A perk that I get living here in a very tropical country are the abundant tropical fruits, like mangoes and bananas. Bananas are available all year round so they are quite affordable and most often we got bananas at home. Some times way too much, like last week's batch of bananas got a bit too ripe before we were able to fully consume the whole bunch. Banana loaf is a nice way to use up all the over ripe bananas but then after weeks and weeks of using the same recipe, my family gets tired of it and don't actually eat it. Off to the drawing board I go aka the Internet! Ha! I surely cannot imagine what I would do without the Internet while food surfing I stumbled SugarPunk who made a Banana Rum Cake from Jill O'Conner's first book. I actually had this book and remembered bookmarking a lot of must try from this but alas my book was ruined, so when I saw a mouthwatering picture of a Banana Rum Cake from this book, I thought it's should be good. Another plus is that I have all the ingredients readily available in my cupboard. Though I don't actually drink liquor, I like cakes with liquor, it makes cakes soft and moist and liquored cakes makes me think of Christmas. Liquored cakes are very popular here during the holidays and my favorite is a Rum Cake. I hate bananas however boozy this banana rum cake gets I can still taste the bananas, it's really not my cup of tea. My brother and mom likes it though, so I still make banana cakes whenever. The shinny pecans on top of the cake looks so yummy makes this ordinary cake look so chic and sophisticated.
BAHAMA MAMA BANANA RUM CAKE
Dark Rum Glaze:
* 1/2 cup unsalted butter
* 1/4 cup water
* 1/2 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
* 1/2 cup dark rum
* 1/2 cup unsalted butter
* 1/4 cup water
* 1/2 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
* 1/2 cup dark rum
Combine the butter, water, and sugars in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Immediately reduce the heat to medium-low nad simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the rum. Set aside and keep warm.
The Cake:* 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans, toasted
* 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter
* 2 cups granulated sugar
* 1 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
* 5 large eggs, at room temperature
* 1 cup mashed very ripe bananas (about 3 medium)
* 2 tsps pure vanilla extract
* 3 tablespoons dark rum
* 3 cups bleached all-purpose flour
* 1 tsp baking soda
* 1 tsp baking powder
* 1 tsp salt
* 3/4 cup sour cream
* 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter
* 2 cups granulated sugar
* 1 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
* 5 large eggs, at room temperature
* 1 cup mashed very ripe bananas (about 3 medium)
* 2 tsps pure vanilla extract
* 3 tablespoons dark rum
* 3 cups bleached all-purpose flour
* 1 tsp baking soda
* 1 tsp baking powder
* 1 tsp salt
* 3/4 cup sour cream
1. Preheat oven to 350F and position a rack in the middle. Spray a 10-cup tube pan with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle the pecans in the bottom of the pan. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat togethe rthe butter and sugars until the mixture is light and fluffy.
3. Beat in eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Beat in mashed bananas, vanilla, and rum.
4. Sift the flour, baking osda, baking powder, and slat over the batter and fold in using a rubber spatula, just until no streaks of flour remain. Fold in the sour cream.
5. Spoon the batter over the nuts in the pan and spread to the ede of the pan using the back of the rubber spatula. Bake until a wooden skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out with no more than a few moist crumbs clinging to it, 60 – 80 minutes. (For the smaller bundts, it took around 30 minutes)
6. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Use a wooden skewer to poke holes all over the cake and pour 1/4 cup of the warm glaze over the cake. Let the cake cool for 5 minutes more.
7. Place a serving platter over the pan and invert to release the cake onto the platter. Spoon the remaining glaze over the cake, a little at a time, and let stand until the glaze is completely absorbed into the cake.
8. If the glaze starts to pool at the base of the cake, use a small metal spatula to spread it up and around the sides of the cake. As the glaze hardens, this will encase the cake in a rummy, sugary shell.
Not a big fan of banana cakes but I love them soaked in rum. Love the addition of the booze to this.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you enjoyed the cake! Sorry the bananas don't do anything for you - I love them, especially with rum. But your family appreciates your sacrifice, I'm sure :)
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