Baked Banana Fritters
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I love sweet bananas. Banana fritters? Even better! Healthier fritters? The best! A wonderful alternative to baking banana bread, these Baked Banana Fritters are sure to brighten your day!
If you are looking for a reason not to toss those brown bananas on your counter in the trash, I have just the thing! This recipe for baked banana fritters is what you need. Light, sweet, glazed banana pastries are the perfect morning wake-up call.
WHY YOU WILL LOVE THESE HEALTHY BANANA FRITTERS
You are probably familiar with apple fritters, which you can usually find next to the donuts in your local bakery. I hope you’ll try this banana fritter – it is a healthier version of the typical fritter as it is baked and not fried. You will have all the beautiful flavors of a traditional fried fritter without the extra calories and fat. With simple ingredients, you can have a fritter in your hand in no time. This is a perfect way to use those leftover bananas sitting on your counter getting overripe. These sweet treats would be delicious for breakfast, perfect for afternoon tea, or served for dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
If you have never had a fritter it is similar to a donut – both are fried dough. But fritters are fruit dipped in batter or wrapped in dough and then fried, whereas donuts are generally just fried dough with its signature hole in the middle. So the difference between the two can be batter vs. dough and filled vs. unfilled. The word “fritter” actually translates to “fried” or “to fry”.
Speaking of donuts, have you tried some of my favorite healthy donut recipes? Baked Banana Donuts and Glazed Pumpkin Baked Donuts are a couple of my favorites!
See all of my donut recipes right here on my website.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR BAKED FRITTER RECIPE
Fritters:
- Flour – All-purpose flour is best but you can also use bread flour or pastry flour.
- Sugar – I use white sugar, but you could substitute light brown sugar or a 50/50 combination.
- Salt
- Baking powder
- Cinnamon – You can omit this spice or use another warm spice such as nutmeg or allspice.
- Butter – I do not recommend replacing the butter, but if you want a non-dairy ingredient you could try butter-flavored shortening.
- Egg
- Milk – You can substitute half and half or cream diluted with 50% water. If you want to avoid dairy you can use non-dairy milk such as oat or almond. Coconut milk would add another tropical note to these banana fritters.
- Orange zest – Use a zester or grater to remove the orange peel. You only want the citrusy, sweet orange zest, not the white pith which is bitter.
- Bananas – Use ripe bananas, but not over-ripe bananas (brown).
Glaze:
- Powdered sugar – Also known as confectioners’ sugar
- Vanilla – I recommend always using pure vanilla extract
- Milk
HOW TO MAKE BAKED BANANA FRITTERS
Begin by Preheating the oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease a baking sheet and set aside.
Then, In a large bowl combine the dry ingredients – flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and cinnamon.
Next, Using two knives or a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour mixture until coarse crumbs form.
And, In a small bowl, whisk together egg, milk and orange zest. Pour into the flour mixture and stir until just combined. It should resemble a thick cakey batter.
Fold the chopped bananas into the fritter batter.
Drop spoonfuls of the batter onto a prepared baking sheet.
Finally, Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the bottoms are golden brown and the tops are beginning to turn brown.
Transfer to a wire rack and cool for about 10 minutes.
Prepare the glaze by whisking the ingredients together, and adding the milk a little at a time until you get the desired consistency. I made this batch with a fairly thick consistency. If you want a thinner glaze, add more milk.
Dip fritters into the glaze and let set.
Love them? Pin them!
If you love these baked banana fritters make sure that you don’t lose the recipe! Pin it to your favorite Pinterest recipe board before you go!
FAQ’s
Where do banana fritters originate? It is commonly thought that banana fritters originated in West Africa, but they are also popular in Indian, Asian, and Caribbean cuisine.
What is fritter batter made from? Fritter batter is usually made up of the basic ingredients of flour, milk, and eggs. Both sweet and savory ingredients can be added to the batter or dough.
How do I make my fritters less oily? If you are deep frying your fritters you will want to remove excess oil by draining them on paper towels. Also, make sure your hot oil is at the right temperature as this is very important for less greasy fritters. Your oil should be between 350-375 degrees Fahrenheit.
For less oily or oil-free fritters, use this recipe for banana fritters baked. Another great way to make less oily fritters is to air fry them. Simply follow this recipe and cook your fritters in the air fryer at 400 degrees F for 4-6 minutes. Flip your fritters and air fry for another 4-6 minutes. You can spray the tops with cooking spray before air frying.
SUBSTITUTIONS:
- Sugar – You can substitute light brown sugar or a 50/50 combination of white and brown sugar. Brown sugar will add sweetness, moisture, and a touch of molasses flavor to your banana fritters.
- Butter – I do not recommend replacing the butter, but if you want a non-dairy ingredient you could try butter-flavored shortening.
- Milk – You can substitute half and half or cream diluted with 50% water or skim milk. If you want to avoid dairy you can use non-dairy milk such as oat or almond. Coconut milk would add another tropical note to these banana fritters.
- Orange zest – You can use lemon zest instead for a citrusy flavor.
- Bananas – You can substitute different fruits in this recipe such as apples, peaches, pears, or berries.
TIPS AND TRICKS FOR THE BEST BANANA FRITTERS
- Make sure your bananas are ripe or slightly overripe as this will give the fritters a boost of natural sweetness.
- Check your fritters for doneness by using the toothpick test. Your fritters are done when your toothpick comes out clean.
- These delicious banana fritters make a tasty dessert. Serve with a scoop of vanilla or banana ice cream and more sliced bananas on top. Yum!
- You can play with the flavors of this fritter. Instead of orange zest, you could use lemon zest or vanilla. You could also add some chopped nuts, coconut, or chocolate chips. You could also change up the fruit in this fritter…apples, peaches, or berries would be delicious. Fritters can also be savory such as these corn fritters.
- To store your fritters, place them in an airtight container so they don’t dry out. They will last 2 days at room temperature, up to 1 week in the refrigerator, and up to 3 months in the freezer. From frozen, thaw them at room temperature for a few hours and enjoy.
RELATED RECIPES
If you love all things banana, you will want to make these banana recipes PRONTO!
- Pumpkin Spice Banana Bread Muffins (pictured above)
- Chocolate Orange Banana Bread
- The very last Banana Bread Recipe You’ll ever Need
- Chocolate Banana Cake
- Banana Bread Coffee Cake
- Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Double Chocolate Banana Muffins
- Banana Cream Pie
- Bananas Foster Cake
I don’t know about you, but I am more likely to eat something with banana flavor rather than just grabbing a plain old banana. I hope you will try this healthy version of fritters when you just need a little banana sweetness in your life.
Baked Banana Fritters
Equipment
Ingredients
- For the Banana Fritters:
- 1 ½ cups flour
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 6 Tablespoons cold butter cut into pats
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup milk
- 2 teaspoons grated orange zest
- 2 medium bananas chopped into ½” pieces
- For the Vanilla Fritter Glaze:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 4 Tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease a baking sheet. Set aside.
- In a large bowl stir together flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and cinnamon.
- Using two knives or a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour mixture until coarse crumbs form.
- In a small bowl, whisk together egg, milk and orange zest. Pour into the flour mixture and stir until just combined.
- Fold in the chopped bananas.
- Drop by heaping Tablespoons onto a prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the bottoms are golden brown and the tops are beginning to turn brown.
- Transfer to a wire rack and cool for about 10 minutes.
- Prepare the glaze by whisking the ingredients together, and adding the milk a little at a time until you get the desired consistency. You want a fairly thick consistency.
- Dip fritters into the glaze and let set.
Never tried banana fritters before. Sounds delicious. Thanks for sharing
Love how easy this recipe is. It’s perfect for our family!
These fritters look absolutely fantastic, especially with that gorgeous glaze on top! And I love that they’re baked instead of fried. Adding to my list to try immediately!
These banana fritters were so easy to make and were so sweet and tasty! I made them for brunch this past weekend and they disappeared in minutes!
These fritters were simply delicious. So soft and great texture. The vanilla glaze was fabulous!
These banana fritters turned out amazing. Flawless recipe and can’t wait to make again.
So happy that you loved them, too!!