Classic Banana Bundt Cake - Tuesdays with Dorie

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Classic Banana Bundt Cake - Food Librarian

Whoo hoo!! It's my turn to pick a recipe for Tuesdays with Dorie! Awesomeness in a blogger-nerdy-baker happiness sort of way. Know what I mean?!

As you may know, I'm a huge Bundt fan. Huge. I think I've made over 10 Bundts on this blog. The American-made Nordic Ware Bundt was trademarked in 1950 and is, in my book, an engineering marvel!

Although some people just don't understand this, I love cake but don't care for frosting. And the Bundt? It's perfect. Even if you put a thick glaze on it, the ratio of cake to frosting is just right. And sometimes, it doesn't need any frosting or glaze at all. Yes, the Bundt rocks. Big time. Let's all just take moment to salute the awesomeness of the Bundt. Thanks.

Classic Banana Bundt Cake - Food Librarian
This recipe, on page 190 of Dorie Greenspan's book: Baking: From My Home to Yours is from her friend Ellen Einstein who owns Sweet Sixteenth Bakery in Nashville.

And you know what? Holy smokes!! This is delicious!

Classic Banana Bundt Cake - Food Librarian
I made mine with sour cream, but you can also use plain yogurt. Dorie suggests a lemon glaze but I skipped that in favor of a simple dusting of powdered sugar. I'm sure chocolate chips and walnuts would be nice additions too.

Classic Banana Bundt Cake - Food Librarian
Nordic Ware says there are 60 million Bundt pans in America. We need to get everyone to make this cake!

Thank you everyone for baking along with me this week! I'm excited to see how you liked it and your variations. And if you couldn't make it this time, I hope you try it out in the future. It's such a pleasure to be part of this group! Bake on TWDers! :) - mary the food librarian

Classic Banana Bundt Cake - Food Librarian Classic Banana Bundt Cake - Food Librarian

Classic Banana Bundt Cake
Page 190, Baking: From My Home to Yours.

Ingredients: Makes 1 Bundt Cake (14 servings)

3 cups all-purpose flour
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

Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Generously butter a 9- to 10-inch (12 cup) Bundt pan. (If you use a silicone Bundt pan there’s no need to butter it.) Don’t place the pan on a baking sheet - you want the oven’s heat to circulate through the Bundt’s inner tube.

Whisk the flour, baking soda and salt together.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugar and beat at medium speed until pale and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time, beating for about 1 minute after each egg goes in. Reduce the mixer speed to low and mix in the bananas. Finally, mix in half the dry ingredients (don’t be disturbed when the batter curdles), all the sour cream and then the rest of the flour mixture. Scrape the batter into the pan, rap the pan on the counter to debubble the batter and smooth the top.

Bake for 65 to 75 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean. Check the cake after about 30 minutes - if it is browning too quickly, cover it loosely with a foil tent. Transfer the cake to a rack and cool for 10 minutes before unmolding onto the rack to cool to room temperature.

If you've got the time, wrap the cooled cake in plastic and allow it to sit on the counter overnight before serving - it's better the next day.

Optional Lemony White Icing:
Sift 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar into a bowl and squeeze in enough fresh lemon juice (start with 2 teaspoons and add more by drops) to make an icing thin enough to drizzle down the Bundt's curves.

Half batch or muffins:
If you want 1/2 the recipe and make muffins, Dorie Greenspan wrote it up herself on this 2008 entry on Serious Eats: Banana Cake Big and Small. She added some chocolate to this one. Yield 12 muffins, bake 28-32 minutes
Pin It!

106 comments:

Rachelle S said... [Reply to comment]

Congrats on your TWD week! We loved this bread/cake! I will be making it again and again...

Engineer Baker said... [Reply to comment]

Seriously awesome, lady. Great pick, and a winner of a cake.

mike said... [Reply to comment]

Thank YOU for choosing such a great recipe! Yours looks picture perfect - and quite classic! And light.... mine was rather dark-ish. Maybe my bananas were too ripe! Love this recipe -and will use this one from now on - for banana loafs/bread/cake!

Cristine said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks for choosing a winner! I only wish I had remembered to take a picture! :)

Snooky doodle said... [Reply to comment]

oh my. what a fantastic cake. I heard great reviews on this one. This is surely a must try :)

Pari Vasisht said... [Reply to comment]

Great! Simply superb. Bookmarked.

Michele said... [Reply to comment]

What a beautiful cake!

Jennifer said... [Reply to comment]

Mary, I HEART this cake! I made it into cupcakes and Oh my GOSH, was it ever tasty and moist and well, just plain wonderful! Thank you SO much for choosing this wonderful cake for this week's TWD!!!!

Audrey said... [Reply to comment]

Somehow, I just knew you'd pick a bundt! I hope you enjoy every minute of your well-deserved bloggy baker happiness.

Mary said... [Reply to comment]

Fabulous pick Miss Mary...we all loved it over here. I especially love that it didn't require any weird ingredients or bakingware....I will make this one again and again.

Madam Chow said... [Reply to comment]

Mary, I agree - I am a bundt cake fanatic. Not a big fan of frosting,either. Your cake looks lovely!

Amanda said... [Reply to comment]

Thank you for the FABULOUS pick this week! I love the powdered sugar, such elegant simplicity :) We loved this cake and I will definitely be making it again. By request too!

dorie said... [Reply to comment]

I'm so glad you chose this cake and I'm sure Ellen Einstein will be, too -- I'm going to send her the link to your post.

Your cake looks terrific!

Pamela said... [Reply to comment]

Mary, I have to say that went out and bought a bundt pan after seeing some of the wonderful cakes you had made in the past! The first bundt I made was this one. Love it. It's a great cake that I love making over and over again. Fantastic choice!

chocolatechic said... [Reply to comment]

This was absolutely fabulous.


I can not believe that you don't like icing.

I'll take your share.

Prudy said... [Reply to comment]

It came out beautifully. Loved it over here too!

Katy said... [Reply to comment]

Thank you, thank you for picking this recipe!! It's the one I've been searching for! :-) Your pictures are wonderful, by the way!!!

Flourchild said... [Reply to comment]

Great pick! I loved this bread and Im sure I'll make it a lot in the future! Yours looks wonderful.

Steph said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks for the pick Mary, I love making bundts because of the greater crust to cake ratio and because I'm not a crazy frosting fan either. Yours looks amazing as usual.

Rachel said... [Reply to comment]

Classic treat!

Judy's Nutrition said... [Reply to comment]

That is such a pretty cake - and so delicious looking too!

Audrie said... [Reply to comment]

Congrats! I'm waiting for my bananas to overripen to make banana cake this week and I think I'll use a bundt pan this time lol I don't like icing either so I never put it on banana cake.

Anonymous said... [Reply to comment]

This banana bundt cake was a great choice! And I like your suggestion of adding chocolate chips.

Linda said... [Reply to comment]

I was waiting patiently for someone to pick this yummy bundt recipe...a fantastic selection Mary!

This bundt cake is AWESOME!!!

Beryl said... [Reply to comment]

All hail Mary Queen of Bundts! Great pick, delicious cake. I'm having some for breakfast right now. And I don't even have a bundt pan. This cake is so versatile it worked great as muffins too.

Irina @ PastryPal said... [Reply to comment]

I've only recently acquired a bundt pan and have used it exactly once. Maybe nows my chance? This looks delish.

steph- whisk/spoon said... [Reply to comment]

thank you, thank you, thank you for picking a bundt! (seriously, my heart would sink every month when i would see that no one had chosen one, so you have made me very happy!) yours is, as always, fabulous!!

Creative Classroom Core said... [Reply to comment]

I really love how you dusted yours with powdered sugar - beautiful :)

BAKE-EN said... [Reply to comment]

Long live the bundt! Great choice, I loved this cake.

slush said... [Reply to comment]

I love bundts too, I was so glad you chose this one. Mine came out dark, but it didnt affect the taste. Great choice Mary!

Deeba PAB said... [Reply to comment]

Awesomeness in a blogger-nerdy-baker happiness sort of way...YES INDEED! Congrats on pciking such a stunning bundt. Yes, you are indeed bundt crazy, & so am I actually. I make your Cinnamon Choc Bundt at least once a week.The kids love it to bits. (Have 1/4 in the frdieg right now). This cake is beautiful & standing tall. Fabulous!!

Jacque said... [Reply to comment]

Yours looks perfect! Thanks so much for the pick, I honestly can't remember the last time I made a Bundt cake, it's been too long.

Bella Baker said... [Reply to comment]

Thank u thank u thank u for picking this recipe!! This was one of the best Dorie recipes I've ever made!! LOVED IT! Your bundt cake looks spectacular!!!

Amy of Sing For Your Supper said... [Reply to comment]

I was so bummed that I didn't get to make this in time to post today...but don't worry, I'm making it either today or tomorrow!! Great pick, Mary! Yours looks just heavenly!!


-Amy
www.singforyoursupperblog.com

Judy said... [Reply to comment]

Great choice, Mary! We really loved this cake.

spike. said... [Reply to comment]

Great pick! loved by all

Hilary said... [Reply to comment]

I made this a couple of months back and absolutely loved it. It's a beautiful cake, and you're right, it doesn't need any icing!

Welcome to our crazy blessed life said... [Reply to comment]

Awesome choice! :) Your cake looks gorgeous of course!

Erin said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks for picking this cake! I love Bundts (and bananas), so I was really looking forward to this week. It was delicious!

Sihan said... [Reply to comment]

one of the best picks ever.. at least for me! wholesome banana cake with a twist of course.

Hindy said... [Reply to comment]

Great choice! Thanks for showing us how beautifully it can be finished with just the dusting of sugar. Bundt perfection!

betty geek said... [Reply to comment]

Mary, you just rock.

All of your blog posts have been very enjoyable to read and the pictures are mesmerizing.

You have a great knack for baking and I love that!

Thanks for picking the bundt banana cake! Great great great choice! Too darn bad I don't own a bundt pan . . maybe I need to stop ordering cupcake liners and invest in a bundt pan!

Simply put, you are awesome, keep it up! ;)

Charli said... [Reply to comment]

Excellent pick! While I have always admired the bundt from afar, this was my first time making it! It was amazing!!!

isa said... [Reply to comment]

Your cake looks gorgeous!
Thanks so much for the pick, I really loved this cake!
Definitely a keeper

Mme said... [Reply to comment]

Great choice! I loved making it.

I love your sprinkling of powdered sugar...

What's for Supper? said... [Reply to comment]

This was such a good pick! Thanks! Your pics look great. I went the same route and just dusted mine with powdered sugar. YUM!

Ingrid_3Bs said... [Reply to comment]

Mary, I'm waving my bundt cake flag. YAY! Great choice! I do have to admit that I LOVE frosting/icing/glaze! Generally the more the better. What I do love about bundt cakes is that they are much easier than layered cakes and are usually more moist and flavorful!
~ingrid

Sara said... [Reply to comment]

Awesome pick Mary. This cake was a winner.

Carol Peterman/TableFare said... [Reply to comment]

This is a great cake and I really liked how light and tender it was.

Jules Someone said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks for picking something so user friendly! I'm with you on the cake vs. frosting thing. Give me cake any day!

Caroline said... [Reply to comment]

I LOVE this recipe, thanks so much for choosing it! I will be adding this recipe to my regular rotation of go-to recipes. As always your photos look amazing, great job!

Nancy/n.o.e said... [Reply to comment]

I was expecting a pleasant little banana cake, but was absolutely blown away by the fabulousness of this recipe! Loved your choice, Mary!! My husband puts this one in the TWD top ten - and I agree.

Anonymous said... [Reply to comment]

Great choice, Mary! Your cake looks lovely. I'm a chocoholic so I added chocolate chips to mine.

Jennifer said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks SOOO much for picking this cake this week!! I LOVE it!!!!!

Anonymous said... [Reply to comment]

Thank you for a great pick! This was so delicious. I am a frosting fan, but this cake was delicious even on its own.

Hanaâ said... [Reply to comment]

I made this cake last summer and it was delicious. Very moist. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Fit Chick said... [Reply to comment]

Great, wonderful, totally awesome pick!!! This recipe rocks, so moist and very bananaish. 60 million bundt pans? 180,000,000 bananas needed, if we all made the recipe, LOL.

Bridget said... [Reply to comment]

I totally need a Bundt pan! I've wanted one forever, but apparently not quite enough to actually get one. That's okay though, I had fun with this one anyway!

Anonymous said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks so much for picking this recipe - it got me reacquainted with my Nordic bundt pan!
Love your banana bundt cake - it really does look classic! Beautiful photos as usual.

Jaime said... [Reply to comment]

love this recipe - so moist!! great pick :)

Isabelle Lambert said... [Reply to comment]

merci beaucoup Mary pour le choix de cette recette. Classique, peut être mais excellent :)

Unknown said... [Reply to comment]

thanks for picking this! it was AWESOME!!!!!

Rachel said... [Reply to comment]

I was so excited you picked a bundt cake! I always look at yours and think
"That looks good, I should get out my bundt pan," and then....I don't. But I did this week and it was delicious! Great pick!

Jodie said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks for the pick! Yours looks wonderful- I would go for the chocolate chips in this!

Katrina said... [Reply to comment]

GREAT pick Mary. Loved it! I halved the recipe, did some fun things with it, took lots of pictures, loaded them on my laptop to take out of town with me and post today, then three hours in to driving away, realized I forgot my beloved computer! Sigh!
I'll be posting a two for one next week. Can't go wrong with bananas, I say!
(I'm realizing lately that I really like bundt cakes, too!)

Emily Rose said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks for a great recipe! My husband and daughter really really loved this cake and it's one that I may not have picked to make on my own- so they thank you too!

Di said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks for a great pick, Mary. We really enjoyed it. I still want another bundt pan, though... =)

Jenn H in San Diego said... [Reply to comment]

Sadly I don't have a bundt cake pan, but I admire your enthusiasm for them. And your photos - they all look so good.

This was a tasty little treat that I would have passed by had it not been for you. Thanks so much for the introduction!

Mermaid Sews said... [Reply to comment]

Nice pick, it looks delish. I can't wait to make this later tonight.

Unknown said... [Reply to comment]

Great pick this week Mary! Thanks so much for hosting :) I halved the recipe and made mini bundts and dusted them with powdered sugar just like you. They were tasty!

Tammy said... [Reply to comment]

great choice Mary! I was hanging out to make a bundt cake as well

margot said... [Reply to comment]

Your cake looks beautiful with the powdered sugar! Excellent choice, I loved this cake! I was so happy a Bundt cake was selected since I love making them; I'll have to browse your Bundt archives.

natalia said... [Reply to comment]

Ciao Mary ! As you already know as everybody strongly affirmed it : your pick was excellent ! Thank you !!

Marthe said... [Reply to comment]

A great pick!!! I really need to go out and buy myself a bundt cake pan.... Can you believe I don't own one??

Lynne Daley said... [Reply to comment]

Great job on hosting! Your cake looks perfect and the photos are awesome. Sorry I didn't get to make this one.

Unknown said... [Reply to comment]

As always, you made a gorgeous bundt. This was a big hit in our household - thank you for picking this one! Next time, I'm adding some mini chocolate chips.

Anonymous said... [Reply to comment]

Yay!! Great pick. I'm definitely making this again when I have my bundt pans. I salute your ode to bundt pans b/c I lack in the cake-decorating skills department and bundt pans make it easy. Thanks again!!!

Rosa's Yummy Yums said... [Reply to comment]

What a perfect looking cake! So moist and smooth! A real beauty!

Cheers,

Rosa

Nutmeg Nanny said... [Reply to comment]

Such a beautiful cake:) I really need to go buy myself a bundt cake.

Coco Cake Land said... [Reply to comment]

mary, you're nuts about bundts!! looks beautiful.... ! :)

TeaLady said... [Reply to comment]

This was great pic. I made the whole cake and not a mini and am so glad I did. It. Was. Delicious.

Great pic, Mary. And your cake is beautiful.

Cecille Ericta said... [Reply to comment]

My first TWD! Yay! I had so much fun! In my book, you are now the Bundt Cake Princess! Thanks..

Kerstin said... [Reply to comment]

What a great pick - it looks delicious!

The Blonde Duck said... [Reply to comment]

It looks so elegant!

Teanna said... [Reply to comment]

Thank you for the AWESOME pick this week! This was my very first bundt cake! I am honored to cook it in honor of you!

mimi said... [Reply to comment]

what a fabulous pick!! i bought a bundt pan earlier this year (because shouldn't every baker have one) and this cake was the first one (and only! ack, need to rectify that!!) i made before i left. i remember it being sooo yummy!! your's came out looking great!!

Mary Ann said... [Reply to comment]

I love your pictures! So pretty and simple with just a little powdered sugar!
Great pick!

Mini Baker said... [Reply to comment]

So funny... the recipe you listed is almost the EXACT recipe I use for my banana bundt cake :)
Great bakers think alike :)

Katie said... [Reply to comment]

I love this cake, its so good and I love a good Bundt too! I have way to many Bundt Cake pans!

kimberly salem said... [Reply to comment]

This sounded like a great pick! I haven't had ANY time to bake this summer, but this is on my list to try :)

April said... [Reply to comment]

Thank you for this selection! It was SO good, I know I'll be making it again.

Jessica said... [Reply to comment]

I don't like bananas but everyone I gave this to just raved about it. Thanks for such a great pick this week!

Marta said... [Reply to comment]

Delicious!!! I love bundts as well, especially banana-based!
Thanks for this idea and inviting us to bake with you :)

Kayte said... [Reply to comment]

You are so funny with your comment on my blog about the pan wanting to keep some (mine stuck like crazy but everyone has been generous in leaving me tips, so that was great this week!). Yours looks perfect...absolutely show stopping perfect inside and out. I am going to need to look into bundt cake cooking a little more, because I think these would be great to send in school lunches without the messy frosting, etc. Yep, so going there...just because I don't care for banana in cake, doesn't mean there aren't plenty of other bundt cake flavors, right? Thanks for giving me a chance to learn this week! Again, yours is gorgeous.

Leslie said... [Reply to comment]

What a fabulous pick this was! I love how you dusted yours so lightly with powdered sugar. Thanks for helping us discover a new favorite!

vibi said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks Mary for a wonderful and easy pick... It was very nice to have only a a banana bundt to make went summer is calling you out to do things other than bake.

Yours is as usual amazing... you are the pro of bundts! LOL

Jamie said... [Reply to comment]

Beautiful and great pick...I plan on making this next week! :)

Unknown said... [Reply to comment]

What a great selection! I loved it (as did my co-workers)!

ostwestwind said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks for choosing this recipe, it was great.

I am a little late this week with commenting.

Ulrike @ Küchenlatein

The Homemaking Helper said... [Reply to comment]

Thanks for the great recipe! I made this for dessert to go with our Sunday dinner. Needless to say, it was a big hit. It looks alomst as good as it tastes. Thanks for the great recipe!

papertesseract said... [Reply to comment]

I found this cake through foodgawker, I must say, it looks terrific. I'm thinking of making this!

The rest of your blog is adorable too! I love those tomatoes :)

-Ruth

Soy*Baby said... [Reply to comment]

Your pictures are fantastic and a great pick. So pretty, I love the dusting of powdered sugar.

Angela KL said... [Reply to comment]

Hi Mary,

Wow, 102 comments for this post!! Hope you're still reading reader's comments for this post.

Anyway, I flagged your post for the Classic Banana Bundt Cake and finally baked the cake yesterday. It was the kind of banana cake that we were looking for!! Thank you and this is also let you know that I blogged about it (Sept 10 post) and attributed my inspiration to try the recipe to you. Feel free to drop by and read about it.

Thanks again Mary.
Angela

ChristineS said... [Reply to comment]

This cake is absolutely divine! I made it this afternoon - it was quick and easy with my stand-up mixer. I added 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips and 3/4 cup chopped walnuts at the very end. I was tempted to freeze the entire cake for a small gathering in my home two weeks from now, but my little boys had to have a slice before bed. So of course I had to have a taste (just finished off two slices!). So glad to find out about this website- but worried about all the weight gain to come along with it!

Alex said... [Reply to comment]

I think this the fabulous for the treat

Karrie said... [Reply to comment]

My bundt turned out so good. This is the only way I will use my over ripe bananas from now on. Thank you!

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