Dorie's Classic Banana Bundt Cake......

Boy do I have a great recipe for you. Who doesn't have their bananas go bad? I have this thing deep in my subconscious about bananas. Somehow I feel like if I buy bananas and apples that I am healthy. The apples always go fast but for some reason at our house, the bananas always end up sitting there, turning browner and browner by the day.

So the other day I realized that I had 2 ripened bananas and 3 bananas in the freezer and was looking through one of my fav cookbooks by Dorie Greenspan "Baking, from my home to yours", and came across her Classic Banana Bundt Cake. At the top of each recipe Dorie talks a little about each recipe and either tells where she got it from or why she loves it. I trust Dorie, like I trust getting recipes from my own mother. They are both superb cooks and have a keen sense for what tastes good. Dorie explains that she was given this particular recipe from Ellen Einstein who along with her husband owns "Sweet Sixteenth Bakery" in Nashville. Dorrie describes this bundt cake as "dense, ,moist and extremely banana-y-the tangy sour cream accentuates the flavor of the banana".


So I decided to make this recipe, it looked simple enough and plus my poor little brown bananas needed to be put to good use. I was expecting this recipe to be good due to it coming from Dorie but little did I know how good it was going to be. When my Banana Bundt Cake was all done, I of course made Thad sample a piece and to my surprise, he was dying over it. Upon further inspection (which means my own personal taste test), I realized that this simple little Banana Bundt Cake was fantastic. It was so moist and the perfect amount of sweetness. I knew when I added a cup of sour cream that it was going to be moist. So not only was I pleasantly surprised by how yummy this was but marked it in my cookbook to make sure I make this again soon.


Classic Banana Bundt Cake
3 cups all-purpose flower
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
About 4 very ripe bananas, mashed (you should have 1 1/2 - 1 3/4 cups)
1 cup sour cream or plain yogurt

Start off by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F. Then generously butter a 9- to 10-inch (12 cup) Bundt pan.(If you've got a silicone Bundt pan, there's no need to butter it.) Make sure not to place the pan on a cookie sheet, you want the oven's heat to circulate through the Bundt's inner tube.

In a medium size bowl whisk the flour, baking soda and salt together. Set aside.

Then working with a stand mixer (or hand mixer, either works just fine) fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and creamy. At medium speed add the sugar until pale and fluffy. Next add the vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each egg goes in. Reduce the mixer speed to low and mix in the mashed bananas. Finally, mix in half the dry ingredients (don't be disturbed when the batter curdles), add the sour cream and then the rest of the flour mixture. Scrape the batter into the pan, rap the pan on the counter to de-bubble the batter and smooth the top.

Place the Bundt cake into the oven, baking at 65-75 minutes (my cake took 55 minutes so about 50 minutes in, start checking it), or until a butter knife inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean. Also Dorie says to check the cake after 30 minutes, and if it is browning too much, cover it loosely with tin foil. Once done, place the bundt cake on a rack and let it set and cool for 10 minutes. Then turn Bundt cake onto the cooling rack, unmolding the cake. Let cool to room temperature.

*Note: If you can, wrap the cake in plastic wrap well and allow to sit on counter over night. It is better the next day.

This Classic Banana Bundt Cake is perfect for dessert, brunch, a shower or just cause you are feeling like a moist banana-y Bundt Cake and be sure to top it off with a tall glass of milk.

Bon Appetit!



Adapted from: "Baking, from my home to yours", Dorie Greenspan