Martha Stewart Banana Sheet Cake with Passion-Fruit Frosting

Martha Stewart Banana Sheet Cake With Passion-Fruit Frosting is a tender dessert with ripe bananas, sour cream and tangy cream cheese frosting that takes 2 hours 20 minutes. This easy banana dessert for a crowd fits birthday parties, potlucks and spring brunches from one pan.

Beat the eggs and granulated sugar on high speed for a full 4 minutes, until the mixture turns thick and pale. Cutting that time short leaves you with a denser, flatter cake that can't hold up the mashed bananas.

Martha stirs a whole cup of mashed banana into the batter and adds sour cream for a soft, tender crumb. The frosting gets its tropical tang from juice pressed from fresh passion fruit, and she saves the seedy pulp to spoon over the top.

Martha Stewart Banana Sheet Cake with Passion-Fruit Frosting

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Course: DessertCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

12

servings

Prep time

20

minutes

Cooking time

35

minutes

Calories

450

kcal

A whisked egg and sugar base gives the banana batter a light lift, and the sour cream keeps every slice soft and tender. Fluffy cream cheese frosting with passion-fruit juice spreads over the cooled cake and gets a drizzle of juicy pulp.

Ingredients

• 1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus more, softened, for pan
  

• 1 2/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  

• 1 teaspoon baking powder
  

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt (we use Diamond Crystal)
  

• 4 large eggs, room temperature
  

• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  

• 3 medium ripe bananas, well mashed (1 cup)
  

• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  

• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla paste or extract
  

• 3/4 cup sour cream, room temperature
  

• 1 pound cream cheese, room temperature
  

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  

• 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
  

• 1/4 cup fresh passion-fruit juice (from 4 to 5), plus pulp for serving
  

Directions

• Preheat and prep pan: Preheat the oven to 350°F, then brush a 9-by-13-inch or 8-by-12-inch baking pan with softened butter. Line it with parchment, leaving a 2-inch overhang on the long sides, and butter the parchment too.
• Whisk and beat: Whisk 1 2/3 cups flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda and 1 teaspoon kosher salt together in a bowl. Then beat the 4 eggs and 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar with the whisk attachment on high speed for about 4 minutes, until thick and pale.
• Build the batter: Add the flour mixture to the eggs and beat just until combined. Then add the melted butter, mashed bananas, cinnamon and vanilla, and beat again before mixing in the sour cream until smooth.
• Bake the cake: Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top with a spatula. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in a 9-by-13-inch pan, or about 40 minutes in an 8-by-12, until the top springs back and a tester comes out clean.
• Cool the cake: Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Then use the parchment overhangs to lift it out and let it cool completely on the rack.
• Make the frosting: Beat 1 pound cream cheese, 4 tablespoons softened butter, 1 1/2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar and 1/4 cup passion-fruit juice on medium-high speed. It takes about 5 minutes to turn smooth and fluffy.
• Frost and serve: Spread the frosting over the cooled cake in an even layer. Then drizzle the passion-fruit pulp over the top so the seeds and juice sit in the swirls.

Tools for this recipe

• KitchenAid Artisan 5-quart stand mixer, Reynolds unbleached parchment paper, Cuisinart fine mesh strainer set, Diamond Crystal kosher salt, 3 lb. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

FAQs

Can I make banana sheet cake ahead of time?

Bake the cake up to a day before serving, cool it completely and wrap it in plastic at room temperature. Frost it the day you plan to serve it, since the frosted cake tastes best fresh.

How do I store leftover frosted cake?

Wrap the frosted cake in plastic and refrigerate it for up to 1 day. Let it sit out until it reaches room temperature before slicing, because a cold cake tastes less tender.

How do I get juice from fresh passion fruit?

Scoop the pulp out of 4 to 5 passion fruits and press it through a fine-mesh sieve to separate the juice from the seeds. Save a little of the plain pulp for spooning over the finished cake.

What size pan can I use for this cake?

A 9-by-13-inch pan works and bakes in 30 to 35 minutes. An 8-by-12-inch pan gives a slightly taller cake that needs about 40 minutes, so test it with a tester near the end.

What's the most common mistake with banana cake?

Using bananas that aren't ripe or well mashed leaves lumpy, bland pockets in the crumb. Mash 3 medium ripe bananas until you have a full cup, and let the eggs and sour cream sit at room temperature so the batter mixes smoothly.