Banana Bundt Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze – Thick and soft banana cake with a tender buttery crumb, topped with a decadent Brown Sugar Glaze. The BEST Banana Cake EVER!
This here is the only banana cake recipe you will need from now until the end of time. This is the BEST banana cake I have ever (I mean, ever!) sunk my teeth into.
Note: I now buy bananas, ban my family from consuming them, then wait for them to ripen so I can immediately bake this cake.
Also to be noted, I might need to move up one pants size if this banana cake habit doesn’t quit. Wah.
Prefer a sheet cake? Try this Banana Cake topped with vanilla frosting.
Prefer a different flavor? Try this Pumpkin Bundt Cake.
I have been on a search for the perfect banana cake for months. I went back and forth about whether it should be a sheet cake or a bundt cake. What should I top it with? Cream cheese frosting? Brown sugar glaze? Chocolate? Decisions, decisions.
All my testing landed me on this recipe, which comes from the brilliant Dorie Greenspan.
Banana Bundt Cake
I made very few changes to the cake recipe itself, and I would call it perfect. Nearly two cups of mashed bananas add the banana flavor, sour cream adds moisture and balances out the sweetness, vanilla extract compliments the bananas, and the right amount of butter creates a tender crumb. See what I said about perfect?
I resisted the urge to add cinnamon or chocolate chips in order to really allow the bananas to shine. I am so, so, happy with how this cake turned out. Its flavor and consistency are spot on.
This cake can absolutely hold its own as-is, without the brown sugar glaze. You can serve it plain, dusted with powdered sugar, or with a smear of salted butter. But, because I am a “more is more” type of girl, I went ahead and whipped up a brown sugar glaze to pour over this beautiful Banana Bundt Cake.
Brown Sugar Glaze
This quick and easy glaze is made with butter, brown sugar and vanilla. It tastes like carmel-praline-brown sugar heaven. It slowly drips down the sides of the cake, coating each bite with sweet and buttery deliciousness. The glaze firms up quickly, which means you don’t have to wait too long before diving in.
Bonus: the glaze also acts like glue if you choose to garnish your cake with chopped walnuts or pecans.
Now, what are you waiting for? You know you want a slice of this cake. Bake, eat, share and enjoy.
P.S. There’s bananas in it, so it can totally be eaten for breakfast, right? Morning, noon, or night – I will never, ever turn down a slice of this beauty.
MORE BANANA RECIPES: BEST EVER BANANA BREAD – BANANA BROWN SUGAR FRENCH TOAST – BANANA BAKED OATMEAL
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Recipe
Banana Bundt Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze
Ingredients
Cake:
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 ⅔ cups granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ¾ cups mashed very ripe bananas, approx 4 bananas
- 1 cup sour cream, I used light
Brown Sugar Icing:
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, cut into cubes
- ½ cup brown sugar, packed
- 2 tablespoons milk
- ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- ¼ cup chopped toasted walnuts or pecans
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- With a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter until smooth and creamy. Add sugar and beat for another minute, at medium speed, scraping down the bowl as necessary. Add vanilla, then beat in 1 egg at a time. Mix in bananas (the mixture might curdle, that’s ok).
- Add half of the dry ingredients, sour cream, and then the remaining dry ingredients, mixing between each addition.
- Thoroughly grease a 12-cup bundt pan and add the batter to the pan. Rap the pan on the counter a couple times (to remove air bubbles), then smooth out the top. Bake for 55-65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Loosely cover the cake with foil if it starts to get dark (this was around 30 minutes for me). Place the pan on a wire rack until it is cool enough to handle, then carefully unmold the cake and place it back on the rack to cool completely.
Icing:
- In a small saucepan combine butter, brown sugar and milk. Bring to a simmer, whisking frequently and cook until the sugar is dissolved, a minute or two. Remove from the heat and cool for 5 minutes.
- Add vanilla, whisking to combine. Add powdered sugar ¼ cup at a time, whisking vigorously, until you reach your desired consistency. The icing will start to firm up quickly so have the cake cooled and ready. Drizzle the icing over the cake and immediately sprinkle with nuts. The icing will set in a matter of minutes.
Nutrition
Nutritional Information is an estimate based on third-party calculations and may vary based on products used and serving sizes.
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and rating below!
Robert Studer
As much as I was amazed at how good this cake is, guests were even more impressed. Used to use the ripened bananas for banana bread, but this cake s primo and will be made quite a bit more. Only enhancement I did was add 1 tsp of nutmeg to the dry ingredients. Subtle enhancement and does not detract from a very flavorful dessert.
Allison
I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe. Thanks for stopping by!
Natalee
Love this recipe! I make it every time I have over ripe bananas! It’s a favorite!
Allison
That’s great to hear! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Tracy Orange
I’m curious to know if anything needs adapting to turn these into muffins. The best I’ve ever had ❤️
Allison
Hi, Tracy. I haven’t tried it but I would assume you could scoop the batter into a muffin pan. Obviously the bake time will be reduced. Start checking the muffins around 15 minutes. Here is my favorite banana muffin recipe if you want to try that: Banana Nut Muffins
Thanks for stopping by!
Cass
Do you think I could make this into a layer cake and put glaze on in between each layer? It’s so good!
Allison
Hi! I think the cake itself would be fine, not sure about the glaze. I do have a brown sugar frosting if you want to try that: brown sugar cream cheese frosting.
Katy
This cake turned out SO GOOD! It was extremely moist and delicious. I baked it the minimum time and did as she said with the foil.
Allison
I’m so glad! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
CC
My son absolutely adores this cake I’m a frequent baker and he said this was the best cake I ever made
Is it possible to freeze it?
Allison
Hi! Thanks for the kind review. You can definitely freeze leftover slices but I’ve never frozen the whole cake. Thanks for stopping by!
Jorie
Hey I made this, I didn’t have sour cream so I used cream cheese turned out great!
Allison
That’s great to hear! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Elaine
Can you use Greek Yogurt in place of the sour cream?
Allison
Sure! Enjoy!
Colleen
I have made this cake so many times and it is always a hit. My only question is: Can it be frozen?
Allison
Hi, Colleen. The cake should freeze just fine. The icing might thin out after freezing and thawing. Enjoy!
Carol
I accidentally used baking powder, not baking soda and have no clue how that will affect this recipe since it’s still in the oven. Would welcome comments.
Rina
I love love love this recipe. Have tried it twice and both times it was a hit for my family! I have decided that this is my go to recipe for banana cake. Thank you so much for sharing.
Allison
You’re welcome! I’m glad you enjoyed it.
Cindy Weise
Absolutely delicious.. the brown sugar glaze really adds to the flavor and appearance.. then topped with pecans.. this cake is so moist!!
Allison
I’m glad you enjoyed it!