Moist Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
This ultra-moist banana cake is loaded with ripe banana flavor and topped with a luscious cream cheese frosting. It is the perfect way to use up overripe bananas and impress everyone at the table.
The Only Banana Cake Recipe You Will Ever Need
If you have a bunch of overripe bananas sitting on your counter, do not reach for the banana bread pan just yet. This Moist Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting is everything you love about banana bread, turned into a celebration-worthy dessert. It is tender, deeply flavorful, and covered in a tangy, silky cream cheese frosting that takes the whole thing completely over the top.
I developed this recipe after years of testing banana cakes that came out too dense, too dry, or just not banana-y enough. The secret is a combination of super ripe bananas, a touch of brown sugar, and full-fat sour cream. That trio keeps every bite impossibly soft and moist, even on day two.
Getting the right tools on hand makes a genuine difference in a cake like this. A good stand mixer or hand mixer will give your frosting that light, airy texture, and an offset spatula makes spreading cream cheese frosting a total breeze.
Tools & Ingredients We Recommend
Why This Recipe Works
Banana cake lives and dies by a few key decisions, and this recipe gets all of them right.
- Very ripe bananas are non-negotiable. Those deeply speckled, almost-black bananas that look past their prime are actually packed with natural sugar and concentrated banana flavor. Do not skip this.
- Sour cream is the moisture hero. It keeps the crumb soft and tender without making the cake greasy or heavy.
- A blend of granulated and brown sugar adds depth. The brown sugar brings a subtle caramel note that pairs beautifully with banana.
- Minimal mixing after the flour goes in prevents gluten overdevelopment, which is the number one cause of dense, tough cakes.
Chef's Tip: Forgot to ripen your bananas? Place unpeeled bananas on a baking sheet and roast them at 300 degrees F for 15 to 20 minutes until the skins turn black. Let them cool, then scoop out the soft, sweet interior. Works like a charm.
The Cream Cheese Frosting
This frosting is simple, but it is genuinely one of the best pairings for banana cake. The slight tang of cream cheese cuts through the sweetness and complements the banana flavor in a way that plain buttercream just cannot.
The key here is starting with fully softened cream cheese and butter. If either is even slightly cold, your frosting will be lumpy. Pull them out of the refrigerator at least an hour before you start baking so everything has time to come to room temperature.
If the frosting turns out thicker than you like, add heavy cream one tablespoon at a time until it spreads easily. If it is too soft, refrigerate it for 15 minutes and beat it again.
Tips for the Perfect Slice
A few small habits make a big difference with this cake:
- Cool completely before frosting. Even a slightly warm cake will melt your frosting and make it slide right off. Patience pays off.
- Sift your powdered sugar before adding it to the frosting. It takes 30 seconds and prevents any lumps from sneaking in.
- Use a sharp knife dipped in hot water and wiped clean between cuts for clean, bakery-style slices.
Ready to bake this beauty? Here is the full step-by-step recipe card:
Moist Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
This ultra-moist banana cake is loaded with ripe banana flavor and topped with a luscious cream cheese frosting. It is the perfect way to use up overripe bananas and impress everyone at the table.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar, light or dark both work
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup sour cream, full fat recommended
- 3 very ripe bananas, mashed, about 1.25 cups
- 8 oz cream cheese, full fat, softened
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened, for frosting
- 3 cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract, for frosting
- 2 tbsp heavy cream, to thin frosting if needed
Instruction
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan with butter or nonstick spray and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the softened butter with both sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Add the eggs one at a time to the butter mixture, beating well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla extract.
Stir in the mashed bananas and sour cream until just combined. The batter may look slightly curdled at this stage and that is normal.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and fold gently with a spatula until no streaks of flour remain. Do not overmix.
Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
Bake for 33 to 38 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with only a few moist crumbs.
Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before frosting, at least 1 hour.
To make the frosting, beat the softened cream cheese and butter together on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes.
Reduce speed to low and gradually add the sifted powdered sugar, then add vanilla. Increase speed and beat until fluffy. Add heavy cream one tablespoon at a time if the frosting is too thick.
Spread the cream cheese frosting evenly over the cooled cake. Slice and serve.
Equipment
- 9x13-inch baking pan
- Stand mixer or hand mixer
- Large mixing bowl
- Medium mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Rubber spatula
- Wire cooling rack
- Offset spatula or butter knife
Notes
Serving and Storing
This cake is wonderful served at room temperature, either plain or alongside a scoop of vanilla ice cream for a truly indulgent dessert. Because of the cream cheese frosting, any leftovers should be covered and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
If you want to make it ahead for a party or gathering, bake the cake the day before, wrap it tightly without frosting, and store it at room temperature overnight. Frost it the morning of your event and you are good to go.
This cake also freezes beautifully without the frosting. Wrap individual slices or the whole unfrosted cake tightly in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then frost and serve.
