Banana Bread Cake & Date Frosting (No added sugars)

The toughest critic

Okay, fine. Our one-year-old eats just about everything we put in front of him, because he hasn’t gotten to the picky stage (yet?). Trust me when I tell you he LOVED this cake! Sweet and creamy frosting?! Yes, mama!

Note: It is too dense to be a true smash cake, but I didn’t mind and neither did our lil critic. It actually made it easier for him to hold and take bites. My husband, however, said he preferred this cake with peanut butter frosting, so pick what you love!

Ingredients Used

The use of oat flour, flax meal, and arrowroot starch make this cake extra chewy, nutritious, and delicious. Using 3 large bananas as our source of natural sugars makes this banana bread cake extra moist, similar to using pumpkin in pumpkin bread.

• 3 large ripe bananas, peeled
• Unsalted butter
• 3 large eggs
• Plain yogurt
• Vanilla bean paste or 1 vanilla bean, scraped
• Cake flour
• Oat flour
• Baking powder
• Baking soda
• Salt
• Arrowroot powder *optional
• Flax meal *optional

Why add arrowroot powder?

“Arrowroot is a power-packed food item which contains B vitamins such as thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, and pyridoxine, which help the body in the conversion of energy from nutrients. This superfood is also rich in other minerals like magnesium, zinc and iron, which help in the normal functioning and growth of your baby.”(Source:parenting.firstcry.com)

How to make banana bread cake

1. Preheat oven to 350℉/177℃. Line a round or square 9-inch cake pan or standard 4 ½ x 9 inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
2. Place bananas in a food processor and blend until there are no large pieces and it looks like a thick batter. If you’d like to add any sugar, do that now! Add in the melted butter, eggs, yogurt, and vanilla. Pulse it a few times to mix thoroughly.
3. In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients: flour, oat flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, arrowroot starch, and flax meal.
4. Pour the liquid ingredients from the food processor into the dry ingredients bowl. Mix using a rubber scraper just until combined. Pour into the prepared pan.
5. Bake for 25-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Adjust baking times longer (35-45 min) if using a loaf pan and shorter (20-25 minutes) if making cupcakes.
6. Remove from oven to cool. Rest in the pan for 5 minutes, flip upside down onto cooling rack to remove cake from pan and continue to cool. Frost once cake is completely cooled.
7. Note: To achieve a small layered cake, I cut my 9-inch cake flat across the top. Then, I used a 3.5 inch round cutter and cut 3 small cakes out of my 9-inch cake.

Whipped date frosting (Dates + Water + Cream)

1. Place ten pitted dates into the food processor and pour ½ cup of warm water over them. Let them sit for 5 minutes. Puree the dates until they form a smooth paste.
2. Add 1 cup of heavy whipping cream to the food processor and continue to pulse and mix until a thick, whipped frosting consistency is reached. Be careful not to overmix. Keep the frosting refrigerated until ready to serve. Cake can be frosted and placed in the refrigerator until served.
3. Alternatively, you can make a whipped peanut butter frosting instead of using dates.

More of my favorite banana recipes

• Banana Cake: Classic banana cake has a tender, buttery crumb that is light and moist, getting most of its flavor and sweetness from the bananas themselves.
• Banana Pudding: Homemade banana pudding from the famous Magnolia Bakery is so good yet simple to make.
• Chocolate Banana Cake: Moist and rich, this cake is the chocolate version of my favorite recipe for banana bread.
• Easy Banana Bread: This recipe takes 10 minutes to make!