For someone who can’t handle caffeine, I am almost ashamed to admit how much I LOVE the taste of coffee. I am forever ordering decaf mochas and stealing tiny sips of Tyler’s lattes and bothering bartenders with my requests for decaf espresso martinis. It’s only natural that I include this in my baked goods! Some of my most favourite treats are my Vanilla Latte Cupcakes and my Mocha Almond Fudge Cake, and my drink of choice is always this killer Souffle Espresso Martini. So when I was looking for a way to elevate my banana cake, adding a touch of espresso seemed like the perfect idea. And as soon as it was baking and my house was filled with the smell I KNEW it was gonna be a hit.
Banana cake is one of those treats that you can convince yourself is breakfast food (I had a slice for breakkie today) – and adding espresso just makes it that much more acceptable to eat in the AM. But of course, feel free to eat it any time of day!!
The cake itself is super moist, thanks to the bananas and oil-only recipe. While butter brings a nice flavour, I prefer cakes that use only oil as the fat source. Since oil is a liquid at room temperature (while butter is a solid), cakes with an oil base will be much more moist than butter-based cakes. And banana cake doesn’t really need the flavour that butter gives to a recipe – not like a vanilla cake does, where the butter flavour is more prominent. The banana flavour is strong, and the addition of a pumpkin spice-like blend & espresso powder provides such a punch that any butter taste would be lost anyways.
This cake would honestly be delicious all on its own, but if you wanna go the extra mile and make the espresso cream cheese frosting, it becomes pure decadence. The fresh and tangy cream cheese pairs so wonderfully with the warm flavours of the cake! Add a little espresso ganache in the layers for a touch of richness and we have a beautifully balanced bite.
The recipe is designed for 3 6” cake pans, but it can easily be adapted for different sizes. If you want to make a sheet cake, bake it in a 9×13” pan (no changes needed). If you only have 8” pans, just use 2 and decrease the bake time slightly. You’ll end up with layers that are a little bit shorter and wider. It can also become cupcakes! This volume of batter would make around 24 cupcakes, and they would need to bake for 20-24 minutes.
If you go the layer cake route, decorating is up to you! I will make a note though – this cream cheese frosting recipe is heavy on the cream cheese, which makes it more difficult to work with. You won’t be able to do intricate designs like flowers, or vintage-style piping. If you’re wanting something more detailed, I would recommend the cream cheese frosting recipe included in my buttercream recipe, as this one is altered to be better for decorating.
My design for this one was just a simple coat of the cream cheese frosting, with a smear of the ganache along the bottom border, some piped ganache dollops on top, and banana chips to finish it off. For getting the right consistency of ganache to pipe with, check out Chocolate Ganache 101: Recipe & Tips.
I typically include some info in my posts about substitutions, but honestly… this recipe is wildly simple so there really aren’t that many things that can be changed! Lol. You can skip the spices and espresso powder, if that’s not your vibe (but you really should try it!). You can replace the oil with melted butter – just be aware that this will result in a drier cake. I have not tested this recipe with gluten-free flour, but I’ve had great results using Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Baking Flour as a direct substitute in many of my recipes, so I would be willing to say that would probably work out here too.
NOW, hop to it! This recipe is super simple and you can have your cakes in the oven and your house smelling divine within the next 15 mins if you go now.
Here’s a short video showing the decorating process:
Happy baking!
Espresso Banana Cake
Ingredients
Cake Layers
- 225 grams ripe bananas (about 1 cup, or 2 large/3 small bananas) mashed
- 218 grams canola oil (1 cup)
- 300 grams granulated sugar (1½ cups)
- 3 eggs room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 240 grams flour (2 cups)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pumpkin spice mix (or make your own spice blend!)
- 2 tsp espresso powder (Nescafe Gold is my fav)
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 oz cream cheese (one brick) room temperature
- 227 grams butter (1 cup) softened
- 260 grams icing sugar (about 2 cups)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp espresso powder
- ½ tsp salt
Espresso Ganache
- 200 grams dark or semi-sweet chocolate chunks
- 100 grams heavy cream (35%)
- 1 tbsp espresso powder
- ½ tsp sea salt
Decor (Optional)
- 1 handful banana chips
- chocolate covered quinoa puffs
Instructions
Cake Layers
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Grease and line 3 6" cake pans with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl mash the 1 bananas with a fork or whisk. Add the canola oil and sugar, and whisk to combine. Then add the eggs one at a time, whisking after each addition. Stir in the vanilla.
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, spices, and espresso powder. Mix until just combined.
- Divide the batter evenly among the 3 prepared pans. Bake in the preheated oven for 36-40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the centre of the cake comes out with a few crumbs (not still wet, not yet dry).
- Allow cakes to cool in the pans for about 5 minutes, and then flip them onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- Beat cream cheese and butter together in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until they are fully incorporated into one smooth mixture.
- Add the icing sugar a little bit at a time, beating after each addition so it does not puff up and make a mess! Then mix in vanilla, espresso powder, and salt.
Espresso Ganache
- Heat the cream until just simmering (either in the microwave or on the stovetop). Add the chocolate chunks, and let that stand for about a minute, until the chocolate softens. Whisk until smooth. Stir in espresso powder and salt.
Assembly
- Stack the 3 cake layers and fill with ganache. Coat in cream cheese frosting. Top with dollops of ganache, banana chips, and chocolate covered quinoa puffs for some crunch!
