Monday 6 February 2017

Banana Bread Caramel Layer Cake

banana bread sandwiched with fudgy frosting and drizzled with caramel

We had our friends Elaine and Gary over for dinner on Saturday. They hadn't been to see the new house yet, so up they came and I made a meal of lasagne and garlic bread for us to enjoy.

As always, in the Cakeyboi household though, dessert is the main event and I decided to make banana bread pimped up slightly.

banana bread sandwiched with fudgy frosting and drizzled with caramel

I had some frozen bananas in the freezer, which I find is the best way to use them in any baking. You defrost them and the skins turn black. The centres mush right down and slide out of the blackened skins very easily and are a much more concentrated banana flavour.

I set about making the banana bread batter, with some added cinnamon, and instead of baking it in a loaf tin, I split the mix between two 8" round cake tins.

How to sandwich my two layers of banana bread together? Well, I took inspiration from none other than Delia Smith, the original domestic goddess, and used her recipe for fudge icing. But, as it turns out, it tasted much more like Scottish Tablet!

banana bread sandwiched with fudgy frosting and drizzled with caramel

I was in my element with this concoction of evaporated milk, butter and dark brown sugar, melted together then cooled. To this I added icing sugar and the result was a sweet, fudgy frosting which went nicely between the two layers of the cake and over the sides.

banana bread sandwiched with fudgy frosting and drizzled with caramel

I went for that semi-smothered look on purpose, with bits of the cake still peeking through the thin coating of frosting. The last addition really took the cake to next level...

I bought a tin of caramel. It's just like the tins of condensed milk, but pre-boiled and caramelised for you. None of this boiling a sealed can in a water filled saucepan. Seriously, did people actually do that back in the day? It must have been so dangerous.

banana bread sandwiched with fudgy frosting and drizzled with caramel


Thankfully now the caramel pops straight out of the can. I popped it straight on to the top of my cake, which I had chilled for a while, before eeking the caramel to the edges and letting it drizzle down. Pure food porn!

To add a bit of height, I finished the cake with some chocolate curls things which were like chocolate Pringles. But this was entirely optional and you could top your cake with anything you fancy.

banana bread sandwiched with fudgy frosting and drizzled with caramel

The cake went down well and Elaine took some home with her. A success I would say.

It tasted super banana(y) and the tablet tasting frosting really complemented the fruitiness of the cake. The caramel was just sheer indulgence and completely unnecessary, but oh so good!!

Here's how I made it...



print recipe

Banana Bread Caramel Layer Cake
Banana Bread Sandwiched with a fudgy frosting and drizzled with caramel
Ingredients
  • 4 ripe, mushed bananas
  • 330 grams granulated sugar
  • 165ml vegetable oil
  • 4 medium eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 330 grams plain flour
  • 20 grams unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • Pinch of salt
  • 120 ml evaporated milk
  • 6 tablespoons dark brown sugar
  • 100 grams unsalted butter
  • 50 grams icing sugar
  • 1 tablespoons milk (optional)
Instructions
Line the base of two 8" cake tins with greaseproof paper and grease the sides. Preheat the oven to 180CIn a mixer, cream together the oil and sugar until pale and creamy.Add the eggs, vanilla and mashed bananas beating these in.Sift in the the flour, bicarb, cinnamon and salt. Mix into the wet ingredients just until combined.Divide the mix equally between the two cake tins and bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from the centre of the cakes Remove from the oven and allow to cool fullyIn a saucepan melt together the evaporated milk, butter and dark brown sugar then boil for about five minutes then allow to cool for about 10 minutes.Transfer to a bowl and beat in the icing sugar until a buttercream consistency is achieved. If the mix is too thick, add some milk to loosen it a little.Chill the cake in the fridge for around 10 minutes and open a can of caramel. Loosen the caramel by stirring it.Spoon four or five dessert spoonfuls of the caramel over the cake and let it drizzle down the sides by gently spreading it over the edges.Refrigerate until ready to enjoy.
Details
Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: 1 x 8" cake.


banana bread sandwiched with fudgy frosting and drizzled with caramel

8 comments:

  1. Looks and sounds great. Thanks for the banana freezing tip!

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  2. This sounds and looks insanely good, I could definitely do with a big slice right about now :)

    Rachael xx.
    theteacozykitchen.blogspot.co.uk

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love the look of this one, must get some bananas into the freezer ready to slide out of their blackened skins very easily... I read that part in a Nigella voice I have to admit... Lovely!

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    Replies
    1. I can almost imagine you reading it a la Nigella too - scary!

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  4. Now that's one seriously decadent cake. Loving the dribbling caramel down the sides!
    I had a friend who regularly used to boil cans of condensed milk to make banoffee pie. One day, the saucepan boiled dry and the can exploded..... literally. It just missed her son and completely destroyed her new kitchen. Put me off ever boiling a can for sure!

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    Replies
    1. I would never attempt it - scares the bejesus out of me!

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