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Cream Cheese Banana Bread

Cream cheese banana bread with a silky swirl ribbons through moist, tender banana crumb. Bake in a loaf pan until the edges set and a toothpick comes out mostly clean, then cool for clean slices.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Breakfast, Snack
Cuisine: American
Calories: 320
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Banana loaf base
  • 3 ripe bananas, mashed Use very ripe bananas for best flavor and moisture.
  • 0.33 cup melted butter
  • 0.75 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1.5 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
Cream cheese swirl
  • 4 oz cream cheese, softened Soften until spreadable for smooth swirls.

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan
  • 1 stand mixer
  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Prep the pan and preheat
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a loaf pan.
Mix the banana batter
  1. Mash the bananas until smooth and stir in the melted butter, sugar, and egg until glossy.
  2. Fold in the flour and baking soda until just combined, with no dry streaks left.
Swirl in the cream cheese
  1. Pour half the batter into the prepared pan and smooth it into an even layer.
  2. Dollop spoonfuls of the softened cream cheese over the batter so it covers most of the surface.
  3. Pour the remaining batter on top and swirl gently with a knife using a few quick figure-eight motions.
Bake and cool
  1. Bake for 55-65 minutes at 350°F, until a toothpick comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs.
  2. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.

Notes

For the smoothest swirl, soften the cream cheese fully (about room temperature until spreadable). Don’t over-swirl—just a few gentle passes make the marbled look. Store covered in the refrigerator up to 5 days; freeze for up to 2 months. For a lower-sugar option, you can use a 1:1 baking sugar substitute in place of the sugar (use the package ratio).