Easy Banana Cake

My husband and I tend to agree on most things, but something we cannot convince each other of is the perfect stage of ripeness for a banana. I like my bananas to be somewhat ripe – no hint of green on the peel and maybe just a speckle of brown here and there to indicate that it is good for eating.

Monsieur, on the other hand, likes his bananas to camouflage with the avocados in the fruit bowl; and to clarify, I am referring to the brown variety of avocados, and not the ones with the lovely smooth green skin.

In the early days of our relationship, a banana past its prime for eating was usually quickly turned into a banana cake or a batch of banana muffins.

Whenever this happened, my husband would always look at me in disbelief that I could do such a thing, for he had been waiting for days (and days) for the bananas to ripen to the point where fruit flies would emerge in the midst of winter.

Where I thought I was salvaging a lost fruit by transforming it into a lovely baked product, my husband was faced with constant disappointment on missing out on his beloved bananas at breakfast.

easy banana cake with cream cheese frosting in metal tray with sprinkled pecans

The Secret to a Moist Banana Cake

The key ingredient to good, moist banana cake is to use ripe bananas. The bananas need to be fairly ripe because the more ripe they are, the sweeter they are.

Unripe bananas contain more starch than sugar, so using unripened bananas in baking would produce less optimal results.

easy banana cake topped with cream cheese frosting on metal tray with chopped pecans

How to Freeze Bananas

If you are faced with a bunch of ripe bananas which are perhaps a bit past their best for eating, my recommendation is to freeze the bananas.

I simply freeze the peeled bananas in pairs in ziplock freezer bags, and I often break them up beforehand to allow for quicker thawing later.

Once thawed, the bananas can be mashed and then used in any recipe which calls for fresh bananas.

Another benefit of having frozen bananas on hand is that they make for great smoothies, in which case, you can pop them in their frozen state straight into the blender.

banana cake spread with cream cheese frosting and chopped pecans on metal tray on wooden board

Easy Banana Cake Recipe

I wasn’t planning on making a banana cake the other day, but I discovered several bags of frozen bananas which were taking up valuable real estate in our tiny freezer (similar to those found in hotel mini-bars), and the solution to this dilemma was pretty simple.

There are a few banana cakes which I make frequently, and this easy banana cake recipe reminds me of the ones I used to make as a child from the packet mixes, except that this is made from scratch, of course!

Cream Cheese Frosting

The banana cakes of my childhood were always plain, but I think they go really well with a simple cream cheese frosting.

And whilst we rarely eat frosted cakes in our home, an iced cake does have a way of conjuring up a celebratory mood, something which is always welcome in the middle of the week when you have nothing in particular to celebrate but just want to see some happy faces at the dining table!

easy banana cake decorated with cream cheese frosting and chopped pecans on metal tray and wooden board
5 stars (5 reviews)

Easy Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Thanh | Eat, Little Bird
Prep30 minutes
Cook1 hour
Total1 hour 30 minutes
Serves: 6 to 8
An Easy Banana Cake recipe which uses yoghurt to make it light and moist, and topped with a generous layer of Cream Cheese Frosting. Perfect for using overripe or frozen bananas.
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Ingredients

For the cake

For the frosting

  • 250 g (2 ¼ stick) unsalted butter, softened
  • 250 g (1 cup) cream cheese, softened
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 600 g (5 cups) icing sugar, (powdered sugar)
  • 1-2 teaspoons lime juice
  • pecans, chopped, for decorating

Instructions 

For the cake

  1. Preheat the oven to 180℃/350°F (without fan).
  2. Line a 23cm/9 inch springform cake pan with baking paper and grease the sides with butter.
  3. Measure the flour, cornflour, salt and baking powder into a bowl.
  4. Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla extract together in the bowl of a stand mixer until it is pale and fluffy.
  5. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, alternating with a tablespoon of the dry ingredients.
  6. Gently add the rest of the dry ingredients.
  7. In a separate bowl, mash the bananas with the lemon juice.
  8. Add the yoghurt to the bananas and mix to combine everything together.
  9. Add the banana mixture to the batter and stir through to combine.
  10. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan.
  11. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
  12. Leave the cake in the tin on a wire rack for about 10 minutes before carefully removing the cake and leaving it on the wire rack to cool completely.

For the frosting

  1. Beat together the butter, cream cheese and vanilla extract until it is smooth.
  2. Add the icing sugar (powdered sugar) and beat until you have a thick and smooth consistency.
  3. Add 1-2 teaspoons of the lime juice, or to taste.
  4. If the frosting is too soft, put it in the fridge for 10 minutes or so until it has firmed up a bit.
  5. Spread the icing over the cake and decorate with chopped pecans.

Kitchen Notes

  • FREEZER TIPS
    Frozen bananas work well in this recipe. I like to freeze ripe bananas by breaking them into small pieces and placing them into a ziplock freezer bag. Once defrosted, discard any excess water.
  • SIZE OF BANANAS
    As bananas vary in size, you may need to adjust the baking time depending on how small or large your bananas are. Larger bananas will make the batter more moist, which means you may need to bake the cake for a few minutes longer.
  • OVEN TEMPERATURES
    All recipes on this website state temperatures for a regular oven (i.e. a conventional oven without fan). If you have a convection oven with a fan, please consult the manufacturer’s handbook on how to adjust the temperature and baking time accordingly.
  • CONVERSIONS
    To convert from cups to grams, and vice-versa, please see this handy Conversion Chart for Basic Ingredients.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 618kcal, Carbohydrates: 86.5g, Protein: 5.7g, Fat: 28.8g, Cholesterol: 114.5mg, Sodium: 161.6mg, Fiber: 1.1g, Sugar: 67.9g

Did you make this recipe?

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Update

This recipe was first published on 27 March 2017. It has been updated with more comprehensive recipe notes.

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