wet and fold gently with a spatula until you see just a few streaks of flour. Do not overmix; this is the difference between tender and tough.
  5. 05
    Pour, top, bake.
    Scrape the batter into the lined pan and smooth the top. Scatter the demerara sugar and a pinch more cardamom across the top for a crackly finish. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs but no wet batter, and the top springs back when pressed.
  6. 06
    Cool, then slice.
    Let the loaf cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then lift it out by the parchment and cool on a rack for another 30. Slice with a serrated knife. Best slightly warm with butter.
Macro close-up of a thick slice of cardamom banana bread on a cream speckled plate, the golden crumb visibly speckled with cardamom flecks and darker banana streaks, a small pat of salted butter melting on top into a glossy pool, a few crumbs scattered on the plate, fresh green cardamom pods on the marble counter and a blur of greenery and linen in the background.
A note from Anna

Cardamom is the spice that goes stale fastest in most cabinets. If yours has been there since last winter, smell it first. If it smells like dust, replace it. Freshly ground green cardamom pods are even better if you have the patience to crush them yourself.

What to serve with it

Round out the table.

  • ·01
    Salted butter, generously
    Smear it on a warm slice. This is the whole point.
  • ·02
    Strong morning coffee
    Or a cup of cardamom-spiked tea.
  • ·03
    A spoonful of skyr
    On the side, with a drizzle of honey, if you want to make it brunch.
Storage & reheating

Keeping the leftovers good.

Fridge: Wrap tightly and keep at room temperature for up to 3 days. The cardamom blooms a little overnight.

Reheat: Toast a slice for 90 seconds in a low oven (300°F), or pan-toast it in a little butter.

Freezer: Slice the cooled loaf, wrap individually, and freeze. Toast straight from frozen.

Recipe card

Cardamom banana bread

The banana bread you already love, with a small Nordic detour. Cardamom in the batter, butter on a warm slice, strong coffee on the side.

Prep
15 min
Cook
55 min
Serves
1
Total
70 min
Ingredients
  • 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp kosher salt
  • 1½ tsp ground cardamom, freshly ground if possible
  • ½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • 3 very ripe bananas, mashed, about 1¼ cups
  • ½ cup salted butter, melted and slightly cooled
  • ¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • ¼ cup whole-milk greek yogurt or skyr
  • 1 Tbsp demerara or turbinado sugar, for the crackly top
  • a pinch extra ground cardamom
Method (short version)
  1. 01Heat the oven and line the pan.
  2. 02Mash the bananas, spice the bowl.
  3. 03Whisk the wet.
  4. 04Fold in the dry.
  5. 05Pour, top, bake.
  6. 06Cool, then slice.

Nutrition information is an estimate. See full nutrition disclaimer.

If you liked this

More from the weeknight table.

A small parchment-lined half-sheet pan on a white marble counter holding 6 freshly baked savory cheddar and herb scones cut into wedges (the classic round-cut-into-6 shape, baked together with golden crackled tops, visible flakes of melted sharp cheddar at the seams, flecks of fresh green chive throughout, a glossy egg-wash finish, and visible cracks of black pepper). One scone has been pulled slightly apart to show the tender flaky interior. Beside the pan on the marble: a small ceramic dish of soft salted butter, a small bunch of fresh chives, a small wooden pepper mill, a folded striped cream-and-blue linen tea towel. Soft Saturday-morning kitchen light.
new
Bake40 min
Savory cheddar and herb scones
Flaky tender scones with sharp cheddar, fresh chives, and a hit of black pepper. The Sunday morning bake that goes with eggs, soup, or a sharp afternoon cup of tea.
A clear glass jar of finished overnight oats on a white marble counter, the contents in soft layers: a thick pale-cream oat-and-skyr base flecked with small dark cardamom and visible mixed seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, flax) folded throughout, topped with a generous spoonful of fresh dark blueberries, a small handful of raspberries, a drizzle of golden amber maple syrup pooling at the edges, an extra small handful of mixed seeds scattered on top, and a tiny snow of more ground cardamom dusting the surface. Beside the jar: 3 more matching glass jars also filled with overnight oats and ready to go (lined up like a Sunday-night meal prep), a small ceramic dish of mixed seeds with a tiny wooden spoon, a small wooden honey dipper, a small lemon, a folded striped cream-and-blue linen tea towel. Soft Sunday-evening kitchen light.
new
Breakfast5 min
Maple cardamom overnight oats with seeds
Five-minute overnight oats with skyr, maple, cardamom, and a generous spoonful of mixed seeds for crunch. Twenty-two grams of protein in a jar, ready by morning.