Category Archives: banana

Banana Pudding Cookie Cake

By now, you all know I love a cookie cake. I mean, what’s not to love about a giant shareable cookie with a frosted edge?!

I’ve made all the classic flavors at this point: chocolate chip, double chocolate, red velvet, Funfetti. They are all wonderful, but sometimes I want a cookie cake that’s a little more…niche. Like one that tastes exactly like the signature banana pudding cookies from my favorite bakery in New York City.

As Shakespeare said, specificity is the soul of good baking. Or something like that.

You may notice that there isn’t any boxed pudding mix in this banana pudding dessert. Instead, the dough contains the three primary ingredients in instant pudding mix: sugar, cornstarch, and powdered milk. When combined with the banana, vanilla, and white chocolate, they perfectly mimic the flavor of classic banana pudding.

This Banana Pudding Cookie Cake is a dreamy dessert year-round, but is somehow especially good in summer. I mean, think about it. Banana pudding is a classic summertime dessert, right? Well, take all that banana-vanilla loveliness, add some white chocolate chips, and bake it into a giant cookie. Finish it off with a vanilla buttercream border, then slice it up and prepare to be both shocked and delighted that it tastes *exactly* like the best cookies in NYC…which taste *exactly* like banana pudding.

Banana Pudding Cookie Cake
makes 1 9-inch round cake

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup non-fat dry milk powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon Kosher or sea salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted & cooled slightly
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
~1 1/2 medium very ripe bananas, mashed (about 1/2 cup)
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup white chocolate chips + more for topping

For decoration:
Vanilla Buttercream (recipe below)
white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan with butter. Line the bottom with parchment and grease again. Set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, non-fat dry milk powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

Whisk together melted butter, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Whisk in egg, followed by mashed banana and vanilla. Stir in dry ingredients, then fold in 1 cup white chocolate chips. Transfer dough to prepared pan and spread into one even layer. Bake 28-30 minutes, or until the top is no longer jiggly & a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with only a few moist crumbs (not batter). Top with more white chocolate chips for aesthetics, if desired.

Let cookie cake cool completely in the pan on a rack. Run a small, thin knife around the edge of the pan before inverting the cake onto the rack. Revert onto a serving plate. Decorate with Vanilla Buttercream and sprinkles as desired.

Decorated cake will keep at room temperature for up to two days, or in the refrigerator for up to five.

Vanilla Buttercream
makes enough for 2 dozen cookie cupcakes

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
2 cups confectioner's sugar
pinch of Kosher or sea salt
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2-3 tablespoons heavy cream

In a medium-large mixing bowl, beat butter until light and fluffy, about two minutes. Beat in confectioner's sugar in two installments, scraping down the bowl as necessary. Beat in salt, followed by vanilla. Add heavy cream by the tablespoon until desired consistency is reached.

How to pipe: Stand a piping bag fitted with a coupler and star tip in a tall cup and fold any bag overhang over the outside. Use a silicone spatula or spoon to “load” 1/3-1/2 of the buttercream into the bag. Unfold bag overhang and lift piping bag out the cup.

Press frosting toward the tip. Twist bag overhang closed and hold tight between your thumb and forefinger of your dominant hand, letting the main portion of the bag be held by your palm and remaining fingers. Use your non-dominant hand to tap the bag a couple of times to dislodge any air bubbles. Pipe a dab or two of frosting onto a surface or small plate, just to get the buttercream going in the right direction.

Pipe a buttercream border onto the cookie cake, refilling the bag if/when necessary.

Banana Crumb Muffins

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Internet, meet my freezer stash of bananas. Freezer stash of bananas, meet the internet.

These brown bananas have been taking up space in my freezer since Christmas and it’s time to clear them out for…well, honestly, probably more brown bananas. The cycle continues, but that’s beside the point.

(The point is to bake good things with bananas, obviously.)

Of all the things you can make with sad bananas, none will ever beat banana bread/muffins. I’ve posted several recipes for both over the years, and while they all have their strengths, I think these are my best effort yet.

I’ve been making this particular recipe weekly for nearly a year now; the people I work for love banana muffins. I make them with bananas from their freezer stash, throwing them in the microwave for a minute or two while I prepare the other ingredients, then squeezing the fruit into a bowl and mashing it to smithereens.

I throw 1 1/2 cups of chocolate chips into the batter for work, but lately I am more interested in coffee cake-style crumb topping. I love its crispy texture and pop of buttery cinnamon flavor—it really takes these otherwise plain banana muffins to another level.

Banana Crumb Muffins are easy to make and really delicious. The batter is very straightforward—nothing out of the ordinary—and the crumb is just whisking some melted butter into flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt until, well, crumbly. Break it up with your fingers and distribute it over the muffin batter, then bake until brown and a little craggy.

As with most banana baked goods, these are good the day they’re made, but great with a little time. That said, good luck keeping them around for more than a day or two.

Banana Crumb Muffins
makes 14-16 muffins

Crumb:
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of Kosher or sea salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Muffin Batter:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon Kosher or sea salt
2/3 cup buttermilk, room temperature
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs, room temperature
3 large very ripe bananas, mashed

Preheat oven to 425F. Grease or use muffin liners in 14-16 cups of a standard muffin tin. Fill the remaining cups 1/3-1/2 of the way with water (to keep the pan from warping in the oven). Set aside.

Make the crumb. In a small bowl, which together flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Add melted butter and whisk until everything is saturated. It should be the texture of damp sand, holding together when pinched. Set aside.

Make the muffin batter. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together melted butter and buttermilk, followed by eggs and mashed banana. Add dry ingredients. Use a silicone spatula or wooden spoon to fold ingredients together just until combined. Batter will be thick.

Divide batter among prepared muffin cups, filling nearly to the top. Tap full pans on the counter 5 times to release large air bubbles. Scatter crumb over the top of the filled cups and press down lightly with your fingers to adhere.

Bake 5 minutes. Reduce temperature to 375F and bake another 15-16 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let muffins cool in the pan for at least five minutes before removing to a rack to cool completely. Serve. Leftovers will keep covered at room temperature for a couple of days, but may be refrigerated for up to 5.

Banana Pancakes

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Hello! WordPress has updated its app this week and I am having some technical difficulties. I appreciate your patience while I work out the formatting kinks.

I bought these bananas to let them rot. Well, not just these two—I bought sixteen bananas to let them rot. While that’s not something I do with most produce, it’s almost always the predetermined destiny of bananas, as as letting them get a little gross is the secret to every good banana thing there is: bread, milkshakes, sweet rolls, cookies, and the subject of today’s post, Banana Pancakes.

These are a simple riff on my go-to Buttermilk Pancakes. They’re just as tall and fluffy, but have plenty of banana flavor and a good hit of cinnamon. These are the things of my Saturday morning dreams.

As with my other pancakes, the mixing here is easy—whisk together wet and dry ingredients—but their perfect height and texture hinges on a quick rest. Just five or ten minutes are all the time your batter needs to thicken up for perfect griddling. I like to heat my pan during this time so I’m ready to go the second that rest is up. No time to waste when there are Banana Pancakes to be had!

Every pancake maker has their secrets. I’ve revealed all mine at this point, but they bear repeating. For golden tops, cook your pancakes somewhat-slowly over medium heat in almost no oil; just the barest swipe is all you need here. Let them cook until bubbles form on one side, then gently wedge a spatula underneath to flip and finish. Perfect results every time!

I like to serve banana pancakes with more sliced banana, chopped pecans and maple syrup, but feel free to keep it classic with just butter and maple. Instead of varying toppings, you can experiment with the batter itself—add blueberries or chocolate chips for a fun twist! As far as I’m concerned though, Banana Pancakes are perfect just how they are.

Banana Pancakes
makes 18 pancakes

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour 
2 tablespoons light or dark brown sugar, packed
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon Kosher or sea salt
1 cup mashed banana (from about 3 very ripe medium bananas)
1 cup milk or buttermilk, room temperature 
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 
canola or vegetable oil, for cooking

For serving:
pats of butter
sliced bananas
chopped nuts
maple syrup

Preheat oven to 200F. Line a rimmed sheet pan with parchment. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a medium mixing bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together mashed banana, milk (or buttermilk), melted butter, eggs and vanilla. Add wet ingredients to dry and whisk until no streaks of flour remain—there will still be some lumps. Let batter rest 5-10 minutes.

Heat your pan or griddle over medium heat for a few minutes, until heated through. Brush with oil (or grease lightly), then wipe excess out with a folded paper towel or dish towel.

Stir rested batter one or two strokes. Pour 1/4 cup increments of batter on greased pan. Let cook 2-3 minutes, until bubbles are forming and they are turning golden. Flip with a spatula and cook for 2 minutes, or until the bottom is turning golden. Remove to prepared baking sheet and keep warm in the oven until serving.

Continue making pancakes with remaining batter, greasing the pan only as necessary.

Serve immediately with butter, sliced banana, chopped nuts and/or maple syrup, if desired.

Leftover pancakes may be stacked in threes, triple-wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen for a couple of months. Discard plastic and microwave 2.5 to 3 minutes before serving.

Most Popular Recipes of 2020

Banana Malts

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Banana Malts Remember three months ago when everyone was making banana bread all the time? And then how we all got tired of that and decided to put our very ripe bananas in the freezer and dismantle white supremacy instead?Well, here’s something to do with those frozen bananas. Throw ‘em in a blender with a couple big scoops of vanilla ice cream, a hefty dose of malted milk powder and some milk and blitz until super thick and banana-y and malty and luxurious. Banana Malts Yes, luxurious–what else would you call something this rich and smooth? The creamy banana-vanilla flavor is only deepened by the addition of malted milk powder. So good.

Oh, and when I say these Banana Malts are thick, I mean it. You could probably stand a spoon in one if you really wanted to. I only didn’t do that because I wanted to drink a malt more than I wanted to defy gravity.Now, I know not everyone loves malted milk powder, but I do. This is the third malted milkshake recipe on this site and I have little doubt that there will be more to come, maybe even this summer. But again, I know not everyone is a malted milk powder fan girl like me. Feel free to leave it out, or try my Caramelized Banana Milkshakes! Banana Malts Either way, don’t forget the whipped cream and cute straws.

Banana Malts
makes 2 small milkshakes

2 large very ripe bananas, frozen
1 1/3 cup vanilla ice cream
1/2 cup malted milk powder
3/4 cup milk (I used whole), or to preference

For garnish:
whipped cream
banana slices

Slice bananas into chunks. Add to a high-powered blender along with vanilla ice cream, malted milk powder and milk. Put on the lid and blend until completely smooth, scraping down the sides of the container as necessary.

Divide between 2 small glasses and garnish with whipped cream and banana slices, if desired. Enjoy immediately.

Banana Malts

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Category Archives: banana

Banana Crumb Muffins

Banana Pancakes

Most Popular Recipes of 2020

Banana Malts