Banana Coffee Cake

When bananas go bad, most people think, "Yeah! I get to make banana bread!" I think, "Yeah! I get to make banana coffee cake!" I like banana bread as much as the next person, but this recipe is great. It's great for a brunch or afternoon snack. Heck- It's 9:06 p.m. right now, and I'm grubbing it up. I took it to a park with some friends (the very friends that inspired this blog), and they thought this cake was great. You could make it in a loaf pan as well. I've never done that, but I'd imagine the cooking time would be about 20-25 minutes. This cake comes out very moist and light. The cinnamon and pecan topping adds a little crunch and great flavor.


Banana Coffee Cake:
adapted from Taste of Home Baking Book

1 8 oz package cream cheese
1/2 c butter, softened
1 1/4 c sugar
2 eggs
1 c mashed bananas
1 t vanilla
2 1/4 c flour
1 1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda

Topping:
1 c chopped pecans
2 T sugar
1 t cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, add the cream cheese, butter, and sugar. Mix it all together. I beat it in my mixer until it was light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time. Add the bananas and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda, and baking powder in a bowl and mix it in with the banana mixture.
Combine the topping ingredients and mix half of it into the batter.
Pour the batter into a 9x13 pan. If it's not a non-stick, grease the pan.
Sprinkle the remaining topping on the batter.
Isn't that lovely? The sugar and cinnamon glistened atop the cake batter as though it was the glimmer of the morning's first ray of sunlight upon the cool, clear, blue ocean. See why I'm not a writer? Nothing but cheese comes out of my mouth. I should be a food Harlequin writer. That would be awesome. Anyway- back to the recipe. Bake the cake for 25-38 minutes. I did 38 minutes on mine. The first couple times I checked it, the toothpick did not come out clean. You want that little wooden stick to be batter-free when you pull it out of the middle. Here's a view of the finished product.
Here's another cross section. I'm telling you- it's so moist. You should try it. Next time you have very ripe bananas taking up space on your counter, turn them into something wonderful- like this cake. :)