Is it wrong to make cake two days in a row? My weekend was just kind of like that. Watch for some healthy salads in the coming days to balance things out! Well, maybe.
Yesterday’s rhubarb cake was inspired by the new produce of springtime, but today’s recipe is inspired by old produce: a bunch of browning bananas. I tend to throw them in the freezer and forget about them, but it was my turn to bring snack to the soccer game, so I figured I’d toss the bananas into some healthy muffins. Instead, I made these cupcakes–a happy accident.
See, the recipe comes from the Moosewood Simple Suppers book, and it features four ripe bananas, olive oil, and yogurt. Healthy, right? I somehow glossed over the amount of sugar until I was actually measuring it into the bowl. These are cupcakes, folks, plain and simple. And good ones! And quick to make.
The cream cheese frosting is optional and we enjoyed most of our cupcakes plain. If you do choose to make the frosting, though, the recipe gives you the option of dressing it up with a splash of coffee or a spoonful of cocoa powder, either of which would be a worthy compliment to the sweet banana flavor.
Banana Olive Oil Cupcakes: In a mixer on medium speed, mix the following wet ingredients for two minutes: 1 1/2 c. mashed ripe bananas, 1/2 c. olive oil, 1 1/3 c. packed brown sugar, 3 eggs, 1 tsp. vanilla, and 1/4 c. plain yogurt. In a separate bowl, combine 1 1/2 c. flour, 1 tsp. baking soda, and 1/2 tsp. salt. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix to combine. Fill lined cupcake tins to 3/4 full and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. For the cream cheese frosting, mix 8 oz. room-temperature cream cheese, 3 Tb. room-temperature butter, and 1 c. sifted confectioners sugar. Optional: add 2 Tb. coffee or 1 Tb. cocoa powder as you are mixing the frosting.
Emmy Cooks 
I’m guilty of making desserts successively. It’s definitely an involuntary response in my world! I love the looks of this recipe and the rhubarb cake and shall add them to my short list! Thanks for sharing! Happy week to you!
Yes, once you get on a dessert-making roll it can be hard to stop! Not that I want to stop. :) Hope you are having a nice week as well!
Love that cookbook! Haven’t tried this recipe yet, though I’ve eyeballed it a few times.
Do you have any favorite recipes in it? I have about 20 bookmarks in it but I haven’t actually tried that many of the recipes. I always like other people’s recommendations–or advice if there are duds that I should steer clear of. :)
I do – let me go through it and I’ll get back to you!
Okay here are some of my faves (which I now veganize):pasta w/ olives piquant (I add arugula and caramelized onions); fettucine w/ walnut pesto; Hungarian eggplant;Navajo stew;black beans/pickled onions; lemon herb tofu; tomato tortilla soup. There are a lot more – but that should get you started ;-)!
Thank you so much! That is so funny because I was going to do a whole wheat pasta with carmelized onions and walnuts for the vegan potluck–obviously I was meant to come across this walnut pesto recipe! Yum. I appreciate the recommendations!
Does the flavor of the olive oil come through, even with the bananas?
Nope. Not at all. Maybe I should have mentioned that! The allure of the olive oil is all in the feel-good, heart-healthy, mono-unsaturated-fat hype.
Wow, the title alone sold me on this one. Looks good. I wonder if I could use coconut oil too. Ive been trying it out in different recipes, since it’s supposed to be good for us.
I have only tried one kind of coconut oil but I understand that some have a pronounced coconut flavor and others don’t. Do you have a brand you like? These would be great with a little coconut kick!
I make similar banana cupcakes with mascapone cheese frosting. YUM! I’ve been wanting to try an olive oil cake. This looks like the one to try.
I bet that frosting is something! Another olive oil cake I love that’s a bit fancier is the Olive Oil Citrus Cake I posted here: https://emmycooks.com/2012/01/07/the-best-soup-of-2011/
I saw this! Thanks!
I made cookies two days in a row, not normal for me either. Must have been a dessert kind of weekend. I’ll have to try these cupcakes. I probably have 5 pounds of brown bananas in my freezer by now.
It’s easy to get on a roll with desserts! And it’s not bad to have them around, either. :) Glad to provide some brown-banana inspiration! We sometimes build up quite a stash too.
Ooooooh! I love this recipe! My dear friend Laura introduced me to it years ago when she made it for my birthday. She adds a ton of lemon juice to the cream cheese frosting so it becomes kind of like a lemony cream cheese glaze. So delicious!
Thanks for featuring this recipe! Looks great!
Yum! I’ve never made a lemony cream cheese frosting but our two standard cake toppings around here are cream cheese frosting and lemon glaze…that sounds like the best of both worlds! Now I just need the kids to leave the bananas alone for a few days so I have an excuse to make these again. :)
Such a sucker for muffins. Great recipe! I may make these but with Almond Flour & Honey, aka Paleo version.
I don’t know much about the Paleo diet, but if it means these cupcakes made with almond flour and honey, I am SO THERE.
Ooh, I wish I had one of those muffins right now!
That’s the worst part of reading food blogs, isn’t it? Because I can tell you that reading your blog makes me want fancy cocktails every time you post! (Except maybe the oatmeal one. I can’t really imagine that. But if it’s really good, that’s the one I should try first, we are all about oats around here!) ;)
I wasn’t sure what to think of the oats before I tried it. I actually really like this one. It isn’t weird at all. And I just got a comment today that one person even used the booze-soaked oats to make oatmeal! The oats give that one a different feel to the booze, but quite a nice flavor.
That is a genius idea for a fathers day breakfast. :)
I must try these! I still have not had olive oil cake and these look delicious.
These are good but the taste is not that different from any sweet moist banana cake. I also really like this Citrus Olive Oil cake: https://emmycooks.com/2012/01/07/the-best-soup-of-2011/
I am enjoying adding olive oil to cakes at the minute, it has been a minor revelation for me! These look delicious. I may give them a go. Happy Blogging, Lee…www.thebeachhousekitchen.wordpress.com
I like it too! The flavor doesn’t come through much here because these are so banana-y, but I have been using olive oil in other baked things and really like when you get a bit of the flavor.
I will have to try these the next time I have too many overripe bananas! They look delicious. Thanks for bringing my attention to your blog, it’s lovely. ^_^
Thanks! Glad to give you another option if your household accumulates nearly as many overripe bananas as mine does. :)
Yum! I’ve made olive oil cake, and I’ve made banana cake, but never the two combined. This looks great!
Enjoy!
Used the frosting to liven up some leftover banana rye muffins from Good to the Grain. Thanks for the inspiration!
Banana rye muffins! That’s the kind of thing I like to make just because I can’t imagine it. Were they good? (Without the frosting, I mean–cardboard would be good with cream cheese frosting.) I keep meaning to pick that book up but I usually accumulate quite a list between trips to Elliott Bay.
Had been wanting to make muffins or cupcakes with bananas for so long. I tried these today and they came out so good. Thank You.