Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
This delicious Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting is super moist, tender, and can be served for dessert or brunch. The whipped cream cheese frosting is fluffy, creamy, and light.
Servings: 20 servings
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 4 medium bananas, very ripe
- 4 tsp lemon juice
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp table salt
- ¾ cup butter, softened
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, room temp
- 1 TB pure vanilla extract
For the Frosting
- 8 oz regular cream cheese, softened
- 1 to 1 ½ cups powdered sugar, see notes
- ⅛ tsp table salt
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cup heavy whipping cream
- sprinkles, nuts, or chocolate chips for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F, with rack on lower middle or middle rack.
- Generously grease and lightly flour a 9x13 glass pan (if you use metal, please adjust for less baking time.)
- In a small bowl, mash bananas well, and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, combine whole milk with lemon juice. Let sit at room temp.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Whisk well, and set aside.
- In the large bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment, combine butter and sugar, and blend on medium until light and fluffy; approx 2-3 min. Add the eggs and vanilla. Beat just to combine.
- Add in half of the flour mixture, blending on on medium-low just to combine. Add in half the milk mixture, blending just to combine. Repeat with remaining flour mixture and milk mixture.
- Gently stir in the mashed bananas by hand, just until batter is fully incorporated. Do not overmix.
- Using rubber spatula, scrape down bowl sides and scrape batter into prepared pan. Bake in preheated oven 50-55 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out with a few tender crumbs attached. Let cake cool completely in pan on wire rack.
- To make the frosting start by beat softened cream cheese with powdered sugar, salt, and vanilla until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
- In a cold metal bowl, beat cold heavy whipping cream until it maintains stiff peaks. Gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture, until fully combined. Keep chilled until ready to frost cooled cake.
- Once the cake is cooled, add a layer on chilled cream cheese frosting on top. Garnish with sprinkles, nuts, or chocolate chips before serving.
Notes
- Amount of powdered sugar is up to you. I use 1 cup, as I like my frosting a bit less sweet.
- Make sure your bananas are very ripe for the best flavor and sweetness. The riper the bananas, the easier they are to mash and the more flavor they will add to your cake.
- Adding lemon juice to the milk may seem unusual, but it helps to mimic the tangy flavor of buttermilk, which is a classic ingredient in banana cakes. This also helps to keep the cake moist.
- When combining dry ingredients, make sure to whisk them well. This helps to distribute the leavening agents (like baking soda) evenly, which is important for a consistent rise in your cake.
- Gently fold in the mashed bananas at the end. This will help to keep your cake tender and moist.
- Serve this cake with a scoop of Vanilla Bean Ice Cream or a dollop of Stabilized Whipped Cream for an extra special treat.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 342kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 77mg | Sodium: 238mg | Potassium: 158mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 708IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 65mg | Iron: 1mg