One Bowl Banana Cake Recipe

This one bowl banana cake is easy to make with a tender crumb and rich banana flavor! It’s topped with a light and fluffy cream cheese frosting that makes it a treat for snack or dessert.

This one bowl banana cake is my new favorite way to use ripe bananas! While I love my classic banana bread and old fashioned banana cake, this easy banana cake is made in only one bowl then topped with a creamy cream cheese frosting. 

It has a light and fluffy cake texture and the overripe bananas keep the cake super moist so it can stay fresh for days! If you love banana recipes, you will also love these banana crumb muffins and pecan caramel banana cake. 

 Why I Love This Banana Cake in One Bowl

• Simple cake: Easy banana cake is made in one bowl which means less bowls to wash!
• Flavorful: This light and fluffy homemade banana cake recipe has the best banana flavor and the sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting is the icing on the top.

Easy Banana Cake Ingredients

• Cake flour: Cake flour will result in a more tender crumb. DIY cake flour by whisking together ¾ cup all purpose flour and 2 Tablespoons cornstarch.
• Granulated sugar: Regular granulated sugar is best in this cake instead of brown sugar. 
• Baking powder and baking soda: Both are leavening agents for lift and rise.
• Salt: Adjust salt as needed according to if you use salted butter or unsalted butter.
• Ripe bananas: Ripe and spotty bananas are what you need for the best banana flavor not green or yellow bananas. One cup mashed bananas is usually equal to two or three bananas.
• Butter: Remember to soften butter to room temperature so it combines easily with the cake recipe.
• Buttermilk: Adds moisture and a slight tang to this easy banana cake recipe. 
• Eggs: Two large eggs add binding and moisture.
• Vanilla extract: Adds rich flavor to the cake.
• Cream cheese frosting: Butter, softened cream cheese, vanilla, powdered sugar and cream (or milk). 

How to Make One Bowl Banana Cake

In a large bowl whisk dry ingredients including flour, white sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Add wet ingredients including mashed bananas, butter, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla then using a mixer, beat on medium speed.

Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake until done. Cool in the pan, then move to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Make cream cheese frosting by using an electric mixture to combine butter, vanilla and cream cheese until creamy. Add powdered sugar a little at a time with the cream and beat until fluffy.

Once the cake is cooled, frost with cream cheese frosting before serving.

Tips for the Best Banana Cake in One Bowl

• One-bowl no mixer banana cake: If you would like to skip using a mixer, you can. Just use a good whisk and ensure all your ingredients are room temperature.
• Overly ripe bananas: Really ripe bananas are key for a flavorful banana cake! Use bananas with black and brown spots. The darker the bananas the sweeter the cake.
• Mix-ins: Add warm flavor with a pinch of cinnamon, stir in chocolate chips like I do in my banana chocolate chip muffins or add nuts like in my cranberry banana nut bread.
• Don’t overmix the cake. For a moist cake, only mix ingredients until batter is combined. Otherwise your cake will be dry and dense. 
• Test for doneness: Avoid overbaking the cake. Remove cake from the oven when a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean with only a few crumbs attached. 
• Garnish: Decorate the cake with sliced bananas and candied walnuts before serving.
• Frosting: While I love this banana cake with cream cheese frosting, you can use other fast and easy frostings like a classic vanilla buttercream. 

What is the difference between banana cake and banana bread?

Banana cake is a bit more sweet and best served as a dessert, much like a yellow cake or chocolate cake! It has a light and fluffy crumb while banana bread is more dense and texture with a less sweet taste. 

How to soften butter quickly?

For this one bowl banana cake to mix properly, it’s important that the butter is softened to room temperature.

If you forgot to set it out, you can soften it quicker by dicing it into smaller pieces. You can also boil a cup of water, pour the water out then place the cup over the butter. The residual steam should soften it quickly. You could also use the microwave but reduce the power and microwave it in 10-15 second increments while rotating the butter on all sides to ensure it doesn’t melt.

Can I make this into different cake sizes?

This recipe is best in an 8 inch or 9 inch round cake, 9×9 inch square baking or 8×8 inch square baking pan. You can also double the recipe and bake it in a sheet pan. Or you could make the recipe into cupcakes and bake for 15-18 minutes. 

Can I use oil instead of butter? 

Yes, if you would like to make banana cake with oil instead of butter it’s easy to do! Just simply swap oil for butter on a 1:1 basis. I recommend using a neutral oil like vegetable oil or canola oil. 

More Easy Cake Recipes

This has become one of our favorite quick and easy banana cake recipes that I make quite often. I hope you enjoy it too! Enjoy.

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