This Moist Banana Cake with icing is easy and created in a 9x13 sheet pan. It's banana bread in cake form that's paired with a vanilla buttercream frosting.
🍌 Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Large 9x13 sheet pan banana cake.
- Moist, soft & fluffy.
- Paired with a vanilla buttercream frosting without cream cheese.
- Ideal for a group of guests.
- Crowd pleaser.
If you’re looking for a classic banana cake recipe that is equally moist, soft, and fluffy, this recipe is for you. It’s a large sheet pan banana cake with icing that is perfect to make for your family's lunch boxes or a special occasion with a group of guests.
Do you know those banana cake recipes that mainly consist of bananas that end up too moist and sweat the next day? This easy banana cake recipe is not one of those. It’s a traditional banana cake that’s infused with just the right amount of mashed bananas. It’s not too dry and not too moist.
This easy and moist banana cake recipe uses olive oil and Greek yogurt to achieve a moist crumb that stays fresh for days.
Table of Contents
It has that iconic banana bread flavor with a touch of cinnamon spice. The quick vanilla icing for this banana cake is created with 4 ingredients, one bowl, and made without cream cheese.
Do you have more over-ripe banana’s just sitting around? Here are some more easy recipes:
- Eggless Banana Cake.
- Banana & Carrot Snack Loaf.
- Choc Banana Smoothie with Hemp & Chia Seeds.
- Banana Bread Granola.
📋 Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
Here is what you need to make this easy and moist banana cake with icing recipe:
- Plain flour - is also known as all-purpose flour in the US. I have not tested this recipe using gluten-free flour.
- Baking powder - helps the cake to rise in the oven. Make sure your baking powder has not expired, use my handy guide here to find out how to test it.
- Baking soda - help the cake rise.
- Ground cinnamon - banana cake needs cinnamon! Use ground cinnamon, not cinnamon sticks.
- Salt - use fine sea salt or Kosher salt.
- Unsalted butter - must be soft at room temperature before starting your banana cake.
- Granulated sugar - use either golden/raw or white granulated sugar.
- Brown sugar - use light/regular brown sugar, not dark brown sugar. Measure your sugar by lightly packing it into the measuring cup or use kitchen scales to measure the weight.
- Eggs - must be at room temperature before starting your cake.
- Bananas - very ripe bananas work best, the riper the banana, the better your banana cake!
- Vanilla extract - use either a vanilla bean extract or vanilla essence.
- Milk - whole milk, skim milk, or dairy-free milk. Must be at room temperature.
- Plain Greek yogurt - must be at room temperature to emulsify properly into the batter.
- Extra virgin olive oil - olive oil works best in this banana cake, I don’t recommend using another vegetable oil as it can alter the flavor.
- Icing sugar - is also known as powdered or confectioners sugar.
🥣 Step By Step Instructions
How to make this banana cake with icing!
There is a full and detailed recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- First mash your ripe bananas and set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, add flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Whisk until well combined.
- In a separate mixing bowl, beat butter and both sugars together for 2 minutes.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.
- Add mashed banana, milk, yogurt, olive oil, and vanilla. Beat until well combined.
- Add flour and beat until incorporated into a smooth batter.
- Pour the batter into the lined sheet pan and bake for 30-35 minutes. Allow cake to cool completely on a wire rack.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, add icing sugar, melted butter, milk, and vanilla. Whisk until well combined and thick.
- Spread icing over the cooled cake. Allow icing before slicing. Cut into squares and enjoy!
💭 Tips For Recipe Success
- Use very ripe bananas, the riper the banana, the better the banana cake.
- Make sure your cold ingredients are at room temperature before starting the banana cake. This helps them to emulsify in the batter properly.
- Use parchment paper to line your large baking pan. I like to first grease the pan with the butter then cut to size the parchment paper and stick it to the bottom and sides. This creates smooth and uncreased sides for your cake.
- If you have a non-stick baking pan, I like to grease and flour the pan to achieve smooth sides of the cake after baking.
⏲️ Storage Instructions
- Store in an airtight container, at room temperature for 3-4 days. Then move it to the refrigerator for a further 2-3 days to keep it fresh.
- Freeze this banana sheet cake by allowing it to completely cool after baking. Do not add the icing. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and then wrap it again in tin foil. Freeze it for up to 3 months.
- Thaw the cake by removing it from the freezer and transferring it to your refrigerator, still wrapped, for a full 24 hours to slowly thaw. Then sit at room temperature and make the icing.
💬 Recipe FAQ's
Yes! I welcome you to change the icing if you desire. A cream cheese-based frosting, either vanilla or chocolate would be delicious. The choice is yours!
I made this banana cake in a regular-sized rectangle baking pan measuring 7-inch x 11-inch and although it did work, the banana cake raised way above the sides of the pan. It will work, but keep in mind the cake bakes taller than the top of the pan.
Store in an airtight container, at room temperature for 3-4 days. Then move to the refrigerator for a further 2-3 days to keep your moist banana cake fresh.
Yes! Freeze this banana sheet cake by allowing it to completely cool after baking. Do not add the icing. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and then wrap it again in tin foil. Freeze it for up to 3 months.
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If you enjoy this recipe, please consider leaving a ⭐️ star rating and a comment review below. I love to hear what you think and it's much appreciated. Thank you! Your email address will not be published. Sam x
Recipe Card
Moist Banana Cake with Icing
Ingredients
Banana Cake
- 3 cups (450g) plain all purpose flour, scoop & leveled
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt, or Kosher salt
- 100 g (½ cup) unsalted butter, soft at room temperature
- ¾ cup golden/raw granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature , (each weighing approx. 55g in shell)
- 3 medium-large ripe bananas, mashed, altogether with skin on weighs 400g
- ⅔ cup whole milk, at room temperature
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt, at room temperature
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Icing
- 2 ¼ cups (340g) icing/powdered sugar
- 60 g unsalted butter, melted
- 3 tablespoon whole milk
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Banana Cake
- Preheat the oven to 180ºC (350ºF). Grease and line with parchment paper a large rectangular sheet cake pan measuring 35cm length x 25cm width (13 inch length x 9 inch width), set aside.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, add flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Whisk until well combined. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, using electric hand beaters, or using the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attached, add softened butter to the bowl.
- Beat butter for a few seconds until creamy and broken up.
- Add both sugars and beat on medium-high speed for 2 minutes, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition for 15 seconds. Scraping down the sides as needed.
- Add mashed banana, milk, yogurt, olive oil, and vanilla. Beat until well combined for 15 seconds.
- Add half the flour and beat until just combined.
- Add the remaining flour and beat until incorporated, ensuring not to over-mix, just until the pockets and streaks of flour have mixed through.
- Pour the batter into the lined sheet pan. Smoothing out the top.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean and the cake is lightly golden all over.
- Remove from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan for 15 minutes.
- Carefully remove it from the pan by placing a wire rack or chopping board on top of the cake. Then flip it over so the cake releases from the pan and onto the rack/board.
- Allow cake to cool completely on a wire rack.
Icing
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, add icing sugar, melted butter, milk, and vanilla. Whisk until well combined and thick. Continue to whisk until smooth and no lumps of sugar remain.
- Spread icing over the cooled cake.
- Allow icing to set for 15-30 minutes before slicing.
- Cut into squares and enjoy!
- Store in an airtight container, at room temperature for 3-4 days. Then move to refrigerator for a further 2-3 days to keep it fresh.
Notes
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published in June of 2021. It was republished in September of 2022 with new helpful information. The ingredients and method have not been changed.
If you enjoy this recipe, please consider leaving a ⭐️ star rating and a comment review below. I love to hear what you think and it's much appreciated. Thank you! Your email address will not be published. Sam x
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