When you combine caramelized bananas with rum, cinnamon, and a hint of chocolate, the result is nothing short of magic. Transform all of those flavors into a cake and you have achieved true perfection. This banana upside down cake appears unassuming but is surprisingly showstopping–the cake is light and moist, with a perfect chewiness around the edge from the pan. Rum and a hint of cinnamon round out the banana’s flavor and toasted cocoa nibs add a pleasant crunch and a pop of chocolaty nuttiness that is frankly thrilling to eat.
The dessert itself comes together quite quickly and simply. The cake recipe is adapted from the Boozy Baker’s pineapple tequila upside down cake, which yields an incredibly tender and fluffy cake. For this cake, you want bananas that are ripe but do not have too many spots (not the bananas you would use for banana bread) so that they hold their structure.
The cocoa nibs are what take this cake over the top so I strongly recommend that you include them. They can be found on Amazon quite easily or at health food stores. Cocoa nibs are pieces of crushed cacao beans and have a bitter, chocolatey flavor and a slight nuttiness. When toasted, the bitterness mellows out and the intense chocolate flavor comes through. In this cake they play an important role in adding some crunch, since banana is notoriously mushy, and complement the sweetness of the banana through the rich chocolatey notes and hint of bitterness.
When you’re searching for a warming dessert to get you through the cold winter months, this cake does just that. It may be blasphemous to admit, but I think this may have surpassed pineapple upside down cake for me and become my new #1 upside down cake recipe.
Banana upside down cake with cocoa nibs
Course: Cakes and custardsDifficulty: Baking session1
9-inch cake30
minutes40
minutesThis banana upside down cake is tender and fluffy and pairs caramelized bananas with rum, a hint of cinnamon, and toasted cocoa nibs for a pleasant crunch and pop of chocolatey flavor. It is instantly comforting and deeply satisfying.
Ingredients
- For the topping
2 Tbsp cocoa nibs
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup (107g) packed light brown sugar
2 Tbsp rum
pinch of salt
3-4 ripe bananas
- For the cake
1 1/2 cups (180g) all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs (room temperature)
2 Tbsp rum
3/4 cup (180g) buttermilk
Instructions
- Prepare the topping
- Heat a 9-inch cast iron skillet or metal cake pan on the stove. Add in the cacao nibs and toast, stirring a couple of times, for about one minute, until fragrant. Remove the cocoa nibs and add in the butter. Once the butter is melted, stir in the brown sugar, rum, and salt. Cook over medium low heat, stirring frequently, for a couple of minutes until the mixture is smooth and has thickened some. Remove from the heat.
- Sprinkle the toasted cocoa nibs on top of the caramel mixture, distributing evenly across the top. Slice the bananas lengthwise into thirds, so that you have three long strips for each banana. Arrange the bananas in the pan, cut-side down, packing them tightly in a single layer on the bottom. Set aside.
- Prepare the cake batter
- Preheat the oven to 350F. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together flour, salt, cinnamon, baking powder, and baking soda.
- In a separate large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, beat together sugar and butter until lightened in color and fluffy, about 2-4 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Quickly beat in rum and vanilla.
- Stir in about one-third of the flour mixture, until combined. Then pour in half of the buttermilk. Alternate, adding the next third of flour, the rest of the buttermilk, and then the final portion of flour, stirring between each round just until combined.
- Pour the cake batter into the pan over the bananas, and use a spatula to smooth out the surface. Bake for approximately 40-45 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Let cool for 15 minutes, run a knife around the edge to loosen the cake and flip over onto a serving plate. Serve as is or with some unsweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Notes
- If you would like to make this alcohol-free, you can remove the rum from the topping and add an extra 2 Tbsp of buttermilk to the cake batter.
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