BANANA CAKE WITH VANILLA CREAM CHEESE ICING

Intolerance-Friendly Kitchen

Before anyone starts, yes, this is a banana cake. In a FODMAP cookbook. Why? Well, because everyone loves banana cake. Also, because a single serve of ripe banana is 56g, which means that you should be in the clear even if you do react to fructose.

If you’d prefer, you could also use unripe bananas and safely eat 112g of banana per serving. If you don’t get along with ripe bananas, use just-ripe or slightly under-ripe ones instead. I find it helpful to roast them first to bring out their sweetness and flavour.

Method

Preheat oven to 180C. Grease and line a 20cm (base measurement) round cake tin.

Place all the dry ingredients in a large bowl and whisk to combine. In a separate medium bowl, place all the wet ingredients and whisk to combine. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk to combine.

The mixture will look thick, then thin out a little as you mix to become a batterlike consistency with some chunky banana bits. Pour batter into prepared tin and bake for 25-35 minutes or until cooked through. Remove from the oven and set cake aside to cool in tin for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Meanwhile, make your icing (or make on the day you plan to serve your cake).

Place cream cheese in a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer. Using electric beaters or stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat on low speed until smooth. Add butter and continue beating until completely smooth. Scrape down the sides and add icing sugar, vanilla, a pinch of salt and lemon, if using.

Beat on a medium speed until smooth. You can continue beating on medium if you’d like a slightly whipped icing, or use it as is.

Using an offset spatula or the back of a spoon, spread icing over the cooled cake. Serve.