Hummingbird Bread is a moist, spiced quick bread loaded with bananas, pineapple, and pecans, topped with a sweet cream cheese glaze. It’s delicious for breakfast, snacks, or dessert.
Hummingbird Bread is a moist, spiced quick bread bursting with tropical flavors. Ripe bananas, sweet pineapple, and crunchy pecans come together in a tender, flavorful loaf thatโs perfect for any time of day.
Topped with a smooth cream cheese glaze, this bread is sweet, rich, and irresistibly soft. Itโs easy to make, keeps well, and makes a wonderful gift or addition to brunch, holidays, or cozy mornings at home.
This easy quick bread recipe has all the flavors of Hummingbird Cake. You get all that you love about Banana Breads mixed with pineapple, coconut, cinnamon and more.
The rich cream frosting makes each bite so luscious. This recipe is absolutely delicious!
Table of contents
Why This Recipe Works
Moist and tender: The combination of ripe bananas and pineapple keeps the bread soft and perfectly moist.
Balanced sweetness: Natural fruit sweetness reduces the need for extra sugar, while the cream cheese glaze adds just the right touch.
Texture and flavor: Pecans add crunch and a nutty flavor that complements the tropical fruit and warm spices.
Quick bread convenience: No yeast needed. This spiced loaf comes together easily for a reliable, flavorful treat every time.
Versatile: Delicious for breakfast, a snack, dessert, or even as a thoughtful homemade gift.
Ingredients
Bread
- Very Ripe Bananas. The moisture content of ripe bananas gives this bread a great texture.
- Butter. This needs to be softened at room temperature.
- Brown sugar. Homemade Brown Sugar Recipe is easy and perfect in this recipe.
- Vanilla extract. Pure vanilla is best.
- All-purpose flour. Spoon the flour into a measuring cup and don’t scoop the flour. This will make sure the flour is measured accurately.
- Baking Soda. Try the Best Baking Soda Substitutes.
- Crushed pineapple. Make sure to use the juice.
- Shredded coconut. I used the sweetened variety.
- Chopped pecans. Walnuts also taste great.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- Butter. Soften the butter at room temperature.
- Cream cheese. Soften at room temperature for the smoothest texture.
- Powdered sugar. Sift the powdered sugar to remove any lumps.
- Chopped pecans. This is optional but for topping.
Get the complete ingredients for the recipe at the bottom of the page.
Step By Step Instructions
- Step 1. First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Then spray a loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.
Step 2. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the mashed bananas, butter, sugar, brown sugar, egg and vanilla extract. You can use a hand mixer or stand mixer until combined.
Step 3. Next, mix in the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Combine this by hand. Be careful not to over mix.
Step 4. Then carefully stir in the crushed pineapple, coconut and pecans.
Step 5. Finally, pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 50-55 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Step 6. Let the bread cool completely on a wire rack.
Step 7. While the bread cools, make the frosting. Beat together the cream cheese and butter with a mixer until light and fluffy. Then add in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract.
Step 8. Then spread the frosting evenly on top of the cooled bread. Then top with the chopped pecans.
Step 9. Slice and serve the bread.
Storage
Room Temperature: Store Hummingbird Bread in an airtight container or wrapped tightly in plastic wrap for up to 3โ4 days. Keep it in a cool, dry place to maintain freshness.
Refrigerator: You can refrigerate the bread for up to 1 week. Wrap tightly to prevent it from drying out.
Freezer: Wrap the loaf or individual slices in plastic wrap and place in a freezer-safe bag or container. Freeze for up to 2โ3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
Expert Tips
- Keep the pineapple juice: Do not drain the pineapple. The juice adds moisture and enhances the flavor, keeping the bread tender and rich.
- Mix gently: Combine the batter until just mixed. Overmixing can make the bread dense rather than soft and fluffy.
- Cool completely before frosting: Make sure the bread has cooled before adding the cream cheese glaze to prevent it from melting and sliding off.
- Cover if browning too fast: If the top of the bread starts to brown before itโs fully baked, loosely cover with foil to finish baking without over-browning.
- Use ripe bananas: Bananas that are turning brown are perfect for this recipe. They add natural sweetness and enhance the breadโs flavor.
- Room temperature ingredients: Using eggs, butter, and cream cheese at room temperature helps the batter mix more evenly.
- Check doneness carefully: Insert a toothpick into the center of the bread. It should come out clean or with just a few crumbs, not wet batter.
- Add mix-ins thoughtfully: You can add extra pecans, shredded coconut, or even a handful of chocolate chips for variation but donโt overload, or the bread may not rise properly.
More Quick Bread Recipes
Try this yummy Hummingbird Bread. Please leave a comment and star rating once you try it. I love hearing from you.
Hummingbird Bread
Ingredients
For the Bread:
- 3 Very Ripe Bananas
- 1/4 cup butter softened
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 Large Egg
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 4 oz crushed pineapple with juice
- 1/4 cup shredded coconut sweetened
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 1/4 cup butter softened
- 4 oz cream cheese softened
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup chopped pecans for topping
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and spray a loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the mashed bananas, butter, sugar, brown sugar, egg and vanilla extract with a hand held mixer or stand up mixer until combined.
- Mix in the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon by hand until just combined.ย Be careful not to over mix.
- Gently stir in the crushed pineapple, coconut and pecans.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
- Bake in the center of the oven for 50-55 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack before topping with the frosting.
- Beat together the cream cheese and butter with a hand held mixer until light and fluffy.
- Add in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract.ย Mix until well combined.
- Spread the frosting evenly on top of the cooled bread.ย Then top with the chopped pecans.
- Then the bread is ready to slice, serve and enjoy!
The best bread!
Love this easy bread recipe!