Banana cupcakes are a delightful treat bursting with warm banana flavor and crowned with fluffy, golden domes. They offer a delightful twist on the classic cupcake, infusing the familiar sweetness with the unmistakable taste of ripe bananas.
These cupcakes are incredibly moist and tender, thanks to the natural sugars and starches in the bananas. They can be enjoyed plain or dressed up with a variety of frostings, glazes, and toppings, making them a versatile dessert option for any occasion.
From birthday parties to afternoon snacks, banana cupcakes are a guaranteed crowd-pleaser, offering a taste of comfort and pure deliciousness in every bite.
Reasons to Love These Luscious Banana Cupcakes:
Classic Flavor with a Twist:
- Warm banana taste: These cupcakes boast a distinctive and comforting flavor of ripe bananas, offering a delightful twist on the traditional vanilla cupcake.
- Familiar yet exciting: They provide the comforting sweetness of a cupcake but with the added excitement of a delicious banana twist.
Moist and Tender Texture:
- Incredibly moist: The natural sugars and starches in bananas create a moist and tender crumb, resulting in a melt-in-your-mouth experience.
- Light and fluffy: Despite their moistness, these cupcakes maintain a light and fluffy texture, offering a perfect balance in every bite.
Versatility and Customization:
- Endless topping possibilities: From classic cream cheese frosting to decadent chocolate ganache or a simple sprinkle of chopped nuts, banana cupcakes offer a blank canvas for your frosting and topping creativity.
- Perfect for any occasion: These cupcakes are ideal for birthday parties, afternoon tea gatherings, potlucks, or even a simple pick-me-up treat.
- Kid-friendly: The combination of sweetness and banana flavor makes them a guaranteed hit with children.
Bonus Benefits:
- Easy to make: Banana cupcakes are generally a simple recipe to prepare, even for novice bakers.
- Budget-friendly: The ingredients are readily available and affordable, making them a cost-effective dessert option.
- Naturally sweet: The bananas provide a natural sweetness, reducing the need for excessive added sugar.
Overall, banana cupcakes are a delightful dessert that offers a perfect blend of classic cupcake comfort with a burst of delicious banana flavor. Their moist texture, versatile nature, and ease of preparation make them a crowd-pleasing treat for any occasion. So, why not whip up a batch and experience the irresistible charm of these delightful cupcakes?
Do you have a fruit that you just love everything made with it? It’s not just bananas for me, I love many fruits, but this cupcake recipe is AWESOME. So moist, and fluffy. So full of delicious banana flavor. Yum!
Banana cupcakes are a versatile base that can be dressed up with a variety of delicious additions! Here are some ideas to inspire your baking adventures:
Fantastic Additions to these Banana Cupcakes
Mix-Ins:
- Chocolate: Chocolate chips, chopped dark chocolate, or even a swirl of chocolate ganache add a rich and decadent touch.
- Nuts: Chopped walnuts, pecans, or a sprinkle of almonds provide a delightful crunch and textural contrast.
- Dried fruit: Chopped dried cranberries, raisins, or even chopped dried cherries offer bursts of tartness and chewy texture.
- Spices: A pinch of cinnamon, nutmeg, or ginger adds a warm and cozy flavor dimension.
- Coconut: Shredded coconut adds a tropical flair and a delightful textural interest.
- Caramel: Swirls of caramel or even caramel chips create a delightful sweet and salty contrast.
- Peanut Butter: For a unique twist, try adding a dollop of peanut butter to the center of the batter before baking.
Frostings and Toppings:
- Classic cream cheese frosting: This is a timeless pairing that complements the banana flavor perfectly.
- Chocolate ganache: For a richer and more decadent option, chocolate ganache makes a luxurious topping.
- Whipped cream: Light and fluffy whipped cream adds a touch of airiness and sweetness.
- Buttercream frosting: You can get creative with different buttercream flavors like vanilla, strawberry, or peanut butter.
- Fresh fruit: A dollop of fresh fruit like sliced strawberries, blueberries, or raspberries adds a vibrant pop of color and freshness.
- Chopped nuts or sprinkles: A sprinkle of chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans, or festive sprinkles, adds a decorative touch.
- Candied banana slices: For a truly banana-forward experience, top your cupcakes with candied banana slices.
Additional Ideas:
- Streusel topping: Create a crumbly streusel topping with flour, sugar, and butter for added texture and sweetness.
- Filling: For an extra layer of flavor, consider adding a filling like a simple jam or nutella in the center of the cupcake before adding the top layer of batter.
- Mini chocolate bars: Press a mini chocolate bar into the center of the batter before baking for a delightful chocolate surprise in every bite.
With these creative mix-in and topping ideas, you can personalize your banana cupcakes and explore a vast array of delicious flavor combinations!
Making the Recipe
Banana Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 4 med-large bananas 3 bananas for cupcakes/cake and 1 banana for garnish
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 3 cups cake flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ¼ teaspoons salt
- ¾ cup butter room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3 eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoons banana extract
- 1 ½ cups buttermilk
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. If you are making this into a cake, with shortening grease a casserole dish that measures 9 x 13. If you are making cupcakes, use liners in a muffin tin.
- In a bowl, mash up the three bananas. Add the lemon juice and mix together well. Set this aside.
- In another bowl, mix the cake flour, baking soda and salt. Set this aside.
- In another bowl, cream together the butter and the sugar until it is light and fluffy. One at a time, beating in between each addition, add the eggs. Stir in banana extract.
- Alternating between the bowl of dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking soda) and the buttermilk, beat into the creamy egg/sugar mixture. Just add a little buttermilk, mix, dry ingredients, mix, more buttermilk, mix, dry ingredients, mix… and so on until you have it all incorporated.
- Using a spoon, stir in the mashed bananas.
- Using a spatula, pour the batter into your prepared pan or into your cupcake liners.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes for the cake, 15-25 for the cupcakes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of a cupcake or the cake comes out clean. (obviously oven temps are going to vary).
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Move to a cooling rack and allow to cool the rest of the way.
- For the record, these are great un-iced. But of course, you can ice these when cool. We used a light buttercream frosting and added a teaspoon of banana extract to give it a nice banana flavor. A true banana cupcake.
- Garnish with sliced banana from the last banana. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Do you enjoy banana recipes as much as I do? If so, it’s time to link them up!
I am that mom, too, with several baked goods at a time. Practicing restraint is sooooo hard!
I was that mom but since my two babies are both off at university, I am baking just a little less. Now neighbors, friends and my cleaning lady are the recipients. Fortunately, I don’t have trouble finding homes for the things I like to bake.
My banana recipe looks similar to yours. Sometimes I make cake and sometimes cupcakes but we always just sprinkle with powdered sugar. Your beautiful photos are tempting me to add buttercream the next time.
Thanks for hosting this linky party.
Stacy
I love banana goodies! And I won’t even pretend to have any willpower around these!
YUM! BANANAS! B-A-N-A-N-A-S! YAYYYY!
Banana Cupcakes, Banana Cake, either sound fantastic to me! Banana Cake is my all time favorite cake, l enjoyed every year for my birthday growing up! Your cupcakes look delicious! Hugs, Terra
Those look delicious! I love to bake but don’t do so nearly enough lately. I need to change that. Just might start with this recipe. 🙂
(Found your blog through Triberr…looking forward to following along)
You are my kind of mom! Growing up banana cake was the staple baked goods. I think the cupcakes rock.
Velva
Just gorgeous!!!