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[There’s a hole in this cake]

This week’s Tuesday’s with Dorie is Classic Banana Bundt Cake. A great pick by Mary of The Food Librarian. You can find the recipe on Mary’s blog or on page 190 of Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan.

I really enjoyed this cake. It’s nothing dramatically out of this world unbelievable, but it is a solid, easy to make cake, which is something that everyone needs a few of in their repertoire. It is a great dessert to bring to a party or give away as a gift or a welcome to the neighborhood type of thing. And it will feed an army!

I made this cake with my sister while I was visiting my family in NY over the weekend. Finally, some people to share my baked goods with! We enjoyed this cake on Saturday night after a yummy dinner of burgers on the grill with my homemade rolls. Nick made his famous hamburgers as well as the Triple S burger which my dad had just seen in the newspaper. It was a burger of freshly ground short ribs, sirloin, and skirt steak. Do I really need to tell you all that it was delicious?

Anyway, back to the cake. My cake came out moist and delicious and surprisingly the banana flavor was not overwhelming. It was a hit with the whole family. I think a handful of chocolate chips would be fabulous in this cake, and I am sure that some of my fellow bakers did just that.

Even though I tented it after a 1/2 hour, it still got a bit browner than I would have liked. Fear not though, because it’s ugliness was covered up quite nicely with a lemon vanilla glaze.

In an effort to lighten this up a bit, I subbed one of the sticks of butter for 1/4 cup of canola oil, and I used fat free Greek yogurt instead of sour cream. I suppose it may have been even tastier if I had made it as written, but really, this cake was so good the way I made it do I really need all that extra fat? I don’t think so.

This was yummy in my tummy with a nice cup of coffee and the company of my mom and sister.

There may have been a well of glaze in the middle of the cake that flowed out after I cut the first piece, and we may have spooned generous amounts of that glaze all over our cake. We may have.

Full recipe after the jump

Follow up:

Classic Banana Bundt Cake
by Dorie Greenspan, slightly adapted
Page 190, Baking: From My Home to Yours
Makes 1 Bundt Cake (14 servings)

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
• 4 very ripe bananas, mashed (you should have 1 1/2 - 1 3/4 cups)
• 1 cup non fat Greek yogurt

1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Generously butter or spray with cooking spray a 9- to 10-inch (12 cup) Bundt pan. Don’t place the pan on a baking sheet - you want the oven’s heat to circulate through the Bundt’s inner tube.
2. Whisk the flour, baking soda and salt together in a small bowl.
3. Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter until creamy, then add the canola oil and mix until combined. It may look weird and curdles, but that is okay. Add the sugar and beat at medium speed until pale and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time, beating for about 1 minute after each egg goes in. Reduce the mixer speed to low and mix in the bananas. Finally, mix in half the dry ingredients (again, don’t be disturbed when the batter curdles), all the yogurt and then the rest of the flour mixture. Scrape the batter into the pan, rap the pan on the counter to debubble the batter and smooth the top.
4. Bake for 65 to 75 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean. Check the cake after about 30 minutes - if it is browning too quickly, cover it loosely with a foil tent. Transfer the cake to a rack and cool for 10 minutes before unmolding onto the rack to cool to room temperature.

If you’ve got the time, wrap the cooled cake in plastic and allow it to sit on the counter overnight before serving - it’s better the next day.

Optional White Icing:
Sift 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar into a bowl and squeeze in enough fresh lemon juice (start with 2 teaspoons and add more by drops) to make an icing thin enough to drizzle down the Bundt’s curves. You can also add a few teaspoons of vanilla extract if desired.