Wednesday, July 18, 2018

BEST BANANA CAKE

Talk about a mess! I didn’t even realize what I had done until much later. The cake was oily and wouldn’t set up…and had a pool of butter that pooled on top of the cake. Baking while distracted is a recipe for disaster. (Please ignore that crappy pun, but it’s true.)
INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 cup mashed over ripe bananas (about 2 large bananas)
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
  • 2 1/8 cups granulated sugar
style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 4 oz applesauce
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  • 12 oz (1 1/2 packages) cream cheese, softened
  • 5 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

  • DIRECTIONS:
    1. Preheat oven to 275°F (135°C). Grease and flour three 8-inch round cake pans, set aside.
    2. In a small bowl, mix mashed bananas with lemon juice, set aside. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt, set aside.
    3. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla, sour cream and applesauce. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the milk. Fold in the banana mixture.
    4. Divide batter (about 2 1/2 cup batter in each pan) into prepared pans. Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cake cool completely before frosting.
    5. For the frosting: In a large bowl, cream butter and cream cheese until smooth. Beat in powdered sugar, cinnamon and vanilla on low speed until combined, then on high until frosting is smooth.
    6. Assemble the 3 layers with a thick layer of frosting in between each layer and frost the cake as desired. Sprinkle on a little cinnamon around the outside and store in the fridge until ready to serve.