Double-layer Banana Chocolate Chip Cake features mini chocolate chips throughout and is topped with rich, creamy chocolate frosting.
author’s note
Why I Get Excited When Bananas Go Brown!
My friend Sally from Sally’s Baking Addiction sent me her very first cookbook, and the moment I flipped through it I was instantly drawn to the banana cake recipe. I gave it a try, and it was love at first bite. Sweet bananas baked into a soft, chocolate-studded cake, finished with creamy chocolate frosting. It’s everything I love in one dessert. Now whenever I’ve got bananas going brown on the counter, I don’t just think about banana bread. I’m making this cake every chance I get.
If you don’t already own Sally’s first cookbook, I can’t recommend it enough. It’s packed with amazing recipes (this cake included!) and has become one of my go-to baking books. You can grab a copy online or anywhere cookbooks are sold. I promise you’ll want it on your shelf.
Banana Chocolate Chip Cake Ingredients
| Ingredient | Swaps or Tips |
|---|---|
| Ripe Bananas | Quickly ripen by baking unpeeled bananas at 350°F for 7–8 minutes. Cool and mash. |
| Sour Cream | Full-fat Greek yogurt works well. |
| Flour | Measure correctly (spoon & level). Too much flour will make the cake dense. |
| Mini Chocolate Chips | Regular chocolate chips work too, but minis distribute more evenly. |
| Buttermilk | Make your own: 1 cup milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice or vinegar. Let sit for 5–10 minutes. |
How To Make Banana Chocolate Chip Cake
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350°F and grease two 9-inch pans.
- Bananas: Mash ripe bananas with lemon juice.
- Wet mix: Cream butter and sugars, then beat in eggs, vanilla, and sour cream.
- Dry mix: Stir flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together.
- Combine: Add dry mix and buttermilk into the wet mix. Fold in bananas and chocolate.
- Bake & Frost: Divide batter between pans, bake until a toothpick comes out clean, cool completely, then frost with chocolate frosting.
Featured Comment
“I’ve made this cake many times and it always comes out amazing!”
– Ann
Storage
- Room Temp: Keep in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Refrigerator: Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
- Freezing: Wrap banana chocolate chip cake slices individually and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temp.
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Best Chocolate Cake Recipe
Banana Chocolate Chip Cake
This Banana Chocolate Chip Cake is studded with mini chocolate chips and generously topped with a rich, creamy chocolate frosting.
Equipment
- 2 cake pans 9-inch
Ingredients
Cake
- 1-1/2 cups bananas very ripe, mashed
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar firmly packed
- 1/4 cup sour cream or honey vanilla Greek yogurt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 3 cups flour see note 1
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup mini chocolate chips
- 1-1/2 cups buttermilk at room temperature
Milk Chocolate Frosting
- 1-1/4 cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 3/4 cup Dutch process cocoa powder see note 2
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/16 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Generously grease two 9-inch round cake pans. Line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper (see note 3). Grease the parchment paper and lightly dust the entire cake pan with flour.
- Thoroughly mash the bananas so no chunks remain; I like to mash them quickly by beating with a hand mixer. Measure to get a level 1-1/2 cups mashed bananas and then toss with lemon juice to prevent browning.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, cream together the butter, granulated sugar, and dark brown sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2–3 minutes. Add in the sour cream, vanilla, and 1 large egg. Beat to combine. Add the next egg; beat to combine. Add the final egg and beat. Stir in the mashed bananas.
- In a separate bowl, add in the spooned and leveled flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Place the mini chocolate chips in a bowl and add a bit of flour, shake them around the bowl until they are coated in flour. Add the chocolate chips to the other dry ingredients, stir together to combine.
- With the mixer set on low speed, slowly add 1/3 of the flour mixture and then 1/3 of the buttermilk. Mix until just combined, be careful to not over mix. Repeat with the second and third portions of the flour and buttermilk. Mix until just incorporated. Stop mixing as soon as ingredients are combined.
- Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans. Bake in the preheated oven for 45–50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. Allow to cool for 15 minutes in the cake pans, then invert the cakes onto a wire cooling rack to finish cooling completely. Do not frost until fully cooled.
- To make the frosting, use a hand-held or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed for 3–4 minutes. Add the powdered sugar and cocoa powder and mix on low. Add heavy cream and vanilla extract. If the frosting is too thin, add more powdered sugar, up to 1 cup, until you get the desired consistency. If the frosting is too thick, you can add more heavy cream, up to 2 tablespoons. Add the salt. If the frosting is still too sweet, add a dash more salt.
- If the cakes are domed on top, carefully level them off with a sharp serrated knife or cake leveler. To build the cake, smear a tiny bit of frosting in the center of your cake stand or plate. Next, place the first layer bottom side up. Using a knife or offset spatula, spread the top of the cake evenly with the chocolate frosting. Place the second layer on top, top side up. Frost the top and sides of the cake. If desired, decorate with additional mini chocolate chips. Slice and serve.
Final step! Please let us know how it was by leaving a review.
Recipe Notes
Note 1: Make sure to spoon and level the flour measurement. If you scoop a measuring cup directly into a bag of flour, you will pack in too much flour which creates a drier and less-flavorful cake.
Note 2: For best flavor and texture, use Dutch-process, not natural cocoa powder, for the frosting.
Note 3: Make a parchment paper round bottom for the cake pans by following these steps:
- Tear off a sheet of parchment paper slightly larger than the cake pan.
- Fold the parchment paper in half, then fold in half again.
- Fold into a triangle, then fold the triangle in half.
- Hold the triangle against the bottom of the pan from the center outwards.
- Cut the parchment paper along the curve, right where it meets the edge of the cake pan.
- Unfold the parchment paper and press into the bottom of the cake pan.
Nutrition
Serving: 12servings | Calories: 1025kcal | Carbohydrates: 164g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 40g | Saturated Fat: 24g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 128mg | Sodium: 309mg | Potassium: 484mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 105g | Vitamin A: 1120IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 138mg | Iron: 5mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Variations
- Nuts: Add chopped walnuts or pecans for crunch to this banana chocolate chip cake.
- Layer Upgrade: Spread a thin layer of peanut butter frosting between the cake.
- Frosting Swap: Try cream cheese frosting if you want less chocolate.
- Bundt Style: Bake in a bundt pan and drizzle with chocolate ganache.
I’m really excited to try this cake! Do you use semisweet or milk chocolate chips?
Semi-sweet. Either works great!
I made this as a sheet cake for a birthday this past weekend. I don’t like my icing super sweet, so I used closer to 2 C sugar and added a TBSP of coffee to bring out the chocolate flavor. It was delicious! Thank you so much for the great recipe.
So glad you guys enjoyed! Thanks for your comment Emily! 🙂
Made this last week and it was a HUGE HIT! I used chocolate whipped cream frosting from a different recipe.
The cake caramelized around the edges. Trimmed those off and had them with left over frosting. A sweet snack later for the baker 😉
So happy to hear this was a hit 🙂 And that does sound delicious! 🙂
Cake looks delicious! Do you mind me asking where the cake stand is from? Looking for something just like it.
No not at all! I believe it was from Pier 1, but I did buy it about 4-5 years ago!
It must be popular because it’s still available in stores…snagged one today! Thanks for responding! This cake will be the first thing I use it for!
This cake looks absolutely amazing. The chocolate chips throughout and the milk chocolate frosting!! I love banana and chocolate together!
hey girl- this looks amazing! Yummy!
I’m making this tomorrow night for a brunch potluck on Saturday morning. Do you think I could turn it into cupcakes, for easy sharing?
The cake looks delicious!
I’ve made this cake many times and it always comes out amazing! I want to make it again but add some rum to it, any suggestions as to how?