Banana Cake from a Banana-phobic

Cake ingredients with baking flow chart

How good can a banana cake be when it is baked by a banana-phobic? Pretty much.

Even though I have a fear of eating bananas due to some irrelevant childhood experience , I can live with the smell of sweet overripe bananas in my kitchen. That is, as long as the lizards do not dance around to catch the flies hovering over them .

When the other 2 banana lovers saw the deteriorating condition of the suffering fruit in the pantry , their incessant complaints prompted an eureka moment and uncharacteristically of me, I decided to make a cake out of it.

I chose this simple recipe, since I did not wish to make a big issue out of 4 suicidal bananas, and opted for  cake flour instead of plain flour for a lighter texture. The bananas  were also mashed coarsely so that my cake tasters can enjoy banana  morsels.  On the flip side, due to the above actions, the bananas sank to the bottom of the cake resulting in a more moist and denser bottom layer. 

As any respectable cook would do, I tried my own creation, phobia or not. I could see why my folks liked it but I would snack sparingly on  the crusty edges anytime, which attracted the least bananas.

Credits : Greatly inspired by thelittleteochew.blogspot.com

Makes 1 6x6 inch tray cake

A )

125g cake flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

B)

4 del monte ( ripe ) bananas , peeled

25g fresh milk

1 tsp rum

90g canola oil

C)

1 egg, room temperature

70g fine sugar

D)

1 handful walnuts, toasted and crushed ( with the palm )

Method :

Prepare a 6 inch baking tray. Grease and dust with flour. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 170C.

In bowl A, sift flours under (A). Set aside.

In bowl B, combine bananas , milk, rum and oil. Mash with a potato masher. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk on high speed egg , for 2 minutes, until it is pale and fluffy. Add sugar and whisk on high for another 2 minutes.

Add banana mixture into egg mixture. Whisk briefly to combine.

Sift flour mixture over banana batter. Use a manual whisk to combine, in one direction. Do not over  whisk. Stop when flour specks are not visible. Alternatively, use a spatula to do the job.

Transfer batter to the tray and top it with the walnuts.

Bake the  cake at 170C for 45-50 minutes or until cake is cooked. It is ready when skewer pierced into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Cool cake in tray on a rack for 5 minutes.

Remove cake and cool further.