It’s baking season! Let’s get after it with this brown sugar banana pound cake.
Well, maybe it’s more accurate to say that here in the middle-west that it was baking season for two days before temps jumped back into their summer selves. Nevertheless, we know it’s just around the corner so there’s no time like the present to get the oven preheating.
I had a friend over for brunch a few weekends ago and I always struggle on this point with what to make. Sweet? Savory? Both is the answer, obviously and always. But…what sweet and what savory? That is the question.
One of my savory brunch go-tos is shakshuka but I just wasn’t in the mood for that. Biscuits and gravy? Too rich. Eggs and bacon? Too boring. I settled on a lovely sweet potato hash, the recipe for which I will impart to you in due time.
Now, for the sweet stuff, I dug into my family recipe archives for one of my favorites- a brown sugar pound cake recipe that was one of my dad’s favorite and the recipe for which sits, handwritten by him, in my mom’s recipe box to this day. It brings a smile to my face just picturing it in my mind.
But, this recipe, which you’ve actually seen before got a little reinvented. A twist!
Just so happens that I had a very black banana just waiting to be used and so I subbed out a bit of butter and threw that in. I halved the OG recipe to make it into a handy loaf, and the result was very nice and very well received by my company.
So, should you have need of a sweet for a brunch near you, I highly recommend this gem.
What do I need to make a brown sugar banana pound cake?
- One very ripe banana
- The baking basics- butter, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, baking powder and flour.
- Raw sugar for the crust.
- Whipped cream, optional, but for extra happiness.
Note- the baking time below seems very long. It is. This cake is very dense (I’d forgotten how dense) and even though I checked for doneness after an hour, the whole 90 minutes it took.
Finally, a raw sugar crust around the edge makes this even nicer and a raw sugar whipped cream adds the perfect dollop. Do give it a try – I promise, no regrets.
Brown Sugar Banana Pound Cake
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 ripe medium banana about 1/3 cup smashed
- 1 ½ cups packed light brown sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup whole milk
- raw sugar to coat the loaf pan
- whipped cream, to serve optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F.
- Butter and sugar a loaf pan. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer, add the butter and the sugar. Beat on high speed for 7 minutes, stopping every now and again to scrape down the sides until the mixture is light colored and fluffy. Add the mashed banana and eggs, one at a time, beating well in between each addition. Once all the eggs have been added, beat an additional 4-5 minutes until all is well incorporated. Add the vanilla, salt and baking powder. Mix well.
- Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add the flour and milk, alternating, starting and ending with the flour. Mix until just combined.
- Spread the batter evenly around the tube pan. Bake 1:15-1:30, until a cake tester comes out clean. Let cool in the pan about 15 minutes and then let cool completely.
- Serve with whipped cream if desired.