Caramelized Walnut Banana Cake

This Caramelized Walnut Banana Cake was originally called "Indescribably Delicious". With a moist, tender crumb, lots of fabulous banana flavor and a crunchy caramelized walnut topping, "indescribably delicious" is the perfect description!

This Caramelized Walnut Banana Cake recipe was first posted in August of 1999 in an Epicurious online recipe forum called Gail's Recipe Swap. Yep, way back! They titled it "Indescribably Delicious Banana Bread". After I made it, I wasn't so sure the name was accurate.

It was delicious, for sure. And calling it "Indescribably Delicious" was an accurate description. But Banana Bread? Hmmm... not so much.

It's much more than banana bread. Coffee cake? Maybe. Cake? Oh yes! One of the most delicious cakes ever? YES! But not bread! Actually, I would call it, "the best banana cake I've ever had the pleasure of meeting"! It's most definitely a fabulous dessert, not a breakfast or snack bread. Unless, of course, you enjoy being illegal... check out what I mean:

One-Bowl, No Mixer!

The original recipe called for a mixer but there's no need for that. Just pull out a bowl, a spatula or wooden spoon and a whisk and you'll be good to go! After the cake is baked, the 5-minute caramelized walnut topping is made in a small sauce pan and spread over the top. All that's left to do after that is to wait for the rave reviews to come rolling in!

A Magical Banana Ripener!

I have a pretty narrow window when it comes to eating bananas as a snack, on my oatmeal,in a fruit salad, etc. I'm not crazy about the flavor once they go past the firm yellow stage, still slightly green at the top and bottom.

But for baking, it's a different story. The perfect bananas are speckled, golden and slightly smushy. Why? A little chemistry explains it - as the ripening process occurs, ethylene gas is formed which begins the conversion of the starches in bananas into sugars. The result is sweeter, moister, softer bananas with more concentrated banana flavor... perfect for recipes like this one!

If you're interested in learning more about this process, here's a fascinating article from National Geographic titled "The Surprising Science Behind the World's Most Popular Fruit".

So back to bananas for baking. What should one do when the entire display at the grocery store offers firm, green bananas? That was my problem this week when I was testing this Caramelized Walnut Banana Cake recipe. I checked 3 different grocery stores and all of them featured perfect bananas without a speckle or sugar spot in sight.

I love the old saying, "Necessity is the mother of invention". No ripe bananas led me to a Google search. I discovered, from multiple sources, a super easy (when I told Scott about it, he called it "magical") way to quickly ripen bananas.

How does it work? So simple! Just preheat the oven to 250˚F. Line a sheet pan with foil or parchment. Place your unripe bananas (with the peel intact) on the sheet pan and bake for 10 minutes, or until blackened. Voila... perfectly soft, smushy, sweet bananas!

Your next dessert!

Put this Caramelized Walnut Banana Cake on the top of your baking list and invite the family and/or some friends. Or take it to work, to the neighbors, to a party or just to add a bit of delicious sparkle to a dreary day.

When the recipients start going crazy over it and request the recipe, just send them over to The Café! 🥰 Bon Appétit!

Cafe Tips for making this Caramelized Walnut Banana Cake

• This recipe calls for an 8-inch cake pan with 2-inch sides. If your cake pan is not that tall, use a 9-inch round pan. For good results, use a straight-sided, fairly heavyweight cake pan. I really like these 8-inch pans.
• Because this recipe doesn't use an electric mixer, the butter should be VERY soft. Leave it sit at room temperature for several hours or use a microwave at 10% power (for 30 to 90 seconds, depending on the power of your microwave) to soften your butter.
• This recipe calls for buttermilk. If you don't have buttermilk and don't want to buy a container, you can also use plain yogurt, Greek yogurt or sour cream.
• If you're feeding a crowd, double the recipe and bake the cake in a 9x13-inch pan.
• Don't skip lining the pan with parchment if you want to be able to easily remove the cake from the pan. I love these pre-cut parchment circles.
• I love to add a sprinkle of flaky sea salt after this cake is baked and has cooled for 15-20 minutes. This is optional, but if you like salty-sweet (and very gourmet!), be sure to try this. I use Maldon Sea Salt. It's the sea salt preferred by many chefs. Maldon is a flaky sea salt meaning that it's flat and flaky rather than crystalline in structure, like other sea salts. It's a finishing salt; in other words, it's used as the finishing step rather than as a seasoning when cooking. It's more expensive than other salt, but a box will last a long time. To use Maldon, just take a pinch in your fingers and rub them together over the food. This will cause the large flakes to break apart into smaller pieces.
• There are several ways to determine when a cake is perfectly done but the BEST way is with an instant thermometer which will read 200-205˚F (93-96˚C) when done. Instant thermometers are not expensive and can ensure that your baked goods, meat, poultry, etc. is not under or over-done.

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Caramelized Walnut Banana Cake

Chris Scheuer

With a moist, tender crumb, lots of fabulous banana flavor and a crunchy caramelized walnut topping, "indescribably delicious" is the perfect description!

5 from 3 votes

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Servings 12 servings

Calories 251

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Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

.5x1x2x

For the cake:

• ½ cup very soft butter
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2-3 medium very ripe bananas, You'll need 1 cup of mashed bananas)
• 2 tablespoons buttermilk, you can also use plain yogurt, Greek yogurt or sour cream as a sub)
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• ¾ teaspoons baking soda
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup all purpose flour

For the caramel walnut topping:

• 4 tablespoons butter
• ½ cup dark brown sugar, light brown will work but the topping won't look as rich and deep
• 1 tablespoon half & half or cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¾ cup chopped walnuts
• flaky sea salt, optional, I love Maldon Flaky Sea Salt

Instructions

 

For the prep:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray a round 8-inch cake pan with baking spray then rub it with a small piece of paper towel to coat. Spray again lightly then line the pan with a circle of parchment paper. Set aside.
3. Line a sheet pan with foil. Set aside.
4. Mash 2 of the bananas on a plate with a fork until well fairly smooth. A few small lumps are fine. Measure out 1 cup. If you need more to equal 1 cup, use part or all of the 3rd banana. Set aside.

For the cake:

1. Add the soft butter to a medium-large mixing bowl. Stir until smooth. Add the granulated sugar and stir again (the mixture will be a little grainy at this point).
2. Add the egg and whisk vigorously for 30 seconds until nice and smooth.
3. Add the mashed bananas, buttermilk and the vanilla extract and whisk again for 30 seconds.
4. Add the baking soda, baking powder and salt and stir until everything is well incorporated.
5. Lastly, add the flour. Stir until the flour disappears. Make sure there’s no flour hiding at the bottom of the bowl but don’t over-mix at this point.
6. Transfer the batter to the prepared cake pan and spread to level. Set the pan on the prepared foil-lined sheet pan.
7. Bake for 30 minutes then pull up the foil around the edges of the pan to keep the sides of the cake from getting too brown. Cover the top of the cake lightly with a piece of foil.
8. Bake for another 10-20 minutes or until the top feels fairly firm when lightly touched for a total of 40-50 minutes. You can also insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. When it’s done, the toothpick will be clean when removed. The BEST way to determine doneness though is with an instant thermometer. Insert it in the center of the cake about halfway down. When the cake is perfectly done, it will read 200-205˚F (93-96˚C).
9. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes then invert onto a cooling rack. The bottom of the cake will now become the top. Allow the cake to cool for 45 minutes to an hour.

For the caramelized walnut topping:

1. Spray a spoon with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
2. Once the cake is cooled for at least 45 minutes, make the topping by melting the butter in a small sauce pan.
3. Add the brown sugar and whisk until nice and smooth. At first, the butter will seem separated. Keep whisking and it will come together.
4. Add the half and half and vanilla extract and whisk again. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook for 20 seconds without stirring.
5. Add the walnuts and stir to coat.
6. Turn off the heat but leave the pan on the burner. Spoon the hot mixture onto the cake with the prepared spoon. Spread to an even layer. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt, if desired. Allow to cool before serving. ENJOY!

Notes

See Café Tips above in the post for more detailed instructions and tips to ensure success.

If you prefer to use Metric measurements, there is a button in each of our recipes, right above the word “Instructions.” Just click that button to toggle to grams, milliliters, etc. If you ever come across one of our recipes that doesn’t have the Metric conversion (some of the older recipes may not), feel free to leave a comment, and I will add it.

Nutrition

Calories: 251kcalCarbohydrates: 34gProtein: 2gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 8gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0.5gCholesterol: 44mgSodium: 268mgPotassium: 122mgFiber: 1gSugar: 24gVitamin A: 390IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 25mgIron: 1mg

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Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American