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Strawberry Banana Bread with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

A fun and delicious take on a timeless classic but with a little fancy addition. Strawberries, two ways, add bright flavor plus an easy cream cheese frosting and a smother of a few more fresh strawberries make this one delectable treat.

Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Servings 1 9"x5" loaf
Author Amanda - A Treat Life

Ingredients

  • 1 cup very ripe mashed banana (about 2 bananas)
  • 2 tbsps brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup grapeseed or canola oil (or other neutral oil)
  • 2 lg eggs, lightly whisked
  • 2 tbsps Greek yogurt (low-fat or full fat)
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla-extract
  • 1/3 cup strawberry jam (store-bought or homemade)
  • 1 3/4 cups (224g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup chopped, fresh strawberries
  • 1 tsp all-purpose flour

For the Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting:

  • 3 oz cream cheese
  • 2 oz unsalted butter
  • 3/4 cup confectioner's sugar
  • 1/4 cup freeze-dried strawberries

For the top:

  • 1 cup quartered strawberries
  • 1 tsp granulated sugar

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400F/200C. Spray a 9"x5" loaf pan with baking spray and line it with parchment paper going up the sides, for easy removal.

  2. In a large bowl, mash the bananas and measure to make sure it equals 1 cup. Then using a spatula stir in the sugars, oil, whisked eggs, yogurt and vanilla to fully combine. Stir in the strawberry jam.

  3. Then add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and fold until some streaks of flour still remain. Toss the chopped strawberries (smaller pieces will incorporate more evenly into the bread) with the 1 teaspoon of flour then add to the batter and gently fold until just combined. (Don't over mix if you want a tender bread.)

  4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the top with the spatula and place the pan into the oven. Bake at 400F/ 200C for 10 minutes. Then lower the temperature to 350F/177C and continue to bake for about 40 minutes more until golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter.

  5. Let the bread cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then carefully turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

For the Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting and fresh strawberry top:

  1. Place the quartered strawberries in a small bowl and toss with the 1 teaspoon of sugar. Set aside.

  2. Place the freeze-dried strawberries in a small zip-top bag and seal taking all the air out. Crush the dried strawberries into fine crumbs by rolling a rolling pin over the bag. (You can also do this in a spice grinder.)

  3. For the frosting, cream the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the confectioner's sugar and strawberry powder and beat on low speed until combined, then on medium speed until the frosting is somewhat smooth. (you'll still have little bits of strawberries throughou Spread on the cooled bread. Then spoon the sliced strawberries on top. Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator for later. Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

*You can store the unfrosted bread, wrapped tightly, at room temp for a day or two, in the refrigerator for up to a week or double wrapped in the freezer for about 4 months.

*The frosted bread with the fresh strawberries must be stored in the refrigerator and will last about 3 days.