Chocolate Chip Cinnamon Swirl Banana Cake

November 11, 2015 // 2 Comments »

There are few things in this world that are more delicious close to rotten than fresh. But I love when I’ve got a few dark brown extra mushy bananas on the counter just begging to be baked into a delicious breakfast treat. Banana bread has always been my go to for extra ripe nanners, and sometimes I bake them in muffin tins for a quick treat. But variety is the spice of life, so I was in the mood to experiment recently with some perfectly ripe bananas. I grew up loving my Grandma’s Sour Cream Coffee Cake that has a cinnamon swirl and sugary sweet topping. It was one of the first things I learned to bake on my own and is always a crowd pleaser. So I decided to make a banana twist on this classic recipe, incorporating in a few mushy bananas and of course some chocolate chips. This sweet treat is a delicious breakfast recipe that proves you can have your cake and eat it too! (before 9am)

When I was perusing the interwebs for some banana inspiration, I came across this Banana Chocolate Chip Swirl Cake from Sally’s Baking Addiction. It got me thinking about my Grandma’s sour cream coffee cake and I decided to take some liberties to make the recipe on my own. Anytime I am making a cake, whether it’s a frosted cake or a sweet breakfast treat, I always throw in some extra vanilla extract, one of my favorite go-to ingredients. I love the extra sweetness, especially in a banana recipe.

I was hosting a brunch a few weekends ago for my ladies’ tennis team, and though everyone agreed to evenly contribute the food and drink, I decided this was the perfect opportunity to test out some new brunch baked goods and may have gone a teenie bit overboard in my morning baking. But with an entire team of taste testers ready, willing and able, I had to take advantage of the opportunity. Between the pumpkin donuts, pumpkin monkey bread, chocolate covered Chex mix, homemade cinnamon buns, and all of the savory dishes, the real star of the show was definitely this Chocolate Chip Cinnamon Swirl Banana Cake. You always know something is good when people start cutting off a little part of a piece, then go back for more, and a little more, until a few pieces are eaten. I was kicking myself for not photographing it the first time I baked it, but between the feedback from the team and all of the comments I got after posting a pic on Instagram, I knew I had to remake this cake for the blog.

I definitely recommend using mini chocolate chips if you have them, but the second time around I used regular milk-chocolate chips, which turned out just as delicious, but maybe a bit less photogenic. I also use sour cream in the cake batter, but you could substitute Greek Yogurt if that was your preference. The cake is soft, sweet, tangy and perfectly complimented by the sweet crunch of the chocolate streusel. Even better, you can serve the cake chilled if you make it a day in advance, or warm it up for some melty chocolate action. I’d have to call this treat a definite ace. Game, set, bake!

Ingredients

Banana Cake

5 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 large ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup sour cream
1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Streusel Topping

1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Step 1: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8×8 glass baking dish with parchment and spray with nonstick spray. The parchment will help to remove it from the dish in one piece.

Step 2: In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter on high until creamy. For this recipe I use a hand-held mixer, but this can also be prepared in a stand mixer. Add in the sugar and beat until creamy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl before mixing in the vanilla extract and egg.

Step 3: Mash the banana in a separate bowl first (I use an avocado masher to get the job done) and add it into the batter along with the sour cream. If you prefer, you can substitute an equal amount of greek yogurt for the sour cream. Beat on a medium speed until well blended.

Step 4: Sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder and salt and then slowly add to the wet batter, mixing just until the dry ingredients have been incorporated.

Step 5: To make the streusel topping, combine the cinnamon, light brown sugar and mini chocolate chips together in a bowl. You can use whatever size chocolate chips you have on hand but I liked the way this turned out better with the mini chips.

Step 6: Layer half of the batter in the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle half of the streusel on top. Pour the remaining batter and evenly spread on top and use the remaining streusel to cover the entire top. Bake for 45-50 minutes until the top is golden and a skewer comes out clean from the center. A tip I picked up from Sally’s Baking Addiction is to cover the cake halfway through baking with aluminum foil, to prevent the edges from getting too crispy.

Allow the cake to cool to room temperature before cutting and serving. The parchment lining in the dish is a lifesaver in helping to get the cake out in one piece.

Technically speaking, this makes nine servings, but I don’t think anyone would judge if you cut this into two giant bars and called it a day.

One of my favorite ways to enjoy this is heated up in microwave for a little bit with a pat of butter on top. I mean, just look at that little river of butter making its way down the nooks and crannies of that cake.

Plus when the chocolate gets warmed up and melty, forgetaboutit.

This cake was so delicious I’ve already been baking up a few variations of it for the holiday. So keep an eye out for some cranberry inspired breakfast cakes coming to the blog soon.

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