Forget the boxed chocolate cake mix! With just 30 minutes of active time and a whisk, you can make this simple Chocolate Banana Cake from scratch. This chocolate snacking cake requires no butter, so creaming or machine mixing is unnecessary.
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Do you like cakes made with vegetable oil instead of butter?
If you do, this simple and easy cake is for you!
It becomes the perfect snacking cake or everyday dessert with its rich chocolate flavor with just a hint of banana flavor. Garnishing this cake with a chocolate ganache frosting transforms it into a decadent dessert for those extra special occasions.
As a bonus, it requires no fancy equipment and comes together quickly. All you need to make this simple cake are a couple of bowls, a whisk, and a mixing spoon.
Garnish it with a dusting of icing sugar or if you prefer, bring it to the next level by topping it with a chocolate ganache frosting as we did today. Either way, it’s delicious!
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Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350℉ (175°C). Position the rack in the center of the oven.
Grease and dust a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with cocoa powder (or use non-stick spray) -set aside for now.
In a large mixing bowl, sift or whisk together the dry ingredients. More specifically, 1¾ cups of all-purpose flour (250 grams), 1¼ cups of granulated sugar (250 grams), ¾ cup of unsweetened cocoa powder (65 grams), 1½ teaspoons of baking powder, 1½ teaspoons of baking soda and ½ teaspoon of salt. Set aside for now.
In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 eggs (room temperature) with ½ cup of vegetable oil, ½ cup of milk (room temperature), ½ cup of warm coffee, ½ cup of warm water and 1½ teaspoons of pure vanilla extract. Add 1 cup of mashed bananas. Whisk to combine properly together.
Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and whisk together until combined. Do not overmix.
Pour the thin batter into a greased pan.
Bake in a preheated oven for 35-40 minutes or until a wooden toothpick or skewer comes out clean and the cake springs back when the top is lightly pressed.
Remove from the oven and cool down completely on a cooling rack before frosting.
Chocolate ganache frosting
Place 8 ounces of chopped chocolate in a small heatproof bowl and set aside.
Heat butter and cream over medium-high heat in a small saucepan until steaming hot and just beginning to simmer.
Immediately remove from the heat and pour over the chopped chocolate. Let stand for about 3 minutes to melt the chocolate, then whisk together until smooth.
Cover with plastic film and refrigerate. Whisk often, for about 45 minutes or until the frosting becomes thick and holds its shape.
Spread over the room-temperature cake (directly in the pan) with an offset spatula.
Now you know how to make banana cake! Serve and enjoy!
Tips
- Sifting or whisking the dry ingredients together allows better distribution of the leavening agents. The process also aerates the dry ingredients, making the final product lighter in texture.
- The best way to ensure a delicious banana chocolate cake is by using ripe bananas. Bananas with speckled brown spots on them have the most flavor. Using roasted bananas is another way to ensure a flavorful banana dessert.
- Avoid overmixing as this will result in a tough, rubbery cake due to gluten development.
- The batter is a little thin, but not to worry. The end product has a light texture and the perfect crumb! So, do not be tempted to add extra flour.
- Cool the cake completely before icing it with chocolate ganache frosting.
Recipe Variations
- Feel free to add a handful of walnuts or mini chocolate chips to the batter before baking it.
- If avoiding coffee, replace it with an equal amount of water.
- Replace the ganache frosting with a dusting of icing sugar.
FAQ
It is preferable to wait 2-3 hours for your cake to cool completely before icing it.
Store this chocolate cake without the ganache frosting for up to two days at room temperature. To keep your chocolate cake fresh, cover it with plastic film. To store the cake with chocolate icing, cover it properly with plastic film and refrigerate for up to 5 days for optimal taste and texture.
Yes, this cake freezes wonderfully for up to 3 months without the icing. After the cake cools down completely, double-wrap it in plastic wrap and aluminum foil for the best results.
Easy banana recipes
Transform ripe bananas into a delicious treat with these easy recipes.
- Banana Muffins: Moist and flavorful banana muffins, a perfect grab-and-go treat or breakfast addition.
- Roasted Banana Bread: a timeless comfort with a moist crumb and a hint of cinnamon.
- Oatmeal Banana Breakfast Cookies: Wholesome banana breakfast cookies, a convenient and energy-boosting start to your day.
- Banana Strawberry Muffins: Fruity delight in every bite – banana strawberry muffins, a perfect balance of sweetness.
Recipe origins
My friends and family love this simple chocolate cake! I’ve been making it for years and it never disappoints.
The original recipe is from one of my favorite websites, the Joy of Baking. This site has tutorials and how-to videos, which can be highly informative if you want to learn something new!
Over the years, these are some of the changes I made to the original recipe: I decreased the total amount of sugar to 1¼ cups, and I replaced ½ cup of water with coffee (the original recipe calls for 1 cup of water).
Topping off this chocolate dessert with a creamy chocolate ganache transforms it from scrumptious to decadent.
This rich, moist chocolate cake is the perfect dessert for any occasion!
It gets rave reviews from friends & family every single time I make it. This will quickly become one of your favorite cakes!
Enjoy!
THANKS SO MUCH for following and being part of the She Loves Biscotti community, where you will find Simple & Tasty Family-Friendly Recipes with an Italian Twist.
Ciao for now,
Maria
★★★★★ If you have made this easy chocolate cake recipe with oil, I would love to hear about it in the comments below and be sure to rate the recipe!
Italian Chocolate cookies
Recipe
Simple Chocolate Banana Cake Recipe
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Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour 250 grams
- 1¼ cups granulated sugar 250 grams
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder 65 grams, can also use Dutch-processed cocoa
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1½ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
Wet ingredients
- 2 eggs room temperature
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- ½ cup milk room temperature
- ½ cup warm coffee
- ½ cup warm water
- 1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup mashed ripe bananas about 2 medium
Chocolate Ganache Frosting
- 8 oz semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chopped
- ¾ cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter room temperature
Instructions
- Position the rack in the center of the oven.
- Preheat oven to 350℉ (175°C) .
- Grease and dust the pan with cocoa powder (or use non-stick spray) in a 9 x 13-inch pan.
- Sift or whisk together all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
- In another medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together all of the wet ingredients.
- Gradually add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk together until combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 35-40 minutes or until a wooden toothpick or skewer comes out clean and the cake springs back when the top is lightly pressed.
- Transfer pan on a wire rack to cool down completely before frosting (if using).
Chocolate Ganache Frosting
- Place chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set aside.
- In a small saucepan, heat butter and cream over medium-high heat until steaming hot and just beginning to simmer.
- Immediately remove from the heat and pour over the chopped chocolate. Let stand for about 3 minutes to melt the chocolate.
- Whisk together until smooth.
- Cover with plastic film and refrigerate. Whisk often, for about 45 minutes or until the frosting becomes thick and holds its shape.
- Spread over the room temperature cake (directly in the pan) with an offset spatula.
- Serve and enjoy.
Video
Notes
- Sifting or whisking the dry ingredients together allows better distribution of the leavening agents. The process also aerates the dry ingredients making the final product lighter in texture.
- The best way to make sure you have a delicious banana chocolate cake is by using ripe bananas. Bananas with speckled brown spots on them have the most flavor. Using roasted bananas is another way to ensure a flavorful banana dessert.
- Avoid overmixing as this will result in a tough, rubbery cake due to the development of gluten.
- The batter is a little on the thin side, but not to worry. The end product has a light texture and the absolute perfect crumb! Do not be tempted to add extra flour.
- Cool the cake completely before icing with chocolate ganache frosting.
- Feel free to add a handful of walnuts or mini chocolate chips to the batter before baking it.
- If avoiding coffee, replace it with an equal amount of water.
- Replace the ganache frosting with a dusting of icing sugar.
Nutrition
This post was originally published on January 17, 2016, and republished on January 18, 2022, with updated content and photos. Thanks for sharing!
Forum
Made this today and turned out amazing! So much moist and fluffy, everyone loved it. Only thing the cake has cracks from side on the top (could be the temp in the oven). I reduced the sugar to 3/4th cup, substituted flour with half whole wheat flour and half plain flour . Also added dark chocolate chips. But overall so so glad to have found this recipe!! Thank you!!
Maria
My pleasure! Thanks so much for sharing!
Lucy
WOW! Another winning recipe. Absolutely delicious. The crumb is so moist and the frosting is so yummy. This is a go to recipe. I also reduced the sugar content and used 1/2 white sugar and 1/2 dark sugar – It produced a beautiful, deep, rich colour with added toffeelike flavour which I really like and added a touch of walnuts as suggested. Soo good! Thanks Maria for another great recipe.
P..S. The top “Jump to Recipe” button needs to be corrected and the display window for the ingredients needs to be expanded.
Maria
Thanks so much for your comment Lucy.
L
Hi Maria
Can i use frozen bananas
That’s all I have at the moment
Thank you
Maria
Great question Louise! I have used frozen bananas when making banana bread and muffins and the results are always great. I have never tried using frozen bananas with this dessert but it should be fine. Would love to hear about your results if you do decide to try it.
Jessica
Mmm, this looks divine! Love the addition of that chocolate frosting – yummmm! Can’t wait to try it this recipe out!
Maria
Fantastic Jessica, hope you get a chance to try it! Thanks for stopping by ♥
Julia
I, too, try to reduce sugar most of the time. And I also sub apple sauce for oil often. I love that this recipe has coffee and feeds a crowd!
Maria
This chocolate banana cake is really not overly sweet and comes together in no time at all… Thanks so much for taking the time to comment Julia ♥
Jackie
What a great looking cake, bet it tastes even better 🙂
Maria
Thanks Jackie! This chocolate banana cake is very popular with my family and friends. I love this recipe because it is so so easy to make 😉 The perfect chocolate treat for Valentine’s Day! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Louise
Baked it recently and it was great. A lovely recipe indeed. Thanks Maria.
Maria
My pleasure Louise! I have a few bananas on my counter right now that are looking a little sad… debating whether to make this chocolate banana cake or banana muffins… decisions, decisions 🙂 Thanks so much for stopping by ♥
deb@glutenfreefarina.com
I love these ‘go to’ chocolate cake recipes that come together so quickly. I’m a fan of the Texas Sheet cake just for that reason with the cinnamon and chocolate. Thanks for giving me another option. I think my husband’s card group thinks I only know how to make one cake.
Maria
Hi Deb!
LOL…I think we are all the same. Once we have a recipe that works, like this chocolate banana cake, we stick with it. Appreciate the comment. Have a great week-end.
Maria
Hi mary,
This recipe looks delicious…
I would like to try it this weekend : )
Just a question – should i use espresso or regular coffee…or does it not matter??
Also….i would like to use the applesauce option you mention!
(I actually have homemade chunky applesauce!) So i should replace the full portion of oil by the applesauce?
Pls let me know! 🙂
Looking forward to trying this recipe!
Maria
Hi Maria,
I have always used regular coffee…you might get a more pronounced bitter taste with the espresso…also, I did cut back on the sugar, so the taste of the chocolate really comes through. I always replace only half the oil with the applesauce. I actually had a piece of leftover of this chocolate banana cake today (without the icing) and it’s still super moist. Would love to hear how the cake turns out for you! Thanks for taking the time to comment 🙂
Maria
Hi Mary,
Baked this cake today with my mom! Wanted to let you know how much we loved it!
Most impressive is the texture!
(Besides the chocolate flavor!!)
The moistness in the sponge!
Definately a keeper recipe !
Thanks for sharing it! 🙂
Maria
Maria
Hi Maria,
My pleasure. I’m really glad you guys enjoyed this chocolate banana cake 🙂
Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.