Simply the Best Banana Cake

Memories are funny things, and I always find that my mind is especially focused on them during exam times whether its trying to recall the area of forest cut down each year in the Amazon Basin or it’s the conclusion of my literature essay. I find the brain pretty spectacular in its ability to store so much information but not always the right kind, as the lyrics to my new favorite song isn’t the most helpful thing to remember in a math exam. But for some reason certain memories stay with us, and this recipe is definitely one of them. 

Easy, basic and a little bit ugly isn’t usually something I would look for in a cake, but ever since an old family friend shared the recipe, the ‘Simply the Best banana cake’ became a family favorite which I will always remember.  

The reason I love this beautiful little mess of a cake is two-fold. Firstly it's one of those cakes which is versatile, you can change the recipe depending on what its needed for, add nuts when you’re feeling healthy, or chocolate chips for an afternoon tea, and even coat it in frosting for a birthday/event. Secondly it’s a bit of a slap-dash cake, as it only has 6 ingredients and the method is simple,which sometimes is just what you need at the end of the day.

Simply the Best Banana Cake

INGREDIENTS

2 ½ Cups Self-Raising flour, sifted

1 t baking soda, sifted

1 cup caster sugar

4 eggs

2 ½ cups mashed banana (about 4 bananas)

1 cup sunflower or vegetable oil

* In this one I added 1 cup chopped walnuts

Frosting:

I use the ‘Perfect Chocolate Buttercream’ recipe from Iambaker here. Although I add ½ cup chocolate chips and cream to make a ganache, once that is cool, mix it into the frosting for a more chocolaty taste.

Introduced to me by my friend Georgia,  with or without milk this tea is a personal favorite

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 160C then grease and line a 20cm round tin.

2. Sift the flour and baking soda into a bowl. Stir in the sugar, eggs, banana and oil.

3. Mix gently to a smooth batter and add nuts

4. Pour into the cake in and bake for 1½ hours.

5. If you feel like fancying this cake up then slice in half and ice with chocolate frosting.

6. Take a generous slice because it’s Monday and you deserve cake.