Ever since I changed to living gluten-free for health reasons, I wanted to make a gluten-free banana cake with chocolate glaze I knew from my childhood. This was always one of my favorite cakes and I ate plenty of it when I was younger. Of course, this added quite a bit to my weight at that time, because I simply could not bring myself to stop eating from this most delicious cake.

So, after a few trials I finally figured out how to make a very tasty and super fluffy gluten-free banana cake without using any gluten-free flour mixes which I personally do not like very much for their mostly rather dull taste. Instead of wheat flour in the original recipe I used pearl millet flour and corn starch (both are gluten-free, of course) and I also increased the number of eggs. And what shall I say? My gluten-free banana cake worked out beautifully! It was so delicious that I ate more than half of the cake on my own and I so am now on a self-imposed diet… But it was definitely worth it!

Before starting, it is best to preheat the oven to 200 °C [≈ 390 °F] and to prepare the baking pan with butter and gluten-free flour. The baking pan I used has the following dimensions: 32 x 20 x 6 cm (≈ 13 x 9 x 2 inches / 14 cups).

As as first step, weigh and measure all the ingredients for the gluten-free batter. We need pearl millet flour, corn starch, baking powder, eggs, granulated sugar, vanilla sugar and salt. Optionally, you can also use confectioners’ sugar instead of granulated sugar, if you like.

For our cream filling we need milk and cornstarch to make a pudding. We also need soft butter, granulated sugar, vanilla sugar (or vanilla extract) and rum.

In my cake, I used Bourbon vanilla sugar, which is much more flavorful and a bit darker in color than normal vanilla sugar. Rum is only optionally, of course, but I think it adds a very nice flavor to the cream filling.

And finally, we need to prepare and weigh our ingredients for the chocolate glaze, namely butter and dark chocolate.

To make the batter, place eggs and sugar in a big enough mixing bowl and let it mix for about 10 minutes until the batter shows a thick and creamy consistency. Best use an electric mixer for this task. Now add a little bit of salt and continue mixing for another minute or so. The salt helps the beaten egg whites in the batter to stay stable.

In another bowl, thoroughly mix the rest of the dry ingredients (i.e. pearl millet flour, corn starch, baking powder and vanilla sugar/extract) and add to the very creamy egg-sugar-mixture. You need to be very careful when combining all ingredients so that the air trapped in the batter (i.e. the beaten egg whites) does not dissolve.

Now pour the batter on the prepared baking pan (about 2-3 cm high/ ≈ 1 inch) and let it bake for 10 to 12 minutes. The cake should have a nice golden brown color when you take it out of the oven.

Before taking it out of the oven it is a good idea to make the “toothpick test” to see if the cake is ready. At the end of the baking time, open the oven and stick the toothpick (or skewer) into the center of your cake (be careful not to burn yourself). Your cake is done when the toothpick comes out clean. Otherwise, when there is still wet batter on the toothpick, your cake needs more time in the oven.

When the cake is ready, best let it cool for 10 minutes or so.

Now it is time to make the cream filling. First we make the pudding. We thoroughly mix the cold milk and corn starch with a whisk and then heat the mixture. It is important to stir continuously to prevent lumps.

When the pudding is all creamy and bubbles show, pull it away from the hearth plate and let it cool off. Also, use the whisk every now and then to prevent the forming of a skin on the surface of the pudding.

In the meantime, place soft butter, granulated sugar and vanilla sugar (or vanilla extract) in a big mixing bowl and mix with an electric mixer until it becomes very creamy. Now add the cooled pudding one spoon at a time to the butter-sugar-cream, all the while continuing the mixing. Finally, flavor with rum to your liking.

Next, prepare the chocolate glaze. Place the chocolate and the butter in a small bowl and heat slowly over a water bath. Don’t forget to stir the chocolate-butter-mixture every now and then with a spoon or so until it becomes smooth.

Be careful with the heat when heating up the chocolate and the butter. If the mixture gets too hot, the chocolate glaze may lose its homogenous consistency and then spots might show on the surface of the chocolate glaze when it cools down and hardens.

Now peel the bananas and cut them into thin slices of about 3 mm [≈ 1/8 in.] thick. Next, squeeze a lemon and quickly coat the banana slices with lemon juice to prevent them from turning brownish.

Then, take the lemon-coated banana slices and spread them evenly on top of the (cooled) cake.

Now, generously cover the banana slices with cream filling.

Finally, pour the chocolate glaze on top of the cream filling and spread it evenly. Place it in a cool place and let the chocolate glaze harden.

Enjoy your super delicious gluten-free banana cake with chocolate glaze!

My Recipe: Gluten-Free Banana Cake

with Chocolate Glaze Prep time: Bake time: Total time: Yield: 50 mins 10-12 mins 60 mins 8 pieces

INGREDIENTS * GLUTEN-FREE BATTER

(rectangular pan: 32 x 20 x 6 cm; ≈ 13 x 9 x 2 inches/ 14 cups) 4 medium eggs

120 g [≈ 1/2 cup plus 1 TBS] granulated sugar

1/8 tsp. salt

60 g [≈ 1/2 cup plus 1 TBS] pearl millet flour

20 g [≈ 3 TBS] corn starch

1/2 tsp. baking powder, gluten-free

2 tsp. vanilla sugar (or 1 tsp. vanilla extract) * CREAM FILLING: 0,3 l [≈ 1-1/3 cups] whole milk

30 g [≈ 1/4 cup] corn starch

150 g [≈ 1 stick plus 3 TBS] unsalted butter, soft

70 g [≈ 1/3 cup] granulated sugar

2 tsp. vanilla sugar (or 1 tsp. vanilla extract)

2 tsp. rum * BANANA SLICES: 3 big bananas

1 fresh lemon (juice) * CHOCOLATE GLAZE: 150 g [≈ 1 cup minus 2 TBS] semisweet chopped chocolate (or chocolate chips), gluten-free

120 g [≈ 1 stick plus 1 tsp] unsalted butter

DIRECTIONS Preheat oven to 200 °C [≈ 390 °F] and grease and flour a 32 cm x 20 cm x 6 cm (≈ 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in.) baking pan. Make batter: Place eggs and sugar in big mixing bowl and let mix for about 10 minutes until batter is very thick and creamy (electric mixer). Add salt and continue mixing for another minute. In another bowl, thoroughly mix rest of batter ingredients (pearl millet flour, corn starch, baking powder and vanilla sugar/extract) and add to egg-sugar-mixture. Very carefully combine all ingredients until batter is smooth. Bake: Pour batter on prepared baking pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes (until golden brown). Make toothpick test to see if cake is ready. Let cool. Make cream filling: Make pudding: Thoroughly mix cold milk and corn starch with a whisk and heat. Stir continuously to prevent lumps until pudding is creamy and bubbles show. Let cool and whisk every now and then to prevent a skin on the surface of the pudding. In a big mixing bowl, place soft butter, sugar and vanilla sugar (or vanilla extract) and mix until very creamy. Add cooled pudding one spoon at a time and flavor with rum. Slice bananas: Peel bananas and cut in thin slices of about 3 mm [≈ 1/8 in.] thick. Squeeze lemon and coat banana slices with lemon juice. Prepare chocolate glaze: Place chocolate and butter in small bowl and slowly heat over a water bath. Stir every now and then with a spoon until smooth. Finish cake: Evenly spread banana slices on top of cooled cake, generously cover with cream filling and finally pour chocolate glaze on top. Let chocolate glaze cool for couple of hours at a cool place until hard.

➥ Enjoy your super delicious gluten-free banana cake with chocolate glaze!

Tips & Tricks: With the “toothpick test” (or simply use a small metal skewer as I did) you can find out if a cake is ready. At the end of the baking time, open the oven and stick the toothpick (or skewer) into the center of your cake (be careful not to burn yourself). Your cake is done when the toothpick comes out clean. Otherwise, when there is still wet batter on the toothpick, your cake needs more time in the oven.

Lemon juice not only gives a nice taste but also prevents banana slices from turning brownish.

Be careful with the heat when heating up chocolate and butter for the chocolate glaze. If the mixture gets too hot, the chocolate glaze could lose its homogenous consistency and show spots when hardened.



NOTES:

g = gram

ml = millilitre

TBS = tablespoon = 15 ml

tsp. = teaspoon = 5 ml

1 cup = 1 cup [US] = 235 ml = 16 tablespoons (TBS)

1 stick of butter = 1/2 cup = 113 g (= 4 oz. = 8 TBS. = 24 tsp.)

1 pound (lb.) = 0.454 kilograms (kg) = 454 grams (g)

1 ounce (oz.) = approx. 28 grams (g)

1 inch (in or “) = 2.54 centimeters (cm) = 25.4 millimeters (mm)

1 liter = 1,000 ml = 1.0567 US quarts (liquid)

1 quart = 1 US quart (liquid) = approx. 0.946 liters





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