Banana Bread Sheet Cake with Chocolate Malt Frosting

If you feel like you’ve made banana bread one too many times lately, I urge you to keep an open mind for one more prospect. Our banana bread sheet cake with chocolate malt frosting is a ripe banana recipe that goes beyond the usual loaf, taking more of a snacking-cake approach as it’s baked in a sheet tray and has a light, tender crumb.

The best part, though, is the chocolate cream cheese frosting made with malted milk powder. If you’re saving your jar of malted milk powder for extra-thick milkshakes, you’re missing out by not adding that ultra-toasty, nutty, milky flavor to your cookies, cakes, scones and waffles. In the chocolate frosting, it deepens the complex flavors of the cocoa powder and, by extension, the caramelized banana cake that it sits on.

Ingredients for Banana Bread Sheet Cake with Chocolate Malt Frosting

• Butter: Soften the butter to room temperature so it creams easily with the sugar. You should be able to poke the stick of butter and make an indent. If you want to get technical, the butter should be around 65°F.
• Sugar: Granulated sugar sweetens the cake. You can use light brown sugar in a pinch, but know it will make the cake have a more caramel-like sweetness.
• Eggs: Bring your eggs to room temperature so they emulsify seamlessly into the batter. Remove them from the fridge about 30 to 60 minutes before starting the recipe.
• Bananas: Mash about four bananas for this recipe. Have a fifth one on hand just in case the four bananas aren’t enough to make 4 cups.
• All-purpose flour: Measure the flour the right way to avoid overpacking the measuring cup, which would make the snacking cake dense instead of light and tender.
• Cream cheese: It’s very important to soften the cream cheese to room temperature before blending it for frosting. Otherwise, you’ll have little cream cheese lumps all throughout.
• Baking cocoa: The best cocoa powder gives your bakes (or in this case, your frosting) a quality chocolate flavor. It should balance natural sweetness with bitter cocoa.
• Malted milk powder: Malted milk powder is made from barley malt, wheat, milk and salt. It’s most commonly used to thicken milkshakes, but it can also be used to deepen the flavor of baked goods.

Directions

Step 1: Make the cake batter

Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, use a hand mixer or stand mixer to cream the butter and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, five to seven minutes. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the bananas and whole milk, and mix just until they’re combined.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture just until they’re blended.

In another bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form, then gently fold them into the batter just until everything is combined.

Step 2: Bake the cake

Pour the cake batter into a greased 15×10-inch baking pan. Smooth it out with an offset spatula if needed. Bake the cake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool the cake completely on a wire rack to room temperature before moving on to the next step.

Editor’s Tip: If you frost the cake when it’s even slightly warm, the frosting will melt and turn the cake into a gluey, sticky mess.

Step 3: Make the frosting

In a large bowl, use a hand mixer or stand mixer to beat the softened cream cheese and butter until they’re fluffy. Add the confectioners’ sugar, baking cocoa, malted milk powder, vanilla extract and salt, then beat the frosting until it’s smooth.

Step 4: Decorate the cake

Use a mini offset spatula to spread the malted chocolate frosting over the cake, or pipe it in a decorative pattern. If desired, serve the cake with sliced bananas.

Recipe Variations

• Brown the butter: Malted milk powder deepens the toasty, nutty notes, but browned butter can do that, too. Together, they’ll create something entirely new. Brown the butter, then let it cool to room temperature. Refrigerate it until it’s solid, then bring it to room temperature for this cake.
• Add mix-ins: Like a little more texture in your desserts? Add mini chocolate chips or toasted walnuts, hazelnuts or macadamia nuts to the batter.
• Try a different frosting: If you’re more into the idea of a banana snacking cake than you are the malted chocolate frosting, you can totally omit the frosting or replace it with cream cheese frosting, sans malt.

How to Store Banana Bread Sheet Cake with Chocolate Malt Frosting

Store leftover banana bread sheet cake with chocolate malt frosting in the fridge for up to three days. Make sure it’s in an airtight container. I like to press a piece of storage wrap right against the side of any cut-open cake so the crumb doesn’t dry out.

Can you freeze a banana bread sheet cake with chocolate malt frosting?

Yes, you can freeze this banana bread sheet cake with chocolate malt frosting. Store leftover pieces in an airtight, freezer-safe container, then freeze them for up to two months. Thaw the cake overnight in the fridge before enjoying it.

Banana Bread Sheet Cake with Chocolate Malt Frosting Tips

Can I make this cake gluten free?

Yes, you can make a gluten-free version of this cake, but there is a caveat. Unfortunately, malted milk powder contains gluten, and there isn’t a great alternative. You’ll have to omit the malt altogether and lose out on that added depth. However, you can make the rest of the cake gluten free by swapping a gluten-free flour blend for the all-purpose flour, and by ensuring that all the packaged goods are free from gluten and that they weren’t processed in a facility that handles wheat.

Do I have to use very ripe bananas for this recipe?

No, you don’t have to use very ripe bananas for this recipe, but we do recommend it. The riper the banana, the sweeter they are. If your bananas could use some ripening, place them (unpeeled!) on a parchment-lined baking sheet in a 250ºF oven until the skins turn brown and the flesh softens, 15 to 20 minutes. It’s one of my favorite tricks to ripen bananas quickly.

Can I bake the banana snack cake in a different-sized pan?

Yes, you can bake this banana snack cake in a different-sized pan. Instead of a 15×10-inch baking pan, divide the cake batter evenly between one greased 9-inch square pan and one 9-inch round pan. You could also use two 9-inch square baking pans, but you cannot use two 9-inch round baking pans.