This is my tita’s (aunt’s) famous banana cake recipe—it’s light, fluffy, not-too-sweet, and very simple to make, especially for beginner bakers! I added my own twist by topping it with banana pudding frosting and salted caramel, but feel free to customize the cake any way you want. 🙂
Love banana desserts? Try my walnut banana bread!
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🍌 Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s perfect for banana lovers! It’s like banana bread, but lighter, fluffier.
- It’s versatile. My aunt usually bakes this in a loaf pan, slices it, warms it, and eats it with butter. For my twist, I baked it in a cake pan and added banana pudding frosting and caramel! So feel free to customize it however you like—add chopped toasted nuts, coconut flakes, try different frostings, etc.!
Looking for more cake recipes? Try out my cute frog cake!
Ingredients
For the banana cake:
- Make sure to use ripe bananas for optimal banana flavor! Mine are watery in the picture because I pulled them from the freezer.
- You can use either vanilla extract, vanilla paste, or vanilla powder in this recipe.
For the banana pudding frosting:
- This is a basic cream cheese frosting comprising of full-fat cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and most importantly, instant banana pudding mix. Make sure you use instant mix—not the one you have to cook over the stove!
- If you want it lighter and fluffier, feel free to whip in some heavy cream.
- Optionally top the cake with salted caramel (not pictured).
For the full list of ingredients and measurements, see the recipe card below.
💡 Baking Tips
- Weigh your ingredients! One of my favorite kitchen tools is a kitchen scale because it’s more accurate than measuring by volume. If you use cups, spoon the flour in gently, then level it with a knife or spatula.
How to Make The Best Banana Cake
Step 1: Mix melted butter and sugar until combined, then stir in egg and vanilla. Add mashed banana and milk.
Step 2: Dump in all of the dry ingredients and stir until there are no more dry spots.
Step 3: Transfer to lined pan, optionally topping with turbinado sugar for an extra crunch. Bake at 350°F/177°C for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean with a few crumbs. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then flip onto wire rack to fully cool.
Step 4: Whip together the banana pudding cream cheese frosting. Top the cake with the frosting, using an offset spatula to spread it around. Drizzle salted caramel on top and enjoy!
For full instructions, see the recipe card below.
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Thank you so much! -Bianca ❤️
📖 Recipe & Video
Banana Cake
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Equipment
- 8-inch cake pan can also use a loaf pan
- large mixing bowl for the cake batter
- medium bowl for the frosting
Ingredients
Banana Cake:
- ½ cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter melted and cooled
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 1 (50 g) large egg
- 1 tablespoon (13 g) vanilla paste or extract
- 2 (272 g) large bananas ripe, mashed
- ¼ cup (61 g) milk
- 1 ½ cup (187.5 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons (8 g) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (3 g) fine sea salt
- ¼ cup (50 g) turbinado sugar optional, for sprinkling on top
Banana Pudding Frosting:
- 8 ounces (226.8 g) block cream cheese softened; see notes
- ⅓-1 cup (40 g) powdered sugar adjust to taste
- 1 box (96 g) instant banana pudding mix 3.4 ounce box; make sure it's instant pudding and not the kind you have to cook!
- ⅓ cup (79.33 g) heavy cream optional, if you want it fluffier!
Topping:
- ⅛-¼ cup (29.57 g) salted caramel sauce or spread
Instructions
Make the banana cake batter:
- Preheat oven to 350°F/177°C. Spray and line 8-inch cake pan with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together melted ½ cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter and ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar until smooth.
- Stir in 1 (50 g) large egg and 1 tablespoon (13 g) vanilla until fully combined.
- Mix in mashed 2 (272 g) large bananas and ¼ cup (61 g) milk until smooth.
- Dump in the dry ingredients: 1 ½ cup (187.5 g) all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons (8 g) baking powder, and ½ teaspoon (3 g) fine sea salt. Stir until there are no dry spots remaining.
Bake the banana cake:
- Transfer the cake batter into your lined pan. Optionally sprinkle on ¼ cup (50 g) turbinado sugar for an extra crunch.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean with a few crumbs.
- Let cool in cake pan for about 10 minutes, then remove and let fully cool on wire rack. While it cools, work on the frosting.
Make the banana pudding frosting:
- In a medium mixing bowl, mix softened 8 ounces (226.8 g) block cream cheese, ⅓-1 cup (40 g) powdered sugar (adjust to taste), and 1 box (96 g) instant banana pudding mix, until fully combined.
- If you want it super light and fluffy, whip in ⅓ cup (79.33 g) heavy cream.
Assemble:
- Transfer cooled banana cake to cake stand. Top with banana pudding frosting, using an offset spatula to swirl it around.
- Generously drizzle on ⅛-¼ cup (29.57 g) salted caramel sauce or spread, and enjoy!
Notes
- Weigh your ingredients! One of my favorite kitchen tools is a kitchen scale because it’s more accurate than measuring by volume. If you use cups, spoon the flour in gently, then level it with a knife or spatula.
- Refrigeration instructions: Store banana cake slices in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Freezer instructions: Store plastic wrapped banana cake layer or slices in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
This is my tita’s banana cake recipe, which she’s been making for years! It’s adapted from a recipe by xuthus1972 on All Recipes UK. The original is no longer online, but we luckily have a PDF copy saved from 2017. My version differs in the amounts of butter, sugar, and flour. The original also uses self-rising flour (popular in the UK), but I swapped in all-purpose flour plus baking powder, since that’s what’s easiest to find in the US. And I also paired it with my banana pudding frosting!
