Mix up a simple batter bursting with banana, whole grains, and flavor for a healthy Banana Cake to celebrate a kids birthday or special event. Bonus: The simple whipped cream cheese frosting seals the deal and the whole thing can be made ahead!
It’s always fun to make a cake to celebrate and share with the littles and this cake is one of our favorites for toddler birthdays or a first birthday party idea! It’s easy to make, includes nutritious ingredients, is super moist, and is just sweet enough. And grownups will enjoy it too!
This easy banana cake comes together in a food processor, so it’s super easy to make—even if you have the kids around while you are making it.
You can also make it ahead of time if that’s easier on your schedule.
I like to top it with Cream Cheese Frosting or Yogurt Frosting, because both pair so well with the banana flavor of the cake.
(You may also like One-Year-Old Birthday Cake, First Birthday Smash Cake, Sweet Potato Baby Cake, and Kids Birthday Cake recipes.)
Table of Contents
Ingredients You Need
To make this healthy banana cake for a kids birthday or any dessert you’ll need the following ingredients
- Ripe bananas: Very ripe bananas are key for the flavor in this recipe, so be sure that yours have lots of brown spots.
- Rolled oats: We use these in place of flour for extra nutrition and because they are super tender in the final recipe.
- Eggs: These help bind the ingredients together.
- Unsalted butter: I prefer to use unsalted butter so I can control the salt in the cake.
- Baking powder and baking soda: These help ensure that the cake rises and bakes through evenly.
- Cinnamon: This adds that classic banana cake flavor.
- Maple syrup: We use this as the sweetener in this recipe. You can also use honey for kids over age 1.
TIP: For the Cream Cheese Frosting, you simply need cream cheese, butter, vanilla extract and maple syrup or honey. So mostly pantry staples and too-ripe bananas!
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s a look at the easy process involved in making this healthy banana cake. Scroll down to the bottom of this post for the full recipe.
- Preheat the oven and gather your ingredients.
- Grind the dry ingredients into a coarse flour in a food processor or blender.
- Add the bananas and the remaining ingredients. Process into a uniform batter.
- Divide into the prepared baking pans and bake.
TIP: To make this cake without a food processor, mash the bananas very smooth with a potato masher or fork and use purchased oat flour.
Frequently Asked Questions
To make this cake without gluten, simply opt for certified gluten-free rolled oats when buying them at the store.
To make this cake dairy-free, use melted coconut oil instead of the butter in the cake. And nondairy Greek yogurt instead of the cream cheese in the frosting.
Sure! You can either bake just the cakes a day ahead or you can bake the whole thing and frost it ahead. I find it easier to store it if I just do the cakes ahead of time, so see the Notes section at the bottom of the recipe for details.
Healthy 1st Birthday Cake
This cake is perfect for a first birthday since the sweetness comes mostly from fruit and it’s super moist and easy for little ones to eat. You could even decorate it with fresh fruit or sprinkles if you want to!
How to Store
You can bake the healthy banana cakes up to a day ahead and after they’re cooled, wrap in plastic wrap and store in the fridge. Let sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before serving to allow the cakes to soften a bit.
Store any leftovers in an airtight container or wrapped tightly in the fridge for up to 5 days. We prefer this cake served cold.
Best Tips for Success
- Use very ripe banana with black spots for the best natural sweetness and flavor.
- Gluten-Free: Use certified gluten-free rolled oats.
- Dairy-free: Use melted coconut oil instead of butter and nondairy Greek style yogurt or nondairy cream cheese alternative in the frosting.
- Let the cakes cool completely before frosting.
- You can also use my Yogurt Frosting if you prefer.
Related Recipes
I’d love to hear your feedback if you try this recipe, so please comment below to share!
Healthy Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Banana Cake
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas (from about 3 medium)
- 3 eggs (lightly beaten)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter (melted and slightly cooled; or coconut oil)
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 recipe Cream Cheese Frosting
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese (softened at room temperature)
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (softened at room temperature)
- 2 tablespoons honey (or maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two 8-inch cake pans with nonstick spray and line with rounds of parchment paper. Grease again with nonstick spray.
- Place the oats, coconut, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon into the bowl of a food processor. Grind about 30 seconds, or until the oats resemble a coarse flour.
- Add the bananas, eggs, vanilla, butter, and maple syrup. Process for an additional 30 seconds or until the batter is smooth.
- Divide the batter between the pans. Bake for 28-30 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out cleanly.
- Place pans onto a wire rack and let cakes cool completely in the pan.
- Make the frosting: Use an electric hand-held mixer to beat together the cream cheese, butter, honey (or maple syrup), and vanilla extract. Beat until very smooth.
- To frost, place one cake onto a plate, top with 1/4-⅓ cup of frosting. Place the second cake on top and spread the remaining frosting over top.
- Slice to serve.
Video
Notes
- Dairy-free: Use melted coconut oil instead of the butter and nondairy Greek yogurt instead of cream cheese in the frosting.
- Gluten-free: Use certified gluten-free rolled oats.
- Let cakes cool in the pans on a wire rack to ensure that they stay together well.
- Discard parchment paper before frosting the cakes.
- To make ahead, you can bake the cakes up to a day ahead. Let cool, cover completely, and store in the fridge. Allow to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before frosting.
- Store any leftovers covered with plastic wrap in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
This post was first published August 2018.
Does anyone know if I can make this in the air fryer? Would I just need to adjust baking time?
I haven’t done any baking that way so I am not sure. Hopefully someone will chime in!
Really great recipe, but unfortunately I didn’t get hardly any rise.
Any help would be appreciated woth this as I am baking it for my daughters first birthday in 2 days.
Thanks
James
This cake does not rise a ton. You can use 1/2 teaspoon baking soda (so increased slightly) if you’d like.
Lovely recipe, but I didn’t get much rise with this.
Any help would be much appreciated as I am baking it for my daughters 1st birthday in 2 days.
Thanks in advance
James
Made this for my son’s bday and it was perfect! Everyone loved it, and will defs make it again! What would be your suggestion for egg substitute?
I haven’t tested this one extensively for an egg-free option so I can’t say for sure. It’s possible a flax egg would work though due to the banana in the batter, or a store bought egg replacer is always a good option.
Making this for my daughter’s 1 year cake smash. I’m up to step 3 and the batter is very, very runny. Is this normal? Should I add more dry ingredients or leave it? Thanks!
I am just seeing this and hope it all worked out!
Can this frosting be colored and/or used for piping? Thanks!
It can be colored. If it’s very cold, it may work okay to pipe but it is not as firm when exposed to air as traditional buttercream. Enjoy!
Hi! Can I use mascarpone instead of cream cheese?
Sure
This cake was a hit at my 15-month old’s kid party today! Both the toddlers and their parents enjoyed it. Moist, not-too-sweet … there were no leftovers!