Ingredients
Scale
- Topping
- 2/3 c. brown sugar
- 1/3 c. walnuts, chopped
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 2 tbsp. all-purpose unbleached flour
- 2 tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3/4 c. semisweet chocolate chips
- dash of sea salt
- Cake
- 1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter
- 1 c. all-purpose unbleached flour
- 1/2 c. wheat flour
- 3/4 tsp. baking soda
- 3/4 tsp. baking powder
- 1/4 tsp. sea salt
- 3/4 c. sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 c. buttermilk
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 3 very ripe bananas, mashed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°. Line bottom of cake pan(s) with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Make topping. Mix together all ingredients with the back of a fork until crumbled, reserving the chocolate chips. Stir in chocolate chips and set aside.
- Brown butter in a medium sauce pan cooking over medium heat. Allow to cool.
- Meanwhile, whisk together the flours, baking soda, baking powder, and sea salt.
- Once butter has cooled, stir in sugar until well combined. Whisk in egg, buttermilk, and extract. Add in mashed bananas and stir to combine.
- Slowly stir in flour mixture until just combined.
- Add half the batter to pan(s). Sprinkle evenly with half of topping. Top with remaining batter and sprinkle with remaining topping.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. Allow to cool completely. Loosen edges of cake and invert. Serve or store in a container for up to 4 days.
Notes
• No buttermilk? Add a squeeze of lemon and let sit for 2 minutes. Milk will curdle.
• Bananas not ready? Can’t do without this coffee cake? Roast bananas. Adjust oven rack to upper middle position and heat oven to 325°. Place 3 unpeeled, (bright yellow) bananas on a baking sheet. Bake until skins are completely black, about 20 minutes. Let cool for 5 min.
These are delicious!!! I made them as muffins. I patted down the topping a bit and baked them at 350 F for 19 min. I will definitely make these again.
★★★★★
Muffins! This is genius. Going to try this!
This is an update on this lovely cake. I had issues with it sinking in the middle when I originally baked it several years back in my 9-inch Chicago Metallic Cake Pan, but other than that, it was unbelievably delicious! I decided to bake it this weekend in my Williams Sonoma Goldtouch 9 -inch Springform Cake Pan and I baked it for a full 48 minutes this time and it came out perfect! So anyone else who had issues with the middle of the cake sinking after you took it out of the oven even though it tested down with a toothpick,, my suggestion would be bake the cake in a 9-inch springform pan and bake it for a longer time at least between 45 – 48 minutes. Again, I did mine at 48 minutes and it was perfect in my oven. Again, I cannot brag enough about this cake. It looks great on a brunch table and tastes amazing with the combination of that browned butter, bananas, and chocolate chips. Next time, I am trying pecans instead of walnuts.
I had the same issue…but as you said baking longer fixed the issue! My family loves this coffee cake!!!!!!
★★★★★
I made this last weekend and it got rave reviews! However, the batter was extremely thick and hard to spread, especially on the parchment paper. I can’t figure out what I might have done wrong… so I guess I’ll just have to make it again! 😉
We have made this cake several times and it is ALWAYS a hit! Do you know if the bananas could be substituted out for applesauce or another fruit? If so, how much? Thanks!!!
Thanks for this! I forgot my bananas and left them in a hot car all day and overnight. I tried to eat one for breakfast the next morning but it tasted weird and the texture was just wrong! They were saved by this good and easy recipe ?
Tried this recently. Very moist and tasty but overall, way too sweet for us. (We’re trying to cut way back on sugars of all kinds.) If I make again, will need to adjust both the brown sugar and chocolate chips downward to make it less cloying or, perhaps as at least one suggested, try berries in place of the chocolate chips.
Hi previously posted on how much I loved this recipe several years ago when I made it with the exact ingredients listed and I didn’t think it could get any better. However, last night I had some perfectly ripe bananas so decided to bake this cake and then realized I had no whole wheat flour. I did have a bag of Bob’s Red Mill Unbleached Whole Wheat Pastry Flour so I decided to substitute that for the regular whole wheat flour and the results were amazing. I baked the cake for approx. 48 minutes and it came out perfect – it rose beautifully and it was moist and delicious! The texture was lighter and less dense than the one I made with regular whole wheat flour and I do believe I prefer this version. This is the first time I have ever baked with whole wheat pastry flour and I believe I will be putting it to good use because I took this cake to work and everyone raved about it so I know I will be baking it again . This cake ranks as one of my all time favorite cakes. You really should try it.
I don’t know why I don’t keep whole wheat pastry flour around. Thanks for the nudge!
This cake looks amazing, I wish I had found this recipe when you first put it up!! Better late than never though 😀
I made this yesterday because I had spotty bananas and it was a cool spring rainy day. Thank goodness for the rain. This was AMAZING!!!! Most certainly restaurant worthy! It will be a quick bread staple in my house!
IS THERE A SUBSTITUTION FOR THE WHEAT FLOUR. IT WOULD TAKE FOREVER TO USE UP WHEAT FLOUR SINCE THERE’S NOT TOO MANY THINGS THAT CALL FOR IT PLEASE RESPOND SO I CAN USE MY RIPE BANANAS. THANKS.
Hey Carol! Sorry for the delay. You can substitute regular flour but you might want to add an extra 1-2 tablespoons to compensate. I haven’t tested, so I can’t say for sure. I bake with a lot with white whole wheat flour, so you’ll see it used in most of my recipes. It’s a little cumbersome, but you can store flour in the freezer too. Hope this helps!
Hi, I maybe missing something here, but I don’t see coffee in the recipe. Is there something else in this cake that replaces the coffee for the flavour? Is it the browning of the butter? Please enlighten me. Otherwise this recipe sounds amazing.
I think coffee cake got its name from being served alongside coffee. It doesn’t necessarily have coffee in the recipe. You could always add a little instant coffee to the recipe though!
I love the idea it’s just brilliant. I used golden yellow brown sugar and was just wondering if the type of brown sugar you use makes a difference?
Only variation would be in the flavor.
Could these be made into muffin size?
For sure! I haven’t tested it, so I can’t give exact instructions, but I think they’d work well!
I get a lot of free ripe banana’s from work. I have been looking for a good recipe to use them in for months. I’ve tried this, that, and the other. A lot of them are good, but this recipe is by far the best I have come across yet. Instant success with co-workers, and family. I don’t think you can buy a coffee cake as good as this. I’m an avid baker, and I have to say this is the tastiest thing to come out of my oven to date!
The only thing I had to do different with this recipe was add 10 minutes to the baking time, but being at high altitude, I have to do that with most recipes at this temperature setting.
Great recipe! Thanks for sharing. I will be making this over and over again!
The smell of the browned butter is intoxicating. I have the coffee cake in the oven right now. Cannot wait to try it!
Just made this recipe today…delicious….but 9″ pan is a myth ! Works well in a 10″ round.
Super yummy! I made a few tweaks for me and my family. I omitted the cinnamon b/c I’ve never been a fan of chocolate and cinnamon. But added unsweetened coconut flakes to the topping, b/c coconut goes with almost everything. And I reduced the sugar in both the topping and bread, and it was still on the really sweet side. But I will definitely make this again! Thank you!
This cake is amazingly delicious and it looks so beautiful with little effort! I bake a lot and have a ton of cookbooks and this is one of the best recipes using bananas that I have come across. I think the browning of the butter really enhanced the flavor. The only issue I had was that my cake was apparently not cooked quite enough because it did sink a little in the middle and it was very moist in the middle section even though I baked it for 40 minutes and it tested done with a wooden skewer and toothpick with no crumbs attached and it was pulling away from the sides of the pan when I took it out. Next time I will bake it for 45 minutes and see how it does. Thanks for such a great recipe!
Mine also sunk in the middle. And I baked it for about an hour. It could be because of the heaviness of the crumble or because it is too moist. I don’t mind, it’s still SUPER delicious. Thanks Martha!
Thanks for the feedback guys! I’ll retest this recipe soon to see if I can reproduce this. We’ve moved around so much, I’m beginning to question all the different ovens I’ve baked it. It very well may need a longer bake time.
Looks delicious! How much exactly is a stick of butter? 125gr?
I think it’s closer to 113.5 grams (based on the package).
Just made it and it is soooooooooooooooo delicious!!!!!!!!!!!
Heavenly!! Only changes I made was softened the butter in the microwave and used egg replacer as my son is anaphylactic to eggs. Im about to go back for another piece with a cup of tea before my husband and kids eat it all.
I have made this 3 times now…once with chocolate chips, once with raspberries and once with blueberries…I have definitely bookmarked this one for regular use because everyone LOVES it!! The chocolate chips are good, but I think the raspberries might be my favorite since they add a bit of tartness to counter the sweet! Thanks for the great recipe!
I love what you’ve done here. Delicious!
Chocolate, banana, crumble topping? CAN’T go wrong! Looks totally fabulous, and I really wish I had a piece to enjoy right now.
Can you please help me to convert to gluten free?
I really, really wish I could, but I’m not familiar with GF baking yet. Hoping to dive into soon though. Check out http://www.forgivingmartha.com/ and http://withstyle.me/ for GF baking. I’ll let you know if I figure anything out.
King Arthur Flour has gluten free flour
this looks quite tasty!
I just put mine in the oven!
~A
Oops! Just realized i forgot the vanilla… 🙂
Youll barely notice. Hope you luurve it!
Yes! It was very good. I actually made a grain-free version. I just finished making it a second time, and, after putting it in the oven, realized that I forgot the vanilla again! Goodness, I don’t like the pattern I’m setting here.
Thank you!
~Allison
Grain-free? What did you sub? I want to experiment more with this.
Well, I used a mixture of almond meal and coconut flours, but it didn’t quite turn out. I’ll have to keep working on it. 🙂
~A
This looks absolutely delicious! I’m a gift card hoarder too. It really annoys my husband, because I have been known to misplace them, which causes me to go into a tizzy 🙂
Reblogged this on I write my own story. and commented:
Ohmyyy.. I’m hungry now :/
Oh goodness this looks good!
This looks delicious!
Best,
Alison
heartofgoldandluxury.blogspot.com
I am so glad you shared this! It sounds fantastic!
Yes, yes and YES! Wishing I had this cake to go along with my coffee 🙂
What do you mean by wheat flour? Is that whole wheat? Looks yummy!
Yep, whole wheat flour.
I have oodles of photos and recipes backed up.. but I always think they deserve to have their moment without being rushed, lol! So glad you found the time to unearth this one and bring it to the light where we can all enjoy! Every week I look for inspiration for the dessert I bring to my volunteer job on Fridays.. I think this just may be the one!! Lovely!!
Goodness, I’d be honored!
This cake looks awesome – I agree, one mustn’t lose track of great recipes like this 🙂 Looks delicious!
Noooooo! How could you tempt me so? Choc chips (tick), very ripe bananas (tick), baking basics (tick)…I am so making this 🙂
What is it about banana and chocolate that is so delicious? I think the idea of covering something healthy like a banana in ooey gooey chocolate is so soul satisfying. Looking forward to the photography tips, your pictures always look so nice.
This sounds soooo tasty!! Yum!
Very delicious.Banana and chocolate
First of all, this looks delicious!!! Second of all, I also hoard gift cards. And my boyfriend is the same way is your husband, gone as quick as it came in
What a lovely coffee cake!
What is it about banana and chocolate that taste so perfect together? I think the idea of covering something healthy,like a banana, in ooey gooey chocolate is what makes it so soul satisfying.
Your pictures always look so amazing, I am really looking forward to the how to post : )
This cake! DROOL. Love the idea of combining banana bread + coffee cake. And chocolate chips (my personal favorite).
I’m the same way with recipes. I’ll test and test and test, then when it comes down to actually making it to photograph, I become lazy. I have a countless number of recipe posts written, but no motivation to actually bring them to life. Sigh. Maybe once it starts getting cold and I’m forced to stay indoors? Maybe.
That’s what I keep hoping. This winter I’ll build a stock pile. Maybe wishful thinking.
I’m the same way with recipes. I have a decent backlog going, since I travel so much — and I feel guilty about it too!
That tip about roasting the bananas is genius!