Why make banana bread when you can make banana cake? But really, isn’t it the same thing, the same batter just baked in different pans? The answer is yes, yes it is.
Whatever you call it, (bread, cake, muffins), it is banana and everyone loves it so who the heck cares what it is called. This banana cake is basic with the basic stuff but I decided to add some raspberry jam swirl to the mix. Raspberry jam because well I had raspberry jam and banana and raspberry are a great paring. And I made the swirls into hearts because well I love hearts and also it doesn’t hurt that Valentines day is this weekend so it just made all the since to me. I mean, just look at it. It is a stunner of a cake if I do say so myself. And I know that it taste just as good, especially since the mr ate half of it in one day.
Again, people love them their banana cake (bread, and or muffins) so you really can’t go wrong with this one.
Now to the banana cake!
The stuff. Ripe and ready bananas, flour, baking soda and powder, salt, sugar, oil, vanilla, apple cider vinegar, and raspberry jam.
So now make the batter. Peel bananas and mash them up in a big bow with a fork. Pretty mashed up, almost pureed but with some small chunks. Add in the oil, sugar, vanilla, and vinegar and mix until mixed then add in the dry and mix everything is incorporated.
Banana cake batter.
Dump batter into a well greased cake pan.
Now warm up the jam for a few seconds in the microwave just so it thins out a little. Not completely luquid, just lose. Take a small spoon and dollop jam all over top of batter.
Now to make the jam heart swirls, all you do is take a sharp knife, stick it into the jam blobs and pull down. They might not be perfect but that is perfect. And if you don’t care for hearts just swirl sharp knife all around the blobs to look however the way you want it to look.
Once swirls, pop the cake into a the hot oven and bake for 45-50 minutes or until the top is a nice deep golden brown and a tester comes out.
Just look at that. Gorgeous! Let cool for a few minutes then carefully pop it out of the pan and let it finish cooling on a wire rack.
Now you eat cake.
-C
Raspberry Swirl Banana Snack Cake
makes a 10 inch round cake
2 cups all purpose or white whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 bananas
1/2 cup oil
3/4 cup white sugar
2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 heaping tablespoons raspberry jam (can substitute any flavor jam you want)
Preheat oven to 350
Peel bananas and place into a large bowl. With a fork, mash until pureed. Some chunks are good, but not too chunky. Add in the oil, sugar, vanilla, and vinegar. Mix until completely incorporated. Add in the flour, baking powder and soda, and salt gently mix into wet until just incorporated then dump into a greased 9-10 inch round cake pan. (You can use a rectangle if you want)
Grab jam and heat up in microwave for 20-30 seconds or until warm and it has become more lose but not super runny. Take a small spoon and add dollops of the lose jam all over top of cake. Take a sharp knife and run it through each dollop into the cake to create a heart. Or just run the knife through all the jam blobs and swirl it around.
Pop cake into hot oven and bake for 45-55 minutes or until top of cake is a nice deep brown and a cake tester comes out clean.
Remove form oven and let cool in pan for a few minutes then carefully remove cake form pan place on a wore rack to finish cooling.
Eat whenever.
Sore in airtight container on counter or 3-4 days. Or refrigerator a week.