Recipe obtained from About.com, but there are loads of variations everywhere. I like Anna’s theory over at Cookie Madness as to how the name of this cake came about — people were attacked by hummingbirds while eating this cake. No birds attacked me while I tested this cake, but the windows were closed, so I can’t be sure if they were plotting….
The Recipe
- 3 cups flour
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- —
- 2 cups bananas, chopped
- 1 cup chopped nuts, lightly toasted
- 1-1/2 cups vegetable oil
- 3 eggs, slightly beaten
- 1-8 ounce can crushed pineapple, undrained
- 1 can cream cheese frosting (optional)
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour Bundt pan.
In a large bowl, with a wire whisk combine the first 6 ingredients. By hand, add remaining ingredients except frosting. Stir until just combined (like making quick bread). Pour batter into pan.
Bake for 65 to 70 minutes or until done. Cool in pan on cake rack for 25-30 minutes. Remove from pan to cool completely on rack. Optional glaze instructions: Place frosting in microwavable container. Microwave for 10 to 15 seconds. Stir until smooth. Drizzle over completely cooled cake
My Alterations
Reading the recommendations of a reader over on About.com, I also added the pulp of one passion fruit and chucked some sliced almonds in there for good measure too. Otherwise I kept to the recipe exactly.
The Result
The cupcakes/muffins came out with no problem. The loaf cake? Not so much:
I completely forgot that it was in the oven until it was far too late. Sigh.
Otherwise, the cake was very easy to put together and turned out fine.
The Verdict
This is a good cake, but it isn’t anything fantastic. Hummingbird cake has been compared to carrot cake (only substituting bananas for carrots) but I think my Carrot Cake recipe is much better.
I also made the mistake of leaving the passion fruit seeds in the cake, and they were slightly crunchy in the final product. I was hoping that would be masked by the other nuts, but I could tell they were in there. Oops!
The Rating
3/5
This cake is kind of meh. Kind of blah. Just there. It’s not bad, it has a pleasant texture, but there just wasn’t any oomph to it.
Perhaps it’s another one of those “frosting needed” cakes, which just aren’t for me!
