Salted Caramel Banana Sheet Cake (2024)

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This salted caramel banana sheet cake is super moist, loaded with flavor, and is topped with a salted caramel cream cheese frosting.

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Helloooo! It’s almost fall which means it’s time to start transitioning from all the summer flavors into fall flavors. And if you’re not ready to fully commit to fall just yet, this is the perfect middle-ground cake for you. It all starts with a super moist, super flavorful brown butter walnut banana cake. I added walnuts to mine for some extra crunch and flavor, but you can replace them with any nut, chocolate, or just omit it if you’d like! Then, the cake gets topped with a super creamy and rich salted caramel cream cheese frosting, and it’s swirled with even more salted caramel on top.

why you’ll love this salted caramel banana sheet cake:

It’s super moist: a ton of bananas & some sour cream make this banana cake *extra* moist.
Cream cheese frosting: we’re adding salted caramel sauce to cream cheese frosting to make it even more flavorful and delicious.
It’s simply delicious: salted caramel + banana is a perfect combo, and the perfect transition into fall flavors.

expert baking tips

Weigh your ingredients:

My recipes are all written in grams because it is the most accurate way to bake. When you use a kitchen scale, you ensure that your baked goods turn out as close to the written recipe as possible. Plus, the cleanup is way easier when using a scale! I will provide standard cup measurements but please note that I have not tested the recipe using cup measurements and therefore can not guarantee your recipe will come out how mine did.Here is my favorite kitchen scale.

Be careful when mixing the cake batter:

When you over-mix your batter, you create more gluten in the batter which will make your cake go from light and moist to dense and chewy. Only mix in the dry ingredients until that last bit of flour dissapears.

Use room temperature ingredients:

This is super important for allowing the batter to come together smoothly. You’ll want to take your ingredients out of the fridge about an hour before baking to allow them enough time to come to room temperature.

Keep a close eye on the cake while it bakes:

Cakes and cupcakes like to go from under-baked to over-baked super quickly so it is important to keep a close eye on them.

A note on oven temperature:

Ovens vary and fluctuate in temperature and might not always actually be at the temperature they claim to be at. If you love to bake like I do, I highly recommend getting an oven thermometer. They are super helpful for letting you know when your oven might be lying to you! I use this one.

ingredients for salted caramel banana sheet cake:

banana sheet cake:

All purpose flour:the structure of the cake.
Baking powder:for leavening and giving that “cakey” texture.
Salt:for balancing and bringing out the sweetness.
Ground cinnamon: for flavor, optional.
Banana:you’ll need ~3 very ripe bananas for this recipe. The more ripe the bananas are, the sweeter & more moist your cake will be.
Unsalted butter:tenderizes the cake. You could use salted butter, just be sure to omit the extra salt from the batter.
Light brown sugar:sweetens the cake and adds moisture & flavor.
Egg:contributes moisture to the cake and helps bind the batter together.
Sour cream: makes the cake more moist. You could use a full-fat yogurt here as well.
Vanilla:for flavor.
Chopped walnuts: for flavor and texture. You can substitute in any other nut, or some chocolate, or leave it out all together.

Salted caramel cream cheese frosting:

Cream cheese:the tanginess from the cream cheese compliments the sweetness of the frosting and cookies so well.
Unsalted butter:to thicken up the frosting.
Salt:a little bit of salt helps balance the sweetness and bring out the flavor of the frosting.
Salted caramel sauce: you can use store-bought caramel or you can make my delicious and easy homemade salted caramel sauce.

how to make salted caramel banana sheet cake

Below are some images of what the cake looks like at various points of the process. You can find the full recipe at the end of the blog post!

Mash the banana to your desired consistency.
Then beat in the remaining wet ingredients.

salted caramel banana sheet cake recipe q&a

Can I bake this cake in a different sized pan?

You could bake this in a 8″ cake pan, 9″ cake pan, or 9″ square pan. Note that in a 9″ pan the cake will be a tad shorter and will probably take a few minutes less to bake.

can I make this cake ahead of time?

If you’re making my homemade salted caramel sauce, it can be made and stored in the fridge for up to 5 days before assembling the cake. The cake itself can be made and stored at room temperature – I probably wouldn’t recommend baking it more than one day before you want to frost and serve it just for the best freshness.

how to store this banana sheet cake

Once you frost the cake, you’ll want to keep it stored in an airtight container in the fridge, where it will keep well for about 3 days.

You can find all my favorite tools and ingredients that I use onmy Amazon Storefront page, here!

other recipes you might enjoy:

Cookie Butter Banana Bread
Mocha Banana Cake
Banana Blueberry Upside Down Cake
Banana Bread Chocolate Chip Cookies

did you make this recipe?

I’d love to see and know your thoughts! please leave a comment and review below, and tag me on instagram @freshbeanbakery. #freshbeanbakery

Salted Caramel Banana Sheet Cake

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Ingredients

Brown Butter

▢ 170 g unsalted butter (¾ c.)

Banana Sheet Cake

▢ 113 g brown butter (½ c.)
▢ 250 g banana mashed (~3 medium bananas)
▢ 155 g light brown sugar (¾ c.)
▢ 2 eggs room temperature
▢ 1 tsp. vanilla
▢ 60 g sour cream (¼ c.) room temperature
▢ 190 g all purpose flour (1 ½ c. + 1 tbsp.)
▢ 2 tsp. baking powder
▢ ½ tsp. salt
▢ 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
▢ 85 g crushed walnuts optional (¾ c.)

Salted Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting

▢ 226 g cream cheese room temperature (1 c.)
▢ 22 g brown butter (1 ½ tbsp.)
▢ 120 g powdered sugar (1 c.)
▢ 60 g salted caramel sauce (¼ c.)

Instructions

Brown Butter

In a small saucepan set over medium heat, brown the butter. Stir the butter occasionally until it turns amber in color and develops little brown specks.
Transfer the butter to a small bowl and set it in the freezer for 5 minutes to chill.

Banana Sheet Cake

Preheat the oven to 350°F / 175°C. Butter and line an 8" square pan* with parchment paper.
In a medium sized mixing bowl, mash the banana to your desired consistency.
Whisk in the brown sugar and 113g (½ c.) of the cooled brown butter. Leave the remaining brown butter out at room temperature until you're ready to make the frosting.
Add in both eggs, the vanilla, and sour cream. Whisk vigorously until the mixture is well combined.
Add in the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Whisk together until only a few flour streaks remain. Add in the chopped walnuts, then mix just until no flour streaks remain.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Salted Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting

Add the cream cheese and remaining brown butter to a medium sized mixing bowl. Use a hand mixer (or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment) to beat the ingredients together until the mixture is light and fluffy (1-2 min.)
Beat in the powdered sugar until well combined, then add in the salted caramel sauce and beat for an additional minute.
Once the cake has fully cooled to room temperature, top it with the cream cheese frosting. Swirl some more salted caramel sauce on top, then slice, serve, and enjoy!

Notes

Affiliate links:Kitchen Scale (my favorite)|Kitchen scale (great starter option)|Cordless Hand Mixer|Oven Thermometer|Cookie Scoops

*You can also use an 8″ circle pan, or a 9″ circle pan. Note that it may take a little less time to bake in a larger pan, and it will be thinner.

Nutrition

Serving: 1sliceCalories: 549kcalCarbohydrates: 60gProtein: 7gFat: 33gSaturated Fat: 16gPolyunsaturated Fat: 6gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 106mgSodium: 348mgPotassium: 254mgFiber: 2gSugar: 39gVitamin A: 931IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 143mgIron: 2mg

Please note that the nutrition facts are only an estimate and may vary based on different brands of ingredients and any substitutions made.