This is a simple recipe that gives great results. It’s a lovely wholesome cake with two strong flavours that work well together. I’ve given details for a Jubilee Bundt tin version and have also added all you need to make a simpler version in either a 20cm or 23cm round tin. Regardless of shape and size, the taste and texture are very good.

Serves: 12

Time: 30 mins prep, 60 mins baking, 20 mins to decorate

Level: Easy

Equipment: A 2.4Lt bundt tin or a similar capacity round tin

Cake ingredients

25g/1oz melted butter, for coating inside the tin
150g/5½oz unsalted butter or baking spread/Stork or a mixture
210g/7oz golden caster sugar
3 eggs, lightly beaten
3 – 4 ripe bananas, squashed and squidged
150g/5½oz dark or milk chocolate – chips or pieces
1 or 2 Tbsp milk (only needed if the mixture seems dry and heavy)
300g/10oz self-raising flour
Pinch of salt
25g/1oz cocoa powder
2 – 3 Tbsp Apricot jam

Optional decoration ingredients

80g/2½oz white chocolate
40g/1½oz unsalted butter, softened or room temperature
120g/4½oz full fat cream cheese, as above
1 tsp vanilla extract
160g/5¾oz icing sugar
Any colourful fruit that you want to place in the centre (optional, but it does look good)

(NB This ratio works well and can be halved or doubled: 1 part Butter, Chocolate 2, Cream cheese 3, Icing sugar 4)

Method

1. Brush the inside of the tin with melted butter, taking care to get into all the crevices. Put the tin in the fridge for a while. (For extra certainly, I sometimes repeat this procedure, but maybe that’s a bit OTT)

2. Turn the oven on to reach 180°C / Fan 160°C / 350°F / Gas 4.

3. In a large bowl, cream the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy.

4. Beat in a little of the eggs with a tsp of the flour; repeat 2 or 3 times until all the eggs are fully incorporated.

5. If you haven’t already done so, squash and squidge the bananas. (I just use my hands – they’re quicker and easier to clean than mixer attachments.) Add to the mixture and beat for a few minutes. Add another tsp of flour if it begins to curdle, but don’t worry, it’ll be OK once the rest of the flour is mixed in.

6. Stir in the chocolate and the milk if the mixture looks heavy and dry.

7. Sift the flour, salt and cocoa powder onto the wet mixture and fold it in.

8. Spoon into the tin and level the surface. Tap it a couple of times on your work surface to release any trapped air pockets then bake for about an hour.

9. Leave to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes then turn out onto a wire rack to cool fully.

10. You could just serve and eat the cake as it is, but whether or not you choose to decorate it, I recommend that you “seal” it. Heat the apricot jam in a saucepan with a little water. If necessary sieve out any lumps then carefully brush it onto the cake. Take care not to allow large amounts to gather in any of the cavities.

11. To make the buttercream, first melt the white chocolate and set aside to cool a little. While it’s cooling, beat the butter, cream cheese and vanilla together.

12. Gradually sift in the icing sugar and beat slowly at first then more vigorously. Pour in the melted chocolate and beat until you achieve a suitable consistency that is lump free. (If necessary, push it through a sieve.)

13. In the photos shown above, I piped the mixture into the upper cavities (makes me sound like a dentist, doesn’t it?) using a medium open star nozzle. My piping skills leave a lot to be desired, so you’ll probably do a better job. If unsure, try a spoon. The photo below shows the cake sealed. It could be served as it is. At a children’s party smarties or similar sweets could be placed in each cavity.

Round Cakes

The following measurements will give a 23cm/9” round cake. They could also be used for a deeper 20cm/8” round cake. Baking times may vary. As a rough guide, aim for around 45 minutes. One word of caution though – for my second cake I defrosted some frozen ripe bananas. Even though I sieved them, they still added a lot of extra moisture to the mixture, which affected the bake time.

Ingredients

125g/4½oz unsalted butter/Stork etc + a little to grease the tin
165g/5¾oz golden caster sugar
2 eggs
2 – 3 ripe bananas, squashed and squidged
125g/4½oz dark or milk chocolate – chips or pieces
Tbsp milk (only needed if the mixture seems dry and heavy)
250g/9oz self-raising flour
Pinch of salt
20g/¾oz cocoa powder
2 – 3 Tbsp apricot jam or apricot glaze

The following list enables you to cover a 23cm/9” cake with a nice thick topping, followed by grated chocolate. If you want to slice either a 23cm or 20cm cake horizontally and have a filling as well as a topping, you will need to increase the mixture, probably by 25% or more.

Filling/topping ingredients

60g/2oz white chocolate
30g/1oz unsalted butter, softened or room temperature
75g/2½oz full fat cream cheese, as above
1tsp vanilla extract
125g/4½oz icing sugar
1 – 2 small chunks of chocolate for grating

I hope you enjoy one or more of these lovely cakes. If you want more cake recipes click this link, or have a look at my site for lots of other great recipes, both sweet and savoury. If you’d like to make a comment or ask a question please do, via the contact page.

Here are some of my recent and popular cakes that I think you would enjoy:

Blueberry and White Chocolate Bundt Cake