Chocolate banana cake is a moist and tender, from scratch chocolate cake filled with banana flavor. It’s topped with a rich and decadent peanut butter cream cheese frosting and shaved chocolate. This banana chocolate cake is not only quick and simple to make using two bowls and a whisk, it’s also the easy perfect cake for any occasion.
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Why Should You Make This Recipe
I absolutely adore an easy and cozy banana cake recipe. I have a few delicious banana cake recipes on the blog. My Banana Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting, Roasted Banana Cake and Banana Coffee Cake Muffins are just a few of my favorites. I know you’ll love this chocolate banana cake recipe too because:
- Simple pantry ingredients: You only need a handful of basic ingredients to make a batch of quick, simple and simply decadent chocolate and banana cake.
- You love easy desserts that feed a crowd: If being super quick and easy to make wasn’t reason enough, this banana cocoa cake makes the perfect dessert to feed a lot of people. Cut the banana recipe in half for a snacking size cake.
Ingredients
Before I show you how to make this chocolate cake with banana recipe, make sure you have these simple ingredients ready to go!
Chocolate Banana Cake
- Dry Ingredients: Gather your flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
- Wet ingredients: Gather your oil, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, sour cream and mashed bananas.
Frosting for Banana Chocolate Cake
Gather cream cheese, butter, peanut butter, vanilla extract and powdered sugar.
Substitutions
Making this moist chocolate and banana cake is super simple and you probably already have everything you need. If not, here are my recommended substitutions if you need them.
- All purpose flour: To make this banana and chocolate cake gluten free, use a good 1-1 gluten free flour. Replace the amount of flour based on weight rather than cups.
- Baking Soda and Baking Powder: These provide rise and leavening for the cake.
- Cocoa Powder: Feel free to use Dutch processed or good quality unsweetened cocoa powder.
- Mashed Banana: Make sure the bananas are fully ripened with some brown spots.
- Oil: Any neutral baking oil such as vegetable, canola or olive oil will work well in this banana and chocolate cake recipe.
- Granulated and Light Brown Sugars: Maple sugar would also work well to make this banana cake refined sugar free.
- Eggs: This recipe hasn’t been tested without eggs.
- Sour Cream: Feel free to use a full fat greek yogurt in place of the sour cream.
- Unsalted Butter: Feel free to use an equal amount of salted butter.
- Cream Cheese: The tangy flavor of cream cheese is hard to match. If you don’t have cream cheese, use an equal amount of mascarpone cheese.
- Peanut Butter: I prefer to use a creamy no stir like Jif for this frosting recipe. Any type of peanut butter will work fine for this icing, but if you are using a natural (one that separates), make note that the frosting may be a bit runny.
- Powdered Sugar: I like using Wholesome Organic powdered sugar. If you need a lower sugar powdered sugar alternative, I recommend Swerve or Lakanto.
- Vanilla Extract: This provides a wonderful background flavor that pairs perfectly with the cream cheese and peanut butter. I highly recommend you keep the vanilla extract.
Variations
- Chocolate Banana Cake with Cake Mix: Grab a 15.25 oz. box of chocolate cake mix, plus all the ingredients called for on the box. Prepare the cake according to the directions on the box. Fold in 1 cup of mashed bananas and bake according to the directions on the box.
- Banana Chocolate Cake in Loaf Pans: Prepare the recipe as written, pour the batter into (2) 9 x 5 loaf pans and bake. This recipe can also be baked in (2) 8-inch cake pans or (3) 6-inch cake pans.
- Top with Chocolate Frosting: Follow the ingredients and directions for chocolate buttercream using my Matilda’s Chocolate Cake recipe.
How To Make
Learn how to make chocolate banana cake with peanut butter cream cheese frosting in a few easy steps.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F (177 C). Lightly grease and line the bottom and two long sides of a 13 x 9 pan. In a mixing bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt together until well combined.
- Whisk the bananas until smooth with just a few lumps. Whisk in the, oil, granulated sugar, light brown sugar, eggs, sour cream and vanilla extract together until smooth and well combined.
- Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet well combined with no visible pieces of flour. I like to whisk ½ of the batter at a time.
- Pour the chocolate banana cake batter into the prepared pan. Use a flexible spatula to smooth the batter evenly across the pan. Bake for about 28 - 32 minutes or until the banana cake bounces back when gently pressed. The edges of the chocolate cake will also pull slightly away from the pan. Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes.
- Cream together room temperature butter with the room temperature cream cheese until creamy and well combined, about 4-5 minutes on low speed. Mix in the peanut butter and vanilla extract until smooth and well combined. Mix in powdered sugar ½ cup (60 g) at a time. Once all the sugar has been added cream the peanut butter icing on high until the frosting is your desired consistency.
- Spread the frosting on top of the fully cooled chocolate and banana cake. Make the swirls using the back of a small spoon. Top with shaved chocolate if you like. Slice and enjoy!
How To Serve, Store, Freeze and Thaw
- Serve the frosted banana chocolate cake straight from the fridge or let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes and then enjoy.
- Store the frosted banana cake: Once the banana chocolate cake has cream cheese frosting, its needs to be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. For more storage tips and tricks see my Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting post. Unfrosted cake can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container.
- Freeze the chocolate cake with banana: Cut the cake into your preferred amount of pieces. Individually wrap each piece of banana cake in plastic wrap and place in a ziplock bag. Store in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- Thaw the cake: The easiest and tastiest way to thaw your moist banana chocolate cake is to let it sit overnight in the fridge. Enjoy at room temperature or straight from the fridge (my favorite way)!
M’s Expert Tips
- Bring cold ingredients to room temperature: This allows the ingredients to mix together more evenly which requires less mixing, resulting in deliciously moist and tender cake.
- Sift the dry ingredients into the wet. When working with cocoa powder, it can sometimes clump together when mixing with wet ingredients. An easy way to avoid this is to sift the dry ingredients into the wet.
- Look for the signs the banana cake is done. Use the baking time as a guide rather than a strict rule. Signs a cake is finished baking is a center that quickly bounces back when gently pressed and baked edges that have slightly pulled away from the edge of the pan.
- Fully cool the chocolate and banana cake: You may be very tempted to frost the cake while its still warm. However, the banana cake needs to be completely cooled for the frosting to stay on.
- For perfectly sliced cake, chill it in the fridge for about 15 - 20 minutes before cutting. Use a sharp knife to cut the cake and always clean the knife between cuts.
FAQs
Banana cake is very moist and can spoil if kept at room temperature for more than 3 - 4 days. This recipe for chocolate banana cake also has a cream cheese frosting, so it needs to be stored in the refrigerator at all times.
Up until the banana has mold or other signs of rotting, the ripe banana can be safely baked into anything from banana cake to banana bread or banana muffins.
The answer is the same for both. A cake that is too moist or too dry is most likely due to too much or too little dry to wet ingredients ratio. I recommend using a food scale when measuring all ingredients, but especially dry ingredients like flour.
Other Chocolate Cake Recipes to Try
If you try this Chocolate Banana Cake recipe please rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Doing so helps other readers decide if this is a great recipe to bake. Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram using @olivesnthyme so I can see what you’re baking! - M
Chocolate Banana Cake Recipe
Equipment
- 1 9 x 13 pan
- 1 parchment paper
- 1 whisk
- 1 stand mixer with paddle attachment or electric hand mixer with beaters (to make the frosting)
Ingredients
Chocolate Banana Cake
- 1¾ cups (210 g) all purpose flour
- ½ cup (40 g) cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup mashed bananas about 2 medium bananas
- ¾ cup (177 g) oil or melted butter
- 1 cup (200 g) light brown sugar
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs (US), room temperature
- ½ cup (120 g) sour cream, room temperature
Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 8 oz. (226 g) cream cheese, room temperature
- ½ cup (128 g) creamy peanut butter (no stir recommended)
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 4 cups (480 g) powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F (177 C). Lightly grease and line the bottom and two long sides of a 13 x 9 pan.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt together until well combined.1¾ cups (210 g) all purpose flour, ½ cup (40 g) cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt
- Whisk the bananas until smooth with just a few lumps. Whisk in the oil, granulated sugar, light brown sugar, eggs and sour cream together until smooth and well combined.1 cup mashed bananas, ¾ cup (177 g) oil or melted butter, 1 cup (200 g) light brown sugar, ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar, 3 large eggs (US), room temperature, ½ cup (120 g) sour cream, room temperature
- Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet well combined with no visible pieces of flour. I like to whisk ½ of the dry ingredients at a time.
- Pour the chocolate banana cake batter into the prepared pan. Use a flexible spatula to smooth the batter evenly across the pan. Bake for about 28 - 32 minutes or until the banana cake bounces back when gently pressed. The edges of the chocolate cake will also pull slightly away from the pan.
- Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes. Use the parchment paper on the two long sides of the pan to gently lift the cake out of the pan and onto a cooling rack.
- Cream together room temperature butter with the room temperature cream cheese until creamy and well combined, about 4-5 minutes on low speed.½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, room temperature, 8 oz. (226 g) cream cheese, room temperature
- Mix in the peanut butter, vanilla extract and salt until smooth and well combined. Mix in powdered sugar ½ cup (60 g) at a time. Once all the sugar has been added cream the peanut butter icing on high until the frosting is your desired consistency.½ cup (128 g) creamy peanut butter, 2 teaspoons (10 ml) vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon salt, 4 cups (480 g) powdered sugar
- Spread the frosting on top of the fully cooled chocolate and banana cake. Make the swirls using the back of a small spoon. Top with shaved chocolate if you like. Slice and enjoy!
Monica says
Hi can I substitute the sour cream if yes with ?
Thanks
Megan says
Hi Monica, you can use 1:1 amount of greek yogurt or buttermilk in place of the sour cream.