Let’s talk birthday cake for a quick minute.
Do you have the same cake every year, or do you switch it up?
After my mom chose her German Chocolate Cake for me for nearly all of my childhood (it was her favorite, lol), when she started asking what kind of cake I wanted, I started switching it up every year. So I guess now I don’t have a signature favorite, but one thing every birthday cake should have in common is that it be super special.
Now, you can probably see where I’m leading with this, but before you laugh out loud (thinking that I’m trying to sell this banana cake as special enough to be worthy of a birthday celebration), let me tell you that this cake was not made for a birthday or for any special occasion. Actually, the only occasion was that I had a bunch of bananas that needed to be used pronto, and Mike and I were having Sunday dinner at my parents’ house (yeah, I made this cake a serious while ago before we moved to Kuwait). I needed something to bring and I also needed to use up the bananas; in an attempt to kill two birds with one stone, I made this cake and brought it for dessert.
And then people went crazy.
(First of all, they went a little crazy when they saw the cake…but I don’t blame them there. Who doesn’t get a little – or a lot – excited about seeing cake?)
And then we sliced it up and everyone dove in and they went a little crazy again. They loved it and no one could quite place what flavor of cake it was. After making them guess for several minutes to no avail (a girl has to have her fun, doesn’t she?), when I finally told them it as a yellow banana cake, I heard a simultaneous chuckle from everyone. No one (including me!) could believe that banana cake could be this good.
Someone even said she wanted it for her next birthday…with rainbow sprinkles on top. (What?!) Well, who would have thought? I stand corrected, banana cake, and I am deeply sorry.
And if you have more ripe bananas to be used up that what this recipe calls for, I suggest checking out this article on Cooking Light that has 20 healthy banana recipe ideas!
- 2½ cups (320 g) all-purpose flour
- 2½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1½ cups (300 g) white sugar
- ½ cup (120 ml) canola oil
- 3 large eggs
- ¾ cup (180 ml) cup milk (I used 1%)
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond or butter extract (optional, but recommended)
- 4 medium ripe or over-ripe bananas, mashed (about 2 cups of mashed banana)
- 10 oz (285 g) good-quality 60-70% cacao chocolate, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon instant powdered expresso, dissolved in 1 teaspoon hot water
- 1/16 teaspoon sea salt
- 1¼ cups (195 ml) whipping cream
- Butter, for the pan
- Flour, for the pan
- For the cake, preheat oven to 350F; butter and flour a deep 9-inch cake pan (such as a springform pan).
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
- Cream together the sugar, oil, and eggs in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Whisk in the milk, vanilla extract, and almond or butter extract, and then stir in the bananas.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir just to combine, being careful not to over-mix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until golden and a toothpick inserted inside comes out clean or with just a couple crumbs, about 1 hour.
- Cool the cake completely before frosting.
- For the ganache, add the chocolate, vanilla, dissolved espresso powder, and sea salt to a large bowl. Bring the cream to a gentle simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat. Pour the hot cream onto the chocolate and let it sit for 2 minutes, and then whisk until smooth. Cool to room temperature, and then refrigerate to chill (at least 2 hours). Use a handheld electric beater to whip the ganache until fluffy.
- Frost the cooled cake with the ganache and serve.
- Store any leftovers wrapped in the fridge.
I’m Faith Gorsky, the writer, cook, and photographer behind An Edible Mosaic. My goal is to inspire you to get in the kitchen and try something new! Feel free to 
Rosa says
March 28, 2014 at 3:51 amHeavenly and extremely tempting! That whipped chocolate ganache looks ever so luscious.
Cheers,
Rosa
Dixya @ Food, Pleasure, and Health says
March 28, 2014 at 8:28 ami love the addition of banana here..i have yet to make my birthday cake this year but its usually something chocolate.
Lori @ RecipeGirl says
March 28, 2014 at 9:10 amYour cake looks PERFECT- so moist and tender and delicious!
Lisa @ Simple Pairings says
March 28, 2014 at 9:31 amLooks divine! Bananas and chocolate work together so well. What a beautiful cake – I bet it tastes so wonderful.
Erica says
March 28, 2014 at 11:31 amYUM! I might make this for Kay’s birthday this year!!! I’m not much for cake…I know…I always have a basket of tortilla chips instead of cake ;)
Meriem @ Culinary Couture says
March 28, 2014 at 1:26 pmOne of my favorite flavor combinations! I love that ganache!
dina says
March 28, 2014 at 4:55 pmit looks delicious!
Kristen at The Wandering Abode says
March 28, 2014 at 6:06 pmSounds really good! I love banana bread, so I’ll have to try this for our next special day.
Laura (Tutti Dolci) says
March 28, 2014 at 9:52 pmWho could say no to a moist cake with whipped chocolate ganache?!
tania@mykitchenstories.com.au says
March 29, 2014 at 6:54 amLove banana cake . Oh well, I love all cake but this one looks delish
ashley - baker by nature says
March 29, 2014 at 6:30 pmThis banana cake just stole my heart! It looks perfect, Faith!
Betsy says
March 29, 2014 at 8:42 pmGee, I thought the only way to use up ripe bananas was with banana bread! Thank you, Faith, for (again!) coming up with a wonderfully creative alternative! Betsy
Becca says
March 31, 2014 at 5:12 pmThis looks delicious! Do you think it would work to make it into a layered cake?
Faith says
April 2, 2014 at 4:25 amBecca, I think it would work great as a layer cake! You could bake it in 2 smaller cake pans (and adjust the cooking time accordingly), or bake it this way and slice it in half across once it’s fully cooled. Let me know how it goes if you give it a try!
Sarah@WholeAndHeavenlyOven says
April 3, 2014 at 9:31 pmI love how moist this cake looks! Perfect with that silky chocolate ganache!
Jennifer says
April 3, 2014 at 11:48 pmWow, that looks amazing! I’ll be making this on Saturday (will frost on Sunday) for my friends coming over. Can’t wait!
Jennifer says
April 3, 2014 at 11:57 pmFaith, could you tell me what kind/brand of chocolate you used for the ganache? thank you!
Faith says
April 4, 2014 at 5:49 amJennifer, I used Scharffen Berger chocolate (look for it in the baking aisle or the candy aisle at the grocery store). Hope you enjoy the cake! xo