Banana Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting

I feel like banana cake is often a forgotten cake flavor. And that is honestly such a shame. If we all love banana bread so much, why wouldn’t we love banana cake?! And depending on where you stand when it comes to frosting, banana cake could be even better than banana bread. So I present to you: banana cake with brown sugar frosting. It’s soft and moist, full of banana flavor, and topped with the silkiest brown sugar cream cheese frosting. My banana cake is spiced with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg and has the perfect texture. I can’t think of a better use for those brown bananas on your counter. 

Banana cake: 

The cake is full of typical pantry ingredients and comes together pretty quickly. I have listed an amount of mashed banana measured versus an amount of whole bananas. This is important because bananas come in all various shapes and sizes and there would be way too much of a disparity in the cake if we were all using vastly different amounts. So for my banana cake with brown sugar frosting we will be using one cup of mashed, ripe bananas. If using from frozen, bring the bananas to room temperature before mashing. The browner the better. Set this aside. To the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, or using a hand mixer, add the softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Mix on medium speed for two to three minutes. This step incorporates air into the batter, preventing the cake from being too dense.

Add in the eggs and vanilla extract and mix on medium speed for another minute until fully combined. Add in the mashed banana and mix until thoroughly combined, 30 seconds or so. In a separate bowl combine the dry ingredients: all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Whisk to combine. Next add half of the dry ingredients to the butter and sugar mixture. Mix on low speed. While mixing, pour in half of the buttermilk. Add the remaining dry ingredients and then the remaining buttermilk. Mix on the lowest setting until just combined, being careful not to over mix.

Baking the cake:

For this recipe I used two 6X2 inch cake pans and then cut each of those layers into two to make four layers total. If using a different sized pan the cooking times may be very different. Prep the two cake pans by greasing, flouring, and lining with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and place the oven rack in the middle position. Divide the batter evenly into the two prepared cake pans and bake in a preheated oven for 22-28 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean.

Once the cakes are baked, allow to cool in the pan for about five minutes. Then, being careful and using an oven mitt, remove the cake layers and allow them to cool fully on a wire cooling rack. I find it easier to cut the layers in half if the layers are cold so I wrap them in plastic wrap and store them in the refrigerator once they are fully cooled for at least an hour. 

Brown sugar cream cheese frosting: 

Now this frosting is to die for. It’s got the perfect amount of tang from the cream cheese but a more stable texture due to the amount of butter. Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or a hand mixer, add the softened butter and cream cheese to your bowl. Beat on medium speed for about a minute, until combined. Add in the powdered sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Mix on medium to medium high speed for two to three minutes, scraping the edges down occasionally. Add in one to two tablespoons of heavy whipping cream and mix on medium high speed for about another minute. Add more heavy whipping cream if needed to create the texture you desire.

Assembly:

When ready to assemble, use a serrated knife to cut each cake layer down the middle horizontally to create two cake layers. This will give you four layers total. You can also leave as is and keep it as just a two layer cake. The layers are thick though and I prefer the frosting to cake ratio of the four layer cake. Stack and frost each layer and decorate however you desire. 

For more banana recipes check out my banana bread here.

Banana Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting

Soft and spiced six inch banana cake filled and topped with tangy brown sugar and cinnamon cream cheese frosting.

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 28 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Servings 8 slices

Ingredients

  

Banana Cake

• 1 cup ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup buttermilk

Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
• 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1-2 tbsp heavy whipping cream

Instructions

 

Banana Cake

• Preheat oven to 350° and place oven rack in middle position. Prepare two 6X2 inch baking pans by greasing, flouring, and lining with parchment paper.
• Mash ripe bananas, this may take anywhere from two to four bananas depending on the size. Measure out one cup of mashed bananas and set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment or a hand mixer add the softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Mix on medium speed for two to three minutes. Add in the eggs and vanilla extract. Mix for another one to two minutes, scraping the bowl down occasionally. Add the mashed bananas and mix until combined.
• In a separate bowl add the all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Whisk to combine. Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low speed. While the mixer is on pour in half of the buttermilk. Add the remaining dry ingredients and the remaining buttermilk and mix on the lowest speed until just combined. Be careful not to over mix.
• Divide batter evenly between two cake pans and bake in the preheated oven on the middle rack for 22-28 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in the cake pans for about five minutes. After that use an oven mitt to help remove cakes and place on a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Once completely cool wrap with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least an hour to make slicing the layers easier.

Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting

• In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or using a hand mixer, add the room temperature butter and cream cheese. Mix on medium speed for about a minute to combine. Add the powdered sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt and mix on medium speed for two to three minutes. Scrape the bowl down occasionally. Add one to two tablespoons of heavy whipping cream to reach desired thickness and mix on medium high speed for another minute.
• Once cakes are cooled and you are ready to assemble cut each cake layer in half horizontally. Stack and frost each layer and frost cake as desired.

Notes

This cake is best served within 1-2 days after baking for optimal texture. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature or refrigerated for 2-3 days. Cake slices can also be frozen and enjoyed later. 

Keyword banana, Cake, layer cake