September 16, 2025

Brown Butter Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting & Caramelized Bananas

Who knew something this simple could taste this decadent? It starts with a one-bowl, brown butter banana cake that practically melts in your mouth. You could stop right there and be perfectly happy… but stay with me on this delicious journey. Top it with cream cheese frosting and caramelized bananas for a flavor explosion that hits every single bite.

This cake is rich, tender, and just the right amount of indulgent. It’s the kind of dessert you bring to the table and everyone immediately leans in for a slice. Honestly, it’s so good, you’ll want to dive right in!!

What You’ll Need

Cake:

  • ½ cup (1 stick) salted butter, browned and cooled

  • ¾ cup packed light brown sugar

  • 2 large eggs, beaten

  • 1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

  • 4 very ripe bananas, mashed smooth

  • 1¾ cups all-purpose flour

  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt

Frosting:

  • 6 oz cream cheese, softened

  • 6 tbsp (¾ stick) unsalted butter, softened

  • 2–2¼ cups powdered sugar, sifted

  • 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

  • 2–3 tbsp milk or cream, as needed

Caramelized Bananas:

  • 2 bananas, sliced into 1” coins

  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter

  • ¼ cup brown sugar

  • 1 tsp cinnamon

Optional Topping:

  • Chopped walnuts

Method

Brown the Butter:

  1. Place ½ cup butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Melt completely, then continue cooking.

  2. Swirl the pan occasionally until the milk solids turn golden brown and smell nutty.

  3. Remove from heat immediately and pour into a heat-safe bowl to cool.

Make the Cake:

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease or line a 9x9-inch pan with parchment.

  2. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, vanilla, browned butter, and brown sugar until smooth.

  3. Stir in mashed bananas.

  4. Add flour, baking soda, and salt, mixing until just combined.

  5. Pour into pan and bake 40–45 minutes, until a toothpick comes out mostly clean.

  6. Let cool completely.

Make the Frosting:

  1. Beat cream cheese and butter until smooth and fluffy.

  2. Add powdered sugar slowly, mixing until combined.

  3. Mix in vanilla.

  4. Add milk as needed for a silky, spreadable consistency.

Caramelize the Bananas:

  1. In a skillet, melt butter over medium heat.

  2. Stir in brown sugar and cinnamon until bubbling.

  3. Add banana slices and cook 2–3 minutes, turning once, until golden.

  4. Remove bananas with a slotted spoon.

  5. Reduce the remaining sauce for 1–2 minutes until syrupy.

Assemble the Cake:

  1. Spread cream cheese frosting over cooled cake.

  2. Sprinkle with walnuts, if using.

  3. Arrange caramelized bananas on top.

  4. Drizzle with the reduced banana-caramel syrup.

  5. Slice, serve, and enjoy the magic.

✨ Pro Tip: This cake tastes even better the next day, once the flavors meld together. If you manage to have leftovers, store them covered in the fridge.

And as always, we take pride in our process, our facility, our team, our products, and our mission to give back. We bake integrity into everything we do.

Written by mya zoracki