Chocolate Banana Cake

4.75 from 4 votes

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A cake for any time of day -- that's a cake we can all get behind.

Fork and a slice of Chocolate Banana Cake on a plate.
Slice of Chocolate Banana Cake topped with whipped cream.

The combination of chocolate and bananas kind of never fails. This cake is super moist, and has what I consider the right level of sweetness to qualify as breakfast, a snack, or—with some whipped cream or sweetened crème fraiche—dessert.  A cake for any time of day—that’s a cake we can all get behind.

When I was a kid the first recipes I made ALL THE TIME were Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookies and Bisquick Coffee Cake  I remember waking up early on a weekend morning and making that coffee cake, so pleased with myself.  I also remember making such a huge mess that my mom was never as excited as I’d hoped she’s be about the cake, but more pissed about the explosion I’d created in the kitchen.

Chocolate Banana Cake in a pan.

Now it’s my husband who is less than thrilled about the mess, but somehow still happy to see the food.

And of course there were leftovers, and this was also the first time I realized a cake could be a breakfast food, a snack food, an anytime of day cake.  This was a very good discovery.  In Dinner Solved there is a Berry Coffee Cake which is another any-time-of-day cake.  A dollop of whipped cream or a sprinkle of powdered sugar can also turn an anytime of day cake into a dessert. Try whipped chocolate ganache for another topping option!

These are valuable life lessons.  I hope you have a pen to jot down notes.

Plate with a fork and a slice of Chocolate Banana Cake topped with whipped cream.

This Chocolate Banana Cake is super moist, and has what is just the right level of sweetness to qualify as breakfast, a snack, or dessert.

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More Banana Dessert Recipes:

And if you like baking with bananas as much as I do…

Fork and a slice of Chocolate Banana Cake on a plate.

Other Breakfast Cake Recipes:

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4.75 from 4 votes

Chocolate Banana Cake

A cake for any time of day — that’s a cake we can all get behind.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Cooling time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 10 People

Ingredients 

  • 1 ¾ cups all purpose flour
  • cup cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter softened
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 3 large ripe bananas well mashed
  • ½ cup semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch square or round cake tin.
  • In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.
  • In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugars with an electric mixer. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Mix in the vanilla, then beat in the mashed banana.
  • Turn the flour mixture into the banana mixture in two batches and stir until just blended. Mix in the chocolate chips.
  • Scrape the batter into the pan, smooth the top and bake for about 35 minutes, until a wooden skewer either comes out clean or with a little bit of melted chocolate from the chips. The top of the cake should feel springy but firm.
  • Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then turn the cake out of the pan and finish cooling, upright, on the wire rack.

Notes

This was also the first time I realized a cake could be a breakfast food, a snack food, an anytime of day cake.  This was a very good discovery.  In Dinner Solved there is a Berry Coffee Cake which is another any-time-of-day cake.  A dollop of whipped cream or a sprinkle of powdered sugar can also turn an anytime of day cake into a dessert. Try whipped chocolate ganache for another topping option!

Nutrition

Calories: 295.05kcal, Carbohydrates: 39.13g, Protein: 4.59g, Fat: 14.1g, Saturated Fat: 8.35g, Cholesterol: 57.68mg, Sodium: 244.58mg, Potassium: 144.9mg, Fiber: 2.32g, Sugar: 19.21g, Vitamin A: 331.16IU, Calcium: 29.31mg, Iron: 2.21mg
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About Katie Workman

Katie Workman is a cook, a writer, a mother of two, an activist in hunger issues, and an enthusiastic advocate for family meals, which is the inspiration behind her two beloved cookbooks, Dinner Solved! and The Mom 100 Cookbook.

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7 Comments

  1. My wooden stick came out clean but when I cut it the middle looks not cooked, but the taste is very good. Help!!

    1. that’s odd! Did you stick the wooden stick right in the center of the cake? Was the top super browned (some ovens might do that if the temp is running too high), and then the crust of the top might have scraped off the batter as it was pulled out. Check your oven temp with an oven thermometer?

  2. Fantastic! I made it yesterday for Easter. It’s a nice alternative way to use ripe bananas other than banana bread!