Tuesdays with Dorie BWD: A Big Banana Cake

April 8, 2025 at 8:05 pm | Posted in BWD, cakes & tortes, groups, layer cakes, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 14 Comments
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a big banana cake

I just had a big birthday, one that ends in a zero and makes me think about what I’m doing (or not doing) with my life. That has been a bit hard to swallow, but what does go down easy is A Big Banana Cake. How’s that for a segue?

I did, in fact, make this as my at-home birthday cake, but I turned the really big 9-inch original cake into a 6-incher, which is still plenty big for the two of us. I used 1/3 of all ingredients to avoid it being too tall. The batter is flavored with bananas (obvi), vanilla and allspice. I don’t have any allspice on hand, so I subbed a pinch of this and a pinch of that, which in the end basically mimicked pumpkin pie spice. Another twiddle I made with the batter was to add just a bit of baking powder along with the soda. The amount of leavening seemed a little skimpy to me given the amount of flour, some of which is even whole wheat.

Once the three cake layers are baked and cooled, they are filled and frosted with flavored cream cheese frosting. Dorie adds cookie butter to the frosting, which does sound really yummy, but I didn’t want to buy a jar of it only to use a couple of tablespoons. I considered some alternative options I already have like peanut butter and dulce de leche, then settled on Nutella, an open jar of which I’ve had on the counter forever. I didn’t successfully finish off the jar, but the combo of the Nutella frosting and the banana cake is delish. I brushed my cake layers with rum (not only because I firmly believe that rum improves just about every dessert , but it also helps keep a cake that will last a few days a bit more moist) and frosted away. I could spend all day trying to perfectly frost a cake, and dirty just about every sized offset spatula I own in the process, but I’ve wisened up in my advanced age…a swoopy homemade look is really quite charming.

If you don’t have the book Baking with Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple by Dorie Greenspan yet, get it and join us as we bake through it every second and fourth Tuesdays! Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll and all the other participation deets over on Tuesdays with Dorie!

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  1. ✒️🥣Dorothy's New Vintage Kitchen's avatar

    Happy Birthday! The cake looks wonderful.

    Comment by Dorothy's New Vintage Kitchen— April 9, 2025 #

    Reply
  2. Shirley (Everopensauce)'s avatar

    Happy birthday, Steph! I really enjoy hearing about all the details how you made this cake special to celebrate life and good baking. The warm mahogany tone looks really amazing,

    Comment by Shirley (Everopensauce)— April 9, 2025 #

    Reply
  3. isthisakeeper's avatar

    Happy Birthday Steph!! I think your birthday cake is picture perfect…as usual! I love the chocolate details you add…I also love hearing how a professional just knows how to add a smidge of this and a smidge of that and look at what you created! 🙂

    Comment by isthisakeeper— April 11, 2025 #

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  4. Gaye Middleton's avatar

    Happy birthday Steph! Your Cake looks amazing. Cakelaw

    Comment by Gaye Middleton— April 12, 2025 #

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  5. Diane Zwang's avatar

    Happy birthday with a zero at the end. I am going to make this at the end of the month for my birthday. Tis the season… The Nutella frosting twist sounds delish. Your sweeping homemade cake looks perfect.

    Comment by Diane Zwang— April 13, 2025 #

    Reply
  6. Judy's avatar

    Your cake turned out beautifully! I wondered about the lack of baking powder, and whether that contributed to some of the textural issues with the cake. I ended up using some leftover dulce de leche in the icing, and it was just fine.

    Comment by Judy— April 20, 2025 #

    Reply
  7. sunside5588's avatar

    Belated happy birthday with a zero! Your cake looks extra rich with the Nutella. It is beautiful. Thank you for the suggestion to add a bit of baking powder. It is a good reminder that the recipe is only a suggestion. I’m sure Dorie would agree!

    Comment by sunside5588— April 22, 2025 #

    Reply
    • steph (whisk/spoon)'s avatar

      thanks!! to tell the truth, my “modifications” don’t always work out, but thankfully here things were ok. 🙂

      Comment by steph (whisk/spoon)— April 22, 2025 #

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