Recipe: banana and linseed cake

Now January is far enough behind us and everyone has abandoned their New Year diets it’s the perfect time for me to share a cake recipe. Banana cake; my favourite cake in the world! The texture is light and moist without any stodginess.

Ingredients

For the cake:

• 120g softened unsalted butter
• 155g caster sugar (golden caster sugar is best)
• 225g self raising flour
• 2 eggs
• 2 overripe medium-large bananas
• 2 tablespoons whole linseed/flaxseed (they are the same thing, if you don’t have any it’s just as delicious without)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the icing:

• 250g sifted icing sugar
• 60g softened unsalted butter
• 30ml water
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Add a tablespoon of cocoa powder for a chocolatey twist.

Other:

• Baking parchment
• 20cm cake tin

Banana cake recipe

Preheat your oven to 180c/160c fan assisted/gas mark 4.

1. Mash the bananas

Mash your bananas in a bowl with the back of a fork until almost smooth.

2. Cream the butter and sugar

In another bowl cream together the butter and sugar until smooth.

3. Add eggs, bananas and vanilla

Add two eggs to the creamed butter and sugar, then mix in your mashed bananas and vanilla extract.

4. Add linseed and flour

Mix in the linseed and then add your flour, stirring until well combined.

5. Line tin with baking parchment

I am useless at lining tins with baking parchment — it results in quite a bit of swearing! Somewhere I read that the easiest way to do it is to screw the parchment into a ball, unwrap it, screw it into a ball again, then lay it in the tin and trim off the excess height. Genius. Works every time.

Pour your cake mixture into your perfectly lined cake tin.

6. Bake

Bake on the middle shelf for 40 minutes or until a sharp knife comes out clean.

Be warned: smelling buttery bananas wafting through the house is torture!

7. Top with butter icing

Put all of the icing ingredients into a bowl, mix until smooth and then smother onto a cooled cake. If you want to make it look a bit fancier drag a serrated knife over the top, moving slowly from left to right as you go.

You’ll be left with these lovely lines. If you mess it up, smooth the icing over and start again. This stage can be a bit messy but it’s a good excuse to eat any icing that falls off the cake.

7. Scoff!

Banana cake never lasts us long; we justify eating multiple helpings because it contains bananas and linseed. Both of which are very good for you! *wink*

Although I’ve topped with butter icing it’s just as delicious without. Scott really likes it so I tend to make it with — I make out like it’s for his benefit but really I enjoy eating icing out of the bowl while I finish off the cake.

Stored in an airtight container somewhere cool, it will keep for 3-4 days. It freezes really well too. Happy baking!