Banana Cake Recipe for Valentine Cake

photo from SallyDealz.com

Banana Cake Recipe for Valentine Cake

I am bananas about my valentine (hubby) and today I am sharing my banana cake recipe with you.  This banana cake gets rave reviews and is SO easy to make, mainly because it starts with a cake mix.  Cakes that start with a mix are almost impossible to mess up.

Recipe

For this cake, I made a double recipe, but I will give you the measurements for a "normal" size cake (8-inch or 9x13).

1 white or yellow cake mix

1 small box of banana pudding

1 cup mashed bananas (about 2 bananas)

1/3 cup buttermilk

4 large eggs

1/2 cup oil

I prefer using a cake mix without pudding in it because of the addition of the banana pudding.  When we buy bananas, if there are some that are getting too ripe, I freeze them and use in this recipe.  I usually peel them beforehand, but didn't this time (read that you didn't have to).  I like them peeled beforehand.  It is kind of difficult to peel a frozen banana.  I usually put all the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet in another then mix them together.

Preparing the Pans

Before you mix this batter, preheat your oven to 325.  Prepare your pans however you normally do.  I always like to use parchment paper to line the bottom and create a "collar" on the sides.  I wrote a whole blog post on "Collaring".

This recipe makes a very thick batter.  You will have to spread it around in the pan with a spatula.  Here you can see that it rose over the top of the pan (I love collaring)!

Frosting

I made a batch of Swiss Meringue Buttercream and flavored part of it banana and part chocolate.  I cut the cake in half and filled it with the banana flavored buttercream then iced the cake in the chocolate.  I use the Swiss Meringue Buttercream recipe from Woodland Bakery.

Decorating

You can decorate this cake however you wish.  I made some fondant flowers, vines and hearts and decorated it with a Valentine's Day theme.  The design was adapted from an original from Czech baker/decorator at jakodoma.webgarden.cz.