Banana cake is moist and packed with real banana flavor. Made with overripe bananas and flavored with vanilla extract, this cake is paired with sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting for a perfect combination of flavors. This is the best banana cake recipe that will quickly edge out using ripe bananas to make banana bread!
Ingredients for Banana Cake
Banana cake
- Light brown sugar: Adds sweetness and subtle molasses flavor.
- Granulated sugar: More sweetness.
- Vegetable oil: Adds fat and moisture. Use any neutral baking oil.
- Eggs: Room temperature large eggs.
- Vanilla extract: Pure vanilla extract enhances the banana flavor.
- Sour cream: Adds a bit of moisture and tang to the cake. You can replace with buttermilk if preferred.
- Banana: Overripe, spotty bananas work best. Mash well with a fork or potato masher.
- All-purpose flour: Regular all-purpose flour. Level your measuring cups!
- Baking powder: Helps the cake layers rise.
- Salt: Enhances the flavor of the cake.
Cream cheese frosting
- Unsalted butter: Room temperature for easy creaming.
- Cream cheese: Also room temperature.
- Powdered sugar: Confectioners’ sugar or icing sugar.
- Vanilla extract: Pure vanilla extract adds great flavor.
- Salt: Enhances the flavor and contrasts the sweetness.
Tools & Supplies for Making Banana Cake
How to Make Banana Cake
To make the banana cake batter, you will need a whisk and a bowl.
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Prepare three 7-inch cake pans with nonstick cooking spray and parchment circles.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine brown sugar, granulated sugar, vegetable oil, eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream, and mashed banana. Whisk until smooth.
- Add in the dry ingredients to the banana mixture (baking powder, salt, and all-purpose flour). Gently whisk until the flour mixture is fully incorporated into the wet ingredients.
- Portion cake batter into prepared cake pans and spread into an even layer. Use a kitchen scale to weigh the batter for even layers.
- Bake for approximately 30 minutes until the cakes bounce back when gently touched or an inserted toothpick in the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Remove the cake pans from the oven and allow the cake layers to cool in the pan for approximately 10-15 minutes and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
How to Make Cream Cheese Frosting
The frosting can be made with a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer.
- In a mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment (your preference), add room temperature butter and cream cheese. Whip on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally.
- Add half the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until incorporated. Then, add remaining half of the powdered sugar and continue to mix until combined.
- Add vanilla extract and salt.
- Turn the mixer on medium speed and whip for 2 to 3 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally.
Banana Cake Recipe Tips
Make perfect cake layers
Check out my baking tips blog post on 10 Tips for Baking Perfect Cakes. In this post, I share with you 10 simple tricks that will take your cake baking to the next level!
Mashed banana
I like to mash my bananas in a bowl with a fork or potato masher. I recommend mashing the bananas until they are very smooth for this recipe. You could even use an immersion blender to help the process. For this recipe, I used 5 bananas to make 2 cups of mashed banana.
Assembling the cake
To assemble the banana cake, stack the cake layers and cream cheese frosting. Use a large cookie scoop to portion the frosting for even layers. Create a crumb coat (thin layer of frosting) to trap in crumbs. Chill the cake for 20-30 minutes. Add a thick layer of frosting with an offset spatula. Use a cake scraper to smooth the sides and a small offset spatula to create a swirl on the top. Decorate the edge of the cake with banana chips if desired.
Storing and serving
The frosted cake can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Cover any exposed cake with plastic wrap to prevent the cake from drying out. Bring the cake to room temperature to serve for the best taste and texture.
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Banana Cake
Equipment
- 3 7-inch round cake pans
- Stand mixer or electric hand mixer
Ingredients
Banana Cake
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- 3 eggs room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup sour cream room temperature
- 2 cups mashed, ripe banana approximately 4 to 5 bananas
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 2 cups unsalted butter softened
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 7 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp salt
Instructions
Banana Cake
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Prepare three 7-inch cake pans with nonstick cooking spray and parchment circles.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine brown sugar, granulated sugar, vegetable oil, eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream, and mashed banana. Whisk until smooth.
- Add in baking powder, salt, and all-purpose flour. Gently whisk until the dry ingredients are fully incorporated into the wet ingredients and the cake batter is smooth.
- Portion cake batter into prepared cake pans and spread into an even layer.
- Bake for approximately 30 minutes until the cakes bounce back when gently touched or an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Remove the cake pans from the oven and allow the cake layers to cool in the pan for approximately 10-15 minutes. Remove the cake layers from the pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, add room temperature butter and cream cheese. Whip on medium speed for 2 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally.
- Add half the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until incorporated. Add remaining half of the powdered sugar and continue to mix until combined.
- Add vanilla extract and salt.
- Turn the mixer on medium speed and whip for 2 to 3 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally.
Assembling the Banana Cake
- Level the cake layers with a serrated knife to remove the cake domes to create flat cake layers .Place one cake layer on a cake board. Add desired amount of frosting to the top of the layer and spread evenly.
- Continue to repeat this process until the layers are stacked.
- Spread a very thin layer of frosting all over the cake (crumb coat). Chill the cake for 30 minutes until the cream cheese frosting is slightly firm to the touch.
- Frost and decorate the cake with the remaining cream cheese frosting. Be creative! Add banana chips for additional flair!
Notes
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