Pardon me while I get all bossy on you, BUT you must make this cake.
When I was lil’ Adrianna, I always dreamed about having a big sister. I wanted someone to steal clothes from, teach me how to French braid, paint my nails all gloopy and gross-like, steal my boyfriends (do sisters do this? I watch a lot of romantic comedies) and most importantly, I wanted someone to boss me around. I thought that bossy/bratty dichotomy between elder sister and younger sister seemed so fun.
Instead, I was born the older sister to a younger brother who was victim to a few non-requested beauty “makeovers” and a healthy dose of bossy-Adrianna.
Right now, I’m taking this big sister role seriously and being super bossy and telling you to make this G.D. cake!
(Do not worry! I will paint your nails later.)
This cake might be one of the more delicious things I’ve made in the past few months. I’m pretty pretty pretty in love with it.
And like all good love stories, it starts with butter.
The butter cooks with light brown sugar until it’s all bubbly and caramel-ey. Bourbon is added and then bananas.
The cake batter is added on top and the whole thing goes in the oven.
When it comes out, you’ll have to be super careful when you invert the cake onto a plate or cake stand. A pair of second hands help.
The caramelization will give the bananas pink highlights and since you’re a girl (maybe you aren’t?), you’ll squeal and it’ll be embarrassing.
But seriously, I mean, the bananas turned pink! How awesome is that?
Here’s the flavor low-down with this cake: there isn’t a huge bourbon flavor–it’s just a hint. No bourbon in the house? I give a big NO to plunking down an extra $30 just for this recipe. Whiskey will work, if you have it. Or rum. Oh gosh…rum!
The cake layer isn’t too sweet. The bananas with delicious caramel definitely are sweet. It almost has a flavor reminiscent of smooth, silky toffee. Yum.
I ate this on the warmer side of room temperature with a dollop of barely whipped cream and a cup of coffee.
I was pretty stoked on life.
Ingredients
Cake: 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 3/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
- 4 ounces 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3/4 cups whole milk
Banana Topping:
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
- 3 tablespoons bourbon
- 2-3 medium-sized bananas sliced lengthwise
Instructions
*Before starting this recipe, be sure to read a few notes at the bottom.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a small to medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Next, in a medium bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla; and then mix until the mixture is smooth.
- To the butter and sugar mixture, mix in half of the flour mixture and the milk. Then, mix in the remaining flour mixture, being sure not to over mix.
- In a 12-inch cast iron skillet (*see note below about alternative vessels), melt the butter over medium heat. Mix in the brown sugar and salt and stir until the sugar begins to bubble, about 1 minute. Carefully add the bourbon (the mixture will sizzle!) and mix one more time. Turn off the heat and let stand for a few minutes to cool slightly. Next, arrange the bananas to your liking.
- Pour the batter over the bananas, and spread the batter gently so it's nice and even. Transfer the cast iron skillet to the oven and bake for 35-45 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
- Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes. To invert the cake, place a (large enough) plate on top of the cast iron skillet and turn both of them over; lift up the cast iron skillet and voila! Your cake!
- I like to serve this cake slightly warm with a dollop of whipped cream. And a cup of coffee. Always.
*Note #1: Before you start step #4, I'd recommend arranging your banana slices in the (dry and cool) cast iron skillet, and then transferring them to a nearby cutting board. This way you have a plan as to how you want them to be arranged once the pan is full of bubbling sugar and bourbon. Is this slightly OCD? Yes, but I want your cake to look pretty, too! So this is how.
*Note #2: If you don't have a 12-inch cast iron, you can surely use a 10-inch cast iron skillet or a 10-inch cake pan. If you use a 10-inch cast iron skillet you may have a bit of batter leftover and the cake part will be thicker. No biggie! If you use a 10-inch cake pan, you'll need to do step #4 in a skillet and then pour the caramel mixture into the cake pan.
This cake looks gorgeous. I’ve made a similar cake with mangoes, from the Michael’s Genuine cookbook. The mango cake uses buttermilk, a little cornmeal with the flour and separates the eggs, beating the whites until frothy, before incorporating them back into the batter. The texture is ethereal. I’d like to try a combination of these two recipes.
I tired it and it was awesome!!!!, except it got stuck in my skillet. 🙁 Where did I go wrong? I ended up just slicing and flipping and covering it in whipped cream but I couldn’t make it pretty.
Oh no! It shouldn’t have stuck. The only thing I can think of is that maybe the cast iron skillet that you’re using isn’t super seasoned?
This cake is seriously beautiful! Not to mention it sounds delicious. I’m okay with bourbon in my….everything.
And you sound a lot like the kind of big sister I’ve always been to my little brother (ugh, can’t call him “little” brother, he’s like 6 foot 3)…and I have the pictures of him in a tutu to prove it. But I always dreamed about what having a sister would be like too!
ah!!!!!!!!!!! es rosada!!!!!!!!!!!
que bella, se ve deliciosa, la haré.-
I am definitely making this! It looks SCRUMPTIOUS!!!! I love bananas!
Dang, I’ve been meaning to use the cast iron skillet I bought; perhaps I’ve found its first recipe! Looks so yummy, not to mention pretty!
Caramelized bananas and bourbon? Yes please. I love the idea of trying this with rum instead of bourbon (maybe I just like rum.) Sounds perfect with a cup of coffee.
As a bossy older sister myself, I say fine. I’ll make the cake (holy yum!). But I’m going to get you back some day. You just wait.
How fast can I get to the grocery store to make this cake?
Thanks so much for the clever idea!
And Then The Doorbell Rang
Oh yum, this sounds so good! Caramel and bananas are such a great combination.
As an older sister, I find the bossy thing pretty rad. I’ve never been bossed, though, so being told to make the g-d cake makes me excited and annoyed all at the same time.
PINK BANANAS!
Such a pretty pretty cake! And I love banana cakes and breads but this is entirely a different animal! I’m going to have to try this out once I get me some nanas. I’ve never liked pineapple upside down cake cos I feel it tastes weird but this I can get into.
Yum! We always have banana cake on Christmas Eve. This recipe looks great!
I always wanted sisters too. I had dreams of Little Women-like relationships with sisters. Instead, I got dealt the same hand as you, two younger brothers. So, you can totally boss me into making this cake!
You had me at bourbon!