So, I told you I’d give you some amazing and deep insights into why I want to be like a banana. And I know you can hardly wait to read this and gain from my incredible deep- thinking thought.
So here it is.
I was looking at my bananas a few days ago…and watching as they turned darker and blacker and squishier and saggier.
And then I began to think through the life of a banana.
It starts out green…and it’s not very tasty.
Then it turns a beautiful yellow and it tastes good…it’s in it’s prime of life.
And then, it begins to lose it’s beauty…and slowly becomes darker and blacker and squishier…and saggier…
And as that happens…the banana just gets softer and sweeter…
And even more useful.
Because before, it was just a banana to be eaten.
Now, it is a super sweet banana that can be made into ALL kinds of things…banana bread, banana pancakes, banana smoothies, banana muffins…
And that’s when I decided that I wanted to be like a banana.
As I get older…I’m going to get age spots and get saggier…and all those fun things.
But, I also want to get sweeter and sweeter and be more and more useful to people.
I want to appreciate the older “bananas” around me who are “oh so sweet” and have “oh so much wisdom and usefulness”.
And I want to teach my children to appreciate them too.
Now when I see those bananas on my counter, instead of seeing the black, squishy sagginess of them…
I see that they truly are beautiful.
And THAT, my friends is my incredibly deep insight into why I want to be like a banana.
Here’s a great recipe to use with those beautiful squishy bananas!
Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/4 cup rapadura or 3/4 cup honey
1 1/2 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
2 smashed over-ripe bananas
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk or buttermilk
1 stick butter, melted
1 t. vanilla
In a large bowl, stir together dry ingredients. Mash bananas in a separate bowl. Make a well in the center of dry ingredients. Pour in mashed bananas and all other ingredients. Stir well (or beat with hand mixer).
Pour into a greased 9×9 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Allow to cool completely before frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
3 ounces cream cheese
1 t. vanilla
4 T. honey
In a medium sized bowl, whip cream until soft peaks form. In a separate bowl, beat cream cheese, vanilla and honey until smooth. Fold cream cheese mixture into whipped cream. “Slather” it on your banana cake.
Enjoy.
I’m going to go have myself a piece of cake…
Mmmm! This sounds yummy! And I just happen to have some bananas that are starting to get some beauty spots on them (my grandmother always said they were beauty spots- not age spots!) :-) I think I’m gonna combine tasks this weekend and listen to my Newsboys & clean my kitchen and make this yummy, healthy treat!!! (Hopefully this will help me get back on the “No sugar” wagon as well!)
Oh, yum! After a seriously sugar-intense Christmas through Valentine’s Day, I decided two weeks ago NO MORE REFINED SUGAR! And then, of course, I almost died from sugar cravings.
And then I found your blog! (not sure how…) and obviously it was a God-send. I made the peanut butter bars last week. But this banana cake looks amazing. Half if what I’m missing are simply warm, baked comfort foods, and finding substitutions like this is so exciting to me. I can include it my family’s diet…forever!
I just made this cake and LOVE it! I didn’t even put frosting on it and the kids are begging for more! I can’t wait for my husband to get home and have a huge piece! He doesn’t eat whole wheat stuff normally but every recipe I have tried of yours he LOVES! Thank you! Love baking even more now that I am doing it in a healthier manner!
had a craving for banana cake with cream cheese frosting. came from my kitchen knowing you probably had a version that used rapdura, and of course, YOU DO! I am excited to see that it uses buttermilk, too. Thanks for all your great recipes!
Does this have to be refrigerated since it uses cream cheese in the icing?
Yes, that would be best. Hope you enjoy the cake! :)
I made these as muffins this past weekend for my extended family and friends as we made sausage. They all loved it! They were a lot sweeter than things I normally bake, but they were so tasty! I am going to make these for my son’s class for his birthday this month!
I have this cake in the oven right now, was about to make the frosting but I’m out of honey! That’s what I get for having a “Heavenly Homemakers recipe-making marathon” today… ;-) I made the giant breakfast cookies, peanut butter bars and now banana cake and used up all my honey! Can I possibly substitute Agave? Or something else?
If you have real maple syrup, I’d substitute that. Or, you can use regular powdered sugar. Or homemade powdered sugar. https://www.heavenlyhomemakers.com/make-your-own-powdered-sugar-with-sucanat Or yes, agave. I’m mixed on whether or not I feel like agave is a healthy sugar or not. Mixed reviews. :) Great job on the marathon today!
Thanks! After I posted this, I realized I didn’t have Agave either.
I haven’t used Agave in a while but will have to research that.
I did think about the maple syrup, so funny you should mention that!
(I DO have real maple syrup! We don’t let the kids eat the chemical
stuff anymore!) I ended up sending DH out to the store
for more honey. I need to start buying it in bulk! ;-) Banana cake
turned out SO YUMMY and kids LOVED it!!! I have a hard time getting
certain kids in this house to eat some of the healthy meals I make,
so it’s nice to offer a healthy dessert after these healthy
meals as more motivation! ;-)
Banana cake recipes are few and far between! This one looks like a keeper! FYI, if you substitute almond flour (up to 2/3 of what the recipe calls for flour + the remaining flour to make up the difference), you get a great flavor, and it doesn’t change the consistancy or anything. I love using almond flour in my cake and muffin recipes!
I think this cake is going to be perfect for my son’s first birthday! I was looking for something healthier, but also easy to put together. I think this will fit the bill!
I made this tonight and it was wonderful! Thank you for sharing the recipe. Everyone in my family was delighted with it!
I halved this and made it in a small pan the other day to test out and see if I wanted to make this for my daughter’s first birthday and was really disappointed with the way it cooked. It ended up really spongey like it wasn’t cooked all the way through and I had cooked it almost an hour. A few hours later when my husband got home from work he walked past the dining room table and said “you forgot an egg on the table.” Only then did I realize that I had forgotten to put the egg in! Good grief.. So now I plan to try it again and actually put the egg in!! haha. I loved the taste of it so I’m sure it will be great! :-)
I made this today and it’s great! I didn’t realize it until after the cake was baked, but I forgot to put in the rapadura/honey. Oops! It’s still good and healthier, right? :)
If I don’t have a 9×9 pan… could i use a 9″ pie plate? I do have an 8×8 pan… so I could maybe use that…
8×8 might work out ok. Give it a try! :)
could you make these into cupcakes? I’d love to make these for my son’s birthday. Thanks!
You sure could!
This looks delicious! I would like to make it for my daughters birthday next month, but I have a question. Is there any way it could be converted to a recipe to fill a 9 x 13 inch pan for a sheet cake? Thanks so much for your help! :) I enjoy all the recipes you post Laura!
I would just do a recipe and a half to fill a larger pan.
This looks so yummy!! What would be awesome is a banana frosting recipe!! I’ve had cravings for a banana cake with banana frosting that I had once a while ago. Definitely going to try this out!!
This cake is AMAZING. I made a few alterations for high altitude (living in Colorado) I reduced baking powder to 1 1/4 tsp and baking soda to 3/4 tsp. I used 3 bananas because what was I going to do with the leftover one? ;) I was also out of butter, so I used coconut oil. The cake came out perfectly! What a forgiving recipe! Plus, I ate two pieces and didn’t gain an ounce! Thank you for this fabulous recipe!!