A super moist and dense banana cake topped with a thick layer of cream cheese frosting. This banana cake might just be the best banana cake you will ever eat.
Oh my heck, this cake! There really are no words to describe how amazing this banana cake is. I was lucky enough to taste it at a funeral luncheon I was helping with last Saturday and I had it made the very next day, it was that good. I even had to ripen bananas in my oven because shockingly I didn’t have any ripe bananas rotting away on my kitchen counter (highly unusual!).
You guys, this cake has over 1700 reviews on Allrecipes. . . . SEVENTEEN HUNDRED! So in case you haven’t been lucky enough to taste this cake I’m sharing it with you today. You can thank (or hate) me later 😊. It is hands down the best banana cake I have ever eaten. Sorry mom, it’s even better than your recipe that I posted way back when.
Funny story, we actually tried to avoid serving it at the funeral luncheon because those of us helping in the kitchen wanted to keep it for ourselves. Unfortunately we had to serve it because there were so many people. We did sneak one piece out of the pan and left it in the kitchen for us to all have a bite. I don’t even know why it’s so good, it just is. It’s so dense, moist and has the best texture. Then of course the cream cheese frosting just makes it even all that much better.
Now the cooking directions are a little different. You bake it at 275 degrees, that’s not a typo. It bakes for one hour and then goes straight to the freezer. Some reviews mentioned their worry about a glass dish going straight from the oven to the cold freezer and worried about the disk cracking, so I just made sure I baked mine in a metal pan. Some of the reviews also mentioned their cake wasn’t done after an hour, so just know that it may take longer to bake, just depends on your oven and where you live.
I’m hoping that you have some ugly, brown bananas calling your name right now because you 100% need this cake in your life. It would be perfect for a Memorial Day BBQ. Have a great weekend.
Banana Cake
- Total Time: 60 minutes
Ingredients
CAKE:
- 3/4 cup butter
- 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons Sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 1/2 cups mashed bananas
FROSTING:
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
- 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 275 degrees (yes, 275!). Spray a 9×13 inch pan.
- In a small bowl, mix mashed bananas with lemon juice, set aside.
- In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk. Stir in banana mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan.
- Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and place directly into freezer for 45 minutes. This will make the cake very moist.
- To make the frosting: In a large bowl beat the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add vanilla and powdered sugar and beat on low speed until combined, then on high until frosting is smooth. Spread on cooled cake.
Notes
The 275 degree temp is correct so don’t think it’s a typo. A lot of the reviews on this cake said it took longer than the 60 minutes for their cake to cook. The day I made this cake I had to leave and didn’t time things out very well so I upped my temp 300 for the last 15 minutes and my cake was done after 60 mins. Just watch it and check it with a toothpick. I did just what the instructions said and put it in the freezer right out of the oven and my cake was so moist! I’m not sure the whole method to this madness, but it works. Maybe the cake would be just as moist cooking it at 350 and skipping the whole freezer part, but I was so curious to try it the way the instructions said to.
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Category: Cakes & Cupcakes
Recipe Source: Gonna Want Seconds via Allrecipes
This looks so good and I have tons of brown bananas to use up. But when you put it in the freezer, how do you keep the hot pan from melting or damaging your freezer shelf or rack? Did you have any problem?
Teresa I didn’t have any problems at all. I laid a towel over a package of frozen chicken breasts and put my hot pan on that, it worked great! Let me know if you make this. Honestly, I don’t know what makes this cake so good, but all of us that had a bite of it went crazy over it!
Mine is in the oven right now. I can’t wait to taste it, it looks so delicious. Will let you know how it turns out.
Oh I hope it turns out for you and that you love it. I can’t wait to hear back from you.
I think Food dot com has the same recipe because I am fairly certain I’ve made it before. It was actually the first recipe I made using my KitchenAid when I got it years ago. It’s one of the best cakes ever. It’s SO good!
I agree Sarah, it is one of the best cakes ever! Thanks for the comment.
Hello! Curious if anyone has tried to make this in a couple of 9 inch round pans instead of a sheet pan? Did it work as well? I do not have a metal cake pan.
Hi Rachael, I’ve never tried it, but you should be able to divide the batter into two 9-inch round pans. You won’t have to bake them as long because the batter won’t be as thick, so just check them frequently.
I made cupcakes and mini cupcakes with the mix, it took about 35 min on mini and about 45 min on regular. They were just as good as the cake. I didn’t use frosting either and everyone at work and home loved them!
Hi Betty. So happy to hear this turned out for you. Thanks for letting me know this works as cupcakes and mini cupcakes. I appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment. Take care.
10 STARS!!! The BEST Banana cake ever. I will only use this one and everyone raves about this cake. The first dessert gone at potlucks and I take filled out recipe cards to pass along. I’m attempting cupcakes today so a shout out to Betty for her comment on conversion.
★★★★★
THANK YOU Cherryl! I am so happy you love this cake!