Banana Cake w/Caramel Icing - 2011 Version
Banana Cake w/Caramel Icing
Every year I make a new version to see if I can get closer to my Great Grandma Ayers' recipe. This is what I did in 2011. It tasted good after I salvaged the icing.
Cake
Preheat oven to 325
1 1/2 C Sugar
1/2 C Butter
2 Eggs
3 Mashed Bananas (pref on the brown side of ripe)
2C Flour
4 Tbs. Buttermilk
1 Tsp. Baking Soda
1 Tsp. Vanilla
1. Cream the butter and sugar.
2. Add eggs and banana and mix until combined (banana should still have some small chunks)
3. I think you are supposed to sift the flour and baking soda and add to the base bit-by-bit, alternating with a tbs of buttermilk and vanilla. I can't find the original recipe and I don't think it matters much.
Bake at 325 for approx 35 mins (Recipe says 25 mins, but it took much longer this year).
Icing
As noted, both of these recipes are hand-me-down from my great grandma. Original measures were approximate and involved "butter the size of an egg" type notations. Below is my most recent experiment. Some years it works and some it doesn't. That's part of the fun. It always tastes good, though.
2 Cups Dark Brown Sugar
1 cup 1/2 and 1/2 (use heavy cream next time)
1/2 tsp lemon juice
5 Tbs Butter (cold, cubed)
1 Tsp Vanilla
Put brown sugar and half & half in heavy saucepan and allow milk to completely dissolve the sugar while you stir. Heat over medium-high heat until it reaches about 238 on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat. This is in the soft ball stage. I have a nice candy thermometer I can leave in the pan, but it does not touch the sides or bottom. If you don't have a thermometer, this is the guide:
Drop a small amount of the hot candy syrup into 1/2 cup ice-cold water. With your fingers, roll the syrup into a ball. If it rolls but flattens, it is ready.
There are 5 "stages" for the temperatures you might need:
234-240 degrees (caramels, fudge, etc) = soft ball (form a soft ball that flattens on removal from water.
244-248 degrees = firm ball (forms a firm ball which does not flatten when removed)
250-266 degrees = hard ball (forms a ball hard enough to hold its shape, yet pliable)<<<<---
270-290 degrees = soft crack (separates into threads as its placed in water which are hard but not brittle)
300-310 degrees = hard crack (separates into thread which are hard and brittle)
Pour into mixing bowl if you don't have a hand mixer. Let cool until it is 140 degrees Fahrenheit on the thermometer. Add the butter and vanilla over the top (it will melt). Using a mixer, beat it hard until it is thick enough to hold its shape, lightens, and changes from translucent to opaque. Spread it on the cooled cake before it gets too difficult to spread.
I had to add about 1 tbs of half and half while blending. I also added a pinch of sea salt and about 1/4 cup of brown sugar while mixing.
Every year I make a new version to see if I can get closer to my Great Grandma Ayers' recipe. This is what I did in 2011. It tasted good after I salvaged the icing.
Cake
Preheat oven to 325
1 1/2 C Sugar
1/2 C Butter
2 Eggs
3 Mashed Bananas (pref on the brown side of ripe)
2C Flour
4 Tbs. Buttermilk
1 Tsp. Baking Soda
1 Tsp. Vanilla
1. Cream the butter and sugar.
2. Add eggs and banana and mix until combined (banana should still have some small chunks)
3. I think you are supposed to sift the flour and baking soda and add to the base bit-by-bit, alternating with a tbs of buttermilk and vanilla. I can't find the original recipe and I don't think it matters much.
Bake at 325 for approx 35 mins (Recipe says 25 mins, but it took much longer this year).
Icing
As noted, both of these recipes are hand-me-down from my great grandma. Original measures were approximate and involved "butter the size of an egg" type notations. Below is my most recent experiment. Some years it works and some it doesn't. That's part of the fun. It always tastes good, though.
2 Cups Dark Brown Sugar
1 cup 1/2 and 1/2 (use heavy cream next time)
1/2 tsp lemon juice
5 Tbs Butter (cold, cubed)
1 Tsp Vanilla
Put brown sugar and half & half in heavy saucepan and allow milk to completely dissolve the sugar while you stir. Heat over medium-high heat until it reaches about 238 on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat. This is in the soft ball stage. I have a nice candy thermometer I can leave in the pan, but it does not touch the sides or bottom. If you don't have a thermometer, this is the guide:
Drop a small amount of the hot candy syrup into 1/2 cup ice-cold water. With your fingers, roll the syrup into a ball. If it rolls but flattens, it is ready.
There are 5 "stages" for the temperatures you might need:
234-240 degrees (caramels, fudge, etc) = soft ball (form a soft ball that flattens on removal from water.
244-248 degrees = firm ball (forms a firm ball which does not flatten when removed)
250-266 degrees = hard ball (forms a ball hard enough to hold its shape, yet pliable)<<<<---
270-290 degrees = soft crack (separates into threads as its placed in water which are hard but not brittle)
300-310 degrees = hard crack (separates into thread which are hard and brittle)
Pour into mixing bowl if you don't have a hand mixer. Let cool until it is 140 degrees Fahrenheit on the thermometer. Add the butter and vanilla over the top (it will melt). Using a mixer, beat it hard until it is thick enough to hold its shape, lightens, and changes from translucent to opaque. Spread it on the cooled cake before it gets too difficult to spread.
I had to add about 1 tbs of half and half while blending. I also added a pinch of sea salt and about 1/4 cup of brown sugar while mixing.