Moist Banana Cake (Printable)

A tender, moist banana cake bursting with natural sweetness, easy to bake in under an hour.

# What You’ll Need:

01 - 3 ripe bananas, mashed (about 1¼ cups)

02 - ½ cup vegetable oil (or melted butter)

03 - ½ cup granulated sugar

04 - 2 large eggs

05 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

06 - 1½ cups all-purpose flour

07 - 1 teaspoon baking soda

08 - ½ teaspoon baking powder

09 - ¼ teaspoon salt

10 - ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

11 - ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans

12 - ½ cup chocolate chips

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9-inch round or square cake pan.

02 - In a large bowl, beat together the mashed bananas, oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract until smooth and well blended.

03 - In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon if using.

04 - Gradually fold the dry ingredients into the wet mixture, stirring until just combined. Be careful not to overmix.

05 - Gently stir in chopped nuts or chocolate chips if desired.

06 - Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface with a spatula.

07 - Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

08 - Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

01 -

It uses oil instead of butter, so the crumb stays impossibly moist for days without any extra effort.
You probably already have every single ingredient in your kitchen right now.

02 -

Overmixing the batter once flour is added builds gluten and turns your tender cake into something rubbery.
Underripe bananas will leave bland pockets in the crumb, so wait for those dark spots or microwave whole bananas for 30 seconds to soften them.

03 -

Peel and freeze overripe bananas in a bag so you always have cake ready bananas even when the fresh ones are not cooperating.
A tiny pinch of nutmeg alongside the cinnamon adds a complexity most people will notice but never quite identify.