Banana Snacking Cake w/ Coconut Cream Caramel Icing & Maldon Salt Flakes (GF) (DF)

“Three Snacking Cakes to Change Your Afternoons” is the headline for Melissa Clark’s recipe spread in the NYT Food Section. She gives us permission to satisfy our hunger pangs with a small piece of a small cake that recalls a previous era when cake was enjoyed “without judgment or fear, just for cake’s sake.”

Here’s the first of the three cakes using the over-ripe bananas that so often get away from us. With just one bowl and a whisk, the cake is in the oven and on the cooling rack in about an hour. Too much cake? It's also good straight out of the freezer in pre-cut 1" squares.

My Paleo Marin Rating: 3.5 Persimmons

Ingredients:

For the Cake:

1 1/2 cups/185 grams gluten free flour, preferably Cup4Cup Brand
1/4 cup brown coconut sugar, preferably Big Tree Farms Organic Brown Coconut Sugar

Image from
Amazon here

3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/2 cup/115 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), melted and cooled, plus more for pan (Note: use Earth Balance for non-dairy)
1 cup/250 grams mashed very ripe bananas (2-3)
1/4 cup/60 millimeters lactose-free sour cream, preferably Green Valley Organic Sour Cream (or make non-dairy here)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Icing:

4 tablespoons/65 grams unsalted butter (1/2 stick), cut into pieces
1/4 cup packed/70 grams brown coconut sugar, preferably Big Tree Farms Organic Brown Coconut Sugar

Image from Green Valley
Website here

1/4 cup/60 millileters coconut cream (thickest part in can)
Pinch of fine sea salt
1/4 cup/30 grams confectioners' sugar

Flaky Sea Salt for serving, preferably Malden Sea Salt Flakes

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9" x 9" cake pan and cover with parchment paper, edges draped over the sides of the pan.

For the Cake:

Image from
Amazon here

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, coconut sugar, baking soda, and salt.

2. Whisk in the cooled butter, mashed bananas, sour cream, eggs and vanilla extract.

3. Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and smooth out the top. Bake for about 25 minutes, or until the top of the cake is browned and a wood skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cake on a metal rack about 10 minutes, then remove from pan and let cool completely on the rack.

For the Icing:

1. In a medium pot, combine the butter, coconut sugar, coconut cream, and salt. Bring to a boil and boil, stirring constantly, for about 1 minute. Watch carefully as it may boil over. Remove from heat and let it cool for about 5 minutes.

2. Whisk in the confectioners' sugar until smooth.

To Serve:

1. Place the cake on a serving plate, and pour the cooled icing over the cake. Spread with a knife across the cake. Let the cake sit for about 30 minutes. When ready to serve, sprinkle the top with with flaky sea salt and serve.

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Recipe adapted from the NYT link here.