Jump to Recipe

This Easy Banana Cake is made from scratch and receives rave reviews for its prominent banana flavor! It’s so moist, tender, and delicious, topped with a tangy cream cheese frosting for a perfect dessert your family will love.

Be sure to sign up for my email… to get new recipes and ideas in your inbox!

removing a piece of the cake on the cake stand

Easy Banana Cake

When we think of banana desserts, I know my mind always goes right to banana bread, or banana cream pie, while both of those are amazing desserts that should have their time to shine, we are forgetting one amazing way to serve up bananas. Banana cake!

There’s nothing better than diving into a sweet moist cake coated in a homemade cream cheese frosting that rivals any professionally made cake. 

This recipe is simple to throw together and will be a showstopper no matter when and where you serve it up. Be ready to hand out the recipe, because everyone is going to be dying to make their own from the moment they take their first bite.

top of banana cake with pecans for garnish

How To Make The Best Banana Cake

Who says a multi-layer cake has to be complicated? Just follow the simple instructions below and you’ll have the banana cake of your dreams in no time!

When you are making this recipe, you’ll want to use the full recipe at the bottom of the page.

Preheat the oven and prepare your two 9-inch cake pans. set the pans aside and begin to prepare your dry ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and cinnamon together and set aside.

Next up, beat the shortening and sugar until well combined and add the eggs and the vanilla. Beat on medium-high until combined, then add in the mashed bananas and continue beating. Once fully incorporated, lower the mixer speed and add half of the dry ingredients alternating with the buttermilk and mixing each addition just until incorporated. 

Lastly, you will evenly divide the batter into prepared cake pans and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center, comes out clean. Allow cakes to cool completely then frost with Banana Cream Cheese Frosting.

Do I Have To Make This Cake in 2 Layers?

No, you don’t! If you don’t want to go through the process of making a two-layer cake there are other options. You could always just make it as 2 single-layer round cakes, icing each cake pan individually. Another option is to bake the whole recipe in a large 9×13-inch rectangle pan. This will allow you to have a thick one-layer cake. 

a slice of banana cake on a plate with banana slices on top

Tips For Baking With Bananas

  • Always use overly ripe bananas. By overly ripe, I’m talking about those almost completely brown bananas you would usually throw away. While they might not be appetizing to eat for a mid-day snack, they are perfect for baking when they are that brown and soft. 
  • If your bananas aren’t ripe enough, try placing them in a brown paper bag for a day or so. This will speed up the process. 
  • Always mash the bananas before using them in a recipe, like this one. It will be much harder to break up the banana if you don’t mash it before adding it to the other ingredients. 
  • If you ever have bananas that ripened too much before you could eat them, just throw them in the freezer until you have enough to make this easy banana cake! 
banana cake on a cake plate

How to Store This Easy Banana Cake

Storing a two-tier cake is a little more tricky than storing a normal cake rectangle cake. If you have a cake plate and a cake saver, I highly suggest storing this banana cake in that way. It’s an easy no-fuss way to keep the dessert fresh for the next several days.

If you don’t have a cake saver then try placing toothpicks around the top of the cake, leaving several inches sticking out. Then gently place enough foil to cover the whole cake, letting it rest on top of the toothpicks. Store at room temperature, or in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. 

To Freeze: 

Wrap each layer of banana cake with plastic wrap and place in the freezer until ready to serve. Make the cream cheese icing just before serving. The frozen cake will stay fresh for up to 4 months. 

serving a slice of the cake

You’ll Go Bananas For These Amazing Banana Recipes

Banana Pudding Poke Cake – All the flavors you love in banana pudding come together in this poke cake.  Trust me on this, this banana poke cake tastes every bit as good as it looks — it’s hard to go wrong with a nilla wafer banana pudding cake!

Oatmeal Banana Bread Pancakes – This recipe is almost magical. Not only are they quick and easy to make, but low sugar and fat and high fiber and protein. Go ahead and grab a fork and plate…..

Homemade Banana Flips – Light fluffy banana cream between two layers of moist yellow cake. You’ll love this copycat snack cake recipe. 

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread – The cinnamon and chocolate chips are the surprise flavors in this family-favorite banana quick bread!

Banana Cream Pie Cupcakes – An easy-to-follow cupcake recipe for a tender vanilla cupcake filled with a luscious banana cream custard and topped with a banana buttercream…..reminiscent of banana cream pie.

Like This Easy Banana Cake Recipe? Pin It!

pinterest-image
banana cake photo collage

Tools Used To Make This Easy Banana Cake

Stand Mixer or Hand Mixer:

I honestly don’t know where I would be without my stand mixer! It’s truly a lifesaver for anyone who does a decent amount of baking or cooking. With that being said, if you aren’t ready to commit to a stand mixer purchase, a good hand mixer works just as well too!

Stainless Steel Measuring Cups

This set of stainless steel measuring cups is by far my favorite set! The stainless steel is durable and easy to clean, and the 5 different sizes make it easy to perfectly measure any of your ingredients. 

9 in Round Cake Pans 

For any multi-layer cake, you’ll need a good set of round cake pans, and this set gets the job done perfectly! I use them for every cake recipe and everything comes out just right!

removing a piece of the cake on the cake stand

Easy Banana Cake

Yield: serves 12
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes

This Easy Banana Cake is made from scratch and receives rave reviews for the perfect amount of banana flavor! It's so moist, tender and delicious, topped with a tangy banana cream cheese frosting for a perfect dessert your family will love. 

Ingredients

BANANA CAKE

  • 1/2 cup shortening
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 cup mashed overripe bananas (about 3 bananas)
  • 1/4 cup buttermilk*
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup walnuts or pecans, chopped (optional)

BANANA CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

  • 12 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1 mashed overripe banana
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • walnuts or pecans, chopped to garnish

Instructions

FOR BANANA CAKE

  1. Cake Preheat oven to 350° F. and grease and flour two 9-inch cake pans.
  2. In a large bowl whisk the flour, baking soda, and cinnamon together. Set aside.
  3. Using an electric mixer beat shortening and sugar until well combined. Add the eggs and the vanilla. Beat on medium-high until combined, then add in the mashed bananas and continue beating. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, add half of the dry ingredients alternating with the buttermilk and mixing each addition just until incorporated. Do not overmix. Fold in nuts if using.
  4. Evenly divide the batter into prepared cake pans.
  5. Bake in preheated oven 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center, comes out clean. Allow cakes to cool completely then frost with Banana Cream Cheese Frosting.

FOR BANANA FROSTING:

  1. In the bowl of an electric mixer beat the butter on high until creamed. Add the cream cheese and continue beating on high until smooth and creamy. Add banana, vanilla, lemon juice, salt, and sugar; beat on low for 30 seconds, then on high until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. If frosting is too thick add just a little milk to get the desired consistency. If you want a thicker frosting, add about 1/4 cup of powdered sugar.

ASSEMBLE AND SERVE:

  1. Frost the cake and garnish with chopped nuts. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. 
  2. Leftover cake should be covered and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Notes

  • *if you don't have buttermilk, you can make sour milk by adding just a little vinegar to milk and let it sit about 10 mins until it curdles.
  • For a 9x13-inch cake pan, bake for 35-40 minutes.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 635Total Fat: 33gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 85mgSodium: 314mgCarbohydrates: 80gFiber: 2gSugar: 57gProtein: 7g

Nutrition information is estimated based on the ingredients and cooking instructions as described in each recipe and is intended to be used for informational purposes only. Please note that nutrition details may vary based on methods of preparation, origin, and freshness of ingredients used.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

© TidyMom
Cuisine: American / Category: Dessert Recipes
close up of a slice of the cake

Related Posts: