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Banana Bread Cobbler

This banana bread cobbler has everything you love about banana bread, minus the loaf pan! A moist cake-like base is studded with sliced bananas, then topped with an irresistible layer of crispy brown sugar and pecan streusel.

Banana bread cobbler in dish topped with banana slices and scoop of vanilla ice cream

Easy Banana Cobbler With Streusel Topping

If you’ve made Strawberry Cobbler, Plum Cobbler, or other cobblers in the past, the name of this recipe might leave you a little bit puzzled. How do you make banana bread into cobbler?! 

To be sure, this isn’t a traditional cobbler recipe. Instead of a jammy fruit filling on the bottom, the base of this banana bread cobbler is more like a super moist banana cake. This is topped with a layer of streusel, giving you all the flavor of a streusel-topped banana bread, simply in a different form. 

You see, this is banana bread without the bread. All the good parts of banana bread are put in a baking dish and baked into a bubbly, warm, yummy creation. Top it with some ice cream, and suddenly banana bread is suitable not just for snacking, but for serving as a dessert.

Overhead view of ingredients for banana bread cobbler

What You’ll Need

Scroll down to the recipe card to find the ingredient quantities and recipe instructions.

For the Streusel Topping:

For the Filling:

What Is Self-Rising Flour?

Self-rising flour is flour that already has baking powder and salt mixed into it. While you can buy it readymade at the grocery store, you can also make your own self-rising flour at home.

How to Make Banana Bread Cobbler

One of the best things about this cobbler is how easy it is to make. For the small amount of work that goes into it, you get an incredibly good return on your investment.

Make the streusel. Stir together the brown sugar, flour, and butter in a small bowl until they’re crumbly, then stir in the oats and pecans. 

Prepare. Preheat your oven to 375°F and lightly grease an 11″x 7″ baking pan.

Make the batter. Whisk together the flour, sugar, and milk in a mixing bowl, just until they’re blended. Whisk in the melted butter.

Assemble. Pour the batter mixture into the prepared pan. Arrange the banana slices on top, then add the streusel topping. 

Bake. Place the baking dish in the oven and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until brown and bubbly. Serve warm.

Overhead view of banana bread cobbler in white baking dish, surrounded by bananas, pecans, and forks

Tips for Success

Read through my baking tips for beginners, then follow these additional tips for this banana bread cobbler recipe:

  • Use ripe bananas. Ripe bananas will give your banana bread cobbler sweetness and flavor, and they’ll also hold their shape (and look more appealing) than the over-ripe bananas you’d typically use for banana bread.
  • Cover the bananas with the streusel. Making sure the bananas are completely covered will slow down the browning process.
  • Don’t over-mix the streusel. To get that crumbly streusel texture, you’ll want small lumps of butter in the streusel mixture.
Banana bread cobbler in white baking dish with scoop removed

Variations

Try adding a layer of coconut flakes over the bananas before adding the streusel topping. Chocolate chips can be added before layering on the bananas, or try adding mini chocolate chips to the streusel mixture. For a little more cozy flavor, you can add ground cinnamon or other warm spices to the streusel.

Serving Suggestions

I love this banana bread cobbler with a scoop of vanilla ice cream—preferably the kind flecked with real vanilla beans. Of course, you can’t go wrong with a dollop of homemade whipped cream either, and a drizzle of caramel sauce is delicious too.

Overhead view of banana bread cobbler in baking dish and bowls

How to Store

Store banana bread cobbler covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Although you can eat it chilled, I recommend warming it up in the microwave first.

Can This Recipe Be Frozen?

Yes, you can freeze this banana bread cobbler for up to 3 months. Wrap it tightly in the baking dish, or transfer leftovers to an airtight container. Let it thaw in the refrigerator before warming and serving.

Banana bread cobbler in dish with banana slices and vanilla ice cream

Banana Bread Cobbler

Yield 8 to 10 servings
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour

Turn the flavors of banana bread into a delicious dessert with this sweet Banana Bread Cobbler. Just top with ice cream and enjoy!

Banana bread cobbler in white dish topped with scoop of vanilla ice cream and banana slices

Ingredients

For the streusel topping:

  • 3/4 cup (150g) packed light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup (60g) self-rising flour
  • 1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup (99g) uncooked old-fashioned rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup (85g) chopped pecans

For the filling:

  • 1 cup (120g) self-rising flour
  • 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
  • 1 cup (237ml) milk
  • 1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, melted
  • 4 medium bananas, sliced

Instructions

To make the streusel:

  1. Stir together the brown sugar, flour, and butter until crumbly.
  2. Stir in the oats and pecans. Set aside.

To make the filling:

  1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease an 11″x 7″ baking pan.*
  2. Whisk together the flour, sugar, and milk just until blended. Whisk in the melted butter. Pour into the prepared pan.
  3. Top with banana slices and the streusel topping. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until brown and bubbly.

Notes

*Most any baking pan with a 2.5-quart capacity will work.

Recipe slightly adapted from Southern Living.

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    70 Comments on “Banana Bread Cobbler”

  1. I always have extra bananas lying around. Great recipe. Thanks!

  2. I was hoping we would hear from you now that you’ve regained your day off. I’ll look to hear from you on Wednesdays. I don’t like banana bread because I don’t like the taste of ripe bananas. However, I love texture so the topping on this is tempting enough for me to try it with fresh bananas.

  3. oh good another recipe for bananas….i cannot get enough of them these days (and coconut)

  4. goodness this looks deliciouuuuuussssss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I love banana anything!

  5. This looks delicious! I love bananas, but unfortunately my boyfriend hates them. I doubt I could eat the whole thing myself. Does it still taste good the next day? Say if I wanted to bring leftovers to work?

  6. This sounds like an absolute dream.

  7. Yum! I love everything banana! What a great idea.

  8. This looks fabulous, glad to see a post from you.

  9. Where was this last week, when I was buried in overripe bananas? 🙂 Kidding. I love this! I froze aforementioned bananas, so now I shall make this dish with them!

  10. This looks epic! And so unique–I’m a huge fan of banana bread, but changing things up once in a while certainly can’t hurt.

  11. Jessie, it reheats wonderfully. We enjoyed it for a couple of days after I made it.

  12. Never seen this before! That looks like it’s begging for a bit of vanilla ice cream…

  13. This is such a great variation!! Bookmarked!

  14. Wow it really does look easy. That’s kind of a surprise. Taking up this recipe this coming weekend. I’ll let you know how it goes. Thanks for the post.

  15. Ahhh if I only saw this 2 weeks ago. I was searching everywhere to find a decent banana crisp, but none were very good, this looks great!

  16. OOOH, I am deifnitely loving this non-banana bread banana bread! Sometimes banana bread, while delicious, just lacks that little somethin’somethin’ so this is right up my alley! Dressed to the nines banana bread!

  17. I got hungry just looking at it. Ok, it’s not hunger, it’s a craving, but still going to make this cobbler. With some ice cream, of course. And maybe even some chocolate sauce.

  18. Looks great! thumbs up!

  19. I’ve made banana bread before. It was okay, but I’m not a huge fan of the smell of bananas. This could be a recipe to try though.

  20. Oooh wow this would be perfect for leftover bananas..which i always seem to have! Looks delicious!

  21. You called this a cobbler but I think it’s really a crisp. 🙂 I actually made one last year and it was a HUGE hit with the family. Either way, whatever name it’s called it’s wonderful! We adore bananas! Thanks for the reminder that it’s been awhile.
    ~ingrid

  22. I made this from Southern Living and my husband LOVED it. It was soo easy and tasted great with some ice cream. Its been added to my recipe collection for those days when I just have to get rid of the bananas on the counter.

  23. I made your banana cobbler! It was amazing!! It is one of the best desserts I have ever had. I did change s few things though. Wonderful recipe.

  24. Can you use all-purpose flour instead of self-rising flour that it calls for in the recipe? It looks delicious!

    • Angela, Jeff beat me to telling you how to substitute all-purpose flour for self-rising. Or, take Angela’s advice and just interchange them without the addition of baking soda and salt. For something like this, I think either way is fine. Enjoy!

      • As a substitute for 1 cup of self-rising flour, place 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a measuring cup. Add all-purpose flour to measure 1 cup.

  25. I really liked it…thanks..just wondering, is it possible not to use a dish but a normal cake tin?? cheers

  26. Angela I used all purpose white flour when I made it, and it turned out very well.

  27. This recipe is amazing. I’ll never make another loaf of banana bread again. By the way, self-rising flour is really easy to make — 1 1/4 tsp baking soda and 1/2 tsp salt per cup of AP flour.

  28. This looks absolutely divine, and warm and gooey. I love old style baked banana pudding. This looks just as good.

  29. Thanks for sharing this. I just happen to have some bananas I could use for this recipe! It looks really good.

  30. Yes. OMG Yes. Will be making it tomorrow! Thanks!

  31. Bananas are such a good flavor star of a dish–this looks fabulous!

  32. Another great recipe for those ripe bananas. I’m always on the lookout for something other than banana bread. This looks delicious.

  33. I made it last week. Best dessert ever. My husband said it might even nudge creme brulee from the top of his list – you have no idea how ground-breaking that is…

  34. I love this blog. It has so many authentic homey recipes!

  35. Love bananas, great recipe!

  36. This is sinful! I might just have to whip it up, park my fanny in front of the tube and go to town!

  37. Is the sugar really necessary? Bananas have natural sugar and when cooked, they just get sweeter. I might try this ‘au naturel.’

  38. Made it last night. Loved it. Very good and very easy to make. Thanks for the recipe!

  39. this looks yummy!!

  40. This looks supper yummy!!! I think i’ll try it this weekend 🙂

  41. I love that I could have dessert for breakfast. Looks delish!

  42. It is so true that banana bread gets boring this looks like a yummy recipe that I’ll be making next time I have ripe bananas. Thanks.

  43. This looks phenomenal! I want to preheat the over right now, except it’s the middle of the night. 🙂

    Does anyone have any suggestions on adapting this for gluten free? I could try substituting gluten free all purpose flour. But I’m not sure what’s meant by “self rising flour”. Is that different that regular flour? Would the conversion be different than 1 to 1 for gluten free all purpose? Or should I substitute something different like tapioca flour?

    Thanks,
    Matt

  44. I made this yesterday morning and thought it was pretty good. I cut the sugar by 1/2 in the “bread” part, but next time I would cut it out completely…it was very sweet for my taste. This recipe is even better the next day 🙂

  45. This was fabulous – thank you! I’m a preschool teacher and we were trying to figure out this morning what to do with all the overripe bananas in our snack cache. We decided to do a last minute baking project with the kids but had no eggs – and were so happy when we found this recipe! We had no oats and not enough butter for the topping, so used extra flour and cream cheese. It was easy and fun for the kids to make, and very tasty!

  46. Would it work the same if I used quick oats?

    • Kelly, the only problem is that quick oats cook faster than regular oats. They can taste a bit different and have a different texture, too. If it were me, I would use quick oats if I didn’t have regular. In this recipe, it probably won’t make that much difference.

  47. The 5 bananas in my kitchen are screaming! Excited to try this! 🙂

  48. Pingback: 15 Refreshing Fruit Cobblers

  49. Can anyone describe the texture of this to me? Thanks in advance!

  50. I made this today for a luncheon that I catered. It was fantastic !!! Followed recipe exactly as posted. I had several orders for it before I let the building !

  51. I had to take a moment to let you know I made this recipe yesterday and it was fantastic! I was visiting my husband’s parents and they had bananas on their counter that needed to be used and asked me if I wouldn’t mind making something with them. I didn’t want to bake a banana bread and I found your recipe for this cobbler. They (we) enjoyed it so much, I’ll definitely be making it again.

  52. My family just DEVOURED this recipe. After reading others’ comments, I used cinnamon + nutmeg in the topping and added a dusting of coconut on top. Quick + easy to make + pairs well with an entire container of vanilla ice cream. Thanks for a great dessert – will definitely make again!

  53. This looks delicious and was easy to make.  My husband and I were disappointed with the flavor.  Pretty bland.  I can see other people loved it.

  54. So happy I found this recipe!  I don’t want to run to the store (again) and this recipe calls for ingredients I already have in the house!  I made homemade vanilla ice cream which I think will pair wonderfully with this banana cobbler!  Can’t wait to serve dessert to my family tonight! 

  55. How about mixing one regular tub of cool whip and a regular size box of instant banana pudding and a 1/4 cup milk for a topping 

  56. I have a recipe from a friend that makes it for breakfasts. In 13×9 baking pan. I had it everyday we visited. I believe it has eggs for protein. I used half & half over it instead of ice cream. When I locate the recipe I’ll make it, send a picture & recipe to you. It has coconut & whole pecans over the top. I think only chocolate would make it better for us.

  57. Would Bananas which have been frozen & thawed work in this recipe?

  58. Jennifer, it’s always a delight to try your recipes! It’s inspirational and makes these unsettling times so much more pleasant.
    Thank you for being here for your followers,
    Carole

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