Banana & Salted Caramel Cake with Nutella Frosting

by

I had the idea for this cake after taking a weekend trip to Paris with my boyfriend. At one point, we were lost and came across the most wonderful chocolate boutique store. We bought loads of little chocolate gifts for family and friends with flavours such as, earl grey, rose and butterscotch.

I was about to pay for all my items when I noticed some small jars on a shelf. They were these cute little jars with a vintage sort of design that turned out to be salted caramel! I immediately started thinking of recipes I could use it with - salted caramel macarons, salted caramel crepes, salted caramel tart...

I eventually decided to make a banana cake with salted caramel layers and Nutella frosting.



I was finally able to use my new piping nozzles and I think they really added an elegant touch to the look of the cake.

INGREDIENTS

For the banana cake:
(adapted from a Hummingbird Bakery recipe via another foody blog)
270 g light brown sugar
2 eggs
200 g peeled bananas, mashed
280 g plain flour 
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
140 g unsalted butter, melted
About 1 cup of salted caramel
Smal amount of white chocolate, melted and slightly cool (optional)

 For the Nutella frosting:
(via Sweetapolita)
227g butter, softened but cool
190g icing sugar, sifted
2 tsp vanilla extract
125g premium bittersweet chocolate, melted and slightly cooled
100g Nutella
1 tbs milk
pinch of salt

Starting with the banana cake, grease three 6 inch cake tins and preheat the oven to 170C/325F/gas mark 3.

Beat the sugars and eggs well with an electric mixer or whisk by hand until well incorporated. Beat in the mashed bananas. Add the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon and ginger to the sugar mixture. Mix thoroughly and pour in the melted butter and beat until all the ingredients are mixed well and incorporated.

Divide the mixture evenly into the 3 cake tins and smooth over. Bake in the oven for about 45-60 mins - NOTE: the original recipe calls for an hour but these are in cake tins rather than loaf tins, which will take less time to bake. Check at 30 mins and insert a skewer into the centre of the cake, which should come out clean when fully cooked. Bake for longer if necessary.

Leave the cake to cool slightly in the tin before turning out on to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the Nutella frosting, beat the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla until well incorporated and next, place the melted and slightly cooled chocolate into the mixture. Mix until smooth.

 Add the Nutella, milk and salt and beat until light and airy.

 When cool, assemble the cake by spreading semi-thick layers of salted caramel between the cake layers. For best results, spread a thin layer of frosting on the entire cake and place in the fridge for approximately half an hour. The frosting should have hardened after this, and you can continue to frost the cake without crumbs mixing into the icing.