Fall treats are the most fun to make, which is why I crafted these banana bread blondies with caramel frosting. Banana bread is one of my favorite treats (check out my Marbled Banana Bread or my Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins), so I turned them into delectable squares with a little more bite.

Each chewy banana square is topped with buttery frosting, swirled with a quick caramel sauce and flecked with sea salt. These blondies are creamy, salty and sweet – my friends ate them up at our last picnic.

I wanted to make this banana blondie recipe relatively simple, like a one bowl baking recipe. But this turned out to be two bowls, which isn’t toooo much worse. The caramel frosting is a must so don’t pass it up!

Equipment for banana bread blondies

Here’s what you need to make these:

An 8×8 Pan – I used a simple square metal pan for this.
parchment paper – to line the pan and prevent the squares from sticking!
2 Mixing bowls – one for making frosting and the other to make blondie batter.
Whisk
spatula
small saucepan – to make our caramel swirl.
electric mixer – You can use a stand mixer or a handheld one to whip together our frosting.

Ingredients for banana bread blondies

Here’s what to add to your grocery list:

2-3 ripe bananas – they should be very brown. If they are too yellow, the consistency won’t be great and the bananas will be hard to mash. Let them get nice and spotty!
brown sugar – great for creating that caramel, creamy taste.
unsalted butter – for both the blondies and the frosting.
vanilla extract – I love the vanilla bean paste from Trader Joe’s. The store tends to stock up around September and October.
An egg
almonds, chopped – you could also substitute pecans or chopped walnuts.
All purpose flour
baking soda
salt – flaky sea salt for topping as well as table salt
powdered sugar – for our caramel frosting
maple syrup – get the 100% real kind!
heavy cream – you could also use coconut cream.

Additions and substitutions

Chocolate chips – if you don’t prefer chopped almonds fro the blondie batter, leave them out or throw in some chocolate. Preferably dark!

Cinnamon – if you don’t want to make caramel for the banana bread blondies, top the buttercream with plenty of cinnamon and swirl it in there. It will be delicious and very Autumnal.

How to make banana bread blondies

Let’s make them together!

Step 1

Prepare the blondie batter. In a bowl, whisk together the butter, brown sugar and mashed bananas until smooth. Add the egg and vanilla. Whisk together.

Step 2

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients – with a spatula, fold together until homogenous. Do not overmix. Add the chopped almonds and fold in.

Step 3

Bake. Pour the batter into your pan. Place in the oven to bake for 20 minutes or until the batter is just set (a knife should come out almost clean when inserted). Remove from the oven and let cool completely before frosting.

Step 4

While the blondies bake, make the caramel. In a saucepan, heat the maple syrup and cream until bubbling and boiling. Let it bubble until the mixture is thick enough to stick to your spoon, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool. Note: it might harden up as it cools – just pop it in the microwave for a couple seconds to loosen it up!

Step 5

Make the buttercream. Beat the butter on medium speed for 1 minute until nice and whipped. Sift in the powdered sugar and a pinch of salt. Beat again for an additional minute or until fluffy.

Step 6

With a spatula, pile the buttercream onto the center of the blondies. Use a knife or spatula to spread the frosting outwards to the edges. Place the blondies in the fridge for 5 minutes to firm up.

Step 7

Drizzle the caramel onto the blondies. If the caramel is too solid, stick it in the microwave for 5 seconds to loosen. Swirl it into the frosting. Add a sprinkle of sea salt. Slice the bars and enjoy!

Storage Directions for banana bread blondies

Keep these blondies in an airtight container. You can leave at room temperature for about 3-4 days. Eat them quickly!

Other recipes to try

If you liked these banana bread blondies with caramel frosting, try out some of these other treats:

Easy Lemon Bars

Salted Caramel Apple Tart

Baked Pumpkin Donuts with Cinnamon Sugar

Harry Potter Butterbeer Cupcakes

banana bread blondies with cramel frosting

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