Banana Toffee Cake

A great gluten-free recipe that is sure to please many! This cake is loaded with bananas (4 in fact) and studded throughout with toffee bits. It does take awhile to bake but patience is a virtue, right?

The combination of toffee, cinnamon and banana make this cake nothing short of amazing. And trust me, you will never even know it is gluten-free. Gone are the days of chalky gluten-free desserts. With the right ingredients you can make this gluten-free cake that will beat out a regular flour-based variety any day of the week.

Frosted or unfrosted is up to you. I left the finished product unfrosted so it is easy to slice and take with you as a portable snack. If you want to frost then I recommend a cinnamon buttercream or a cream cheese frosting.

The gluten-free flour I used is Authentic's GF Classical Blend . If you don't have this blend handy, then feel free to use Cybele Pascal's recipe for an amazing blended flour as follows:

• 4 cups superfine brown rice flour ( Authentic Brand is best)
• 1 1/3 cups potato starch
• 2/3 cup tapioca flour/starch

You will need 3 cups of the blended flour mix for this recipe.

I baked this cake in a 10" round cake pan and I recommend you do the same. It makes the perfect sized cake that slices wonderfully and remains super moist once sliced.

To obtain the smooth finish seen above, simply flip the cake upside down after it has cooled. Perfection.

Note: I used Heath Toffee Bits in the recipe. They were exactly what I was looking for but if you just want toffee bits without added chocolate then Skor baking bits would be a good choice.



RECIPE:
*adapted source recipe - Banana Cake, The Allergen-Free Baker's Handbook, Cybele Pascal

WHAT YOU NEED

3 cups Gluten-Free Flour Mix (see above)
3/4 teaspoon Xantham gum
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup toffee bits
3/4 cup buttermilk
4 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup plus 2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable shortening ( I used Crisco)
1 1/2 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste

MAKE IT

PREHEAT oven to 350F
SPRAY a 10" deep sided cake pan with oil and line base with parchment paper

IN LARGE BOWL, whisk together first 6 ingredients
ADD toffee bits and stir , set aside
IN BOWL OF STAND MIXER, fitted with paddle attachment, cream shortening on HIGH speed for 2 minutes
ADD brown sugar and beat 2-3 minutes on HIGH speed scraping down sides when needed
ADD in eggs, one a time, blending well after each addition
STIR in vanilla extract
ADD dry ingredients, bananas and buttermilk in three batches alternating between flour, bananas and milk
BLEND until just combined
POUR batter into pan
BAKE 40 minutes
COVER top of cake with foil and bake another 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean
REMOVE from oven and let cake cool in pan on top of a cooling rack
WHEN completely cooled, invert cake onto cake platter
SLICE and serve

ENJOY !