This super moist gluten free banana cake gets loads of flavor from brown butter, brown sugar, coconut flour, and butterscotch-swirled cream cheese frosting.
This week marks the 9th year of The Bojon Gourmet, and the second year of Alternative Baker. I started this site on a whim when I failed to find a good recipe for sourdough crackers online and took matters into my own flour-streaked hands. I never dreamed that it would bring so many good things my way. 550 recipes later, I'm blessed with a huge, supportive community of fellow bloggers, entrepreneurs, eco-conscious brands, and readers all around the globe. What better way to celebrate than with cake?!
This banana cake recipe is adapted from the dairy free + gluten free banana cake topped with boozy chocolate ganache that I shared earlier this year. I was so in love with its delicate crumb and warm banana flavor, I dreamed up this version infused with the butterscotchy flavors of vanilla bean brown butter and brown sugar. Inspired by this luscious photo from The Boy Who Bakes, I topped the cake with cream cheese frosting and swirled in boozy butterscotch sauce.
Gluten Free Flours for Banana Cake
I always love when gluten free recipes best their wheaty counterparts, as is the case here. A trio of flavorful gluten-free flours – millet flour, coconut flour, and sweet rice flour – create a meltingly tender, yet well-structured, texture. Millet flour's soft, powdery texture fluffs up the cake while adding buttery flavor. High-fiber coconut flour absorbs excess moisture while adding tropical topnotes. And sticky sweet rice flour (also known as mochi flour) holds the cake together.
My friend and sometimes assistant Bebe helped me test this recipe, and when we took our first bites of warm cake, redolent with sweet vanilla and caramelized butter, we both swooned and Bebe said, "this is the most moist cake I've ever baked." Such can be the advantage of gluten free flours, which don't develop the tough dryness of glutenous flours.
Cake pans: size matters.
My original banana sheet cake recipe fits a 9-inch square pan (or 8x10 rectangle) so I increased the recipe by 25% to accommodate the larger 9x12-inch sheet pan. And I simplified the method a bit: instead of beating the sugar into the cold butter, I simply whisk together all the wet ingredients, stir in the flour mixture, and fold in the whipped egg whites.
The toppings:
While the cake bakes, make the cream cheese frosting and butterscotch sauce – both come together with speed and ease – and you'll love swirling the two together on top of the cooled cake.
Cut yourself a slice and revel in the addictive flavors of brown butter, brown sugar, ripe bananas, tropical coconut flour, and plenty of salty acidity in the frosting to contrast the sweet cakey richness. If you're like me, you'll find yourself wanting to give away as much cake as possible while also hoarding it all to yourself. An impossibly delicious conundrum.
Thanks to all my wonderful readers for coming along with me on this 9-year journey! Thank you for all the sweet notes, smart questions, kind words, follows, likes, and supportiveness of TBG. I wouldn't be doing this without you.
More Banana recipes:
- Grain-Free Banana Bread with Cinnamon & Walnuts
- Vegan Paleo Banana Bread with Chocolate
- Gluten-Free Banana Buckwheat Pancakes
- Gluten Free Banana Muffins with Chocolate & Buckwheat Flour
- Chocolate Bourbon Banana Cream Tart
- Coconut Flour Banana Cake with Chocolate Rum Ganache {gluten-free, dairy-free}
More Gluten-Free Cake Recipes:
- Gluten-Free Crumb Cake with Berries
- GF Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting
- Healthier Gluten-Free Red Velvet Cake
- Gluten-Free Chocolate Bundt Cake
*Bojon appétit! For more Bojon Gourmet in your life, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest, purchase my gluten-free cookbook Alternative Baker, or subscribe to receive new posts via email. And if you make this gluten free banana cake, I’d love to see. Tag your Instagram snaps @The_Bojon_Gourmet and #bojongourmet.*
Gluten Free Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting + Butterscotch Swirl
Print Recipe Pin RecipeIngredients
Cake:
- 10 tablespoons (135 g) lightly salted or unsalted butter
- 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and scraped (or 1 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract added with the buttermilk)
- ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons (175 g) packed organic light brown sugar
- 1 ¼ cup (320 g) mashed banana from about 2 1/2 large ripe bananas
- 4 large eggs, separated
- 1 ½ (355 ml) cups low-fat buttermilk
- ¾ cup (110 g) sweet white rice flour (preferably Koda Farms or Bob’s Red Mill)
- ¾ cup (80 g) coconut flour (preferably Bob’s Red Mill)
- ¾ cup (100 g) millet flour (preferably Bob’s Red Mill)
- 3 tablespoons (23 g) tapioca flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt (increase to ¾ teaspoon if using unsalted butter)
- 3 tablespoons (35 g) granulated sugar
Topping:
- 1/2 recipe Boozy Butterscotch Sauce, chilled
- 1 recipe Cream Cheese Frosting
Instructions
Make the cake:
- Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350ºF. Line a 9x12-inch baking pan with parchment paper on all sides.
- Place the butter and vanilla pod and scrapings in a medium, heavy saucepan. Melt the butter over medium-low heat, then continue cooking the butter until it turns golden and smells nutty, swirling the pan to prevent burning, 3-5 more minutes. Pour the butter into a large, heat-proof bowl and let cool to warm. Whisk in the brown sugar, banana, egg yolks, and buttermilk. Place a strainer over the bowl and add the sweet rice, coconut, millet, and tapioca flours along with the baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Sift into the wet ingredients, and stir to combine.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment (or in a large bowl with an electric beater or whisk) beat the egg whites on medium-high until foamy. Gradually add the sugar and continue beating until the whites hold soft peaks. Gently fold one-third of the whipped whites into the batter, then fold in the remaining egg whites.
- Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake the cake until golden on top and a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, 40-50 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely in the pan.
Make the frosting:
- Prepare the butterscotch sauce, cool, and chill until needed.
- Make the cream cheese frosting and reserve at room temperature until needed.
Finish the cake:
- Spread the frosting over the cooled cake. Dollop and drizzle some of the butterscotch sauce over the frosting, and use the back of a spoon to swirl it into the frosting. Serve slices of cake with extra butterscotch sauce if you like.
- The cake is best served at room temperature, but extras can be chilled airtight for up to 4 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Lynn | The Road to Honey says
Wow! 9 years! That is quite the accomplishment as running a blog can be tough. But you do it so beautifully. As for this cake. . .good golly miss Molly!!!! Wishing I had a slice right now. And I can't get over that butterscotch drizzle too (she drools).
Alanna says
Aw thanks so much Lynn! Having blog is certainly like having a very needy pet, isn't it?!
Aysegul says
Ahhh what a huge accomplishment Alana! Wishing you many more successful, and happy bloggiversaries (yeah, just contributed to the English language with a brand new word 😂).
Soooo excited for what is to come and looking forward to celebrating with you!
Cheers to your success!
Alanna says
Aw, thank you sweet friend! So grateful to have met you through our blogs. Hope we get to celebrate in person some day soon! <3
Tracy says
Hi, Alana! I have all the ingredients to make this cake, except the coconut flour. It's pouring out here and I'd rather stay cozy and bake, than run to the store. Can you suggest a flour alternative that may work (almond, chestnut, sorghum, rice etc)?
Love your trusted recipes and your site! Keep going!
Tracy
Alanna says
Hi Tracy! Thanks so much for the sweet words! I actually just published a teff flour version of this cake in the latest issue of GFF Magazine - it's available here for download: https://gffmag.com/shop/issue-17-downloadable-pdf/ Coconut flour is much more absorbent than other flours so it's quite tricky to substitute. The teff version should be easier to experiment with - you could swap the teff for any of the flours you mentioned (by weight if you can).
Erika says
Congrats Alana!!!!!! I still remembering stumbling across your blog for the first time (while looking for banana buckwheat pancakes) and the first recipe I made from your site--the flaky goat cheese + chive biscuits, the deliciousness of which turned me into an avid follower. Your recipes and photography are seriously unparalleled and I'm excited for this excuse to use up the coconut flour lingering in my pantry!!
Alanna says
Awwwwww thank you Erika! I'm so glad we met through the old internet and that you liked the flaky cheese and chive biscuits. Please let me know if you give this cake a go - the original is dairy-free too! :)
Laura | Tutti Dolci says
Such delicious flavors, I love this cake! And many congratulations on 9 years!! :)
Alanna says
Aw thanks Laura! <3
Tr says
Such a good recipe, Alanna! The cake is nice and moist and the frosting is so light and creamy. And the butterscotch is a delightful addition. I’d love a tutorial from you about making caramel as I haven’t been able to succeed with it. And how is butterscotch different? I’m not sure I did the best job on it but at least I didn’t burn it! I’m also thinking that the addition of some spices to the cake might be good too. Another big thumbs up!!
Alanna says
Yay I'm so glad you liked it! Thanks for the caramel tutorial request, that's great to know!
The main difference between butterscotch and caramel is that butterscotch starts with brown sugar, which is what gives it a rich flavor, while caramel starts with white sugar that is cooked until it caramelizes. :)
Trish says
I forgot to rate it - of course another home run!
Trish says
You might like to know that I made this for farmers market and it sold out! I also brought samples for the the farm owner and his employee and what I got were eyes rolling up in delight and a comment of “I think this is my favorite so far!” Almost everything I’ve sold there has been made from your recipes. I’m thinking others would give it five stars too!
Alanna says
Awwww this completely makes my day! I'm so glad the cake was a hit. I'm honored to know the recipe is being enjoyed out there in the world. Thanks a million for trying my recipes and for all your sweet notes! <333
Jennifer Kohl says
We just cut into this cake and oh my goodness, it is delicious! This is the third cake we have tried from your cite and all of them are an absolute dream! I simply cannot believe these are gluten free. Next up is your chocolate with matcha frosting.
Alanna Taylor-Tobin says
Aw that makes me so happy to hear! I'm really glad you're loving the cake recipes. Please let me know how the chocolate matcha goes!