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Carrot Cake Banana Bread

Carrot cake banana bread with a spiced, golden loaf that bakes up tender and slightly moist, with shredded carrot visible through the crumb. Finished with a simple cream cheese frosting for a two-in-one bread that tastes like banana bread meets carrot cake.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Breakfast, Snack
Cuisine: American
Calories: 420
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Loaf
  • 2 ripe bananas Mash until smooth.
  • 1 cup shredded carrots Use about 2 medium carrots.
  • 0.3333 cup butter Melted.
  • 0.75 cup brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1.5 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 0.5 tsp nutmeg
  • 0.25 tsp ginger
  • 0.25 tsp salt
  • 0.5 cup walnuts Chopped.
Cream cheese frosting
  • 4 oz cream cheese Softened.
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tbsp milk
  • 0.5 tsp vanilla

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan
  • 1 cast iron skillet

Method
 

Bake the spiced loaf
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9x5 loaf pan so the loaf releases cleanly.
  2. Whisk the melted butter, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract into the mashed bananas until smooth.
  3. Stir the shredded carrots into the banana mixture.
  4. Fold in the all-purpose flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt just until no dry streaks remain.
  5. Fold in the chopped walnuts until evenly distributed.
  6. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
  7. Bake at 350°F for 60–70 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean and the top is deeply golden.
Frost and serve
  1. Cool the loaf completely before frosting so the topping doesn’t melt.
  2. Beat the softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla until smooth.
  3. Spread the frosting over the top of the cooled loaf.
  4. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Notes

For the best texture, fold the dry ingredients just until combined—overmixing can make the loaf tough. Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days; the loaf also freezes well up to 2 months (freeze without frosting, then thaw and frost). For a lighter option, use unsalted butter and reduce the brown sugar by 2–3 tbsp while keeping the spices the same.