SLOW-COOKER HUMMINGBIRD CAKE

serves / 8 prep / 15 minutes cook / 3 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients 300g (2 cups) plain flour 200g (1 cup, firmly packed) brown sugar 45g (½ cup) desiccated coconut 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp ground cinnamon ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda 3 eggs, lightly whisked 180ml ( 3/ cup) light extra 4

virgin olive oil 440g can crushed pineapple 260g (1 cup) mashed banana (about 3 bananas) 105g ( 3/ cup) pecans, 4 toasted, chopped, plus extra, to serve 4 cups warm water Store-bought caramel sauce or dulce de leche, to drizzle

CREAM CHEESE ICING

250g pkt cream cheese, chopped, at room temperature 70g unsalted butter, chopped, at room temperature 1 tsp vanilla extract 300g (2 cups) icing sugar mixture

Method

1Grease

a round 20cm (base measurement) cake pan. Line base with baking paper. Whisk flour, sugar, coconut, baking powder, cinnamon, bicarb and a pinch of salt in a bowl until combined. Make a well in centre. 2Add

egg, oil, pineapple and banana to the well. Stir to combine. Stir in the pecans. Pour into prepared pan. Smooth surface. Place a wire trivet or rack in a 5L slow cooker. Add enough water to slow cooker to cover base, leaving top of rack exposed. Place pan on rack. Cover and cook on Low for 3 ½ hours or until a skewer inserted in centre of cake comes out clean. Remove from cooker and cool completely in pan. 3For

the icing, use an electric beater to beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla in a bowl until smooth. Gradually beat in the icing sugar until well combined. 4Use

a large serrated knife to cut cake in half horizontally. Spread with a third of the icing. Top with remaining cake. Spread remaining icing all over cake. Drizzle with caramel. Scatter with the extra pecans.