Banana Hazelnut Cake With Nutella Frosting

We all know how good a slice of warm banana bread is. It makes the kitchen smell heavenly when it’s baking and it’s the best way to use up ripe or over ripe bananas. Another great way to use those ripe bananas is in a banana cake. I have a long list of banana cakes to try but this one in particular came to me via the Cook Real Food Every Day magazine that was mailed to me. I absolutely love their magazine issues and was so happy to receive a copy of their spring issue. It always has some wonderful inspiration for simple and delicious meals, meal plans and desserts.

This issue had a wonderful array of spring dishes along with some great Sunday meal prep ideas, delicious instant pot dishes, sheet pan suppers which include a fabulous prosciutto and asparagus quiche, spring grain bowls by Jill from Feed the Swimmers, their feasting on five series which was based on chicken dishes made from five ingredients, parchment paper dinner inspo including a step by step on how to fold parchment paper properly to make the perfect pouches, a step by step dinner guide for entertaining which even includes cocktails, stuffed peppers uniquely done 4 ways, and also the one that caught my eye was the weeknight baking article, plus much more. Make sure to order a copy online or your paper copy. There are so many dishes I have on my list to make from it including desserts and cocktails.

The weeknight baking section has 5 desserts that are simple enough o bake any night of the week. The one that unsurprisingly caught my eye was the Banana Hazelnut Cake with Nutella frosting. You all know I love Nutella so making and sharing this recipe was a give in. The cake is fluffy and light, a lot less dense than a banana bread which makes it more of a dessert than a breakfast bread. The toasted hazelnuts infuse the cake with that nutty hazelnut flavour and add a bit of texture to the cake in each bite. Also adding to the texture of the cake is the chocolate chips I added to the recipe. I couldn’t help myself - I love adding them to my banana bread and just needed to add them to this cake as well. It’s such a delicious cake and can easily be eaten as is without a frosting.

Why stop there though when you can add a Nutella frosting? A thick fudgey layer of Nutella frosting that is. I had a bit of leftover frosting and whatever doesn’t get eaten by the spoonful could easily go on waffles of pancakes to make them extra special. We topped the cake with chocolate curls and a dash of flaky salt too. It’s a simple one bowl kind of cake and is so delicious. The texture of it elevates it beyond a simple banana bread and the frosting takes it even higher. The whole family couldn’t get enough and it will definitely be on repeat. I think you will love it too if you are a hazelnut spread nut like I am!

Recipe

Ingredients

• ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, softened
• ⅔ cup (133 g) granulated sugar
• ⅓ cup (73 g) firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1 cup (227 g) mashed banana
• ½ cup (120 g) whole buttermilk, room temperature
• 2 large eggs(100 g), room temperature
• 1 teaspoon (4 g) vanilla extract
• 1⅔ cups (208 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon (5 g) baking powder
• ¾ teaspoon(3.75 g) baking soda
• ½ teaspoon (1.5 g) kosher salt
• ½ cup (57 g) chopped toasted hazelnuts

For the frosting

• 1 cup (256 g) Nutella
• ½ cup (115 g) cream cheese, room temperature
• ¼ cup (57 g) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups (240 g) confectioners’ sugar
• ½ teaspoon (2 g) vanilla extract
• ¼ cup teaspoon (0.75 g) kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons (30 g) heavy whipping cream, room temperature
• Chocolate shavings for garnish

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray; line pan with parchment paper

2. Full cake: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugars at medium speed until fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, stopping to scrape sides of the bowl. Add mashed banana, butter milk, eggs, and vanilla, and beat until well combined.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking power, baking soda, and salt. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture to butter mixture in 2 additions, beating until combined. Fold in chopped hazelnuts. Spoon batter into prepared pan.

4. Bake until a wooden pick inserted in centre comes out clean, 30-35 minutes. Let cool in pine for 15 minutes. Remove from pan, and let cool completely on a wire rack.

5. For frosting: in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the Nutella, cream cheese, and butter at medium speed until creamy and no lumps remain, about 2 minutes. With mixer on low speed, add confectioners’ sugar, ½ cup (60 g) at a time, beating until well combined, stopping to scrape sides and bottom of bowl as needed. Beat in vanilla and salt. Add cream, and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 30 seconds. Spread frosting on top of cooled cake. Garnish with chocolate shavings, if desired.