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This Paleo Banana Cake is basically just a fancy paleo banana bread topped with some creamy dairy-free chocolate frosting and sprinkles. This healthy cake is easy to make and perfect for any kind of celebration.
Banana bread and birthday cake came together to make this paleo treat!
I found myself with a surplus of ripe bananas so like any good human I started to think of banana bread recipes, BUT I was also craving chocolate cake. So, I poured my paleo banana bread batter into an 8×8 baking pan instead of a loaf pan.
Then, I wracked my brain for how to make a creamy paleo chocolate frosting. I made brownies with sweet potato before and loved how creamy they were. I took the idea of using sweet potato in baked goods and made a rich and creamy chocolate frosting.
What kitchen tools will I need to make this Paleo Banana Cake?
- Measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
- Liquid measuring cup
- Mixing bowls
- Spatula
- Hand mixer
- 8×8 baking pan
What ingredients will I need to make this easy paleo treat?
- Ripe bananas
- Eggs
- Coconut oil
- Coconut sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Almond flour
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Sweet potato
- Cocoa powder
- Maple syrup
Let’s make a Paleo Banana Cake!
Step 1: Mix the batter and steam sweet potato
First, preheat oven to 350F and grease an 8×8 baking pan. Peel and cube sweet potato and steam on the stovetop until soft, about 20 minutes.
Next, mash ripe bananas in a large mixing bowl. Then, add eggs, vanilla extract, coconut oil, and coconut sugar to the bowl and mix again. Mix almond flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder in a separate bowl and fold into wet ingredients.
Step 2: Bake the cake and prep the frosting
Next, pour batter into the baking pan. Then, bake at 350F for 38 minutes. Remove the sweet potato from the heat and mash.
Then, add 1 cup cooled mashed sweet potato to a bowl with cocoa powder and maple syrup. Mix with a hand mixer or food processor until combined. Then, add almond milk to the frosting and mix again until smooth and creamy.
Step 3: Put it together and add sprinkles!
Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool fully. Then, spread the frosting over top, decorate with sprinkles and cut into squares.
Step 4: Enjoy!
How should I store this healthy cake?
Once baked, store this paleo banana bread in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Please do not store this on the counter. It is made with fresh ingredients and will perish quickly.
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
Paleo Banana Cake
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 38 minutes
- Total Time: 48 minutes
- Yield: 9 servings 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
Cake
- 3 large ripe bananas
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cup almond flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
Icing
- 1 cup cooked and cooled mashed sweet potato
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 3 tbsp almond milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and grease an 8×8 baking pan or line with parchement paper
- Peel and cube sweet potato and add steam on the stove top until soft about 20 minutes
- In a large mixing bowl, mash banana with a fork or potato smasher
- Add eggs, melted and cooled coconut oil, coconut sugar, and vanilla extract to the mixing bowl with the smashed banana and mix thoroughly
- In a separate mixing bowl combine almond flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt
- Fold dry ingredients into wet ingredients and spread into the 8×8 baking pan
- Bake at 350F for 38 minutes
- While the cake cooks prepare the icing by mashing the sweet potato with a fork or hand mixer
- Add 1 cup cooked and cooled mashed sweet potato to a mixing bowl with cocoa powder and maple syrup
- Mix with an electric hand mixer or in a food processor until combined
- Add almond milk to the icing and mix until smooth and creamy
- Remove cake from the oven and allow to cool fully before topping with icing and sprinkles
Keywords: banana cake, banana bread, paleo banana cake
Hmmm, I just bought fresh bananas, but now you’ve got me thinking I need to let a few of them brown just so I can make this!
YES! Do it!
I only have vanilla oat milk. Can I use it for the icing instead of almond milk?
Very easy and turned out realllly well! I didn’t make the frosting just the cake part.
★★★★★
Thank you for sharing!!! So glad you enjoyed!
I made mine cupcakes instead of a cake and they were a perfect treat!
★★★★★
oh I love that !!! Thank you for sharing!!
This cake was absolutely delicious! We ended up not making the frosting, but did follow the cake recipe exactly and it is perfection. It is even 9 & 7 year old kid approved— HUGE win in our house!
★★★★★
Ah yay!! So glad you and the kids enjoyed it!
Definitely the best baked good I have made with almond flour. The texture is amazing and it has the perfect amount of sweetness!
Awesome!! Thank you for sharing
Do you think canned pumpkin would work in place of sweet potato?
I don’t think so. I think it would be too thin and not sweet enough.
Just made this. Not sure what happened but it tastes like salt. Is it supposed to be 1 tsp of salt? Any ideas how to save the cake?
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Hi I’m sorry that you don’t enjoy the taste! 1 tsp of salt worked well for me and many others.
Perhaps you could add the sweet icing and that would make a difference. I will reduce the amount of salt in the recipe so that this isn’t an issue in the future.
Do you think I could use all purpose flour or oat flour instead of almond flour? Sounds so delicious!
Hi Nancy! Yes! I think either would, but they absorb quite a bit more moisture than almond flour so you would not need as much flour. Start with half the amount and then slowly add in more mixing as you go until you get a cake batter texture!!
Thank you SO much for your quick reply and guidance on the substitution! I just tried this recipe tonight with about 1 cup of oat flour and it turned out amazing!! I didn’t have any sweet potatoes so I tried a different chocolate frosting and made this into cupcakes and they are a HUGE hit at my house! Can’t wait to make these again!
★★★★★
YAY! Thank you for your review, Nancy! It will be super helpful for others to know that they can use oat flour!
This cake is delicious! I’ve been searching for a healthier banana/chocolate cake forever & no need to continue the quest. This is it! I kept it in the fridge and ate a piece nearly every day for over a week. It held up well & seemed to taste better every day. I used Califia Farms Go Coconuts Coconut Water & Coconut Milk Blend instead of almond milk & it turned out perfect. Thanks for the new staple recipe 🙂
★★★★★
Thank you for sharing!! I love the idea of having a little as a treat every day and I agree it definitely gets better over time.
Hello, its my birthday soon and my family loves cake, I’m paleo and not a huge fan of cake but this banana cake is irresistible. The only problem is that I only have buckwheat flour or chickpea flour. Would either work?
Hi! I would try buckwheat but use much less than my recipe calls for! Try just 1 cup
It worked fine, I ended up using 1 cup buckwheat and 1/4 chickpea flour. Tastes amazing and no different to a normal banana cake