Banana Cake with Cinnamon Honey Frosting

My mom bought me the neatest little cake pan yesterday. Its really deep and small, 7 inches across. I was excited to try it out. I think I can make dainty little cakes and desserts with that pan. Anyways, I was searching through blogs today and I found a recipe for banana cupcakes over at Milk & Honey. I decided to try to adapt this one to my cake pan and make us a dessert for tonight.

I wish I would have got a better photo. I actually frosted this cake before it was completely cool and then stuck it in the fridge so it didnt end up looking so great. This cake was really really good. Not as dense as banana bread, more light and fluffy. The frosting was amazing!! Ive never had a banana cake with anything but a caramel glaze on it, so this was a really great change.

Banana Cupcakes with Honey Cinnamon Frosting
(original recipe from Martha Stewart)

For the cake:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (about 4 ripe bananas), plus 1 whole banana, for garnish (optional)
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Honey-Cinnamon Frosting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Make a well in center of flour mixture. In well, mix together butter, mashed bananas, eggs, and vanilla. Stir to incorporate flour mixture (do not overmix). Dividing evenly, spoon batter into muffin cups.

Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a cupcake comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan; cool completely on a wire rack. Spread tops with Honey-Cinnamon Frosting. Just before serving, peel and slice banana into rounds, and place one on each cupcake, if desired.

For the Frosting:

• 1 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

n a medium bowl, using an electric mixer, beat confectioners' sugar, unsalted butter, honey, and ground cinnamon until smooth, 4 to 5 minutes