I love when Gus's birthday rolls around because it's one of the rare times that I make a two-layer cake. This year he asked for a chocolate/banana combination - one of my favorite flavor pairings - so I was more than happy to oblige.
Gus asked for a chocolate banana cake last year as well, but the results were less than stellar. The layers were dense and deflated; the heavy ganache icing, though delicious, only flattened them further. This year I consulted various sources for a good recipe, and settled on one I came across on a couple blogs, originally from
Southern Cakes cookbook by Nancie McDermott.
It's a banana cake - composed of buttermilk, mashed ripe bananas, and the usual suspects - paired with a buttery chocolate frosting. Now, before I proceed, I must admit I'm not very well versed in cakes (unless you count all the hours of "Ace of Cakes" and Food Network Challenge cake editions I've absorbed). And I have to semi-retract the statement made in my
cupcakes post about baking relying almost solely on a recipe, because cakes - even amateur ones - are an art, requiring skill, time, and patience. It's difficult to get them to rise perfectly, to cook evenly, to achieve layers level, to ice properly.
That being said, I think this recipe is pretty uncomplicated - aside from the frosting issue, which I will address in a moment (and which can be avoided). I did the batter in my KitchenAid (Jean I am forever indebted to you for this wonderful machine); and barely folded in the mashed bananas before popping the cake pans into the oven. They browned in 35 minutes. It was minimal effort, really.
The frosting was a bit of a different story. I was initially drawn to the recipe, in fact, for its frosting intrigue. It calls for
½ cup (1 stick) butter
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/3 cup evaporated milk or half-an-half
4 cups sifted confectioners sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
I liked the idea of using evaporated milk - I can see how it would add a nice consistency - but what I found even more interesting was the fact that the frosting is to be cooked on the stove. Oh, and I guess
this picture had something to do with my wanting to give it a go.
Unfortunately, my frosting did not turn out so well. One reason may have been the lumpy cocoa powder I brought out of hibernation from my cabinet nook. If you're going to try this frosting method, I would recommend buying a high quality cocoa powder and/or sifting it to get a fine consistency, because the lumps are really difficult to break up once you add it to the butter. I would also advise keeping an overly cautious eye on the stove, stirring constantly over medium-low heat. I thought I was being pretty attentive, but before I knew it I had puddles of liquefied cocoa sloshing around in a pot of simmering butter.
So I discarded it and opted for Plan B, which was to start over and skip the stove-top part altogether. (One of the
bloggers I read did the same thing.) The result was basically a buttercream frosting, which ended up being the perfect consistency for the moist, springy banana cake. The light, whipped consistency was also easy to spread. I smushed it around with a butter knife without paying too much attention and it came out pretty nice.
I'm going to go ahead and say it: I think this one was a success. Despite the minor frosting blip, the cake came together really well. The slices cut perfectly, and four days later, it still tastes great chilled from the fridge. This is one cake recipe I will likely make again.
