🍞 Bread Machine Preset

Golden Cake Mix Banana Bread

Name: Golden Cake Mix Banana Bread
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 120 min
Total time: 135 min
Yield: 10 Slices
Ingredients: 15.25 oz 1 box (15.25 oz) Duncan Hines Golden Yellow Cake Mix; 3.00 unit medium ripe bananas, thoroughly mashed (~1 to 1.25 cups) (Peeled); 0.33 cups melted butter (or vegetable oil); 2.00 unit large eggs, beaten; 1.00 tsp vanilla extract (optional); 0.50 cups chocolate chips (optional); 0.50 cups wallnuts (optional)

Transform a simple box of cake mix into a rich, velvety, bakery-quality banana bread with virtually zero effort. Using Duncan Hines Golden Yellow Cake Mix as the base eliminates the need to measure out flour, sugar, or leavening agents. Combined with mashed bananas and butter, this bread machine shortcut delivers an exceptionally moist crumb, golden edges, and pockets of warm chocolate in every bite.

Chef’s Secret — The Key to Great Banana Bread:

Always use RIPE bananas! If you use bananas that are hard and yellow—or even worse, green—they will contain too much starch and not enough natural sugars. As bananas ripen, they convert this starch into sugar. According to Wikipedia, "The greener, less ripe bananas contain higher levels of starch and, consequently, have a 'starchier' taste. On the other hand, yellow bananas taste sweeter due to higher sugar concentrations."

FYI: You will know a banana is perfectly ripe when it is soft and covered in lots of small brown and black spots on the yellow peel.

On most standard bread machines, the total time for a "Cake" or "Quick Bread" setting is between 1 hour 40 minutes and 1 hour 50 minutes (1:40 to 1:50).

Here is how that time is broken down inside the machine:

Mixing/Kneading Phase: ~15 to 25 minutes (short paddle action to blend batter without over-mixing)

Bake Phase: ~70 to 80 minutes (longer than standard yeast breads because heavy batter takes longer to bake through)

Cool Down/Warm Phase: ~10 to 15 minutes

⏱️ Prep: 15 mins

🔥 Bake: 120 mins

⌛ Total: 135 mins

📊 Difficulty: Easy

🖨️ Print Recipe

🍞 Bread Machine Settings

Program / Cycle Basic

Crust Color Medium

Loaf Capacity 1.5 lb

Recipe Servings: 10 Slices

Scale Yield:

🥣 Ingredients

15.25 oz 1 box (15.25 oz) Duncan Hines Golden Yellow Cake Mix

3.00 unit medium ripe bananas, thoroughly mashed (~1 to 1.25 cups) (Peeled)

0.33 cups melted butter (or vegetable oil)

2.00 unit large eggs, beaten

1.00 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

0.50 cups chocolate chips (optional)

0.50 cups wallnuts (optional)

📝 Instructions

Tap or click any step to check off as you bake!

Prepare wet ingredients:Mashing first ensures even distribution.In a medium bowl, mash the bananas until smooth. Whisk in the 2 beaten eggs, 1/3 cup melted butter, and 1 tsp vanilla extract.

Load the bread pan:Wet ingredients MUST go in first.Pour the wet mixture directly into the bottom of your bread machine pan. Pour the dry Duncan Hines Golden Yellow Cake Mix evenly over top of the liquid.Do not put chocolate chips in yet.

Configure machine settings:Prevents burning and ensures proper rise.Insert the pan into your machine and set the controls:Setting: Cake or Quick Bread (do not use a yeast bread setting).Crust Color: Light (essential due to high sugar content in cake mix).

Scrape and add chocolate chips:During the mixing phase.Press Start. 2–3 minutes into mixing, open the lid and use a rubber spatula to gently scrape down any dry cake mix stuck in the corners.When the machine gives its mix-in beep (or during the last minute of kneading), scatter your chocolate chips into the batter.

Bake and cool:Check with a toothpick before removing.Let the machine run its bake cycle. When complete, insert a toothpick into the center. If it comes out clean, carefully remove the loaf pan and let it cool for 10–15 minutes before turning the loaf out onto a wire rack.