Chocolate Chip Banana Cake

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups ripe bananas, mashed - about 3 large bananas (450g)
• 2 tsp lemon juice (8g)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour (375g)
• 1 tsp baking powder (4g)
• 1 tsp baking soda (6g)
• 1/2 tsp fine salt (3g)
• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (226g)
• 1 cup granulated sugar (200g)
• 2/3 cup packed light brown sugar (133g)
• 3 large eggs, room temperature (168g)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste (8g)
• 1 1/2 cups full-fat sour cream, room temperature (380g)
• 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips - tossed with 1 tsp flour (130g)
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted and cooled (180g)
• 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature (452g)
• 1 cup unsweetened baking cocoa (100g)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste (4g)
• 1/2 tsp fine salt (3g)
• 5 cups powdered sugar (625g)
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, room temperature (120g)
• 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (45g)
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream, room temperature (60g)
• 1/3 cup mini chocolate chips
• 2 fresh bananas, sliced

Instructions

1. 1

   --- Banana Cake Layers ---

2. 2

   Make the banana cake layers first. Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C and grease and line 3, 8-inch cake pans. Set aside.

3. 3

   Mash 3 large bananas with either a fork or a mixer and stir together with 2 tsp of lemon juice. This prevents the bananas from browning. Set aside.

4. 4

   In a large bowl, whisk 3 cups flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda, and 1/2 tsp salt together. Set aside.

5. 5

   Use a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment to beat 1 cup of butter, 1 cup of granulated sugar, and 2/3 cup of brown sugar together. Mix on a high speed for about 3 minutes. The mixture should get lighter in color as air is whipped into it. Use a spatula to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.

6. 6

   Mix in 3 large eggs and 2 tsp of vanilla extract on a medium speed.

7. 7

   Mix in half of the dry ingredients on a low speed until just combined.

8. 8

   Add in 1 1/2 cups of sour cream and mix until incorporated, then mix in the remaining dry ingredients on a low speed. Be careful not to over-mix the batter once you've added in the flour. The batter will be on the thick side.

9. 9

   Mix in the mashed bananas on a medium speed until just combined.

10. 10

    Carefully fold in the flour dusted mini chocolate chips with a rubber spatula until they're evenly distributed throughout the batter.

11. 11

    Divide batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake for 26-29 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Remove the cakes from the oven and set on a wire rack. Let the layers cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then flip them onto a wire rack to finish cooling.

12. 12

    If desired, torte each cake layer by cutting it in half horizontally with a serrated knife to make 6, thinner layers.

13. 13

    --- Chocolate Buttercream Frosting ---

14. 14

    Melt the chocolate first so that it has time to cool off before it's added into the frosting. Heat it in 15 second intervals, stirring between each interval until the chocolate is fully melted. Set aside.

15. 15

    Beat 2 cups of butter on a medium speed for 30 seconds with a paddle attachment until smooth.

16. 16

    Add in 1 cup of cocoa, tsp vanilla extract, and 1/2 tsp salt. Mix on low until the ingredients are fully incorporated.

17. 17

    Gradually mix in 5 cups of powdered sugar and 1/2 cup of heavy cream on a low speed. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.

18. 18

    Mix in the cooled, melted semi-sweet chocolate on a low speed until the ingredients are fully incorporated and the desired consistency is reached. Cover with plastic wrap to prevent crusting and set aside.

19. 19

    --- Chocolate Ganache ---

20. 20

    Place 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips in a heatproof bowl and set aside.

21. 21

    Heat 1/4 cup of heavy cream in a heatproof bowl in the microwave for 45 seconds to 1 minute, until it's steaming and just starting to bubble. If you don’t have a microwave or prefer to use the stove top, you can heat the cream over a medium heat in a pan until it begins to simmer. Remove from heat.

22. 22

    Gently pour the heavy cream over the chocolate, making sure it's fully covered with cream. Allow the mixture to sit for 1-2 minutes.

23. 23

    Stir slowly until the cream and chocolate are fully combined and mixture is smooth.

24. 24

    Set aside to cool for about 10 minutes. The mixture should thicken and be just slightly warm to the touch.

25. 25

    --- Assembling This Chocolate Chip Banana Layer Cake ---

26. 26

    Stack and frost cake layers on a greaseproof cake board using a dab of chocolate buttercream to help stick the first cake layer to the board.

27. 27

    Spread an even layer of chocolate buttercream on top of each cake layer as you stack them with a large offset spatula, and sprinkle 2 Tbsp of mini chocolate chips on top of the frosting.

28. 28

    Cover the cake in a thin coat of chocolate buttercream. Smooth using a bench scraper, then chill the cake in the fridge (30 minutes) or freezer (5 minutes) until the buttercream is firm to the touch.

29. 29

    Add a second, thicker layer of chocolate buttercream to the cake and smooth using a bench scraper. Chill the cake again in the fridge (30 minutes) or freezer (5 minutes) until the buttercream is firm to the touch.

30. 30

    Swipe diagonal lines of the cooled, thickened chocolate ganache around the base of the cake with a large offset spatula. Top the cake with banana slices, a swirl of additional chocolate ganache, and the remaining mini chocolate chips.