This is, hands down, the BEST banana cake I’ve ever had. It’s soft, moist and rich all at the same time! Once cooled this cake is topped with a totally irresistible lemon cream cheese frosting for a perfect dessert your family will love.
I love a good banana cake, it just reminds me of being a kid because my Grandpa and Grandma made the BEST banana cupcakes. I can still smell them baking in my grandma’s kitchen, waiting impatiently with my sisters.
This cake is reminiscent of my favorite banana cupcakes. It is soft and fluffy and incredibly moist and topped with my favorite ever lemony cream cheese frosting.
As much as I love a fluffy banana cake, I love it even more when it’s topped with an amazing cream cheese frosting! I add in a little bit of lemon zest and lemon juice for extra flavor in my cream cheese frosting but if you prefer, you can leave out the lemon and substitute vanilla.
Regardless of how you top it, once you try this cake, it’ll be your go-to. Every time you have overripe bananas on the counter you’ll want to make this recipe! In fact, I often buy extra bananas to ripen and make this cake!
Tips to ensure a soft moist result:
- Ensure your ingredients are at room temperature (eggs and butter)
- You need the acidity from the lemon juice (& milk) mixture. Subbing in just milk or cream won’t work. (You can use buttermilk in its place if needed).
- When mixing your butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla, beat the mixture until VERY fluffy, almost the consistency of a fluffy buttercream frosting. This should take about 5 minutes.
- When adding the flour mixture you want to mix until just combined. Over-mixing will cause a dense chewy result.
- The cooking time on this cake can vary! Check your cake at 55 minutes, if it isn’t ready, continue cooking until a toothpick comes out clean (this can be up to an additional 20 minutes depending on your oven). The result will be a moist and irresistible banana cake.
Happy Baking!
The Best Banana Cake
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups milk
- 2 ½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice divided
- 1 ⅓ cups mashed bananas about 3 medium bananas
- ⅔ cup unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- ⅓ cup butter softened
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice or vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons lemon zest from 1 lemon, optional
- 3-3 ½ cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9 x 13 pan.
- Place 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice in a measuring cup. Top to 1 ½ cups with milk. Set aside.
- Mix together mashed banana with 1 tablespoon lemon juice, set aside.
- Beat together butter, brown and white sugar until combined. Add in eggs one at a time and vanilla. Mix on high until light and fluffy (almost the texture of frosting).
- Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Alternate adding flour mixture and milk to egg mixture stirring just until combined. (Do not overmix). Fold in bananas. Pour into prepared pan.
- Put into the oven and reduce heat to 300°F. Bake 60 – 70 minutes (see note below) or just until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean (do not over bake).
- Remove from oven and place in the freezer for 45 minutes to make the cake extra moist. Cool completely before frosting.
FROSTING
- Cream together butter & cream cheese until fluffy. Add in lemon zest and juice.
- Add powdered sugar a little at a time until you reach desired consistency. Spread over cooled cake.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
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This recipe has been retested and updated 11/20/16.
Very slightly adapted from food.com
Can you explain the 45 minutes in the freezer? How / why this will “make the cake extra moist”?
Hi Trista, freezing a warm/hot cake will trap the steam within the cake making it extra moist.
ive been searching for a banana bread that’s not dense as a brick for ages; this is moist and light and not overly sweet- exactly what i was looking for. i did not try the icing but plan to next time.
Delicious very moist. Me and my husband love it . These my new banana recipe from now on. Thank you..
Delicious and super moist! Best banana cake I’ve had (I didn’t follow the icing recipe as I’ve nailed my own version). Thank you!
Delicious, fluffy, and moist!!! How long does it last on the countertop? Or, should I refrigerate it?
Hi Rachel, it should last up to 2 days in the counter or 4-5 days in the fridge.
This Banana cake is absolutly the best banana cake I have ever had. I was craving a banana cake and found this recipe and liked it right away. I didn’t want a recipe that called for sour cream and/or cream cheese, my Grandmother would not have used these items and she made the best cakes. The recipe is easy to follow and the cake is so pretty when baked it doesn’t need icing but I have to admit I did not use the cream cheese frosting, I used a simple vanilla frosting in which I added a small amount of banana extract. I could have eaten the whole cake, when my husband tried it he was very impressed and it is now added to my keep and make again folder. Thank you so much Holly.
So happy to hear that, Cheryl! I am glad you enjoyed it as much as we did.
I doubt this review sees the light of day as I can’t understand how this recipe earns the ratings it “apparently” does. It is dry, and the addition of lemon and cream cheese frosting gives it a strange flavor profile. Do people usually combine lemon and bananas? I actually hated it and can never remember supplying this negative of a review.
If it was dry, it may have been over baked or perhaps your oven runs a bit hotter as we have found this cake to be very moist as most readers do. Per the recipe notes, it’s best to check it a bit early. Hope that helps!
We love the addition of lemon but cream cheese frosting or vanilla frosting are also great options.
The best banana cake I’ve ever made. I made 2.5 dozens of cupcakes instead of a 9×13 cake. My husband took 2 dozens to work to share and he said they were ALL GONE in an hour. He said he also saw his coworker grabbing multiple for her kids to try because it was the best she’s ever had lol. Thank you so much :). Now I feel like a pro baker lol
This cake was perfectly moist. The cream cheese frosting was delicious (I did only use about 1.5 cups of powdered sugar though). Even my picky eater loved it and said he wants to request it for his birthday!
Can I use almond milk instead?
Yes! That should work well.
how can i convert those ingridients to metric?
I suggest using an online converter to help with that and ensure accuracy!
I make this recipe with lactose free ingredients and it works just as well
Turns out great every time. Crowd pleaser for sure!
I’ve made this multiple times. EVERY single time I get asked for the recipe!
Excellent as a bundt cake with chocolate glaze!
Amazing cake! I replaced the milk with almond milk and it worked great. Super moist, light and delicious.
The amount of flour is missing from this banana cake recipe
3 cups all purpose flour – it’s the 3rd from last ingredient on the list.
I made this cake and my family couldn’t get enough. Great Recipe! Thank You
This is an amazing cake. So moist and the lemon makes this cake perfection. Crowd pleaser for sure
Do I need lemon w banana when using buttermilk?
In step two you are making buttermilk so you could skip that step and replace it with premade buttermilk.
How much buttermilk
Hi. This recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups of milk.