https://www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/hummingbird-cake • Posted by Jessie Oleson
Talk about things that will make you hum a happy tune: how about this moist banana spice cake, more sophisticated and delicious than any banana bread could hope to be, covered with swaths of cream cheese frosting ? Having trouble picturing it? An enlightened baker introduced me to the cake as being “like carrot cake, but with bananas.” While it's not quite that exact, it gives you a pretty good idea of what to expect.
Talk about things that will make you hum a happy tune: how about this moist banana spice cake, more sophisticated and delicious than any banana bread could hope to be, covered with swaths of cream cheese frosting ? Having trouble picturing it? An enlightened baker introduced me to the cake as being “like carrot cake, but with bananas.” While it's not quite that exact, it gives you a pretty good idea of what to expect.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour three round 9-inch cake pans.
Sift the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together several times. Put into a large bowl and set aside.
Add the eggs and oil to the dry ingredients. Stir with a wooden spoon until ingredients are evenly moistened. Stir in the vanilla, pineapple, and the pecans. Add the bananas and stir just until combined. The batter will be very thick.
Divide the batter equally between the prepared cake pans. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then run a small knife around the pan, loosening the edges of the cakes. Turn out onto a cooling rack, and let the cakes cool completely before frosting.
To make the frosting, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla. Beat at medium-high speed until the mixture has a very smooth consistency; pause occasionally to scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the confectioners' sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition, until the frosting is smooth and spreadable.
Place one cake layer, flat side up, on a serving plate; spread 3/4 cup of frosting on top. Leave a half-inch margin all around, as the weight of the second cake layer will push the frosting to the edges. Repeat with the second layer. Place the third cake layer, flat side up, on top of the frosted layers. Frost the sides and then the top; garnish by sprinkling more chopped pecans around the top edges of the cake.
Serve at room temperature. Because the cream cheese frosting is sensitive to heat, store lightly covered in the refrigerator for up to three days; let come to room temperature before serving.