I read no further than the title of this recipe in the now defunct Country Home magazine before becoming completely smitten, tearing it out and stashing it in my ‘to make’ binder (the old school version of a Pinterest board). Despite the sound of the title, the magazine was cool. No gingham bonnets or cow milking tutorials. It played to the hip, young shabby chic loving crowd who liked distressed authentic finds, interesting current recipes with approachable charm, and who sought to bring a rural feeling vibe into their urbanized lives.
I had no imagination of what Hummingbird Cake would be like and I did not care. Nor did the girl at my neighborhood grocery store who gawked at the recipe title I had in hand at the check out counter and gasped ‘Hummingbird Cake! I don’t even know what that is but I want to make it….NOW!’ A kindred victim of good recipe titling.
I can now tell you Hummingbird Cake is a perfect marriage between Banana Bread and Carrot Cake. Lighter than carrot cake, almost crumbly (though still in a moist way) yet bearing the distinct (though not overpowering) flavor of banana. It has a Cream Cheese Pecan frosting which gives a nod toward the Carrot Cake family and the look of something you’d find in a fairy glen.
I set out to make the cake on a snowy day, seemingly perfect for baking. And one might expect an ethereal baking experience when making something like Hummingbird Cake; light, airy and magical. Though the recipe was easy I somehow was over or under caffeinated and it quickly turned into a daylong episode of the Marx Brothers. The oven door would not close leading me to believe the racks inside were from the other oven. Which then lead to me pulling them out from a fully heated oven, burning my hand only to learn the oven door just did not close all the way, period. I then began to bake the batter which seemed a bit ‘wet’ only to realize I’d not put in the flour portion of the recipe. This I realized half way through the baking of the cake layers.
The second making of the cake was much quicker and fortunately did not end in me burning anything down which would have been completely understandable from Round 1. Once the three layers of cake came out of the oven everything slowed to veritable reenactment of normalcy and proceeded smoothly from there.
I love the look of this cake. It is earthy, rustic but charming at the same time. The recipe provides for enough frosting to lightly frost between the layers and though visually more might seem better, the flavors are perfectly balanced. To me it has the look and taste of a cool weather cake; light cinnamon, roasted bananas and the cream cheese frosting.
Hummingbird Cake is a fantastic combination of banana bread and carrot cake (sans the carrots) with a completely beguiling name! This recipe never disappoints and delivers a specical treat for any occasion.
Ingredients
- 3 cups flour (gluten free or regular)
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup fresh pineapple, crushed (see below)
- 2 cups roasted bananas*, mashed (approximately 4 large or 6 medium-small bananas with peel left on; instructions below)
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- Parchment paper to line bottom of the cake pan
- 1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, chilled
- 3-8 ounce packages of cream cheese, chilled
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 1 ½ cups finely chopped pecans
Ingredients for the Hummingbird Cake:
Ingredients for Cream Cheese Frosting:
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- *Place bananas on a cookie sheet with peels left on. Bake in the oven for 12 minutes until the skins are black (the bananas may leak which is fine). Remove and let cool until they can be handled. Peel bananas, place in a small mixing bowl and mash. Set aside. Leave the oven heated to 350 degrees.
- Butter and flour 3-9 inch round baking pans. Trace the bottom of the pan (for all three pans) onto parchment paper, cut out circle and place in the bottom of each pan.
- In a sifter over a large mixing bowl combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt. Sift into the bowl. Set aside.
- In a second large mixing bowl combine the granulated and brown sugar; stir to combine. Add the eggs and stir briskly by hand to combine all ingredients into a smooth mixture.
- Whisk the oil and vanilla into the sugar/egg mixture until combined and smooth.
- Add the flour mixture all at once and hand stir (do not beat) to combine the mixture fully.
- To crush the pineapple: Place 1 cup of finely diced fresh pineapple in a medium mixing bowl and using a potato masher, crush the pineapple. Add the fruit and juice to the batter. Also add the mashed banana and the pecans. Stir just until combined; do not over stir.
- Divide the batter evenly between the three pans. Tap the pans on the countertop to release any air bubbles and place in the 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes until cake bounces back to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean.
- Allow to cool in pans on racks for 5 minutes then turn out onto cooling racks to fully cool before frosting. Be sure to peel off and discard the parchment paper.
- Cut sticks of chilled butter into 1 inch pieces and place in the bowl of a standing mixer (can use a hand held mixer if needed). Beat on low speed, gradually increasing speed to medium until the butter is still cool but has softened together (about 3 minutes).
- Cut the cream cheese into 1 inch strips and add to the butter. Mix at medium speed until fully combined, and smooth.
- Add the vanilla and slowly add the sifted powdered sugar. Beat until well blended, increasing speed to beat on medium-high for 3 minutes or until the frosting becomes light and fluffy.
- Fold in pecans by hand.
- Place the first layer of cake upside down (the bottom of the cake will be frosted) on the serving plate. Cover with 2/3 cup of frosting. This will be a thin covering.
- Place the second layer of cake right side up (flat cake bottom onto the frosting) and frost the top of this layer with 2/3 cup again (note: I found I needed just a bit more to cover this layer).
- Place the last cake layer with cake right side up and use the remaining frosting to cover top of cake and the sides.
- 4. Allow cake to stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving and store any uneaten cake in the refrigerator. Cake best when made the day prior to serving!
Instructions to make Hummingbird Cake:
Instructions for Cream Cheese Frosting:
Instructions for Cake Assembly:
Notes
Adapted from Country Home magazine (2008)
My thanks to reader Lori for prompting me to shake off the reverie of my food crush on this cake long enough to look into its roots. It has been more popular in the southern U.S. with roots seeming to originate in Jamaica where the hummingbird is the national bird. To read more, click here!
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Hi, I have 6 bananas that are ready to mash for banana bread and I thought of making this instead because I am ready to try it out. I noticed the recipe says roasted bananas… would it work with the mashed bananas too? I don’t want to waste my bananas!
Thanks
Yes I’m sure it will work and be fantastic! The roasting of the bananas changes the flavor a bit but your bananas will be fine. Roasting is a great way to hasten the ripening too but it sounds that you are all set in that department!
I am attempted to do the cream cheese frosting and it came out salty, tasted horrible. I followed the steps and did not come out good. I don’t know what happened.
Hi Rosie. I’m so sorry you have had an issue. I have no idea why it would come out salty. Did you follow the instructions exactly with no substitutions? As you can see from the other comments this is a recipe many have made with great results. If you can give me more details I’d be happy to try to help you figure out what happened.
Did you use unsalted butter?
Yes Terry, as noted in the recipe I did use unsalted butter. I rarely use anything besides unsalted butter in baking.
I have been making Hummingbird cake for almost 23 years. I have never seen a recipe that roast the banana’s and I have never done it that way. just peel uncooked banana’s, mash them with a fork and add them to the batter. I swear this cake is the best cake ever and so easy to make. Just sharing in case someone wanted to skip that step. I will be trying it though, not sure this cake could get any better….but gonna try it this way at least once.
Thank you Monique. I love adapting recipes like that. The base recipe did not call to roast the bananas originally but I changed that loving the flavor of the roast bananas so much! They taste differently than regular ripe bananas. And you can take unripe bananas and ‘ripen them’ by roasting in mere minutes. No waiting for overly ripened bananas!
I just made this today and am so excited about it. I won’t be able to try it until tomorrow (its for a party) but I wanted to tell you that I adapted it some. I used half buckwheat flour and for the frosting, I added about 1/4 cup of coconut milk to soften it. The frosting is really yummy, and I was thinking of sprinkling some fresh coconut on it too. Thanks for the recipe!
How was it?
It turned out awesome! The cake was so moist and delicious and the frosting was extra creamy and really yummy with the coconut. I also sprinkled fresh organic coconut on top, and will definitely be making it like this again. Couldn’t really tell there was buckwheat in the cake which was fine…I was hoping to make it a little healthier without necessarily tasting that way. Thanks so much for the recipe!
good idea re the coconut. I actually had the same idea, but didn’t have any in my pantry. would love to make a lower-cal version of this cake!
Well, my husband brought home canned pineapple, rather than fresh. I am assuming that is why it is taking so long to cook…oh well, hopefully it will just be super-moist!
I had no idea that roasting the bananas would hasten the ripening process. Excellent!
Though I have not made the cake with canned pineapple Diane it is a very forgiving cake as you can see from the prior comments where people have tweaked the ingredients and size! Hopefully you drained it well and it will be delicious! The roasting also changes the flavor so the bananas taste much more robust rather than just sugary as naturally ripened bananas can.
Perhaps this is an odd question, but I am wondering how tall the finished cake is? I need to be able to fit it into a 5 in. tall box. THANKS!
Hi Amanda! I (sadly) don’t have a Hummingbird Cake on hand right now however a cake pan is 1 1/2 inches high and the cake bakes a bit higher than that. 3 layers along with 1/8 inch icing in between layers and a good coat of frosting on top as well as whatever you’d place it on; I think it would be tight. If you are committed to your box you might reduce the cake recipe by a 1/3 and only make it two layers? I completely understand having the perfect container and working the cake into it. I’d be concerned the original recipe might be too tall for you!
I’m wondering why the first layer is placed upside down. Please forgive my ignorance. I’m not much of a baker.
Hi Elizabeth. Placing the first layer upside down provides the two flat sides of each the first and second layers will be facing each other which allows a more uniform application of frosting between them.
I could not RESIST making this cake, after reading your description! I made it the very next day, and it looks EXACTLY like the one posted!!!! This is the BEST CAKE I’ve ever tasted – and let me say, I’ve baked and tasted a LOT of cakes in my day. Roasting the bananas is genius. They are creamy and wonderful. This cake could feed a lot of people, as just a tiny slice is very satisfying and filling. I shared with family, gave some to our neighbors, and still had plenty for my husband and I to indulge in each night for a week. This cake must weigh at least 5 lbs….so you can just imagine all the wonderful ingredients that transform it from a ho hum every day cake into the most delicious creation you’ll ever make – and one that you’ll want to make again and again for those special people in your life ♥
Carol I think I just got my Valentine for the season! What a lovely comment and thank you for the time in sharing so many details! Roasting bananas is a totally different thing than aged bananas isn’t it?! So simple but such an ‘upgrade’. Thanks again!
Is there a way to print this?
Hi Roz! I’m slowly working back through my recipes to fold them into a new ‘printable’ format but Hummingbird Cake has not yet been converted. Could I suggest cutting and pasting it into a Word document and printing that? So sorry for any inconvenience.
Can this be made as is but in a 9×13 pan instead of the round pans as I don’t have any.. And would I still need the same amount of frosting.
Hi Season. I have only made the cake as a layer cake as described in the recipe however if you look through the comments you’ll note readers have made it in different pans all with great success. Here is a link to a baking pan conversaion chart which would help you calculate the size difference: http://allrecipes.com/howto/cake-pan-size-conversions/.
Intuitively I would think you would need less frosting; maybe 2/3′s what is used for a layer cake? I think that will require some experimentation on your part! If it were me, I would have enough ingredients to make the whole batch but maybe start with 2/3′s the called for amounts. If you need more you can always use the remaining ingredients to make a 1/3 more. Let me know how it turns out!
Thanks for sharing the recipe
I’m planning to make this for my dad’s birthday. I was wondering though… if I want to have only half of the servings, can I simply just halve the recipe or do I have to keep or adjust some of the ingredients? There’s only three of us so I don’t want to make a big one.
Hi Barvs. I have only made the recipe as detailed here but you’ll note many reader comments having changed the cake into a different size, whether it be cupcakes or a sheet cake. Do you want it to be a layer cake? You could try to make it by halving the ingredients and I’d guess you would get a short layer cake (you would need to modify the cooking time too to not over cook the layers). Or perhaps cut it back by a 1/3 and make a 2 layer cake? If you do not want a layer cake I might consider a different form like a rectangular cake. In one of the recently published comment responses you’ll note a link I shared that lists cake pan equivalents so you can see what other forms might be a fit for your needs. Hope that helps and Happy Birthday to your father!
Wondering if you’ve ever tried with half whole white wheat flour and regular flour? Also, wondering if you could change the oil to applesauce? Trying to figure out if it could be healthier…
Unfortunately Lauren I’ve only made the cake as noted here. I am gluten-free so cannot use wheat flour or all purpose flour that is a wheat derivative. I’ve also never swapped applesauce for oil in baking so I’m sorry I can’t be more helpful!
This cake was so very amazing! Perfect afternoon snack on a cold blustery day
I made it a bit healthier by subbing half a cup stevia baking blend for the granulated sugar and by using fat-free cream cheese. Tasted so awesome!
I love hearing how people have made this cake their own Kenzie! It seems no matter how people substitute for their needs it turns out great! Glad that prove true for you too. Thanks so much for your comment.
Hi, I was wondering if you think it would be possible to make this cake in a bundt pan instead of the layers?
Hi Melanie. I’ve provided conversion charts to other commenters on changing sizes of the cake but don’t recall seeing a conversion to bundt cake format and I’ve only personally made the cake in the format featured in the recipe. I’d suggest doing some Internet research about how to convert a cake from a layer to bundt cake and see if that gives some insight. Good luck!
I forgot to tap the pans before I put them in the oven. What is it that happens to them?
I made this cake for my daughter, she saw the recipe on Pinterest and thought since her favorites are banana bread and carrot cake that this would be delicious. She doesn’t like pineapple so I used 1/4 cup lemon juice and added 1 cup of shredded carrot and went by the recipe for everything else. DELICIOUS!
Coralee I LOVE these comments! This recipe has brought so many comments with small adjustments or baking it in a different size that have all worked out so well. I’m glad you mixed it up for your daughter. Carrots would be perfect with the other flavors. As I mentioned it has that ‘carrot-cakey’ taste with the spices. Thank you so MUCH for taking the time to leave your comment!
Sounds delicious! I love banana bread and carrot cake… as mentioned in the intro it’s aperfect marriage. My question is where’s the carrot?? Can I omit pineapple for shredded carrot?
Hi Ruth! There are no carrots in Hummingbird Cake however the spices and cream cheese frosting certainly remind one of carrot cake flavors. I have only made the cake as described in the recipe however many readers have changed it successfully. I say swap it out! It won’t be a true Hummingbird Cake however since the pineapple is a signature flavor defining Hummingbird Cake; it will be more of a carrot banana cake but I’m sure delicious!
I made this cake in a 9 x 13 pan, used drained canned crushed pineapple, and halved the amount of frosting: it was AWESOME! This recipe is definitely a keeper – Thanks!
Just finished making this cake…. now I am having a dilemma.. take the cake to the party or keep it all for the family. The icing was fantastic, now what to do.
Make a second one?! I do feel your pain!
Do you have a printer friendly version of this recipe ?
Well YES Jean I do….thanks to you! I’ve been converting recipes into a printable form that can also be added to a shopping list over time and this one had not yet been converted. Thanks for the nudge! Hopefully it will meet your needs now.