This cake is cooked entirely in a skillet because apparently that’s how I like to dessert. The main reason is because I didn’t want to make a cake to serve a party, I wanted it to be small… like 4 serves. And the easiest way to do that (if you don’t have a tiny cake tin) is to make it in a skillet. So here we are, another skillet dessert. You’re welcome.
The combination of caramelised bananas and crunchy macadamias is so delicious. The creamy toasted flavour of the nuts is the perfect foil to the sweetness of the bananas. The cake part is actually very light thanks to the low fat ricotta cheese replacing the butter you’d normally use in an upside down cake.
The only added oil is the butter you melt in the pan prior to adding the bananas. This butter and sugar mixture helps get a nice caramelisation on the bananas as well as being essential to turning the cake out of the skillet at the end.
The cake begins in a hot skillet and you finish cooking it in the oven, this means it cooks through quickly and is a glamorous looking dessert that you can have on the table in less than 30 minutes. You could try subbing the flour for gluten free flour, I have not done this yet though so please let me know how you go!
Serves 4
Ingredients
2 tsps brown, rapadura or coconut sugar
2 tsps unsalted butter
2 banana, sliced in half length ways
1/4 cup roughly chopped roasted macadamias
1 egg
3 Tbs ricotta
1/4 cup brown, rapadura or coconut sugar
1/2 wholemeal flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
Directions
Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius
Melt the butter in a small skillet (15cm) and add the brown sugar. Swirl in the pan for 30 seconds then add the bananas cut side down in the pan, they should fit together snuggly, like a rainbow. You may only use 2 and 3/4 banana.
Sprinkle the macadamias between the bananas and around the edges. Allow to caramelise in the pan for a 3 minutes. Then remove from the heat.
Meanwhile beat the egg, sugar and ricotta together until smooth, add the flour, baking powder and solt and mix until a dough forms. Spread the sough over the bananas, almost to the edges of the skillet but leave a couple of millimetres. This will make it easier to flip later.
Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Once done it will be golden on top.
Remove from the pan and place a plate that fits just inside the skillet on top of the cake. Hold it down firmly with one hand and turn the skillet over the flip the cake. It should slide out of the pan but occasionally the middle banana will sty behing. Just remove this carefully with a metal spatula and put it back in place.
To serve drizzle with maple syrup (optional) and serve it with lightly sweetened ricotta or cream.
HH. x
