Banana Cake Recipe
This recipe makes a moist, dense banana cake with a smooth cream cheese icing. The cake doesn't rise much so it has a nice flat top for presentation. We served the cake at room temperature and topped each slice with a little passionfruit pulp.
You will need about 2-3 large bananas for this recipe.
125g butter, softened (if using unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon salt with the flour)
330g (1 1/2 cups) sugar
280g (1 very slightly rounded cup) very ripe, mashed banana
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (1 teaspoon natural vanilla essence)
2 large eggs (we use eggs with a minimum weight of 59g)
100ml (1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon) buttermilk
225g (1 1/2 cups) self-raising flour
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius fan-forced. If you don't have a fan-forced oven, preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Grease and line a 22cm diameter springform pan.
Place butter, sugar, banana, vanilla and eggs in a food processor.
Process for about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of processor. Add buttermilk and pulse to combine.
Sift flour, salt (if using) and bicarbonate of soda together into a large bowl. Add flour mixture to food processor and process until just combined.
Pour batter into prepared pan.
Bake for about 50-60 minutes, or until a skewer or knife inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
Leave cake to cool on a wire rack.
Spread cooled cake with cream cheese icing. Store cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Cream Cheese Icing
90g cream cheese, softened
45g butter, softened
210g (1 2/3 cups) icing sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
Beat cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer until creamy. Add sifted icing sugar and beat until smooth. Add lemon juice and beat to combine. Spread icing over top and sides of cooled cake. © www.exclusivelyfood.com.au
Banana Cake Ingredient Quantities for Various Pan Sizes (pdf)
143 Comments:
Best banana cake EVER!
So moist and flavourfull :)
Hello there.. i would just like to thank the creators of this recipe.. it was my partners birthday and i went and picked up the cake had it on the passengers seat and went to pick up the kids ..without warning one of then sat on the beautiful mud cakee i had bought .. i found this recipe online and made the best birthday cake ever.. Truly Scrumptious :P
wow!
what a nice banana cake, and so easy to make!
turned out great!
one of the nicest i've ever had!!
thankyou
mmm...i made your recipe too and it was divine! Everyone that tried said it was the best banana cake they've ever tasted. I'll definately be baking this again.
many thanks :)
great recipe very moist great icing but i changed the sugar to 1 cup caster and 1/2 cup brown to add a malty flavour and it worked well
Have just baked this cake today - delicious! So easy to make (essential when you have a baby!)and a nice treat for my husband to come home to today! I modified the icing slightly - adding maple syrup - which is really yummy!
I tried this recipe on the weekend and agree with the other comments that it's certainly the best banana cake I've ever tasted. Yummy!!!!
Best banana cake I have ever tried.. even better than the one I bought from coffee shop. Thank to the creator of this recipe... ^____^ After my first try, all my housemates and their friends also start making hahahaha
Thanks heaps
simply superb
I'd have to agree that it was a very nice banana cake, and everyone who tried it had only compliments to make. I made it with twice the amount of banana, and only 1 cup of icing sugar for the Icing.
I personally still found it to be a bit sweet, so I might experiment with only 1 1/4 cups of caster sugar next time. I also added a bit more lemon juice, but I'll probably add some more to try and get that tangy lemon flavor for the icing.
They aren't lying!!!! Best banana cake EVER!!!!! I am eating it now!!! Also add some cream to the side with no icing when eating....delicious!!! I never comment on recipes on the net but this one is well worth it!!!! :)
YUMMO!! Very nice, although I added some walnuts and cinnamon and half the sugar. It was so goooood! I couldnt stop eating it!!!!!!! Argh!
It's delicious!!! I tried making one!
Amanda & Debbie, bless your cotton sox, this recipe rox!! My neighbout gave me about 40 home grown free bananas, so I was desperate for a good easy recipe. I found yours & I made it today, and it was so easy, I made a 2nd one whilst the first was cooking. I've had 5 pieces myself, so lucky I made the 2nd cake!!!! I threw in a trickle of maple syrup in with the 1st part of the mix & a shake of dusting cinamon sugar. YUM! I've taken photos of my finished product and mms'd it around AUS, lots of mouths are watering. It really truely is easy. Try it.
Okay I am going to bake this banana cake. I will let you know how it turns out
I said I was going to bake this cake and see if you were all right. its now in the oven. I am waiting in anticipation
Many thanks for the great recipe!
It was really the BEST banana cake I've tried.
Very moist & just divine.
Excellant Recipe!! It is easy to make and cake tasted dense and moist, my friends all love it! For those don't fancy cakes that are too sweet, try reducing sugar to 1 cup and it still turns out quite nice and sweet. The passion fruit syrup makes a big difference!!
Very good recipe. Turned out great for a first try. I've posted my results to: http://www.opensourcefood.com/people/whatsound/recipes/banana-cake/ and referenced your recipe.
The Best Ever !!!! ...
Thank you so very much for sharing this wonderful recipe.
A keeper, for sure.
wow my mouth is watering .I have some ripe nanas and after reading these comments must try your recipe will report back
My mum just bought a big bag of bananas, so I thought I'd look up a banana cake recipe. Sounds delicious!! Now I just have to wait until they are very ripe...
This was an absolutely awesome cake, hubby and children loved every bite!
Yes, I totally agree. This is THE BEST banana cake ever...so easy to make and SO nice! Thank you SO much
Debbie and Amanda!
A neighbour gave me a heap of banana which my family will not eat as I didn't want to throw them out, I thought I'd have a go at making this banana cake......... My husband and kids loved it so much I had to make a second. My neighbour love it & requested I make one for her........... then a work mate tried my morning tea and yes she requested I make one for her.
Thank you for such a wonderful recipe, it was easy and and tasted fantastic. It's something I can share with others and my family.
My daughter just loved the cream cheese icing.
Great work, and againg thank you.
Best Cake ever
i think mum will love it for mothers day. She doesnt like icing but absoulutly loves banana cake with custurd and i lost her favourite recipe from when i was younger but this cake is even better
What a great cake. So easy to make and was so moist. With the icing on top it was one of the best banana cakes i have tasted let alone made.
Thank you for the great recipe it will be a keeper
People usually love or hate Banana Cake but when I made this one everyone loved it, even my husband who hates bananas. It was so easy to make and full of flavour I had to make it twice. Took one to work to share for morning tea, I work with all men so to my suprise when I saw the plate empty (and didn't get a slice myself) it was a fair indication just how good it is. The guys have ask when am I making another.
Thank you for a wonderful recipe. It's the BEST !!!!
THIS IS SERIOUSLY DEVINE! Don't miss the opportunity to have a taste sensation in the home. Enjoy every mouthful......we are going to use this as a layer in our Wedding Cake. I hope you and your family enjoy this recipe as much as we have.
Thank you so much to the Creator!
Absolutely the best banana cake ever. Everyone loved it.
yummy best ever!!!! cheers
Can't believe I got it right first go! Not really a baker normally but this recipe was easy. Everyone loved it. I only got to eat one piece!
sooo good! i love banana cake and this recipe was just divine...i agree- best recipe ever!
I'm a bit disappointed, after reading all these reviews I expected this banana cake to be something amazingly moist and flavourfull, but I was wrong!
Ofcourse the taste is nice, but it's definitly not as moist as I expected to be, it's just another cake!...I believe that out there there are many recipes for a much more moist banana cake =(!
It WAS SoooO NicE
I WAnT 2 MakE It AgAIn
I LURRVeeed iT
WOW!! What a fantastic recipe..... Everyone who had tried the banana cake that i made has said it is by far THE BEST!!
Nice and moist and sooooo fresh and sweet. Im loving it!!! My little boys thinks that it is the best to....!!! :)
Who ever posted the comment about being dissapointed about this banana cake, you must have made it WORNG!! you are the only one out of evyone that say's that it is not moist!!! That tells me something!! Maybe your bananas were to ripe??
This cake is great, everyone at work enjoyed it.
Fantastic recipe! The cake turned out great! I sligtly modified the topping...using vanilla flavoured clotted cream. Thank you!
You can view it here http://www.flickr.com/photos/94789452@N00/828076514/
Thank you very much for adding the right measurements. Using cup as measurement don't usually turn as how it should be. It is easier to bake this cake.
hi there.. I really want to try your recipe, but im short of buttermilk. Is there any substitute to this, because I want the cake to be moist too (too lazy to walk down the shop just to buy buttermilk :)) thanks alot.
For a buttermilk substitute, try using 90ml (1/3 cup + 2 teaspoons) of milk mixed with 10ml (2 teaspoons) of lemon juice. Combine the milk and lemon juice (the mixture should curdle) then allow to stand for 10 minutes before using.
My Banana Cake turned out fantastic - even though I realised half way through that I had the oven on the wrong setting!
As you can tell I am no cook but I think I'll take up baking with the help of your other recipes - Thanks!
I made this cake as one of three for my husband's contribution to an office party.
Needless to say, there were no left-overs and he was approached for the recipe. I added a hint of cinnamon to the mixture and used less sugar and made a cream choclat frosting and called it the banana split cake.
Thank you for this recipe. I can't wait to taste it myself.
We made this cake for my 1 year old's birthday party. He went face first into the piece of cake allocated to him. ... and he loved it :) .So we are now baking the cake for our six year old's party. The cake is marvellous. Thanks
This has to be one of the nicest banana cake I ever tasted, dense and moist, and really easy to bake!
An absolute devine bananacake! I also posted the result and a refference to my weblog.
Your banana cake recipe was extremely good. I had to make some cakes for a fun raising event, didn't realize how easy this recipe would be to make! :)
I did change the icing a tiny little bit and put passion fruit on top of it, worked really well. :)
Hello,
can I use baking powder instead of bicarbonate of soda?
Baking powder and bicarbonate of soda are not the same, so you will probably get a different result if you use one instead of the other.
Bicarbonate of soda is also known as baking soda.
I have had 50 years experience with cooking everything, but everything! This banana cake recipe is "the best" and I made it for Father's Day in Australia. The male members ate it with gusto and did an "Oliver Twist"! Thanks for a simple, uncomplicated, delicious recipe.
Jan - Melbourne- Australia
Absolutely delicious, by far the best ever banana cake I have ever made or tasted. I had no buttermilk so I just used the milk we always have in the fridge... 'Physical no fat' and it was perfect.
Your absolutely right about it being flat and perfect for presentation it was like a fancy shop one...but better Thank you
Amazinig. I did everything wrong with this cake. I didn't use buttermilk. Added too much flour. And so topped it up with more normal milk.
Then it turned out my tin was too small and the self raising flour made the cake rise and made a mess in the over so i quikcly transferred it another tin that in my haste i didn't grease or line. THEN I went to supermarket and forgot about it and cooked it for an extra 15 minutes,
Guess what?
It turned out delcious still. This was fantastic.
Thanks!
by the way. what are diametres of the tin you used?
also, if i wanted to make it in a loaf tin, what sort of size should i be using then?
This is the best banana cake I've tasted. I made it for father's day and everyone loved it. I doubled the recipe and made two cakes. (I also only used 1 cup of sugar instead of 1& 1/2 cups and it turned out sweet enough). Both cakes were perfect. Moist with a nice texture. Thank you!
Hi Jess
We use a 22cm diameter round springform tin.
This recipe will probably produce too much batter for one loaf tin. You could try dividing it between two small loaf tins, or between a loaf tin and another small tin. Just make sure your tins aren't overfilled (hopefully the above photo of the batter in the tin gives you an idea of the appropriate level).
MmMmMm!!!!
This was soooo nice I just couldn't stop myself from eating it!!!! Absolutely delicious!
I just love your recipes on your site.. so glad I found this!!
Everyone must try to make this...at least once.. so you know what all the fuss is about! hehe!
CT
this was a very tasty cake although mine sunk in the middle a bit.
This was the best banana cake ive ever made. My fiance eat half of it he couldnt stop eating it untill i put i away. Will deffently make again.
Wowee, what a beauty.......
This recipe is definitely a must have.
Its easy and turns out so moist and delightful..
We took the cake to a family bbq and after we came home kids commented and said mum you shouldnt have taken the cake, it was so yum. Looks like we will make this one often...
Thanks.
mmmm... it was the best banana cake i have ever eaten and my family agree too. Thanks very much for the recipe and im 100% sure ill make it again.
I have a wedding cake to make for Saturday & the bride wants the top layer to be banana. So this morning I 'googled' banana wedding cake & up came this recipe! I found so many fantastic comments that I made 2 of these...now I wish I had made 3!!! This is so easy to make and ice, and although I am not a banana cake fan, this has changed my mind completely!! Wow, and thank you very much! Cath.
Im looking for a banana cake to make into the shape of a guitar for my sons 1st bday and was wondering if i could do a couple of these in square cake tins? they are 28x28x4.5cm! let me know what you think as this looks like the best recipe ive found! Thanks, Tash.
Hi Tash,
For a 28cm by 28cm by 4.5cm cake tin, we would double the above quantities. You may have a little batter left over; if so, you could use it to make some banana cupcakes!
Ha,i did try it and it just sunk in the middle after taking it out??Was so annoyed with myself! Will try it again tomorrow doubling the recipe, how full should the cake tin be? Will let yas know how i go!! Thanks,
Tash
After all these comments I'm wondering if this is a better cake to make for a 1st birthday than the white chocolate mud cake on your same site? The white mud might better suit fancy, decorative icing? But the comments here make me want to make the banana cake! What is a good cake for decorations? I want to make a cake that actually tastes good - not a dry old sponge.
Hi Tash,
The cake pan should be about 2/3 to 3/4 full. We suggest that you line the pan with baking paper extending the paper a few centimetres above the sides of the pan. If you have a little too much batter for the size of the pan the baking paper will prevent the cake from overflowing.
If the cake sunk in the middle, you'll need to increase the baking time. Make sure that a sharp knife/skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean before removing the cake from the oven.
Hi Joshy's Mum,
We think that any of the cakes on the site would be suitable to decorate as a birthday cake.
Thank you for the recipe...
This is a very good one, so moist.
regards from Abu Dhabi
Really scrumptious cake...just as easy, moist and delicious as promised. I didn't have quite enough icing sugar so icing is not so thick but still quite delicious. I'll be featuring a photo and a link on my site tomorrow! Thanks!
Hi, looking forward to making this cake, but wondering if I can use oil instead of the butter and if so would I need to change anything such as adding extra flour?
We can't really advise you as we haven't used oil as a substitute for butter in this recipe. If you decide to make the cake using oil, we would love to hear how you go.
Hi ladies,
I've only got an 8 inch round pan instead of a 9 inch. Used the batter to make muffins instead. it came out really fluffy and light, beautiful!
If i use my 8 inch pan,
do i need to make any adjusting with the volume/oven temperature or baking time?
I'm also wondering, if using the food processor could produce such nice light texture then why do most of the baking instructions called for 'gently fold in the mixture'?
Lastly, big thank you!!
It worked very well, thank you, I made it with my three year old grandniece. :D
Someone asked about the Oil, It probably wouldn't work with a light cake like this, as half of the air is pushed into the cake by the beating process of the butter with the other ingredients. I think you would find it heavy and more like a pudding than a cake - perhaps if you added more flour and bi-carb and/or less oil, perhaps a half of what you would use for butter?
If you do suplement with oils - you could try some of the nutty ones - macadamia nut oil might compliment the natural banana flavours for example.
I don't have any buttermilk, can I use normal milk instead?? Or will it ruin the cake?
really nice cake; as moist as promised. Quite oily though. Perhaps it doesn't need as much butter?
Worked very nicely in a ring tin (especially because there's more surface area for the icing to go on...)
Ladies - love yer work, LOVE THIS RECIPE. I've never had success with banana cake in the past (they often came out uncooked in the middle, almost like pudding - something my father liked though, luckily.) But I had a few bananas going almost disgustingly brown, so thought after a 5+ years hiatus, might give it another go. After looking up a few recipes through google, trying 'banana cake moist' landed me at your page.
And what a treasure your recipe is. My partner is completely in love. Like someone else above, I made mine into muffins, not for the lack of pan, but because he likes them in muffin form and insisted I do it that way (men will forever be boys!) They came out beautifully moist, soft and almost melt-in-your-mouth. In fact, I just made a batch for his parents and he can't stop going into them!!
If anyone's wondering whether they should go with this recipe, I totally, whole heartedly recommend it - not only is the end result delicious, it is so easy and quick to make. I can get it in the oven in about 15 minutes!
Regarding the use of milk in this recipe, please see our comment above dated 29/7/07.
Hi there...I m so glad i found yr recipe..my banana cake turns out well. I m going to bake again using this recipe :)
The best cake i've ever had in my whole life. Its not dry, easy to make and its SO YUMMY!
Thankyou! =]
Hi Sophia,
This mixture could be baked in a 20cm diameter round cake pan, as long as the pan is about 7cm high. If your pan isn't quite that high, when you line the pan, you could extend the baking paper a couple of centimetres above the top rim to ensure that the batter doesn't overflow in the oven.
You may need to increase the baking time a little if you bake the mixture in a smaller tin. If the cake begins to overbrown, you could loosely cover it with aluminium foil.
We don't bother to gently fold the ingredients together in this recipe because we aren't trying to produce a very light cake (such as a sponge cake), and the raising agents sufficiently lighten the cake during baking.
Hello, I was going to give your cake a try tomorrow. The only problem is I don't have a food processor. How would I go about mixing the ingredients at each step? Should I use an electric mixer, or just a wooden spoon? Thanks! Rachel
Hi Rachel,
Yes, the recipe should work using an electric mixer instead of a food processor. Make sure your butter is very soft before using as this will make it easier for the beater to mix the ingredients together. If you are happy with the results using the electric mixer, we would love you to leave a comment as this would help others who also don't have a food processor
awesome cake!
I made it (using an electric mixer) to try it out, and then just HAD to make it for my son's birthday! My in-laws all own/have worked in Italian cake shops and they were all extremely impressed saying it was the best banana cake they have ever tried.
thank you for sharing!
PS: just made a 1/2 batch and put into a mini muffin tin and cupcakes... and it turned out fantastic!
Hi ladies,
I've tried to recreate my banana cake success twice but somehow it's not happening! The outside is nicely brown but the inside is still quite wet.
I tried cooking in lower temperature and longer timing but the muffins still came out wet.
I followed the recipe except
less sugar(220 instead of 330gm) But that's unlikely to be the cause
of my cake failure right?
Help!
Oh my goodness! This cake is to die for! I have never tasted something so moist, fluffy and full of flavour. Better yet...my husband loves it and he is the fussiest person when it comes to banana cake!
Thank you so much ladies this recipe will be used many times over
Hi Sophia,
If the only thing you've changed is the amount of sugar, then we think that would probably be the problem. If you wanted to test this, you could try making the muffins again using 330g of sugar and see whether they turn out. If they are still too wet in the centre, please let us know.
Hi!
Im thinking of baking this banana cake for the coming weekend. I wonder if the banana cake will still taste fabulous if to forgo the cream icing at the top?
Thanks!
Tril
Hi Tril,
Although we prefer the cake with the cream cheese icing, it is still delicious without it.
I made this recipe yesterday and left it for morning tea. The cke was still very moist. The cake bursting with flavour. Not too sweet at all. I used self rasing flour especailly made for sponge cakes. I think this made a big difference to the fluffiness of the cake. I also added nutmeg, cinnamon , and poopy seeds. I highly reccomend anyone to make this cake. I am an expert at baking cakes and this is by far the best Bannana cake recipe . I give it 10 out of 10 without a doubt !
Thank you for this recipe. It is TRULY foolproof! I made it at my partner's place, in a male's version of a kitchen. I forgot my baking paper so had to do with greasing and flouring the pan. The gas oven kept cutting out during baking. I dozed off and they forgot the cake so it was in the oven an extra 15 mins. Even after all these blunders, my partner no longer complains about missing the old fashioned real banana cakes from 'back home'. He's found one that he says tastes even better, and a person to cook it too!
Hey I wanted to make this cake, but I don't have any Buttermilk. Any substitutions/ slight changes I could make so that I could still do it?
Thanks,
-j
Hi J,
For a buttermilk substitute using lemon juice and milk, please see our comment dated 29/7/07.
I just made this cake..used half a cup of sugar as I don't like things too sweet..it browned quite a bit in the oven so I turned off the fan force and put a bit of foil on it..however it was getting too brown after 1 hour so I turned off the oven..just sliced a bit...it's really nice..a little tiny bit undercooked inside so I put it back in the oven which is off just to firm it up a bit...lovely though.. reading through these comments it probably browned too much because I used less sugar..oh well..I'll def make it again.
My Dad makes this cake. i think its really nice recipe. At the top of the page the picture shows the cake with some passionfruit on the top, my dad bought some canned passion fruit cheaper than fresh but still as good, we then had the passion fruit over the cake in the picture, you might also like to try it seeming it adds more flavour. xx :D
Hi there, the cake has just come out of the oven and it is just DELICIOUS.
I didn't have any baking soda so I didn't use any...
How come your cake looks browner in the inside and more mushy than mine? I made made in a muffin mould and they're more yellowish and fluffier... a bit like patty cakes...
Anyway, thank you loads for this awesome recipe, I will deinitely make more !
I agree with everyone else definately the BEST banana cake I have ever tasted. I make mine in two cake tins and put the cream cheese icing in the middle. I haven't had one person not come back for seconds, my very fussy neighbour even said it was the most delicious thing she had ever eaten. I took it to a army function where it disappeared 2 seconds after hitting the table because people had been telling everyone in our town that they had to try Sam's banana cake some of it didn't make it out of the kitchen.
Very easy to follow and I know have made it soooo many times I have it memorised
Thanks so much
Thankyou for a lovely cake and so easy. I only had skim milk and i wanted to use up 4 banannas. It was lovely considering i never make cakes LOL.