This deliciously moist vegan banana cake recipe is so good no one will guess it is 'free-from'! No weird ingredients - find everything in your local supermarket.
Hands up if you're secretly delighted when a bunch of bananas tip over the edge of ripeness in your fruit bowl, so they are good only for making cake? Oh good, I'm glad its not just me. A slice of freshly baked vegan banana cake must be at least in my top three favourite things to eat with a nice cup of tea, (alongside my vegan victoria sponge and vegan blueberry muffins!).
Deliciously sweet and studded with pecan nuts, this lovely cake was so easy to vegan-ise. I used my usual substitution of soya yoghurt in place of eggs, and dairy-free margarine in place of butter. Bananas make a great egg-replacer in themselves too, so there's no need for any binding agent, this has a superb texture. No one would ever guess it was 'free-from' anything, and there are no weird ingredients - everything can be found in your local supermarket.
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📝 What you need
Ingredients
Bananas These are best if they are very ripe - soft flesh with skins turning brown, rather than still slightly green.
Dairy-free yoghurt I use soya yoghurt as it has the highest protein content of all the plant yoghurts, so it is the closest egg-replacer. But any other plant yoghurt will also work well - the bananas help with the egg-replacing too so it isn't as important as in my other cake recipes.
Dairy-free margarine Do use a good quality block margarine, rather than a tub of spread. Block margarine has a much lower water content so it makes quite a difference to the finished cake.
Self-raising flour Did you know that you can make your own self-raising flour if you don't have any to hand? Simply use the same quantity of plain flour and add 2 teaspoons of baking powder. (You will still need the bicarbonate of soda specified in the recipe too).
Soft light brown sugar This gives a lovely slightly toffee-ish flavour to the cake, but if you don't have any, caster sugar will work fine too. If you want to use dark brown sugar perhaps go half and half with caster sugar or it may end up just a little too treacle-y!
Nuts I used pecans as I think pecan and banana is a match made in heaven, but walnuts or hazelnuts would also be lovely here so do experiment.
Equipment
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You will need a 2lb loaf tin (roughly 21 x 9cm).
- Loaf Tin Mine is this super-sturdy tin from by Jamie Oliver which I really like.
- Mini Loaves this cute Lakeland tin would be perfect for making mini banana cakes!
- Best for Batch Baking Sometimes I use my nifty adjustable cake tin to batch-bake two or even three banana cakes at once!
🍌 What else can I make with ripe bananas?
How about trying one of these recipes from blogging friends:
- Helen’s Easy Banana Scones from Family Friends Food
- Jac’s Vegan Banana Pancakes from The Vegan Lunchbox
- …or try my Vegan Banana Muffins – deliciously light and moist.
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I love hearing from you! Do send me pictures of your very own vegan banana cake on:
tagging me @thevegspace or using the hashtag #thevegspace to show me how you got on!
For more quick and easy vegan recipes take a look at my latest book Vegan in 15.
"Brilliant! Chock full of easy recipes and great tips and advice" Hello! Magazine
❄️ Can I freeze my banana cake?
Absolutely! I made this during a bit of a weekend bake-a-thon, but knew I couldn't leave it out in a tin or we would eat the whole thing in days. So I sliced it up, put a piece of greaseproof paper between each slice, wrapped it in foil and froze it.
Such a lovely thing to have on standby in the freezer - just taking out a couple of slices when someone pops round for a cup of tea. You could easily make two at the same time - one to eat and one to freeze!
⭐️ Reader Testimonials
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "I’ve been making vegan banana bread recipes for months now and haven’t been happy with the texture/density so thought I would try a cake recipe. Stumbled across your gorgeous site and made your banana cake yesterday and it is divine. I’m off to the market today for more bananas to make a few more loaves to freeze." Q
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "I made a big double quantity of this cake to take out on a soup run that I volunteer on about once a month. I also made an apple cake but everyone chose the banana cake and were really disappointed when it was all gone! Next month I’ll just make 2 double sized banana cakes. Thank you for an excellent recipe; really easy for a not-usually-very-successful baker! 🙂" Rona
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "Love this recipe. It’s easy to follow and doesn’t take ages to prep and cook. The cake is yummy and moist. Will definitely be making again." Emma
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "This turned out so well I’ll be making it again tonight, a week later. I am not the most confident cook/baker, and it’s not something I particularly enjoy. I hate seeing recipes with too many ingredients, this one caught my eye as it is simple. My boyfriend was very complimentary about this, when normally he is very fussy and gives an honest opinion on my cooking 😉" Shadow
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "This recipe made the most amazing cake. I bake every ten years or so, so this is definitely a no fail recipe. Thanks for posting it 🙂" Sarah
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Banana Cake
Ingredients
- 5 small ripe bananas (about 350g peeled weight)
- 60 g dairy-free block margarine
- 160 g soft light brown sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 125 g dairy-free yoghurt (I used soya)
- 180 g self-raising flour
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 50 g nuts (pecans, hazelnuts or walnuts all work well)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 170°C (fan) / 325°F / gas mark 3. Grease a loaf tin (a 2lb tin is ideal - about 21cm x 9cm or so).
- Peel the bananas and place 3 into a small bowl. Mash with a fork until smooth. Place the remaining bananas in another bowl and just lightly mash them, leaving lots of large-ish chunks. Set both bowls aside until later.
- In a food mixer or large bowl, beat together the margarine and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the salt and yoghurt and beat again.
- Sift the flour and bicarbonate of soda into the bowl and fold in gently until just combined. Stir through the two bowls of banana, and finally chop the nuts roughly and stir into the mixture.
- Pour the mixture into your loaf tin, and bake for an hour or until an inserted skewer or knife comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin. Enjoy straight away with a cup of tea, or keep in an airtight container.
There is simply too little flour and/or too many bananas in this recipe. I have made quite a number of banana bread recipes in my life and this was, by far, the worst. To describe it in one word: rubbery.
Sorry to hear that Dianne - you will see from the reviews that many others have really enjoyed the recipe, I've made it so many times myself and it has never turned out rubbery. Really sorry it didn't go well for you.
Really good and pretty easy. Thank you.
That's great, thanks Anne.
Amazing recipe! I'm not a very skilled baker, but this turned out fantastic, light, fluffy but with loads of flavour. Thanks so much. 🙂
Oh lovely, so great to hear - thanks! X
Agree with another reviewer, I wish people wouldn't rate recipes before trying the actual recipe. That doesn't make any sense to me... I was halfway through the recipe before I actually read the 5 star reviews, it made me panic a little.
However! Thankfully, this turned out amazing. I did have to cook it for much longer than expected, but I suspect that is my oven (I've moved into a new apartment, so I'm still getting the hang of it).
Despite the extra cook time, this turned out so well I'll be making it again tonight, a week later. I am not the most confident cook/baker, and it's not something I particularly enjoy. I hate seeing recipes with too many ingredients, this one caught my eye as it is simple. My boyfriend was very complimentary about this, when normally he is very fussy and gives an honest opinion on my cooking 😉
Loved making your Victoria Sponge cake , was delicious and so easy to follow. Infact all your recipes are so good.
Can you please share recipes on how to make egg free Danish pastries or croissants.
Love your recipes , do you have a recipe book out.
From T
Love this recipe. It’s easy to follow and doesn’t take ages to prep and cook. The cake is yummy and moist. Will definitely be making again.
This recipe made the most amazing cake. I bake every ten years or so, so this is definitely a no fail recipe. A bit too sweet for my taste but I will use the same recipe with a lot less sugar. Thanks for posting it 🙂
EXCELLENT! I used peanut butter instead of margarine, sunflower seeds instead of nuts. I also added chocolate chipes & used a lot less sugar.
I made a big double quantity of this cake to take out on a soup run that I volunteer on about once a month. I also made an apple cake but everyone chose the banana cake and were really disappointed when it was all gone! Next month I'll just make 2 double sized banana cakes. Thank you for an excellent recipe; really easy for a not-usually-very-successful baker! 🙂
Hi Kate
I've been making vegan banana bread recipes for months now and haven't been happy with the texture/density so thought I would try a cake recipe. Stumbled across your gorgeous site and made your banana cake yesterday and it is divine. I'm off to the market today for more bananas to make a few more loaves to freeze.
I'm not a competent or confident cook so was wondering if you could help me out? Can I substitute the sugar with anything or decrease the amount? While I find your recipe near perfect, it's just too sweet. Any help would be appreciated.
Great site.
Thanks
Q
Hi,
I baked this banana cake today and reduced the sugar to 90g light muscovado sugar. It worked really well and tastes delicious - the bananas add sweetness to the recipe so not much sugar is needed. I always reduce the sugar content of baked goods or substitute with a syrup like maple or coconut nectar to find the right balance and taste for my family.
Hope this works for you.
I just wish readers wouldn’t rate a recipe until they have actually made it. It’s not helpful at all.
I have made this cake, and it is amazing. Thank you Kate.
Looking forward to making this tomorrow. My firs Vegan January and I'm really enjoying it so far - actually makes me so much more interested in great ingredients and different flavours! Will let you know how I get on!
Brilliant! Hope it turns out well and good luck for Veganuary, you will love it!
Just wanted to take a moment and thank you for listing everything in gram included things like banana (or grated carrots in another recipe). All these cup based recipes are doing my head in and it is so much easier to work with a scale. So thanks for being awesome <3
Ha! I couldn't agree more - glad you're enjoying the recipes x
The texture looks nice compared to normal ol' vegan banana loaf bread recipes. Yum!
I love love the idea of adding Pecans - oh yes please!! Send a slice my way, will you? Thanks for linking up to #CookBlogShare. Eb 🙂
This sounds amazing! I always have leftover bananas at this time of year when it's warm and they don't last quite as long. Thanks so much for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice!
Nope, it's not just you. I also have a weakness for letting bananas get too ripe. I can't even remember the last time I actually ate a banana...they all seem to be ending up in various baked goods. No complaints there though. 🙂 This looks lovely!
This recipe looks amazing! My little guy has a bunch of allergies, but loves bananas! I'm going to try this for him, but maybe replace or omit the nuts for him. ..and steal a piece or two for myself!
You can't beat a thick slice of banana bread with a cuppa coffee! Love that you made this one vegan. Look so good!
Super! I was looking for a vegan banana recipe and hereit is! Totally drooling over it.
Banana bread is my favorite! I love making it but I always eat all of my bananas before they are mushy! I can't wait to try this recipe!
I keep seeing all these delicious banana bread posts today!! Makes me want to make some!!