Tuesday, Oct 9, 2012

Banana Split Surprise Cake

And…We’re back!  After a much longer break than anticipated from the blog, we are back in ‘business’.  I can’t wait to share with you some pictures of my older sister and new brother’s wedding in Ucluelet.  We truly had a fabulous time-met some amazing new people (some of now is familyJ) and explored what the island had to offer…and there’s beauty with every step.  Anyway…I will tell you more about it soon!  But first, I had something to share with you….CAKE!

Before we left, I worked, got sick, crammed in a super-long assignment and was completely sleep-deprived.  I had truly wanted to share the cake I made for our birthday, but found it impossible.  But I couldn’t stop thinking of how proud I was of this cake!  I was slightly skeptical at first about how overpowering a banana cake would be, but then I decided to add in chocolate ganache layers and that seemed to help balance the cake.  Of course, I LOVED that it had a cheesecake layer-all of my favorite elements combined in one cake.  And to top all of that, the banana swiss meringue frosting was simply amazing.  I loved the silky and smooth texture of the frosting…so delicious.  Marlina fell in love with this cake as well-I saved her a piece and a week after our birthday and we ate it together.  So we did share our birthday together in a way!  We will see what next year brings for our birthday cakeJ

Banana Split Surprise Cake

INGREDIENTS

For the Banana Cake:

14 tablespoons of unsalted butter, room temperature

1 ½ cup sugar

½ confectioner sugar

4 large eggs

2 1/2 cups cake flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

¾ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup mashed bananas

½ cup sour cream

2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Banana Cream Frosting:

5 large egg whites

11/2 cup sugar

4 sticks unsalted butter, diced and softened

1/2 cup mashed bananas

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 tablespoon vanillas extract

5-8 drops of yellow food coloring (this amount may vary depending on the brand used)

For the Banana Cheesecake:

1 lb Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened

½ cup confectioner sugar

¼ cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

3/4 cup of mashed bananas

2 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 tablespoons non-pareils

For the Chocolate Ganache:

6 ounces semisweet chocolate

½ cup heavy cream

DIRECTIONS:

For the Banana Cake:

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter one 9X2 inch cake pan and lightly dust with flour.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until light and fluffy, approximately 2-3 minutes. Sift both sugars together and add to the butter and mix until well combined. Add eggs, one at a time, and mix until combined.

In a medium sized bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt, set aside.

In another medium sized bowl, mix the mashed bananas, sour cream and vanilla until well combined.

With the mixer on low; alternate the dry ingredients with the banana mixture into three parts, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowls to ensure the batter is fully incorporated.

Pour the cake mixture into the prepared pan and bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes until a toothpick is inserted into the centre and comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack

For the Banana Cheesecake:

Heat oven to 500 degrees F. Butter one 9×2-inch spring form pan and then lightly dust with flour.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the cream cheese using a paddle attachment on medium speed until smooth-approximately 2 minutes. Gradually add in the sugar and mix until combined. Add in the eggs, one at a time, and mix until just combined. Add in the mashed bananas and vanilla extract until just combined.

Pour 1/3 of the mixture in the prepared pan, sprinkle with the non-pareils a repeat two more times-do not stir as they will streak and melt.

Bake at 500 degrees for ten minutes, then lower temperature to 250 degrees. To bring down the oven temperature quickly leave the door slightly ajar for 10 minutes. Close the oven door and bake for another 50 minutes. Remove cake from oven and rest on cooling rack.

For the Banana Cream Frosting:

In a medium sized stock pot, combine the egg whites and sugar in a bowl over simmering water. Bring the mixture to 150 degrees, whisking constantly.

Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat on medium speed until the mixture cools and doubles in volume.

Add the butter in, once piece at a time and mix to incorporate after each addition. If the frosting appears clumpy and curdled-looking-continue to mix until smooth. Add the bananas and mix to combine, then stir in the salt and vanilla. Add the drops of food coloring until the desired texture is achieved.

For the Chocolate Ganache:

In a large bowl, place the chopped chocolate pieces on the bottom. In a small saucepot over medium-high heat, heat the heavy cream to a boil. Remove from heat and pour over chocolate and continue to stir until completely melted. Allow to cool until it thickens slightly-enough so that it can be spread over the cake.

Assembly:

Cut the cake evenly in half (horizontally) to get two layers. Place the bottom side of the cake down, spread ½ of the Ganache over the layer and top with the banana frosting. Place the cheesecake layer on top, pressing it down slightly into the frosting. Spread the remaining Ganache and top with frosting. Place the second cake layer on top and press it down slightly, spread the remaining frosting on the top and all over the sides of the cake. Using the remaining icing, pipe rosettes on the top and drizzle with melted chocolate. Finish with maraschino cherries on top of the rosettes and sprinkle with the non-pariels.

Source: Adapted from Baker’s Royale