Cake Recipes
Banana Kahlua Walnut Cake
Yield: 12 servings
Ingredients
- Vegetable spray, for cake pan
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 very ripe bananas, mashed
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup oil
- 1/4 cup buttermilk or sour milk
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
- 1 cup chocolate chips, for chocolate leaf garnish
- 1 teaspoon Crisco shortening, for chocolate leaf garnish
- About 10 unblemished camellia leaves (or other small firm leaves), washed and dried, for chocolate leaf garnish
- About 3 1/2 tablespoons Kahlua
- 1 (16 ounce) box powdered sugar
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
- 2 (1 ounce) envelopes pre-melted chocolate (or 2 1-ounce squares semisweet baking chocolate, melted)
- About 1/4 cup milk
- About 1 1/4 cups walnut pieces
- Fresh attractive flower(s) and greens, for garnishing cake and serving tray
Instructions
- Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Spray a 12 x 4 x 3 inch loaf pan (or pate terrine) with vegetable spray; set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda and salt.
- In another bowl, blend bananas with eggs, oil, buttermilk and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, and thoroughly mix with flour mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake until top of cake is well-browned and bounces back when lightly pressed, about for one hour and 10 minutes. Let cake cool, remove from pan, and wrap loosely in aluminum foil; refrigerate several hours or overnight.
- Ninety minutes before assembling cake (or up to two days ahead), heat chocolate chips with Crisco in top of double boiler until melted, stirring often. Using back of a spoon, coat undersides of camellia leaves with chocolate, and place leaves chocolate-side-up on a plate; refrigerate one hour, then gently peel leaves away from chocolate, starting at stem end. Cover well and refrigerate until ready to use.
- To finish cake, cut cake horizontally into three equal layers; drizzle Kahlua evenly over all. In a medium-size mixing bowl, beat together until smooth the powdered sugar, butter, melted chocolate, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract and enough milk to make icing of spreading consistency. Place one cake layer on a serving platter and ice; add second layer and ice. Add third layer and ice top and sides with remaining icing. Press walnuts into sides of cake, and place cake on a serving tray. Garnish cake top with two clusters of chocolate leaves and a flower in center. Decorate tray with more flowers and/or greens. Refrigerate leftovers.
Attribution
Posted by Annette at Recipe Goldmine 12/6/2001 12:26 pm.