My Three-Flavour, Triple-Layer Bundt-style Cake

The following recipe and photos represent my first attempt at making this rather stunning cake. It was great fun to create and bake. It had a very nice taste too. Nevertheless, it’s still a “work in progress” and I’m hoping that you can help me with any modifications. It came out a bit stodgy in the mid-layer, so maybe I needed less banana. Also, I used plain flour, which I now regret. Next time, I’ll try self raising flour. Or I could significantly increase the amount of baking powder. Any helpful feedback will be much appreciated.

Ingredients for main cake, using a medium sized bundt-style tin

• Plain white flour*                     200g
• Baking powder                          1.5 tsp             
• Unsalted butter, softened        200g + more for greasing the tin
• Caster sugar                               200g
• Eggs, beaten                               3
• Vanilla extract                           1 tsp
• Ground almonds                       80g

*  originally I used plain, but now think self-raising could be better.

Top layer (red/cherry)

• Glace cherries, washed, dried & quartered     50g 
• Cherry food flavouring (optional)                     3 – 4 drops depending on strength
• Red  food colouring gel/paste  –  Add in gradually before the cherries – judge how much you need.

Mid layer (Yellow /banana)                             

• Ripe bananas                                                    1 – 2 medium (or less)
• Banana food flavouring (optional)                3 – 4 drops depending on strength
• Yellow food colouring gel/paste   –    You need a strong colour to distiguish the layers. Add the colour before the mushed banana goes into the mix.

Bottom layer (Brown/chocolate)

• Cocoa powder (sieve into milk & mix well)             15 – 20g 
• Milk                                                                               About 20ml
• Dark Chocolate pieces or chips                                60g

NB Colour the mix before adding the chocolate pieces.

Pre-baking preparation

• Grease the bundt tin by carefully brushing with melted butter, put in fridge. (This could be done well ahead.) 
• Take any items out of the fridge to come up to room temperature. (e.g. eggs & milk)
• Weigh out all the main ingredients ready for use.
• Weigh out, then soften, the butter.
• Wash, dry and quarter the cherries.
• Weigh out then cut up the chocolate, or simply weigh out some chocolate chips. 
• If your bananas are hard then pierce them with a fork several times and give them three or four 25 second blasts in the micro-wave on high to soften them. Mash them.
• Preheat oven to 160C/fan 140/325F/Gas 3.
• When the melted butter has set, lightly flour the inside of the bundt tin.

Baking

1. Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl and add the softened butter, caster sugar, eggs and vanilla extract. Beat well, until smooth. Stir in the ground almonds. Add small amount of milk if mixture seems excessively dry.
2. Separate the mixture into three bowls. Divide it by weight into 20%, 30% and 50%
3. In the 20% bowl stir in the Pink layer items, in the 30% bowl the Yellow layer items, in the 50% bowl the brown layer items. (Mix in the colouring before adding any pieces of cherry, banana or chocolate.)
4. Put the Pink mixture in the tin, ensuring it goes right into the crevices. (If time allows, put in fridge for 15 minutes)
5. Put the Yellow mixture in the tin (as above).
6. Put the brown mixture in the tin.
7. Smooth the mixture and bake for 40 – 50 minutes, depending on tin size. Leave to cool in the tin for about 15 minutes then turn out onto wire rack to cool completely. (Place rack over the bundt tin, then invert)