It’s made from scratch and one of the best you’ll find. Just think of banana bread made even better, and that’s what you get here!
Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
This easy banana cake recipe tastes just like banana bread, but in cake form with the delicious addition of a light and tangy homemade cream cheese frosting…yes, I definitely accept! You are going to want to eat this frosting by the spoonful (like I may or may not have done). Banana bread has always been one of my favorite desserts/snacks/breakfasts since I was little, so when I finally tried it in cake form many years ago it was a given that I was going to be hooked. I mean, I still have a hard time resisting a piece of this first thing in the morning. Leave the frosting off and it does make a perfect weekend breakfast. Lately, I just buy more bananas at the grocery store than I plan on my family eating on their own, because I love to bake with them and add them to smoothies or oatmeal. The hard part, though, is waiting for them to ripen. It’s like Christmas when I’m at the grocery store and every once in a while they have those overripe bananas wrapped with a red tape. That means they’ve done the hard part for me and I don’t have to wait a week for my bananas to become generously speckled. I’d pay more for those bananas than the regularly priced ones, but they label and sell them like they are the lesser quality. I love this banana cake with cream cheese frosting so much that I’ve made it twice in one week, and both times it disappeared in no time!
Banana Cake Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make the best ever banana cake:
All-purpose flour Baking soda Salt Mashed overripe bananas Lemon juice Granulated sugar and brown sugar Butter Vegetable oil Eggs Vanilla Buttermilk Heavy cream Cream Cheese Powered sugar
How to Make Banana Cake
Preheat oven and butter and line cake pans. In a bowl whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Mash bananas with 1 tsp lemon juice. In a stand mixer whip together butter, 2 Tbsp vegetable oil, sugars until pale and fluffy. Stir in remaining 2 Tbsp vegetable oil then blend in eggs one at a time. Stir in vanilla and mashed bananas. Stir in flour and buttermilk alternating with several additions. Divide batter evenly among prepared cake pans and spread batter into an even layer. Bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 45 – 50 minutes. Allow to cool completely then frost with whipped cream cheese frosting.
How to Tell If a Cake is Done
Can I Add Less Sugar to the Cream Cheese Frosting?
Can I Use a Buttermilk Substitute?
Yes, you can make your own by measuring out 1 1/2 cups milk, removing 1 1/2 Tbsp, and replacing it with 1 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice or plain vinegar. Whisk and let sit 5 minutes before adding to the batter.
Can I Freeze Banana Cake?
Yes, this homemade banana cake should be fine to freeze. Ideally, you should freeze the banana cake frosting in a separate container (rather than freezing the frosted cake). But if you wind up with leftovers, go ahead and freeze the frosted cake — just note that the texture of the cake may change slightly once thawed.
Tips for the Best Banana Cake
I’d recommend frosting the cake within 30 minutes of serving, as the top layer of cake will begin to weigh down that center layer of frosting (and you may not want a really thick layer in the center, just because after a while it will begin to spill out the sides). You want to use overripe, practically black bananas for this easy cake recipe. If you only have salted butter on hand, scale back on the amount of salt you add into the cake batter.
More Banana Desserts You’ll Love:
Banana Bread Banana Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies Banana Bars with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting Banana Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting Banana Cream Pie Cups with Salted Caramel Sauce Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
