Mini Banana & Coconut Layer Cakes
Get creative with these Mini Banana & Coconut Layer Cakes! Experiment with different toppings, frostings, or fillings for a unique and personalized dessert experience.
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 5.2 oz butter , at room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar firmly packed
- 1/2 cup caster superfine sugar
- 3 eggs at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 medium bananas ripe, mashed
- 1/2 cup light sour cream I used full fat sour cream
- 2 cups self-raising flour sieved (I used 2 cups gluten-free flour blend, plus 2 teaspoons baking powder)
- 1/2 cup desiccated coconut
For the coconut cream cheese icing:
- 4.4 oz butter , at room temperature
- 8.8 oz cream cheese , at room temperature
- 2 cups icing sugar confectioner’s sugar, sieved
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon coconut essence I used 1/4 teaspoon coconut extract paste, to taste
- 2/3 cup shredded coconut
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 180°C (360°F). Grease and line sheet tin – I used a 43 x 28cm (17 x 11 inch pan) – with baking paper.
- Beat butter and sugars with electric beaters in large bowl until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well with addition. Add vanilla extract, mashed bananas and sour cream; beat to combine. Beat flour and coconut into mixture until well combined.
- Pour mix into lined sheet pan, level it with a spatula, and bake for about 20 minutes or until the cake is golden and a skewer inserted into centre of cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool slightly in tin, then turn onto wire rack. Peel off baking paper and let it cool completely.
For the coconut cream cheese icing:
- Whip butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add icing sugar, vanilla extract and coconut essence and beat for a further few minutes. Store in fridge until needed, but it will take it out to un-chill before using.
To assemble:
- Take a cookie cutter – I used a 7cm (2.7 inch) cutter – and stamp out your cake layers (I got 21 layers out of mine).
- Place about two thirds of the cream cheese icing into a piping bag with plain tip (or simply cut the tip off the bag itself). NB: Piping the icing makes it less likely you will pick up crumbs from the cake’s surface. Put the remaining icing into a small bowl to use for icing the outside of the cakes.
- Place one cake layer onto your bench surface (or plate) and pipe some icing onto it (be fairly generous as given this is a semi-naked cake, most of the icing is inside rather than outside). Place the next layer on top and gently press down. Repeat with icing. Place third cake layer on top. Now, using a metal offset spatula, take some of the icing from the small bowl and slather on top of the cake and around the sides.
- Wipe the spatula clean and drag it around the cake to smooth the sides. Do the same for the top. Put the cake into the fridge for the icing to set while you repeat the process for the remaining cakes. If you find the icing getting too warm and difficult to use, put in the fridge until it firms up a little.
- Once the cakes have set in the fridge, you can dress them as you please. If you have any left over icing, you can pipe a nice rosette, or similar, on top. I had no icing left over, so dressed with unsprayed roses from the garden.
Notes
This recipe is actually for one whole cake (the pan size is not stated, though I’d probably opt for a 20cm (8 inch) pan, which you would need to grease and line with baking paper. Suggested baking time is 60 minutes.To ripen bananas quickly, place in a brown paper bag in a warmish place until brown.
To give the cake a nutty flavor, fold 1 cup of chopped pecans into the mix after adding the sour cream.
Nutrition
Calories: 895kcalCarbohydrates: 110gProtein: 10gFat: 48gSaturated Fat: 31gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 171mgSodium: 383mgPotassium: 386mgFiber: 3gSugar: 79gVitamin A: 1434IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 101mgIron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how if you liked it in the comments below!