Banana and Hazelnut Cake with Cherries

Moist banana and hazelnut cake with cherries or chocolate traybake with sour cream topping.

A decadent, soft, and delicious banana and hazelnut cake with cherries and chocolate. And to make it even better and richer, add some heavy and sour cream on top. It might sound like a lot of ingredients, but don't worry about it, despite the long list, the cake is very quick and easy to make.

We love chocolate and nuts combinations! Either a simple and healthy chocolate peanut butter spread, a quick chocolate breadcrumb cake, or a rich hazelnut chocolate traybake. And this banana cherry chocolate cake with hazelnuts is just as delicious as all the others.

Recipe ingredients

• Chocolate: Dark or semi-sweet chocolate; I use chocolate with 50-60 % cocoa most of the time, but a little more or less is fine.
• Cocoa powder: Unsweetened, pure cocoa powder, nothing containing sugar.
• Cherries: You will need cherries from a jar.
  • The jars in Germany are rather large and contain about 300 g/ 10.5 oz/ 1 ⅓ cups cherries when drained. If you have a little more or less, that is fine.
  • The same amount of fresh, pitted cherries can be used instead.
• Bananas: About 3 large bananas, ripe but not overripe. Banana chips are only for decorating purposes. Leave them out if you don't have them or don't like them.
• Dairy: For the topping, you will need heavy cream and either crème fraiche or sour cream. If you live in Germany, you can use Schmand. If you live anywhere in Eastern Europe, you can use schmant/smantana/smetana.
• Otherwise, you will need ground hazelnuts, butter, sugar, flour, eggs, milk, baking powder, and vanilla extract.

Tips

• Always use a kitchen scale when baking; it guarantees the best results.
• I recommend using a deeper baking tray or to use a square baking frame. The mixture will not run off the baking tray if you don't use that, but it will look better even if you do.
• Don't overmix the topping ingredients, or the mixture will be too runny.

How to make it?

Cake

• Preheat the oven and prepare the baking tray.
• Melt the chopped chocolate in a double boiler/ bain-marie. Let it cool slightly until you prepare the rest.
• Cream the soft butter and the sugar.
• Add the eggs, one after another, mixing well in between.
• Pour in the milk and the melted chocolate and stir in as well.
• In another bowl, mix the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Sift the mixture over the wet ingredients, add the ground hazelnuts as well, and fold in carefully. Pour the mixture onto the lined baking sheet.
• Spread the drained cherries and the sliced bananas all over the cake.
• Bake at 180 degrees Celsius/ 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 minutes. Leave to cool completely.

Topping

• Beat the double cream with the cornstarch and the icing sugar. Add vanilla extract.
• If using a cream stabilizer, beat the cream briefly, slowly add the stabilizer and vanilla extract, and beat the cream until stiff.
• Stir the sour cream or crème fraiche briefly with a spoon and fold it into the whipped cream. Don't use the mixer to mix the two ingredients, or the mixture gets too soft and runny.
• Add 1 or 2 tablespoons vanilla sugar or granulated sugar if you feel it is necessary.
• Top the completely cooled banana and hazelnut cake with the cream topping.
• Keep in the fridge until ready to serve.
• Cut into squares and decorate with banana chips just before serving. The banana chips are optional.

More chocolate cakes

Banana and Hazelnut Cake with Cherries

Moist banana and hazelnut cake with cherries or chocolate traybake with sour cream topping.

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Course: Cakes

Cuisine: German

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes

Servings: 20 pieces

Calories: 483kcal

Author: Adina

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Ingredients 

• ▢ 200 g dark or semi-sweet chocolate about 50-60 % cocoa, 7 oz
• ▢ 250 g unsalted butter 8.8 oz/ 1 cup, very soft
• ▢ 250 g granulated sugar 8.8 oz/ 1 ¼ cups
• ▢ 4 eggs
• ▢ 150 ml milk 5 fl.oz/ ⅔ cup
• ▢ 180 g all-purpose flour 6.3 oz/ 1 ½ cups
• ▢ 2 ½ tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• ▢ 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ▢ pinch of salt
• ▢ 200 g ground hazelnuts 7 oz/ 1 ⅔ cups
• ▢ 1 jar of cherries about 300 g/ 10.5 oz/ about 1 ⅓ cups pitted cherries when drained
• ▢ 3 large bananas ripe but not overripe
• ▢ 4 teaspoons cornstarch (Note 2)
• ▢ 4 teaspoons icing sugar (Note 2)
• ▢ 400 ml heavy cream 13.5 fl.oz/ 1 ¾ cups
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 400 g crème fraiche or sour cream 14 oz/ 1 ⅔ cups (Note 3)
• ▢ some banana chips to decorate the cake optional

Instructions

Cake:

• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius/ 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking tray with baking paper. I recommend using a deeper baking tray or using a square baking frame. The mixture will not run off the baking tray if you don't use a baking frame or a deeper tray, but it will look better, more even if you do so.
• Melt chocolate: Chop the chocolate and melt it in a double boiler/ bain-marie. Let it cool slightly until you prepare the rest.
• Wet ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, cream the soft butter and the sugar. Add the eggs, one by one, mixing well in between. Pour in the milk and the melted chocolate and stir in as well.
• Batter: In another bowl, mix the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Sift the mixture over the wet ingredients, add the ground hazelnuts and fold in carefully. Pour the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet.
• Fruit: Drain the cherries and slice the bananas into 2 cm/0.8-inch slices. Spread the cherries and the bananas all over the cake batter on the tray.
• Bake for 40 minutes. Leave to cool completely.

Topping:

• Mix cornstarch and the icing sugar in a small bowl. Set aside.
• Beat the heavy cream shortly. Slowly start adding the cornstarch-sugar mixture (or the cream stabilizer, if using) and the vanilla extract. Continue whipping the cream until stiff.
• Stir the sour cream or crème Fraiche briefly with a spoon and fold it into the whipped cream. Don't use the mixer to mix the two ingredients, or the mixture will get too soft and runny. Add 1 or 2 tablespoons of vanilla sugar or granulated sugar if you feel it is necessary.
• Refrigerate until ready to serve. Cut into squares and decorate with banana chips just before serving.

Notes

1. Always use a digital kitchen scale in baking; it ensures the best results (Amazon affiliate link).
2. If available, use 2 packets of cream stabilizer for whipping cream instead of the cornstarch and icing sugar mixture.
3. You can use Schmand (in Germany) or smetana, if available.

Nutrition

Serving: 1square | Calories: 483kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 37g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 113mg | Sodium: 114mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 24g

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