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![[VIDEO] Delicious golden banana cake](http://www.mydaddycooks.com/wp-content/themes/eVid/timthumb.php?src=http://www.mydaddycooks.com/cakeicon.jpg&h=185&w=185&zc=1)
If you are of a nervous disposition when it comes to watching mess, I would recommend not watching this latest video!
We have always been pretty relaxed about giving Archie cake. We were fortunate when he was dairy allergic to be under the care of a superb paediatrician and his advice at the time was clear. Everything is okay, including sugar, as long as it is in moderation and part of a balanced diet. We know that Archie regulates himself very well so we are confident that over the course of time, everything evens itself out. I guess this is one of the key aspects when adopting a “baby led” approach.
And anyway, this cake is full of goodness with a big dose of banana and sultanas. It is incredibly easy to make, always works, is quite forgiving in terms of cooking times (I lost track of time in this one while we were giving Archie a bath and left it in 5 minutes too long) and is the only banana cake recipe I have found which does not come out looking grey and anaemic.
It also freezes perfectly, works well as a snack and works even better as the main component of breakfast, served with some fresh fruit and yoghurt.
Oh, and it can be extremely messy to make with a toddler, as this video testifies! This was by far our messiest cook in a long while!!
Preparation time 10 minutes if using a food mixer, more if mixing by hand. Cooking time 50-60 minutes.
Serves lots but beware, it goes as quickly as it comes out of the oven!
2 very ripe bananas (the older the better!), approximately 400g
150g butter (softened if you are not using a food mixer)
150g soft dark brown sugar (the darker the sugar, the more golden the cake)
2 medium eggs
100ml vegetable oil
80g sultanas or raisins
300g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/350°F
our favourite one yet.
What did you use when Archie was dairy allergic instead of butter?
Thanks Jules
When he was still allergic, we used a dairy-free alternative called Pure Sunflower. The results we nowhere near as good as real butter but it was a good substitute…
Thanks Claire, really happy it made you laugh… it really was carnage in the kitchen afterwards, the video barely does it justice!! Let me know how you get on with yours… the sugar-free question is an interesting one but we kind of gave up worrying when the doctor told us it was ok. It’s not as if he is having cake all day everyday (even if today he had some for breakfast, snack and after supper!!!).
Thanks Rachel – and you know what? He even helped tidy up, after walking through the house with cake mixture on his feet of course!!
I made this tonight. Came out lovely albeit a bit crumbly but then yours looks crumbly on the video Nick. My oven did its usual & burnt the top before the insides were cooked but that's definitely my oven as it happens to every cake I make! Still learning how to use it ;o)
The end result…
http://slimlens.blogspot.com/2009/12/golden-banan…
Oh Claire, would you make a photograph all my recipes?! That looked delicious!!
LOL! Get ready for the my daddy cooks cookbook next year…. ;o)
Marvelous!! Yay for sous chef Archie and Daddy too lol I might make this for Posada when it's my turn to pass Mary, Joseph and the donkey on! (don't tell your Dad!) xxx
Claire – sounds like you are using a fan oven or that your oven's themostat is set too high. Either way, try setting the dial to 10-20 degrees less than specified by your recipe. Good luck & keep baking!
Looks like a great cake. I'll have to do a bake off against my usual banana cake recipe. Not sure if I'd stay as calm as Nick if my 19 month BLW boy sticks his hands into the mixture though…
FYI, I always put a row or two of banana slices along the top of the cake – it makes it look very pro.
I am going to adpot the BLW way with my son Charlie when he is 6 months as I have heard wonderful things about how children eat mostly everything that is put in front of them, I have a 2.7 year old who is a fussy eater, I am going to try a few of your recipies to see if it helps him eat more (he is a pasta fan).
It is not so much that Archie eats everything which is put in front of him, more that at very least he is curious about everything and tries literally anything, even if only once… beyond that, we trust him to know when/if he is full up and if he eats less at a given meal, we stay relaxed about it. If one evening he really doesn't want what we serve him, we know he is either a) off colour or b) just doesn't like what we gave him. It would be odd if there wasn't stuff he didn't like!! I hope some of these recipes work for your elder son. I would definitely advocate cooking with him, Archie nearly always eats more when he has "created" the dish "himself"!! Thanks for taking the time to come by and post your comment…
Made this at the weekend and it really is the best banana cake I've ever tasted (sorry mum!). The sultanas I thought we had were waaay past their best so substituted with dates – all gooey and lovely. Thanks Nick…off to make a variation on the chicken and tarragon hotpot now!
Wow, thanks for that. And I won't tell your mum, I promise!! I hope the hotpot was as big a success! thanks for taking the time to leave a comment…
Made this last night and it is delicious. Only thing was I seemed to have so much mixture I made muffins as well and have an enormous loaf cake! Followed the recipe exactly and used the right size loaf tin – I did weigh the bananas with the skin off and 400g was 3.5 bananas for me – should I have weighted them with the skin on? The babies love it as well as my hubby. Thank you!
Lucky you for having extra!! I think that you may have used a bit too much banana. The weight I was referring to was with skin on. In fact, I should make that clear in the blog. I generally use either 2 large or 3 small bananas and that seems to suffice. I am really glad that at least the extra bananas did not ruin the recipe and that the babies loved it! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment…
Making this right now and will be enjoying a slice in 40 minutes with a cup of coffee on a lazy Sunday. also plan to make some other of your recipes in the coming week, so making my grocery list!
Oh please let me know how it goes!! I'd say it's a perfect cake to eat on a sunday!!Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device
Great recipe, I've just made it with dates instead of raisins, and put a 1/3 of flour as wholemeal, 1/3 of sugar as muscovado and a touch of cinnamon too.
wow, what a lovely variation. I bet the dates gave it a lovely gooey consistency!! I'll have to try it and re-name it Mrs Bakealot's Cake
Made this for DP's birthday cake today and it was lovely. I was amazed that it turned out as delicious as it did as I made a mistake when converting the oventemp into gasmark and baked the cake for the first 20 mins at 200 degrees. When I realized what happened I covered the cake with foil and baked it like that for the remainding time. It was a little darker around the edges than yours, but we still loved it and ended up having two pieces each.
Can't wait till next time when I hopefully get the oventemp right.
Thanks for a great recipe.
I am SO making this tomorrow for our road-trip to Miami!! (Leaving Friday)
This looks scrumptious. I just was wondering, since you said you "have found" this recipe – where did you find it?
What is the origin of this & the other recipes on your blog?
Hi Merav, this recipe is actually a mix of a few that I have come across. The two key elements I found were using a dark soft sugar as this adds significantly to the colour and flavour, and using oil which makes the cake extra moist – and means it lasts well into the following days…
I just wanted to tell you how lovely this recipe is! I made it for a BBQ where there would be three tiny people and it went down a storm!! My son (8.5 months) loves it, and so does his daddy
Thank you for sharing, and I love how messy Archie gets – looking forward to baking with Tristan when he gets a bit older.
Just seen your "Banana cake" demo after hearing about your blog on Radio 5 live tonight, (your sons a real "star") and I'm sure he'll make a great chef one day!!! ,you will I'm sure look back with happy memories in your advancing years . Keep up the good work!!!
Thanks for your kind comments about the blog and about Archie. It's true that this blog will be a great souvenir when Archie is older…