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!
Michelle
I made this tonight and followed the exact recipe. The cake is delicious. It’s moist, flavorful and easy to make. It popped right out of the pan with no trouble. The brown sugar icing gives it extra flavor, without being overly sweet. This one is a keeper.
Celebrating Sweets
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Brianne
I have made this twice and it went over very well both times!
Moist and delicious!
Celebrating Sweets
I’m glad to hear that! Thanks for taking the time to comment. Enjoy!
Luisa Gibbs
I try your recipe and it came out really perfect. Thank you for sharing with us. We enjoy it!!*****
Cheryl Smith
Absolutely delicious
Celebrating Sweets
I’m glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Victoria
I followed this recipe exactly as written. I’ve made several different banana cakes and you’re right, it IS the best banana cake I’ve ever eaten. It’s a simple no fuss recipe, which I love, and was just deliciously tender and perfectly flavored(not too sweet but just sweet enough). I didn’t do the glaze but just dusted powdered sugar on top. I will definitely give the glaze a try eventually. This is now my go to banana cake recipe. Thank you for sharing!
Celebrating Sweets
I’m glad you liked it! Thanks for the kind review. 🙂 -Allison
Norah
Thank you for this wonderful recipe! Made this last night to chase away some of those dreary February winter feelings, and it was an instant hit! This is such a satisfying no-fuss cake that is moist, not too sweet, and full of banana flavor. I made a lazy daisy topping instead of the brown sugar glaze because we just really like coconut, and it was delicious. Will be making this again!
Celebrating Sweets
I’m glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Cathy Cristofaro
This is so delicious.
Celebrating Sweets
Glad you liked it! 🙂
Mich
I substituted cream cheese for the sour cream and added a large scoop of protein powder. My husband said it’s is hands down the best banana cake recipe he’s ever had. I didn’t make the glaze and the cake is just the perfect sweetness without it.
Celebrating Sweets
I’m glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Kathleen
Nice recipe! I tried to make this for an early morning meeting and in my sleep stupor grabbed a half cup rather than a full cup measure. Didn’t realize until after I had baked it I only put in 1.5 cups of flour and a cup of sugar
And I always add an extra banana to any recipe at the end so I have chunks of banana in the bread.
The result was a super duper moist bundt. I think you could use 2 cups of flour in this recipe and still have an awesome bread. It did get better as it sat cooling and firmed up beautifully
Also used vanilla paste and it was really nice too
Celebrating Sweets
Oh no! Ha! I’m so glad that it worked out anyways. Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Bradley Hall
Realized I did not have any sour cream by the time I read and just subbed it for a little bit of water. Haven’t tried it yet but I had the crumbs and they taste fine so… that’s basically a taste test lol. I have no doubt it will taste good so… yeah thanks for this recipe!
Celebrating Sweets
Glad that worked out for you! Thanks for taking the time to comment. Enjoy! -Allison 🙂
Melissa Hamer
Hi there, I am currently based in Germany and just wondering if your ‘all purpose flour’ includes a raising agent? Also, can you please weigh two sticks of butter for me please? We just have blocks and I am unsure how much a cup would be without mushing it all into a cup measure! haha! I have just made this cake and it’s cooking now so we are excited to taste it, but I am just a bit nervous if the flour I used is correct (it had no raising agent in it – eek!) Thanks for the recipe! I’ll let you know how it turns out! Very easy to pull together so far!
Celebrating Sweets
Hi, Melissa. Two sticks/1 cup of butter is 1/2 pound or 8 ounces. All purpose flour does NOT include leavening (it is just plain flour with nothing extra added). The recipe calls for baking soda, which is the raising agent. I hope you enjoy the cake. Thanks for stopping by!
Melissa
Thanks for the info. And oh my word!! It’s amazing! So moist and delicious! Thanks for the banana cake love!