Banana Bread Cookie Bars
If you’ve got a couple of ripe bananas sitting on your counter begging to be used, these Banana Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars are your new best friend!
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I usually make banana bread with my overly ripened bananas. I swear my kids let the bananas get brown on purpose so I’ll make a loaf of banana bread. It’s their favorite treat! Especially when I add chocolate chips to the batter.
This time I wanted to try something different. And, WOW! These Banana Bread Cookie Bars disappeared so fast. I’m not sure we’ll be making regular banana bread for a long time. (If you also love banana bread, try this recipe make with yellow cake mix. Delicious and easy!)
These Banana Bread Cookie Bars blend the rich, comforting flavors of banana bread with the chewy, chocolatey goodness of classic cookie bars. Plus, they’re quick to whip up—no chilling needed!
Maybe you’re looking for an easy after-school snack, a cozy dessert, or just a way to use up those overripe bananas. Either way these bars will be a hit!
What You’ll Need
Find the full, printable recipe with exact measurements at the bottom of this post. Read on for more details and tips!
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- 9×9 Baking Dish
- Parchment paper or nonstick cooking spray
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed- this really hits the chocolate chip cookie notes
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup mashed very ripe bananas (about 2 medium)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (reserve a few for sprinkling on top)- I did a ‘clear the pantry” and used the last of 3 bags of chips- chocolate, white chocolate and butterscotch. Any chip works here! Peanut butter or even cinnamon chips would be delicious.
How To Make It
Prep oven & pan – Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease or line a 9×9-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving some overhang for easy removal.
Mix wet ingredients – In a large bowl, whisk together melted butter and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg, vanilla, and mashed bananas until combined.
Add dry ingredients – Sprinkle flour, baking soda, and salt over the wet mixture. Gently fold until just combined—do not overmix.
Add chocolate chips – Fold in most of the chocolate chips, reserving a handful to sprinkle on top.
Bake – Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Sprinkle remaining chocolate chips over the top. Bake 35-45 minutes, or until the center is set and a toothpick comes out with just a few moist crumbs (not wet batter). If you notice the bars browning too quickly on top, cover the dish with a piece of foil.
Cool & serve – Let bars cool completely in the pan before lifting them out and slicing into squares. Try not to eat the whole pan! It will be hard, you have been warned.
Cut into 16 smaller bars or 9 large bars.
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Tips
- For extra gooey bars, pull them from the oven when the center still looks slightly underbaked—it will set as it cools.
- Swap chocolate chips for peanut butter chips, white chocolate, cinnamon, or butterscotch chips or a mix for a flavor twist.
- These freeze beautifully—wrap individual bars in plastic wrap and store in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Try These Next
- Banana Split Poke Cake
- Cherry Apple Oat Bars
- Pumpkin Pie French Toast Casserole
- Starbucks Lemon Loaf
- Air Fryer Donut Holes
- Cookie Bars
- Magic Bars
Summary
The next time you find yourself with a couple of overripened bananas try this delicious twist on banana bread. Moist and fluffy like bread, but chewy, dense and decadent like a cookie, these Banana Bread Cookie Bars are the perfect mash up.
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Banana Bread Cookie Bars
Equipment
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease or line a 9×9-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving some overhang for easy removal.
- Mix wet ingredients – In a large bowl, whisk together melted butter and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg, vanilla, and mashed bananas until combined.
- Add dry ingredients – Sprinkle flour, baking soda, and salt over the wet mixture. Gently fold until just combined—do not overmix.
- Fold in most of the chocolate chips, reserving a handful to sprinkle on top.
- Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Sprinkle remaining chocolate chips over the top. Bake 35-45 minutes, or until the center is set and a toothpick comes out with just a few moist crumbs (not wet batter). If you notice the bars browning too quickly on top, cover the dish with a piece of foil.
- Cool & serve – Let bars cool completely in the pan before lifting them out and slicing into squares.
They turned out great!
So happy to hear! Thank you for sharing!
2nd time making this recipe and it did not disappoint! Very good and so easy to make. I only used 1/2 a cup of brown sugar and it was perfect!!
so happy to hear that, thank you for sharing!
Just made 2 dishes one for hubby and I one for mom and dad. I might have sampled a square while cutting them up
And it’s a winner. Will keep this recipe in rotation 😋
That’s great! These are our family’s favorites! Thanks for sharing 🙂