Banana Cake with Dulce de Leche

Name: Banana Cake with Dulce de Leche
Yield: 10-12
Ingredients: 3 cups (720 g) full-fat coconut milk; ¾ cup (150 g) cane sugar; ¼ tsp salt; ¼ tsp baking soda; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 1 cup (240 g) water; 1 cup (200 g) cane sugar; 2 Tbsp (30 g) aged rum, such as Ron del Barralito; ⅓ cup (100 g) brown banana or plantain, mashed; 1 ¼ cup (290 g) coconut milk, room temperature; ½ cup (88 g) coconut oil, room temperature; ¼ cup (50 g) cane sugar; ¼ cup (50 g) brown sugar; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 1 ¾ cup (210 g) all-purpose flour; ¾ tsp baking powder; ½ tsp baking soda; ½ tsp salt; 1 tsp Pumpkin Spice Blend (or cinnamon); ½ tsp Sweet Allspice

Image of Banana Cake with Dulce de Leche — Photo by Alicia Kennedy

Servings

10-12

"I like this best as a single layer cake with a rum syrup soak, topped with dulce de leche. It’s moist and rich, and frankly I prefer to keep things simple. Especially because this cake already involves a lot of stove time and waiting for banana (or plantain) to go totally brown."

Author:

Alicia Kennedy

Ingredients

Coconut Milk Dulce de Leche

3 cups (720 g) full-fat coconut milk
¾ cup (150 g) cane sugar
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract

Rum Syrup

1 cup (240 g) water
1 cup (200 g) cane sugar
2 Tbsp (30 g) aged rum, such as Ron del Barralito

Spiced Banana Cake

⅓ cup (100 g) brown banana or plantain, mashed
1 ¼ cup (290 g) coconut milk, room temperature
½ cup (88 g) coconut oil, room temperature
¼ cup (50 g) cane sugar
¼ cup (50 g) brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 ¾ cup (210 g) all-purpose flour
¾ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 tsp Pumpkin Spice Blend (or cinnamon)
½ tsp Sweet Allspice

Directions

Coconut Milk Dulce de Leche

Bring the coconut milk, sugar, and salt to a boil over medium heat in a medium saucepan.
Remove from heat and stir in the baking soda, as it will foam. Once stirred in, return to stove over low heat and let simmer. Simmer until the coconut milk has caramelized into a rich brown color and is very thick, coming off a spoon in sheets. This will take about an hour to an hour and a half.
Once it is finished, stir in the vanilla extract.
Let cool until ready to pour over cake.

Rum Syrup

Bring water and sugar to a boil in a small saucepan and then let simmer until sugar dissolves.
Add rum and continue to simmer until the alcohol scent has dissipated and a syrup has formed. It should drip slowly off a spoon, but it will thicken more as it cools.
Set aside.

Spiced Banana Cake

Preheat the oven to 350°. Prepare cake pan by greasing and lining with parchment. Set aside.
Mash the banana in a large bowl, then add the rest of the wet ingredients, from coconut milk through vanilla extract. Set aside.
Combine all dry ingredients in a medium bowl, whisking so that the spices are well distributed throughout the flour.
Pour the dry ingredients into the wet, and whisk until well combined—some lumps will remain.
Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, depending on the cake size and your oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cake Assembly

To assemble the cake, brush both sides of the cooled cake generously with rum syrup and let it soak through, then pour over the dulce de leche. Garnish perhaps with coconut flakes. Serve.