Let me just tell you, this banana cake is life changing. Super moist cake with delicious creamy frosting and ganache. I can’t get enough! This recipe makes 3 8-inch layers of fluffy, moist banana cake. I love to pair it with peanut butter frosting (my dad always ate bananas and peanut butter as a snack), but you can definitely pair this with any flavor frosting you prefer!

You don’t have to add ganache to this either. I love this flavor combination, but I know not everyone loves chocolate like me, so feel free to leave that out if you want! If you want to make ganache drips like the photo, make sure you put your cake in the freezer after you’ve frosted it completely. It needs to be very cold in order to stop the ganache at various length drips.

Yield: 3 8-inch layer cake

Prep Time: 20 Minutes

Bake Time: 35 Minutes

Total Time: 2.5 Hours

Ingredients:

3 Cups (125g) Cake Flour or 2 2/3 Cups All Purpose Flour and 1/3 Cup Cornstarch

1 Tbs (13g) Baking Powder

1 Tsp (4g) Baking Soda

1 Tsp (4g) Salt

1 ½ Tsp (6g) Ground Cinnamon

½ Tsp (2g) Ground Nutmeg

1 Cup (200g) Granulated Sugar

1 Cup (220g) Brown Sugar, Packed

1 Cup (240mL) Vegetable Oil

1 Cup (240mL) Buttermilk

1 Tbs (13g) Vanilla Extract

4 Large Eggs

5 ripe bananas, mashed (600g)

Frosting:

6 Sticks (3 Cups, 678g) Softened Unsalted Butter

1 Tbs (13g) Vanilla Extract
1 Cup (250g) Creamy Peanut Butter

6 Cups (750g) Icing Sugar

Ganache:

3 Oz (85g) Semisweet Chocolate, Chopped

½ Cup (120mL) Heavy Cream

Directions:

1.     Preheat your oven to 350 Degrees F (180C) and grease 3 8-inch round cake pans with cooking spray. Line with parchment and grease again.

2.     In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients with a whisk.

3.     In a separate bowl, combine all the wet ingredients except for the bananas. Add the wet mixture to the dry, and gently whisk until just combined. Fold in the mashed banana.

4.     Evenly distribute the batter amongst the pans and bake for 30-35 minutes, until the center springs back when lightly touched. Allow to cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then turn onto a cooling rack, peel off the parchment, and allow to cool completely.

5.     Make the frosting by creaming the butter in a stand mixer for 5 minutes, until very light, then scrape the bowl down and add the vanilla and peanut butter. Mix again for 2 minutes.

6.     Add the icing sugar, mix on a low speed until combined, then mix on a high speed for one minute until light and fluffy.

7.     Stack and frost the cake, then chill for 30 minutes.

8.     Make the ganache by placing the chopped chocolate in a bowl, then heating the cream until simmering. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let sit for one minute, then gently stir until smooth.

9.     To make ganache drips down the side of the cake, you can put the ganache in a squeeze bottle or a piping bag with a small round tip, and gently pipe the ganache around the top of the cake, barely squeezing it over the edges, it’ll drip by itself. The cake needs to be chilled for this. Spread the rest of the ganache on the top of the cake, and optionally pipe more frosting around the top and bottom of the cake.

Tip: You can make the cake layers in advance and freeze them for later use! Make sure you double wrap them tightly with plastic wrap after they’ve cooled completely, then let them thaw when you’re ready to use!