banana cake

last updated on October 30, 2026

Oh man, friends. This banana cake is amazing. Think of a moist banana bread all stacked on top of each other with homemade whipped cream and bananas layered between! Trust me, you need this banana cake in your life.

Instead of regular frosting, this cake is covered in homemade whipped cream, which makes it so light! You can use Cool Whip if you need to, but I promise that homemade whipped cream is X 1000 better.

I topped mine with crushed graham crackers and fresh raspberries, but you could use whatever you have on hand! I do recommend the crushed graham crackers — they pair so well with the banana flavor.

Another trick for making this cake so soft is to put it in the freezer. Right after the cake comes out of the oven, it goes directly into the freezer for 45 minutes. This helps keep the cake so moist!

Wow, I apologize for the overuse of the word “moist,” but there really isn’t a better word to describe this cake.

I think you need this cake in your life! If you do make it, please let me know and tag me in a picture of it on Instagram!

BANANA CAKE

INGREDIENTS

• 3/4 cup butter
• 2 cups white sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• 3 1/3 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups mashed bananas
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 4 cups whipping cream
• 1/2 sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 large bananas (for cake assembly)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 275.

Grease and flour three 8-inch cake pans.*

Cream the butter and sugar until smooth, about 5 minutes. Add vanilla, then add eggs, one at a time, mixing until just incorporated each time.

In a medium-sized bowl, mix flour, baking soda, and salt. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and buttermilk to the batter. I usually do it in 3 rounds (1/3 flour mixture, 1/3 buttermilk, etc).

Mash bananas in a small bowl and stir in lemon juice. Add the mashed bananas to the batter and mix until just combined.

Pour equal amounts of batter into each pan and smack each pan on the counter a few times to release any air bubbles. Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes. Your cakes should be lightly browned on top, but that’s it. Don’t overcook them! Remove the cakes from the oven and put them directly into the freezer for 45 minutes. This keeps the cake very moist.

While the cake is in the freezer, make the whipped cream. Put 4 cups of chilled whipping cream in a bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the sugar and vanilla, then beat until stiff peaks form. Make sure the peaks are quite stiff; the whipped cream will sag under the weight of the layers.

Put a small amount of whipped cream on the bottom of your cake pan (or whatever you are serving it on) to keep the cake in place while you are frosting it. Place the first layer down and top with whipped cream and thinly sliced bananas. Repeat with the next layer. Place your top layer on and thinly coat the entire cake with whipped cream. Put the cake in the freezer for 15 minutes to get the ‘crumb coat’ and let the first layer of whipped cream set up. Take it out of the freezer and add more whipped cream all over the cake until it is all covered. Keep it in the fridge until right before you serve it.

Top with any desired toppings. I used fresh raspberries and crushed graham crackers. Use whatever you have on hand!

Enjoy!

*If you don’t have three 8-inch cake pans, a 9×13-inch pan can be used instead. Pour all the batter into the 9×13 pan and bake it for 60 minutes.