Spiced Gluten Free Banana Cake
This Banana Spice Cake is incredibly soft, moist, and filled with warm cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves in every bite. Finished with a fluffy dairy-free cream cheese frosting and swirls of homemade caramel sauce, it’s an easy dessert that feels special enough for holidays, celebrations, or whenever you have ripe bananas to use up.
When banana bread just isn’t cutting it, this Banana Spice Cake is the recipe to make. It has all the comforting banana flavor you love but in a tender cake layered with dairy-free cream cheese frosting and swirls of homemade caramel.
f you’re planning a brunch spread, serve this Banana Spice Cake alongside my Chicken Sausage Breakfast Patties, Creamy Peanut Butter Smoothie, or Greek Yogurt Chocolate Chip Muffins for a menu everyone will love. And if you have more ripe bananas to use, don’t miss my Banana Bread Protein Bites or Chocolate Covered Banana Chia Pudding.
How to Make Gluten Free Banana Cake
Purée the ripe bananas until there are very few chunks remaining.
Add the coconut oil, eggs, sugar, and vanilla to the same bowl and whisk to combine. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, spices, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry to wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake for 40-45 minutes. Let your spiced banana cake cool completely before icing.
Make the frosting & caramel
Top your gluten free banana cake with the dairy free cream cheese frosting and dollops of caramel. Slice, plate, and enjoy!
Tips and Tricks
- Banana prep: If your bananas are super ripe, you’ll be able to mash them with a fork and a little bit of elbow grease. You could also use an electric whisk or a potato masher!
- Cooling time: It’s essential to let spice cake with bananas cool completely before you add the frosting and caramel. Otherwise, they’ll melt right off.
- Coconut cream: Needed for the DF caramel! To make it easier to separate the solids from the liquids, I recommend refrigerating the can for at least 4 hours before you get started. Another thing to note: refrigerate it upside down.
How to Serve and Store Banana Spice Cake
Once you add the frosting and caramel, slice your Spiced Gluten Free Banana Cake into squares for serving. It would pair wonderfully with a cup of hot tea or coffee or even some hot apple cider.
You can store any leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. For longer storage (up to 3-4 days before drying out), keep it covered in the refrigerator.
Other Recipes You May Like:
- Microwave Banana Bread
- Sourdough Discard Banana Bread Muffins
- Vegan Banana Bread Cookies
- Gluten Free Banana Brownies
If you make this Spiced Gluten Free Banana Cake recipe, I would really appreciate a comment and rating down below the recipe card. Don’t forget to take a picture and tag me over on Instagram, TikTok, or Pinterest!
Spiced Gluten Free Banana Cake
Ingredients
For the Banana Spiced Cake:
- 3 very ripe bananas (about 1.5 cups)
- 1/2 cup coconut oil (melted. Can sub any other oil)
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup coconut sugar (can sub cane sugar)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups gluten-free flour
- 1.5 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ginger
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp cloves
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
Dairy free cream cheese frosting:
- 1/2 cup 1 stick dairy free butter
- 1 container dairy free cream cheese
- 1/4 cup dairy free yogurt
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 1.5 cups powdered sugar
Dairy free caramel (swirled into the top)
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar
- 13.5 oz can of coconut cream (solid parts only)
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
To make the banana cake:
- Preheat oven to 350F and prepare an 9×9 baking dish by lining it with parchment paper.
- Start by mashing the over-ripe bananas until there are little to no chunks left. You can do this with a fork or an electric whisk.
- Next, add in the melted and cooled coconut oil, eggs, sugar and vanilla. Whisk to combined.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, spices, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet and mix with a rubber spatula to combine.
- Pour mixture into an 9×9 baking dish, spread even and bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool completely. Before icing.
- You can move on to make the dairy free caramel next, or use store bought if preferred.
To make Dairy Free Caramel Sauce:
- I recommend refrigerating the can of coconut cream at least 4 hours before starting. This makes it easier to separate the solids from the liquids. Refrigerate it upside down.
- When ready, start by adding all the ingredients to a sauce pan and mix over medium to low heat.
- Stirring occasionally for about 25-30 minutes or until the mixture has thickened. Use the back of a spoon and once the caramel sauce coats it without falling off it’s done.
- Remove from heat and let cool before pouring into a storage container.
To make the dairy free cream cheese frosting:
- Add the butter and cream cheese to a bowl and beat with an electric whisk until smooth and creamy.
- Add in the dairy free yogurt, maple syrup, vanilla and mix once more.
- Lastly, add in the powdered sugar little by little and beat on high speed until your mixture is light, fluffy and there are no more clumps left.
- Add frosting to the cooled banana cake in a swirl motion. Add dollops of dairy free caramel, slice and enjoy!
Notes
- Don’t let the gluten free and dairy free aspects of this banana spice cake throw you off! It’s just as moist and tender as other cake recipes, with a slightly crumbly texture due to the GF flour. The cake itself is sweet and spicy — the perfect pair for the tangy cream cheese frosting and rich caramel.
- For the best banana flavor and natural sweetness, use bananas that are heavily speckled or almost completely brown. The riper they are, the softer and more flavorful your cake will be.
- If you’re making the homemade dairy-free caramel, prepare it ahead of time and allow it to cool completely before swirling it into the frosting. Warm caramel will melt the frosting and make it difficult to create defined swirls.
