At first thought you might be surprised to see coconut and lime paired with banana bread, but think about that tropical combination of lime, coconut, and banana and you’ll realize it’s a match made in heaven! This super soft Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze is studded with coconut and I like to add just a touch of coconut extract, too. When baked up, it gets a layer of toasted coconut on top and then it’s drizzled with a sweet and tangy lime glaze. The flavor combination is unexpected and absolutely delicious!
Ingredients Needed
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Granulated sugar
- Butter – I recommend real, salted butter for this recipe. If you need to make it dairy free, use your favorite alternative.
- Eggs
- Ripe bananas – Choose bananas with peels that are deep yellow with brown spots to nearly fully brown. You might be tempted to cheat the ripeness scale here, but don’t. If you use bananas that are just regular-ripe (ready for eating) your bread will lack sweetness and flavor. For best results look for those spotty brown peels! Many times grocery stores will even sell bananas in this state in a discounted section.
- Sour cream – I use full-fat sour cream in this recipe, but I’ve also tried it with a variety of yogurts (preferably vanilla, but lime or coconut might be great, too) with great results. If you need to make this dairy free, I’d try apple sauce in place of the sour cream here.
- Milk or apple juice
- Vanilla extract
- Coconut – I suggest regular, sweetened and shredded coconut, which you’ll find in the baking aisle.
- Coconut extract – Optional.
Quick Tips Before You Start
- The Best Way to Bake Quick Breads: I always line my pans with parchment. You don’t need to line the entire interior, like you would with foil. Rather cut your parchment so it fits like a sling as show in the photo below. Spray your pan with cooking spray, then place the paper in over it and spray all sides of the pan again. This will make it super easy to lift your bread right out of the pan.
- Top Your Quick Breads: Here’s a little tip for basically ALL quick breads- sprinkle a little brown sugar over the top before baking. I don’t even measure, but about 2-3 tablespoons. It kind of melts in, but leaves a slightly light, crisp topping that enhances so many breads.
You can see both the parchment set up and the sugar topping in this photo- it bakes up beautifully! Let your bread cool until just warm before you pull it out of your pan. Run a knife around the edges that weren’t covered in parchment and then use the paper to just lift it right out.
How to Make Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze
- Preheat your oven to 350℉ and prepare your loaf pan.
- In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, beat butter and sugar, add in eggs, mashed banana, sour cream, milk, and vanilla.
- Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Stir in coconut.
- Pour Batter into the prepared loaf pan and sprinkle with coconut on top.
- Bake for about 1 hour and then drizzle with the sweet and tangy lime glaze!
Storing and Other Tips
- Store cooled banana bread wrapped tightly or in an airtight container at room temperature and enjoy within 3-4 days for best results.
- Freeze finished loaves wrapped tightly in plastic and then foil for up to 3 months.
- Not quite ready to bake? Only have one super ripe banana and you want to save them up? You can toss them right in the freezer, peel and all (it’s best to put them in a zip-top bag so they don’t leak juices when thawing later). You can also peel and slice or mash and then freeze in a zip-top bag. Simply let them thaw in the fridge before use.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can this bread be made ahead of time?
Yes, it stays moist for several days, especially if left un-cut! Keep in an airtight container to store.
Can you freeze this coconut-lime banana bread?
You bet. It’s easier to freeze without the glaze, consider preparing the glaze and placing in a zip top bag. Place the baked and cooled loaf on a plate in the freezer until frozen, then wrap well with food wrap. Place both bread and glaze baggie in another large freezer bag and freeze together for up to 3 months. When ready to eat, leave bread at room temp to thaw. Make sure glaze packet is sealed well and place in a bowl of warm water to thaw. Snip off a small corner of the baggie and drizzle glaze on top of bread.
Can I add nuts or chocolate chips?
Sure! Chopped walnuts, pecans, or macadamia nuts would be great here. White chocolate chips would also be great. Toss them in a little flour before adding to help suspend them in the batter while baking. For add ins I would aim for 1/2 – 1 cup.
How ripe should my bananas be?
Very ripe! The peels should be heavily spotted or even mostly brown. The riper the bananas, the sweeter and more flavorful the bread!
Can I double this recipe?
Yes, a double recipe should fit just fine in the bowl of a standard kitchen mixer, just divide the batter between two loaf pans.
Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze
Soft, tender banana bread studded with shredded coconut and topped with a sweet and tangy lime glaze.
Servings slices (1 loaf)
Equipment
- 1 Loaf Pan
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 tablespoons butter softened, no substitutions
- 2 eggs large
- 1 ½ cups ripe bananas, mashed (about 4 – 5 large bananas)
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 3 tablespoons milk or apple juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup coconut, shredded
- 1 teaspoon coconut extract optional
Topping
- 2 tablespoons coconut, shredded
Glaze
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon lime zest okay to eyeball and zest to taste
- 1 ½ tablespoons fresh lime juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉. Spray a 9×5" loaf pan with non-stick spray, and if desired, line with parchment.
- Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt together and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until blended. Add eggs one at a time and beat until well combined. Add banana, sour cream, milk, vanilla and coconut extracts. Beat until combined. Add flour mixture and beat at a low speed until just combined. Stir in ½ cup coconut.
- Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle additional 2 tablespoons coconut on top.
- Bake in the oven for about 1 hour or until a knife or skewer inserted in center comes out clean. Note: Check bread after about 45 minutes. If the top has browned and the coconut pieces are looking toasty, you can cover top of bread lightly with a piece of foil. Continue baking until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with loose crumbs, but no wet batter.
- When done, remove pan from oven. Let cool on a cooling rack for 10-15 minutes and then carefully remove from pan. Whisk powdered sugar and lime juice together for the glaze and then drizzle over top. Cool for another 15 minutes before slicing.
Notes
- Recipe was adapted from Cooking Light.
- This recipe calls for plain yogurt or sour cream. Full fat sour cream is my go-to because it’s what I always have in my fridge, but we have used SO many things in its place. You can use full fat or low fat yogurt, plain or vanilla (we’ve even used fruit flavored yogurts in a pinch). I’ve also used apple sauce. For the photos in this post I was actually out of all of those things so I used ricotta cheese mixed with a couple tablespoons of milk so it was the texture of full fat sour cream and I think I liked it even better than the original! So it’s flexible. If you’re out of sour cream or plain yogurt, you can be creative.
- This recipe also makes great muffins and mini muffins. You’ll have to eyeball the baking time and cook until done- I think I usually start with about 15-20 minutes and then check them.
- Store cooled bread tightly wrapped or in an airtight container at room temperature and enjoy within 3-4 days for best results.
- To Freeze: It’s easier to freeze without the glaze, consider preparing the glaze and placing in a zip top bag. Place the baked and cooled loaf on a plate in the freezer until frozen, then wrap well with food wrap. Place both bread and glaze baggie in another large freezer bag and freeze together for up to 3 months. When ready to eat, leave bread at room temp to thaw. Make sure glaze packet is sealed well and place in a bowl of warm water to thaw. Snip off a small corner of the baggie and drizzle glaze on top of bread.
Nutrition
Serving: 1slice (1/12 loaf), Calories: 272kcal, Carbohydrates: 46g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 41mg, Sodium: 211mg, Potassium: 173mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 26g, Vitamin A: 211IU, Vitamin C: 3mg, Calcium: 21mg, Iron: 1mg
Calories: 272kcal
Cost: $5
Did You Make This Recipe?Snap a picture, and hashtag it #ourbestbites. We love to see your creations on our Instagram @ourbestbites!
Questions & Reviews
Sara, thanks for reminding me of that banana bread. I haven't made it in quite a while, and it had been a favorite of ours since it was originally printed in Cooking Light mag. Looking forward to making it again this week to use up my "brown banana stash"!
Mary Beth
Sara,
What perfect timing … I have that same bag of limes from Costco sitting in my fridge right now!
This looks perfect!! Can you tell me what kind and size bread pan you used? Love the look of the finished product 🙂
Thanks again!!
Thanks, Sara. I didn't mean to imply that the recipe sounded "icky sweet", just wanted to make sure I didn't use sweetened by mistake if you didn't intend it. 🙂
Adding this to my recipe "to do ASAP" pile on the kitchen counter, as I do most of yours. It's a big pile…
Oh I will have to make a gluten free version of this…SOON! Easy peasy, LIMEon squeezy! Thanks for this! It looks and sounds SO delicious!!
ooh, this looks delish! and i've got bananas waiting! now to get some limes . . . ( :
I love all of these ingredients…and together, drool worthy is absolutely accurate!
I love the lime glaze!
ForPetesSake- I just use sweetened flaked coconut from a bag. You could use either. The bread itself isn't overly sweet so the glaze isn't overkill- (in my opinion!)
Diana- Apple Cider is totally fine. Honestly, just about any liquid will work. The original recipe actually calls for rum, but since I don't have alcohol around I sub it out. I've used milk, juice, extra sour cream, apple sauce etc. Really, anything works!
seriously people. . .
Sara, wow. This looks so good. Mmmmm. . . coconut and lime – my two favorite spring flavors.
I'm not usually a big fan of coconut- but lime & coconut? Delicious!!