The Best Banana Cake
A moist, delicious banana cake with an optional espresso frosting
Equipment
Ingredients
Banana Cake
- 1 stick butter divided in half - you'll use ½ for the caramelized banana, and the other half for the cake batter
- 3-4 whole bananas coming in at 12 ounces, sliced
- 2 cups brown sugar divided into a ½ cup for the caramelized banana, and 1 ½ cups for the cake batter
- 1 pinch kosher salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ⅔ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon chai spice recipe or 1 teaspoon of cinnamon + 1 teaspoon of nutmeg + 1 teaspoon of ginger
Coffee Frosting
- 2 sticks butter softened
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon instant coffee granules dissolved in ¼ cup of water
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F.
- In a skillet, sautee a ½ stick of butter, sliced bananas (from about 3 or 4 bananas), ½ cup of brown sugar, and a pinch of kosher salt. Once the butter and sugar has melted and all the bananas are evenly coated, turn off the heat. Let the caramelized bananas cool while you prep the cake batter.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl with a hand-mixer, cream the rest of the butter (the other half stick of butter) with 1 ½ cups of brown sugar, until light and fluffy. Add 3 large eggs in, one at a time. Add in the teaspoon of vanilla. Scrap the bowl as you go to ensure even mixing.
- In a separate bowl, combine the 1 ⅔ cup of flour, the teaspoon of baking powder, the pinch of salt, and the 1 tablespoon of chai spice (or 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1 teaspoon of nutmeg, and 1 teaspoon of ginger.) Stir to combine your dry ingredients with a whisk or fork.
- Add your flour mixture into your butter/sugar/egg mixture and mix to combine.
- Fold in your caramelized bananas and mix to *just barely* combine. We want banana chunks in the cake!
- Pour the cake batter into a cake pan - the same skillet you used to caramelize the bananas, or a 9" springform pan. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean - about 30 minutes. The cake is ready to eat when it's cooled down a little!
- In a small bowl, dissolve 1 tablespoon of espresso/instant coffee granules with a ¼ cup of warm water. Stir to combine. In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl with a hand-mixer, combine your 2 sticks of butter with your 3 cups of powdered sugar, and whip to combine until light and fluffy. Add in your coffee mixture and mix a few more times to combine. Spread the coffee frosting over the cooled banana cake and serve!
Notes
You can bake this in a 9/10" springform pan if you wish!
Nutrition
Calories: 432kcalCarbohydrates: 98gProtein: 5gFat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 53mgSodium: 115mgPotassium: 163mgFiber: 1gSugar: 80gVitamin A: 127IUCalcium: 111mgIron: 2mg
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