Best Banana Cake with Chocolate Icing

This is the best banana cake we’ve ever eaten!  Super moist and scrumptious. And the chocolate buttercream icing is perfect with this cake.

I made this cake for a group of friends last week and it was a huge hit.  After giving away a [stingy] piece to one of our guests, I froze some of the leftovers, ate the rest and then promptly took out the part I froze and ate that too. So good.  

I found this highly rated recipe on two different websites – food.com and allrecipes.com.  They both had instructions to freeze the cake for 45 minutes right after removing it from the oven.  They claimed it made the cake super moist. I don’t know if that’s true, but I followed the directions and the cake was indeed super moist. So I’m sticking with that.

The only changes I made to the recipe were to reduce the sugar a bit and replace the icing.  They used cream cheese icing (typical for a banana cake) and I used my own chocolate buttercream icing which I love dearly. Chocolate and banana is a fantastic combination I think.

This cake feeds a lot of people.  It’s quite substantial, making it perfect for potlucks and parties.  All in all, a real winner.

Make Ahead Best Banana Cake 

This  cake freezes very well, covered with plastic wrap.

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Best Banana Cake with Chocolate Icing Recipe

This is the best banana cake we've ever eaten! The chocolate buttercream icing is perfect with this cake. Super moist and scrumptious - a real winner!

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Total Time2 hrs 20 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: 15 generous servings

Author: Cheryl

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3 large bananas)
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 1/2 cup buttermilk (or add 1 tablespoon lemon to milk to make 1 1/2 cups)
• 3 cup all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks)
• 2 cup white sugar (or a bit less)
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla

Chocolate Buttercream Icing

• 1/2 cup softened butter (1 stick)
• 1 3/4 cup icing (confectioners) sugar
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1-2 tablespoons milk

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 275F. Grease (or spray with oil) and flour a 9 x 13 pan.
• PREPARE BANANAS: In a small bowl, mash bananas, mix with 2 teaspoons lemon juice and set aside.
• PREPARE BUTTERMILK: Measure out the buttermilk (or milk plus lemon) in a measuring cup. Set aside.
• PREPARE DRY INGREDIENTS: In another bowl, stir together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
• MAKE BATTER: In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until fluffy with an electric mixer. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Alternate adding flour mixture and buttermilk a bit at a time - and beat until smooth. Stir in banana mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan.
• BAKE AND FREEZE: Bake the cake for an hour or just until a toothpick comes out clean. As ovens vary, start checking after 55 minutes. Remove cake from oven and place it directly in the freezer, uncovered, on a towel for 45 minutes. This apparently makes the cake very moist - and it does!
• MAKE ICING: Using a food processor: Add all icing ingredients into the processor and process until smooth, about 2 minutes. If too dry, add a tablespoon more milk or, if too thin, add a bit more icing sugar - until you get the consistency you want. (Alternatively, use an electric mixer, beating butter first, adding icing sugar and cocoa next, then vanilla and milk.) When the cake is fully cooled, ice the cake.

Best Banana Cake with Chocolate Icing was originally published on Two Kooks In The Kitchen in Feb 2017.

Here’s another cake you might like:

Apple Cake with Caramel-Bourbon Sauce