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Dear Reader,
Tired of same old, same old, I'm experimenting with new cake recipes. My family's favorite is my chocolate cake and I doubt that will ever change, but I've decided to venture out beyond chocolate. Bananas were my first attempt and it was thumbs up on family reviews. The Southern Banana Cake I made is a 3-layer cake, too big for my husband and I to eat. But after sharing the cake with family and knocking on neighbors' doors, "I baked, would you like two slices of cake?" no one turned me down. The recipe is from "Divas Can Cook."
An interesting thing about this recipe, the cake bakes at only 275 degrees. A note from the recipe's author says: "The low baking time is correct. Baking this banana cake at such a low temperature results in a moist cake. Cooking times can vary greatly for some reason. My grandmother has to cook this cake for one hour and my sister bakes it for 47 minutes and in my oven it's 35 minutes. Strange. Just check on it at the 30 minute mark."
The cake only needed 27 minutes in my oven. You don't wait until there's nothing clinging to a toothpick inserted into the center. When moist crumbs cling to the toothpick, the cake is done. Enjoy!
Southern Banana Cake (Moist & Fluffy)
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups bananas, mashed (about 3 large bananas)
2 teaspoons lemon juice
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons butter (1-1/2 sticks), room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
Real Cream Cheese Frosting
4 (8 oz) packs cream cheese, softened at room temperature
16 tablespoons butter (2 sticks), softened at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
Preheat oven to 275 F. Generously grease and lightly flour 3 (9 inch) round cake pans. Set aside.
In a small bowl combine bananas and lemon juice. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla extract.
Mix dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, alternating with the buttermilk. Fold in bananas. Pour batter evenly into the prepared pans.
Bake for 35 - 40 minutes (normally), but see my note above. When moist crumbs cling to a toothpick inserted in the center, take pans out of oven and let cool in pans until pans are warm to the touch. (Do not overcook, the cake continues to cook as it cools.) Carefully remove cakes from pans and allow to cool completely before frosting.
Let me know if you try the recipe and how long it took to bake in your oven. It's real good.
Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.
Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
** AUTHORBUZZ **
STILL LIFE WITH MONKEY (Fiction) by Katharine Weber
I'm excited to tell you about my sixth novel! Duncan Wheeler's car accident has left him paralyzed and haunted by a death. Why live? His desperate wife Laura brings home a helper monkey. Can she help Duncan adapt to this altered life? Or does she hold the key to his exit? Set in New Haven, this is the story of a marriage, and how the accident and this little monkey both affect their marriage, bonding them in new if bittersweet ways.
Go to AUTHORBUZZ click STILL LIFE WITH MONKEY to read more and to email author Katharine Weber, you'll get a reply.
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