4 Ingredient Banana Cake
This easy banana cake is just four ingredients and doesn't require eggs, butter, oil or milk. It comes out light and moist and is perfect as a snack cake or dessert.
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups (230 g) self-rising flour
- 2/3 cup (132 g) granulated white sugar
- 1/2 cup (120 g) mashed bananas
- 1 cup (8 oz/227 g) water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line an 8 x 8 inch square cake pan with parchment paper.
- Add flour and sugar to a large mixing bowl. Whisk together until evenly combined. Then sift the mixture. To do this, run your whisk rapidly back and forth until your flour mixture becomes light and powdery. This step is needed because it is difficult to break up any flour lumps after you add the liquid because of the lack of fat.
- Add in the mashed bananas and water. Whisk until batter is smooth.
- Pour batter into prepared baking pan. Bake for about 30-35 minutes. When cake is done it should be lightly browned on top and a toothpick inserted should come out clean. The cake will be paler than your typical banana cake because of the lack of fat. Let cake cool completely before removing and serving. If frosting your cake, also wait until it is fully cooled before frosting.
Notes
- This recipe works best with ripe or overripe bananas as they are easier to mash. Use a fork, whisk or potato masher to mash your bananas until only very small lumps remain. You will need a little under 2 large bananas to yield 1/2 cup of mashed banana.
- To make your own self-rising flour, whisk together 2 cups all purpose flour, 3 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt to a bowl. Measure out 1 3/4 cups for the recipe. (This recipe for self-rising flour makes more than the 1 3/4 cups of self-rising flour needed for the recipe, which is why you can't add the full amount.)
- I discuss more about the texture of this cake in the post. Because the cake has no fat, it is light, soft and moist but has a slightly chewy finish to it. Some people don't like this texture. I don't mind it at all. But if you want a regular cake finish, all you need to do is substitute some of the water for fat. Use only 2/3 cup of water and add 1/3 cup of vegetable or canola oil.
- Cream cheese whipped cream frosting: You can pair this with your favorite cream cheese frosting. I made a lightened-up cream cheese frosting because most of my family does not like regular cream cheese frosting.
- For this cream cheese frosting you will need 3 oz of cream cheese (softened to room temperature), 4-5 oz of heavy cream (chilled/straight from fridge), and 5-7 tbsp of granulated white sugar (or more to taste). I recommend using a hand mixer.
- Beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth and fluffy. Gradually add in cold heavy cream and beat at highest speed until stiff peaks form. Taste and adjust as needed. You can add more sugar if you do not find your frosting sweet enough. You can add more heavy cream if you want a lighter frosting.
- Estimated nutrition is for the cake only and does not include frosting. One cake slice contains less than 1 g of fat but the nutrition calculator is unable to display less than 1.
Serving: 1slice, Calories: 107kcal, Carbohydrates: 26g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 205mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 12g, NET CARBS: 25
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. This is not a comprehensive list of all the nutrients in the recipe (i.e., does not include vitamins, cholesterol, etc). I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
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