We have several hummingbirds that live in our backyard and their playful personalities bring me so much happiness and inspired my version of this delicious dessert. Hummingbird Cake is a sort of extra special banana bread with the addition of pineapple, pecans, and cashew cream cheese frosting. It’s perfect for Easter or any spring time occasion…and by spring time occasion, I mean any random Thursday afternoon. It’s especially nice eaten outdoors.
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Hummingbird Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- 4 medium very ripe bananas
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/3 cup grapeseed or other neutral oil
- 1/3 cup applesauce
- 20 ounce can of crushed pineapple in juice, divided 10 ounces for the cake, 10 ounces for the filling
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup pecans Optional: toast in 325 degree oven for about 7 minutes and let cool before adding to batter.
Cake Filling
- 10 ounces canned crushed pineapple in juice
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
Cashew Cream Cheese Frosting
- 3 cups raw unsalted cashews, soaked and drained Soak in hot water for about 1 hour.
- 1/2 cup non-dairy milk such as soy or coconut
- 1/4 cup agave nectar or maple syrup
- 1/2 cup non-dairy sour cream We like Tofutti.
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/4 cup coconut shreds to garnish (optional)
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease two 8 inch baking pans with vegan butter or oil. Add a round of parchment paper to the bottom of each pan (optional).
- In a large bowl mash the bananas until fairly smooth.
- To the bananas, add brown sugar, grapeseed oil, applesauce, crushed pineapple, and vanilla extract. Stir to combine.
- In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and pecans.
- Add the flour mixture to the banana mixture a little a time, stirring to combine. The batter will be thick and there is no need to mix until completely smooth.
- Divide batter evenly between the cake pans and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean (check the cakes at about 30 minutes).
- Let cakes cool completely before frosting. Cakes can be made one day ahead and kept in the refrigerator until it is time to frost.
Cake Filling
- In a small saucepan, combine 10 ounces crushed pineapple with the sugar and cornstarch.
- Heat over low-medium heat, stirring often, until the mixture thickens (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat and allow to cool.
Cashew Cream Cheese Frosting
- Combine cashews, non-dairy milk, agave nectar, non-dairy sour cream, and lemon juice in a high speed blender and blend until smooth. This may require several rounds of blending after scraping down the sides of the blender.
- Add more non-dairy milk one tablespoon at a time to reach desired consistency. This frosting is easiest to work with if it is on the thicker side.
- Allow frosting to cool in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes before frosting.
Assembling the cake
- Remove one of the cooled cakes from the pan and place on serving plate.
- Place frosting into a pastry bag or a plastic food storage bag with one corner cut off for piping.
- Pipe a circle of frosting around the perimeter edge of the top of cake which will serve as a barrier to keep the filling from spilling out.
- Place the filling in the middle of the circle of frosting and smooth until even.
- Place the second layer of the cake on top. Use remaining frosting to frost the top of the cake.
- Sprinkle the frosting with coconut shreds and decorate the top of the cake with non-toxic / edible flowers (optional).