Brown Butter Banana Bread Cake Featuring Cream Cheese Frosting

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Banana bread is my comfort food. Baking it in a 9′ square cake pan is quite possibly one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Add cream cheese frosting to that, and consider yourself comforted.

This recipe comes together so quickly since it is all mixed together in one bowl. It is based on a recipe I’ve made my entire life since growing up, and there are so many ways to customize it.

How to Make the Brown Butter Banana Bread Cake

Make the Bread Cake (it’s kind of both, so let’s just call it a bread cake)

Preheat oven to 350 Farenheit.

Brown butter is delicious and can be used in a variety of baking recipes, and it is so simple to make. Start by melting your butter in a saucepan over medium heat, giving it a stir as it melts. Once the butter is completely melted, it will start to bubble and sizzle while the water evaporates. Once the water has mostly evaporated, the milk solids toast and turn brown. It is helpful to whisk often at this stage, because the toasty bits can burn without movement. Keep cooking the butter until it has reached a nice golden brown with toasted brown bits. Pour butter into a large, heat proof bowl.

To the bowl, add granulated sugar and salt and whisk together. Add the mashed bananas, milk, and eggs and whisk until combined.

Add baking soda and all purpose flour to the bowl and gently stir together with a spatula.

Pour the batter into a parchment lined and greased 9″x9″ cake pan and bake for 28-35 minutes. Let cool.

Make the Cream Cheese Frosting

This cream cheese frosting is so easy and doesn’t require a stand mixer. It is not a large amount of frosting, so I find the stand mixer to be less helpful in this case.

In a bowl, mix together the softened butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the salt, vanilla, and powdered sugar and mix together until smooth, adding the milk in little by little until the desired consistency is reached.

Once the banana bread cake is cooled, frost with the cream cheese frosting and enjoy.

A Note About Salt

I use Diamond Crystal Kosher salt in all of my recipes. It should be assumed when reading the word ‘salt’ on this website that I mean Diamond Crystal Kosher salt (unless I say otherwise). If you do not have this salt, and you want to use table salt, use only half the amount called for. Regular table salt is much finer than Diamond Crystal Kosher salt, so a teaspoon of each would not actually yield the same amount of salt. A teaspoon of regular table salt vs. kosher will give a much saltier taste in the recipe. It’s no big deal, just make sure to use half of what the recipe calls for. Although, if you can get your hands on some Diamond Crystal, I totally recommend it.

A Note About Measurements

I bake using weight measurements rather than volume measurements, with the exception of teaspoons or tablespoons in small amounts of things like baking powder or salt. I prefer to weigh my ingredients in grams because it is the most accurate way to measure ingredients. Using cup measurements can vary from cup to cup, making it impossible for everyone to have accurate measurements. Weighing out ingredients using grams is accurate and also much easier. Trust me, a scale will change your baking life.

Print Recipe

Brown Butter Banana Bread Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

A one-bowl brown butter banana bread baked in a 9"x9" pan and slathered in cream cheese frosting.

Ingredients

Brown Butter Banana Bread Cake

• 127 grams browned unsalted butter (one stick and one tablespoon)
• 200 grams granulated sugar
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 2 eggs
• 3 tbsp whole milk
• 330 grams mashed ripe bananas (about three)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 240 grams all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 3 oz cream cheese softened
• 6 tbsp unsalted butter softened
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
• 390 grams powdered sugar (about three cups)
• 1 tbsp milk or cream

Instructions

Brown Butter Banana Bread Cake

• Preheat oven to 350 Farenheit.
• Prepare a 9"x9" cake pan by lining with parchment paper and a bit of oil spray.
• Start by melting your butter in a saucepan over medium heat, giving it a stir as it melts. Once the butter is completely melted, it will start to bubble and sizzle while the water evaporates. Once the water has mostly evaporated, the milk solids toast and turn brown. It is helpful to whisk often at this stage, because the toasty bits can burn without movement. Keep cooking the butter until it has reached a nice golden brown with toasted brown bits. Pour butter into a large, heat proof bowl.
• Add granulated sugar and salt to the brown butter, whisking well.
• Add eggs, whole milk, vanilla, and milk to the butter mixture and whisk until fully combined.
• Gently stir in the baking soda and flour with a spatula.
• Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 28-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely.

Cream Cheese Frosting

• Using a hand mixer, beat butter and cream cheese together until smooth.
• Add salt, powdered sugar, and vanilla and beat until smooth, adding milk as needed.
• Frost the banana bread cake with cream cheese frosting and serve.

Have You Made This Recipe & Loved It?

It would make me the HAPPIEST if you gave this recipe a quick review and tagged me on Instagram.