The Best Banana Cake

Slice of banana cake with cream cheese frosting with a bite taken

5 from 2 votes

This easy banana cake recipe is the absolute best banana cake you'll ever try. It's moist and fluffy, big on banana flavor, and topped with a generous layer of cream cheese frosting.

Prep Time30

Cook Time45

Total Time1 30

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Banana Cake

Servings: slices

Author: Fiona Dowling

Equipment

9x13 inch (23 x 33 cm) baking pan*

Ingredients

Banana Cake

1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice freshly squeezed
1 1/2 cups milk (360 ml) whole milk preferred, room temperature
3 cups all-purpose flour (375 grams)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter (168 grams) softened
1 cup white sugar (200 grams)
1/2 cup brown sugar (105 grams) light or dark
3 large eggs room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas

Cream Cheese Frosting

1/2 cup unsalted butter (112 grams) softened but still slightly firm to the touch
8 oz cream cheese (226 grams) softened but still slightly firm to the touch
3-4 cups powdered sugar (330-440 grams) sifted
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon whipping cream if needed

Instructions

Banana Cake

Preheat the oven to 350F (180 C) degrees. Grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking pan.
Add the lemon juice to a liquid measuring cup. Pour the milk into the jug to the 1 1/2 cup mark. Whisk together. Set aside.
In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder and salt and salt.
In a large bowl beat together the butter and sugars until fluffy (about 2-3 minutes).
Add the vanilla into the butter mixture. Then mix the eggs into the butter mixture 1 at a time. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl after each addition.
Cut any bruises off the bananas before mashing. Mix the mashed bananas into the butter mixture. If there are some banana lumps, that's OK.
Mix about 1/3 of the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Then mix in about 1/2 of the milk. Mix in another 1/3 of the flour mixture. Then stir in the rest of the milk. Lastly, mix in the last 1/3 of the flour mixture. Do not overmix. Stop mixing as soon as the batter is an even consistency (lumps of banana are OK - but you don't want lumps of dry ingredients). I typically do the last few additions by hand to avoid overmixing.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 40-50 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean and the cake is starting to pull away from the edges of the pan. If you aren't 100% sure if the cake is done baking, I recommend baking for a few extra minutes as this cake is unlikely to dry out.

Cream Cheese Frosting

In a large bowl, beat the butter until fluffy. Beat in the cream cheese.
With the mixer on low speed beat in the salt and 2 1/2 cups of sifted powdered sugar.
Beat in the rest of the powdered sugar a little at a time until the desired sweetness is reached. If needed, beat in 1 tablespoon cream.
Frost the cooled cake and slice into pieces. I recommend slicing with a thin, sharp knife.

Notes

Flour: Measure properly to ensure the cake doesn't dry out. Whisk first, then spoon into a dry measuring cup and level off the top. Measure in grams using a scale for the most accurate results.
Room Temperature Ingredients: The butter, eggs and milk should all be at room temperature before getting started.
Bananas: The bananas should be spotty. Be sure to cut out any bruises before mashing. Measure after mashing. You will likely need 3-4 bananas in total, depending on the size.
Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container (or cover the pan tightly) in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Freezing: Unfrosted cake can be wrapped tightly and frozen for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge and bring to room temperature before serving.
Nutrition: Details provided are an estimate only and based on 1 slice with frosting, assuming the pan is sliced into 15 uniform pieces.

Nutrition