Banana Chocolate Chip Birthday Cake

Two Banana Chocolate Chip Cakes just out of the oven.

A Banana Chocolate Chip Birthday Cake is different, delicious and quick to make. I made it recently for a double-birthday celebration at the Wednesday Community Meal and it was a hit. Happy Birthday Jan and Linda!

Here's the recipe:


Banana Chocolate Chip Birthday Cake
(makes 2 9-inch cakes)

4 cups all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon sea salt
4 large over-ripe bananas
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon vanilla
4 large eggs
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 cups mini-chocolate chips tossed with 2 tablespoons of flour

Prepare two 9-inch round cake pans with at least 2-inch sides by greasing them, lining the bottoms with greased parchment and then flouring them.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl sift together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer add the peeled over-ripe bananas. Use the beater attachment to mash and break down the bananas. Add the lemon juice, vanilla and butter and mix until well-combined. It will look soupy and the butter will look grainy.

Add 1/2 of the flour mixture and mix until a thick batter forms, scraping down the sides.

Add 1/2 of the buttermilk and mix until combined. Add the remaining flour and buttermilk and mix again until well-combined.

Finally, add the mini-chocolate chips tossed with the flour and stir them into the batter by hand.

Divide the batter among the two prepared cake pans and bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until brown and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes before inverting them onto a cooling rack.

Cool the cakes completely before frosting.

Here's the final frosted cake. I used my favorite Swiss Meringue Buttercream recipe from Julie Richardson of Baker & Spice. I love this frosting because it's easy to make and spread and isn't too sweet. To finish the cake off, I added a dark chocolate wrap around it for a little extra oomph. The chocolate wrap will get a post of its own so stay tuned....

Tim's Banana Birthday Cake

The picture my sister sent of the cake being sliced at the party.

My sister recently asked me to make a banana birthday cake for her boyfriend Tim's surprise party and I was happy to oblige. The whole family loves Tim.

I quickly got to researching banana cake recipes and found one that I liked from Bon Appétit called Double Banana Cake that called for sour cream (always a good addition to a cake) and three cups of mashed bananas which I knew would add lots of flavor and moisture. 

I also liked that the recipe called for a layer of sliced bananas between the cake layers. 

The only changes I made to the recipe was the addition of one teaspoon of vanilla extract to the batter and making an entirely different frosting. 

The original recipe called for a buttercream made with what I consider a sickly sweet amount of powdered sugar - 4 whole cups! I knew my lightly sweetened Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing made with one cup of sugar and tinted with a drop of yellow food coloring would be a much better addition to the cake. 

And, I'm pretty sure I was right. I didn't get to taste the cake but my sister sent pictures of the cake being sliced at the party and the following text:

"It's delicious Heidi! Everyone loved the frosting."

Here's the recipe:

Tim's Banana Birthday Cake

Banana Cake:

1 1/2 cups unsalted butter

2 1/4 cups sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

6 large eggs

3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

3 cups coarsely mashed very ripe bananas (about 6 large)

3/4 cup sour cream

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and grease and flour two 8-inch cake pans with sides that are 2-inches high. Also, line the bottoms with greased parchment paper.

With an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and eggs one at a time, mixing well after each additon.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and soda.

Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, scraping down the sides of the bowl. 

Finally, add the mashed bananas and sour cream and mix until well-combined.  

Divide the batter between the prepared pans and bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

A cake ready for the oven.

Be sure to let the cakes cool in the pans for 20 minutes before inverting onto a cooling rack.

Let the cakes cool in the pans for 20 minutes before inverting onto cooling racks. Let the cakes cool completely before assembling.

Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing:

1 cup milk
1 cup sugar, divided
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened

a drop of yellow food coloring (optional)

2 ripe but not mush bananas, cut into 1/8 inch slices reserved for assembling the cake.

In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the milk and half of the sugar until simmering.
In the meantime, in a small bowl combine the cream, the other half of the sugar and cornstarch. Mix well with a whisk.

When the milk is simmering,  pour about half of it into the cream mixture and whisk well. Add it back to the milk in the saucepan and heat, stirring constantly until the mixture becomes very thick.

Remove from heat and whisk in the vanilla. Put the mixture into a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the mixture cool completely.


When the buttercream base is cool, transfer it to a mixer and whip until smooth, add the butter and the cream cheese, a tablespoon at a time and whip until light and fluffy. Tint with yellow coloring if desired.

To Assemble:

Ice just the top of the bottom layer.

Add sliced bananas.

Top with the second layer.

Ice the entire cake. Chill the cake in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Buttermilk Cake

We celebrated Cheryl's birthday at the Wednesday Community Meal.

Cheryl who is my dear friend and fellow pantry volunteer loves the combination of peanut butter and chocolate.

For the last couple of years to celebrate her birthday I've made a chocolate cake with peanut butter filling and chocolate buttercream. But this year, I wanted to surprise her with something different.

I thought a peanut butter filling with chocolate ganache and crushed peanuts would be the way to go and taste like a "Reese's Peanut Butter Cup" in between layers of cake. To compliment the richness of the filling, I decided to make a classic yellow buttermilk cake and a not too sweet dark chocolate buttercream.

The four-layer cake was a definite hit with Cheryl and the other Wednesday Community Meal volunteers. 

Here's how to make it:

Note: Make the base for the buttercream the night before you want to make the cake. The base needs to cool covered at room temperature before you add the butter.

Classic Yellow Cake
(makes four layers)
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
6 eggs plus 3 egg yolks, room temperature
1 1/2  tablespoons vanilla extract
4 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/2  tablespoons baking powder
3/4  teaspoon salt
2 3/4  cups buttermilk, room temperature

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar on high until light and fluffy, about 6 minutes.

Beat in the eggs plus egg yolks, one at a time, until combined. Beat in vanilla.

In another large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. With mixer on low, add a third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beating to combine. Beat in half of the buttermilk, another third of the flour mixture, the remaining buttermilk, and remaining flour mixture until just combined. Scrape down the bowl as needed.

Divide the batter among four greased and parchment lined 9-inch round cake pans. If you have only two cake pans, that's okay. Just cover the remaining half of batter with plastic wrap and bake the cakes in batches.

Bake the cakes for 20 to 25 minutes in a 350 degree oven or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let the cakes cool in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes before inverting them onto cooling racks. 



Peanut Butter Filling
1 1/2 cup peanut butter (creamy or chunky)
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/3 cup milk

In a mixing bowl, whip peanut butter and butter together. Add vanilla and powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Finally add milk and beat just until the filling comes together and is spreadable. Don't over beat.



Dark Chocolate Ganache
12 ounces dark chocolate, chopped into small pieces
1 cup heavy cream

Place chocolate in a large bowl. Heat the heavy cream in a small pan over medium high heat until it comes to a boil.

Remove the cream from the heat and immediately pour it over the chocolate.

Stir the chocolate until it is completely melted and smooth and glossy. Let the ganache set at room temperature until it thickens up a bit and is spreadable. This takes about 20 minutes.


Dark Chocolate Buttercream
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar, divided
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla
1/4 cup dark chocolate ganache (see recipe above)
2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature


In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the milk and half of the sugar until simmering.
In the meantime, in a small bowl combine the cream, half of the sugar and cornstarch. Mix well with a whisk.

When the milk is simmering,  pour about half of it into the cream mixture and whisk well. Add it back to the milk in the saucepan and heat, stirring constantly until the mixture becomes very thick.

Remove from heat and whisk in the vanilla. Put the mixture into a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the mixture cool completely.

When the mixture is cool, transfer it to a mixer and whip it on high speed until it is smooth, scraping down the sides every so often. Add the ganache and whip again.


Finally add the butter a few tablespoons at a time and whip until light and fluffy.

Peanut Topping
1 cup dry roasted unsalted peanuts
pinch sea salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put the peanuts in a small baking dish and bake for 5 to 7 minutes until you can smell the aroma of the nuts and they have browned a bit. Sprinkle them with a pinch of sea salt.


To Assemble: 
 

Add 1/3 of the peanut butter filling to the cake.

Add 1/3 of the cooled ganache on top of the peanut butter filling.

Sprinkle 1/3 of the peanuts on top of the ganache.

Add another layer of cake and repeat.

Add another layer and use up the remaining filling, ganache and peanuts to top it.

Add  your final cake layer.

Starting at the top of your cake, add the buttercream and work it down over the sides. A spinning cake stand makes this step so much easier.

Decorate as desired. I like to take my frosting spreader and pull it up the sides of the cake for a striped effect.

Another nice touch is added with a bit of frosting in a piping bag and a star tip.

A bit of decoration on the top looks nice.

Add some shaved dark chocolate and dollops of icing in the center and all this cake needs is a birthday candle.

Lydia's Cake

Lydia's Cake was a hit. I thought about getting a picture of sliced cake when it was too late. Oh well, it was enjoyed!

The finished cake. The icing is lightly sweetened and made with cream cheese and whipped cream.

One of the perks of volunteering at the Wednesday Community Meal is that there are a lot of birthday celebrations and a lot of cake.

This past Wednesday, to celebrate the birthday of longtime volunteer Lydia, I made a vanilla almond cake soaked with orange juice and zest, raspberries and strawberries and iced with a lightly sweetened whipped cream and cream cheese icing.

I created the cake just for Lydia because she prefers simple cakes topped with whipped cream and fruit. In honor of Lydia, I've documented this recipe for future use and have aptly named it Lydia's Cake.

I hope you give this cake a try. You can use fresh or frozen fruit in the recipe which makes it great for celebrations anytime of the year.

Lydia's Cake

For the cake:
2/3 cup shortening
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups milk
4 large eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease, flour and line with parchment paper two 8-inch cake pans that are at least 4-inches deep.

Cream together the shortening, butter, sugar, vanilla and almond extract. Add the milk, eggs, salt and baking powder and mix again. Finally, add the flour and mix until well combined.

Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans and bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Let the cakes cool for 10 minutes before removing them from the pans. Cool the cakes completely before filling and icing.

Lining the bottom of the cake pans with parchment paper makes removing them from the pans very easy.

Filling:

1 lb. raspberries
1 lb. sliced strawberries
Juice and zest of one orange
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2/3 cup granulated sugar

Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.

You can use frozen or fresh fruit to make the raspberry, strawberry and orange cake filling.

To assemble:

Line one of the cleaned baking pans with plastic wrap. Make sure the pan is completely covered and leave enough plastic wrap draping down the sides so that it can be folded over to top the assembled cake.

With a serrated knife, slice the cakes in half. Put one layer in the bottom of the pan and top with 1/3 of the filling. Add the second layer and press down the cake with the back of a spatula.

One layer of cake is in the pan and ready for 1/3 of the filling.

Top this second layer with another 1/3 of the filling and add the third layer. Press down again.

Finally top the third layer with the remaining filling and add the top layer. This is a tall cake and it will poke out of the top of the pan but that's okay. Press the cake down and fold over the plastic wrap to completely cover.

Put the cake in the freezer to set for 30 minutes before icing.

Creamy Icing:

1/2 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1 box cream cheese (8 oz) room temperature
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream

Whip together the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the powdered sugar and whip again.

Finally, add the heavy cream and whip until light and spreadable.

To ice:

Remove the filled cake from the pan and place on a serving platter.  Ice the entire cake starting at the top and pulling the icing down over the sides of the cake. Refrigerate the cake before serving.

To ice the cake, start at the top and pull the icing down over the sides. A spinning cake stand is always helpful.

Big Birthday Cake

We celebrated two volunteer birthdays at the Wednesday Community Meal today — Happy Birthday Jay and Suzanne!

When it comes to making one cake for a large group this buttermilk chocolate cake with Swiss meringue buttercream is the perfect choice.

Just look at that big stack of plates and forks!

The cake recipe is one I've featured before. It's the "Greatest and Easiest Chocolate Cake" recipe featured on the box of Trader Joe's cocoa powder and it is indeed great and easy.

The Swiss Meringue Buttercream recipe is from Julie Richardson of Baker & Spice Bakery here in Portland (6330 Southwest Capitol Highway). This buttercream is lightly sweet and spreads like a dream.

"Greatest and Easiest Chocolate Cake"

3 1/3 cups flour

1 1/3 cups cocoa powder

3 cups sugar

1 tablespoon baking soda

1 teaspoons salt

12 ounces butter 

3 cups buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla 

5 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans. (Note: For my cake, I used 2 round 8-inch pans that were 4 inches deep.)

Place all ingredients in electric mixer bowl and beat on high speed for 3 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl once during mixing. Pour into prepared pans. Bake cakes for about 55 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream
6 large egg whites
1 1/4  cups granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
2 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon of fine sea salt
1 tablespoon espresso powder, dissolved in 2 teaspoons hot water.

Place the whites in a clean mixing bowl. Whisk in sugar and cream of tartar.

Place bowl over a double boiler on medium heat, stir frequently until the mixture is very hot (120 to 130 degrees Fahrenheit).

Move to mixer and whip whites on high for 2 to 3 minutes; turn down to medium low until cool (use the bowl as your guide).

In a separate bowl with a wooden spoon, stir butter to soften.

With mixer on medium/high speed, add the butter one tablespoon at a time, adding the next tablespoon just as the previous one is blended in. Once all the butter incorporated, add in vanilla, salt and coffee and whip on high speed until fluffy.