The Most Fabulous Banana Cake Food

BEST EVER BANANA CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 275°F (135C).
• Grease and flour a 9 x 13 pan.
• In a small bowl, mix mashed banana with the lemon juice; set aside.
• In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
• In a large bowl, cream 3/4 cup butter and 2 1/8 cups sugar until light and fluffy.
• Beat in eggs, one at a time, then stir in 2 tsp vanilla.
• Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk.
• Stir in banana mixture.
• Pour batter into prepared pan and bake in preheated oven for one hour or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
• Remove from oven and place directly into the freezer for 45 minutes. This will make the cake very moist.
• For the frosting, cream the butter and cream cheese until smooth.
• Beat in 1 teaspoon vanilla.
• Add icing sugar and beat on low speed until combined, then on high speed until frosting is smooth.
• Spread on cooled cake.
• Sprinkle chopped walnuts over top of the frosting, if desired.

THE BEST BANANA CAKE I'VE EVER HAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and grease a 9×13 inch pan.
• Mash the bananas. I usually just use my mixer for this! Set mashed bananas aside.
• Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together. Set aside.
• Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on high speed until smooth and creamy - about 1 minute. Add both sugars and beat on high speed for 2 minutes until creamed together. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the eggs and the vanilla. Beat on medium-high speed until combined, then beat in the mashed bananas. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients in three additions alternating with the buttermilk and mixing each addition just until incorporated. Do not overmix. The batter will be slightly thick and a few lumps is OK.
• Spread batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If you find the top of the cake is browning too quickly in the oven, loosely cover it with aluminum foil.
• Remove the cake from the oven and set on a wire rack. Allow to cool completely. After about 45 minutes, I usually place it in the refrigerator to speed things up.
• In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until smooth and creamy. Add 3 cups confectioners' sugar, vanilla, and salt. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then switch to high speed and beat for 2 minutes. If you want the frosting a little thicker, add the extra 1/4 cup of confectioners sugar (I add it). Spread the frosting on the cooled cake. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving. This helps sets the frosting and makes cutting easier.
• Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for 5 days.

OLD-FASHIONED BANANA CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 by 2-inch round cake pan.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the bananas, granulated sugar, and brown sugar on low speed until combined. With the mixer still on low, add the oil, eggs, sour cream, vanilla, and orange zest. Mix until smooth.
• In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Stir in the chopped walnuts, if using. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, turn out onto a cooling rack, and cool completely.
• Spread the frosting thickly on the top of the cake and decorate with walnut halves, if using.
• Mix the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on low speed until just combined. Don't whip! Add the sugar and mix until smooth.

BANANA CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• For the banana cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9-inch round cake pan.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Mix on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt into a medium bowl. Set aside.
• Add the bananas to the butter mixture and mix until combined. Let the mixer do the work of mashing for you. Add the eggs one at a time and mix until well combined. Mix in the yogurt and vanilla. Turn the mixer to low and add the dry ingredients until just combined. Do not overmix.
• Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Bake until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes, then turn onto a wire rack and cool completely.
• For the cream cheese frosting: Using the electric mixer on high speed, blend the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy, 4 to 5 minutes. With the mixer on low, add the confectioners' sugar and then the vanilla.
• Spread the frosting on top of the cake. Decorate around the perimeter of the cake with raspberries, if desired.

THE MOST FABULOUS BANANA CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180°C Butter and flour a 26cm deep ring tin.
• ut the flour, baking powder,salt, and bicarb in a food processor and whiz them to combine. Tip the mixture out into a bowl.
• Mash the bananas an measure out 1 cup of banana pulp. Scrape this into the food processor and puree it until smooth. Add the sugar and eggs, and whizz everything together for a minute. Add the butter and whizz it for a minute more, until the mixture is thick and creamy. Now, add the buttermilk and vanilla, and pulse the processor with quick on/off bursts just to mix them inches Finally, add the flour mixture and again mix it in quick bursts, scraping down the sides once or twice, so it's only just combined.
• Scoop the batter evenly into the tin and smooth it out evenly. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a fine skewer comes out clean. (Don't be surprised if the cake doesn't rise a lot; it's rather dense.
• When it's ready, leave the cake to cool in the tin on a rack for about 7 minutes. Then, gently loosen it around the edges and invert it onto a rack to cool.
• While the cake is cooling, make the icing. In a food processor, whiz together the cream cheese and butter so they're well mixed. Add the icing sugar and vanilla and process until smooth.
• When the cake is cool, put it onto a serving plate. Split it into two layers by carefully cutting around the circumference with a long, serrated knife. Spread some icing on the bottom layer, then sandwich the two halves back together again. Spread a thick layer of icing all over the cake and smooth it as best you can with a long palette knife.
• Serve the cake right away or refrigerate it. It keeps well for up to 5 days. Either leave the top plain or decorate with toasted pecans.

THE BEST BANANA CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a 9-by-13-inch baking pan (see Cook's Note) with aluminum foil, leaving a 2-inch overhang on the two longer sides. Lightly spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.
• For the cake, mash the bananas in a large bowl with a fork or potato masher until very smooth. Whisk in the dark brown sugar, melted butter, sour cream, eggs and vanilla until smooth and combined. In a separate large bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.
• Fold the dry ingredients into the banana mixture in thirds until just combined. Pour into the prepared baking pan and smooth the top. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Leave the cake in the pan to cool slightly, about 30 minutes. Use the foil overhang to remove the cake from the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Meanwhile, beat the butter, cream cheese and salt in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Reduce to low speed, then add the powdered sugar a cup at a time until smooth. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in the vanilla extract.
• Transfer 1/2 cup of the frosting to a small bowl and stir in the dulce de leche until smooth. Cover both frostings with plastic wrap and keep at room temperature until ready to assemble the cake.
• For the candied banana chips, warm the maple syrup in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat until it just starts bubbling. Add the banana chips and cook, tossing and stirring frequently with a rubber spatula, until the chips have absorbed almost all the maple syrup and are browned in spots, 3 to 4 minutes. Immediately transfer the banana chips to a baking sheet, spread in an even layer and cool completely. Once cool, roughly chop.
• Transfer the cake to a serving platter. Spread about 3/4 cup plain cream cheese frosting all over the top of the cake.
• Dollop the dulce de leche frosting and remaining plain frosting on top, then use a small offset spatula to swirl both frostings together in a swooping design, making sure the frosting goes all the way to the edges of the cake. Top with the chopped candied banana chips.

THE BEST BANANA BUNDT CAKE (DORIE GREENSPAN)

Steps:

• Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 350°F Generously butter a 9- to 10-inch (12 cup) Bundt pan. (If you use a silicone pan there's no need to butter it.) Don't place the pan on a baking sheet - you want the oven's heat to circulate through the Bundt's inner tube.
• Whisk the flour, baking soda and salt together.
• Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugar and beat at medium speed until pale and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time, beating for about 1 minute after each egg goes inches Reduce the mixer speed to low and mix in the bananas. Finally, mix in half the dry ingredients (don't be disturbed when the batter curdles), all the sour cream and then the rest of the flour mixture. Scrape the batter into the pan, rap the pan on the counter to debubble the batter and smooth the top.
• Bake for 65-75 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean. Check the cake after about 30 minutes - if it is browning too quickly, cover it loosely with a foil tent. Transfer the cake to a rack and cool for 10 minutes before unmolding onto the rack to cool to room temperature. If you have time, wrap the cooled cake in plastic and allow it to sit overnight before serving - it's even better the next day.
• OPTIONAL LEMONY WHITE ICING: Sift 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar into a bowl and squeeze in enough fresh lemon juice (start with 2 teaspoons and add more by drops) to make an icing thin enough to drizzle down the Bundt's curves.
• MUFFIN OPTION: Halve the recipe. You can add nuts or chocolate chips. Bake 28-32 minutes. Yields 12 muffins.