My Banana Poppy Seed Cake with Vanilla Bean Frosting is a little one bowl banana snack cake that makes everybody happy!
A handful of everyday ingredients pulls together to make a really special cake…I’m not sure if it’s the ripe bananas, the crunchy poppy seeds, the sour cream in the batter, or that frosting with a virtual galaxy of vanilla bean specs. But in the end, does it really matter? This cake is perfect, that’s all we need to know.
banana poppy seed cake ingredient notes
bananas
- Don’t let anyone tell you you must have a blackened banana to make this cake. I’ve used bananas straight from the supermarket and that’s fine. Firm bananas have a different flavor profile from over-ripe ones, but both will work.
poppy seeds
- Poppy seeds not only make this little cake pretty, they add crunch and nutty flavor. Poppy seeds, like all seeds, can go rancid if stored too long, so give your jar a sniff and make sure yours are fresh. If you’ve had yours for a year or more, time to replace.
sour cream
- Makes a moist tender cake.
vanilla bean
- Vanilla beans are expensive, but you can also use vanilla bean paste, which is one of my favorite new discoveries. It gives you that same flavor and beautiful specs at a much lower cost. The heavy vanilla presence in this frosting really makes a difference, and extract just doesn’t cut it.
- Don’t waste your bean ~ after scraping the seeds for this cake, pop the pod into your canister of sugar. It will flavor the sugar for months to come.
take note…
This banana poppy seed cake is on the small side. I could have called it banana poppy seed bars, or blondies. But the frosting sealed the deal, it’s definitely a cake, just a small one.
Of course you could double the recipe and made this grand layer cake, but I like it this way, it’s more approachable, more snackable. And I could never eat a layer cake for breakfast 😉
banana poppy seed cake comment highlights
I know this is going to become your favorite…
Some like to roast their bananas first for extra flavor and sweetness (roast ~ peel on ~ in a 400F oven for 15-20 minutes.)
One reader made the snack cake into muffins.
One used applesauce in place of the egg, another substituted egg whites.
Several of you skipped the frosting altogether and love this cake as is.
Chris emailed me to let me know this recipe was her most successful bake sale item ever!
Bridget bakes it in a loaf pan, and says it is her “go to banana bread.”
I’ve gone bananas!
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Banana Poppy Seed Cake with Vanilla Bean Frosting
Equipment
- 9×9 square baking pan
Ingredients
the cake
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 large egg
- 2 ripe bananas, mashed
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup poppy seeds
- 1 cup AP flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
the vanilla bean frosting
- 3 to 4 ounces brick style cream cheese
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
- 2 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted
- milk or cream for thinning the icing
- a squeeze of fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and butter your pan. I like to line with a sling of parchment paper so I can remove the cake for frosting and serving, but that's optional.
- Cream the butter, sugar and sour cream together. Beat in the egg, bananas, vanilla, and poppy seeds. (Make sure the bananas are mashed smooth first)
- Sift your flour, baking soda and salt into the wet mixture and blend just until thoroughly combined ~ but don't over mix.
- Spread the batter into your prepared baking pan.
- Bake for about 25 minutes until a toothpick just comes out clean.*
- Let the cake cool before frosting.
- To make the frosting— blend everything together until you have a thick, creamy, spreadable consistency. Taste to adjust your lemon juice. Note: I do this quick and easy in my food processor. This way you can start with cold cream cheese!
- Heap onto the completely cooled banana cake and swirl it around thickly.
Notes
Nutrition
Poppy seed cake is one of my favourites – I usually make it with a lemon icing for bite (Maggie Beer has a great recipe). Must try with the banana and cream cheese – sounds great.
Aw yeah…this looks amazing. I think I’ve told you before that I’m a sucker for anything studded with poppyseeds – just gorgeous.
It looks beautiful!!!! I love banana cakes or breads and this recipe sounds delicious….I always have ripe bananas and always looking for different ways to use them. I am printing this one!Happy New Year!
i love unassuming cakes! obviously i trumpet the layer cake quite a bit, but truth be told, simple cakes like this are my most favorite. and i’m changing my status on facebook to “in a relationship” with your vanilla bean frosting. ooohhhhhh…
There’s something about anything with vanilla bean seeds in it that I seriously adore. I never think to put poppy seeds with anything other than lemon desserts, but this totally works! I want some!!!
I have wanted to make that butteryum banana cake forever! It stalks me. Everywhere I go, I see it. And your version with poppyseeds would be a huge hit with my parents, they’re poppy seed lovers! I personally want that frosting 🙂
If you could guess what the cake would be like without the poppy seeds, is it everything the butteryum post and comments promise it to be? Like the most amazing banana cake ever? I love really dense cakes, more like cakes-as-breads and super moist. Just curious your thoughts on it!
That’s so funny, I’ve been haunted by it forever too…why do you think that is? It’s such an unassuming little cake!
The cake was good for a couple of reasons, one, like I said, there is a lot of banana in it, more than in most breads and cakes, which I liked. Also, it’s super easy to whip up, which is nice. It is dense, and moist, but from the banana, not from butter or oil. I think the amazing part comes from the combo of the cake and the frosting, not the cake itself, if that makes any sense.
So nice to know my humble little cake haunts people haunts and stalks people ;). It’s the craziest thing ever – my photo wasn’t even that great but people have gone completely gaga over that cake (it’s even on Foodgawker’s favorite – most gawked page). Love your addition of poppy seeds – I must give that a try. Take care!!
I can’t get the vision of that creamy icing out of my head! So pretty.
I did a few extra dips into it with the spoon…just for research purposes…
Oh my goodness it looks sensational – LOVE that creamy looking cream cheese frosting.
Mary x
I was on the fence about whether to make a cream cheese frosting, or just make a vanilla buttercream. I’m glad I went with the cream cheese because it gives a little bit of zip to the cake.
once again, why won’t you be my neighbor?! This sounds perfect right now!
We need to do a blogging retreat!
I love poppy seeds and there are always bananas around that are ready! Great idea, thanks.
It seems like I’m throwing poppy seeds into everything these days, they are so pretty and I keep thinking, why not??