Gluten Free Hummingbird Cakes
Spring has sprung with my Gluten Free Hummingbird Cake. Pineapple, banana, and toasted pecans find harmony with cream cheese icing.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) chopped toasted pecans
- 3 cups (420g) Kim's all purpose gluten-free flour blend (a store bought blend may be substituted, but has not been tested)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon allspice
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (240ml) vegetable oil
- ¾ cup (150g) packed light brown sugar
- ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 1½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1½ cups (345g) mashed bananas (about 3-4 large ripe bananas)
- 1 8-oz can (227g) crushed pineapple (do not drain)
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- stiff cream cheese frosting (or any cream cheese frosting of your choice)
Instructions
Toast the Pecans
- Preheat the oven to 300° F. Spread the chopped pecans on a baking sheet and toast for 8-10 minutes, or until fragrant and lightly toasted. Keep a close eye on them as they can go from toasted to burnt in a second (ask me how I know). Remove from the oven and cool about 10-15 minutes; set aside.
Make the Cake
- Increase the oven temperature to 350°F. Grease 3 8-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper rounds.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, and salt; set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the oil, sugars, bananas, pineapple, eggs, and vanilla until well combined.
- Pour the wet into the dry and fold to combine. Do not beat and do not overmix. Gently stir in 1 cup of the toasted pecans.
- Divide batter between prepared cake pans and bake for 25-28 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool cakes in pans for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Make cream cheese frosting and spread about 1 cup of frosting between each layer. Spread the remaining frosting on the top and along the sides of the cake, smoothing if desired. Finely chop the remaining 1 cup of toasted pecans and grab a handful and gently press them into the bottom 2-3 inches of the cake to create a border, if desired. Sprinkle any extra around the top of the cake. Serve at room temperature.
Notes
*This recipe can be made in a Bundt pan if you'd rather. Bake the cake for 65-75 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with only a few crumbs attached. You can then decorate it like my gluten free chocolate chip cookie bundt cake using the same frosting (or make a simple powdered sugar glaze with 1 cup (125g) of powdered sugar whisked with ½ teaspoon of vanilla and 1-2 tablespoon of milk to obtain the desired consistency).
Store cake in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 5-6 days. I prefer to serve the cake at room temperature, so I will remove it from the fridge and allow it to come to room temp before serving (which should only take about 30 minutes).
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