Today’s post is from Caroline at Colorful Eats. I recently discovered Caroline’s tasty recipes and gorgeous photography. Like me, Caroline is a Nutritional Therapist and she is using nutrition to address an autoimmune disease. It is my pleasure to introduce you to Caroline today and share her decadent Chocolate Banana Bunt Cakes with Salted Caramel. Don’t forget to visit Caroline at ColorfulEats.com, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest.
Paleo Chocolate Banana Cakes with Salted Caramel
Sweet and salty—that most fabulous contrast of flavors. One summer in college I worked at a cupcake boutique that made the best salted caramel cupcakes! It was there that I was first introduced to the concept of adding salt to sweets, and it has quickly become one of my favorite flavors to create in the kitchen! Simply put, salt provides a contrast which can enhance the sweetness of your desserts.
I absolutely love desserts and if given the choice I would probably eat dessert first, but after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes a few years back, I developed a love for baking and recreating my favorites from a grain and refined sugar free perspective. You will notice that my desserts are not overly sweet, but rather a pleasant treat to enjoy.
I was so excited when Lauren asked me to share a recipe with you all and hope you enjoy these fun bundt cakes as much as I do. Please note that the cake by itself is not very sweet but meant to be drizzled generously with caramel! You also could serve with a scoop of your favorite ice cream or homemade whipped cream. If you don’t have mini bundt pans, just use muffin tins and adjust the baking time as needed. I have included a few baking tips at the bottom of the recipe.
- 1 cup mashed banana (about 2 large bananas), soft and spotted but not completely brown
- 4 organic eggs
- 3 tbsp butter, melted
- 2 tbsp raw honey
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup coconut flour, sifted (recommended brand here)
- 2 tbsp raw cacao powder, available here (substitute cocoa powder or carob powder)
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- 1 tbsp coconut oil or butter for greasing pans
- ½ cup raw honey (get a free jar of raw honey here)
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp vanilla vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp fleur de sel or sea salt flakes
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Generously grease inside of mini bundt pans with coconut oil or butter.
- Mash bananas on a plate. Use a hand blender to blend together all wet ingredients including bananas. Sift in dry ingredients. Blend on high, scrape down the sides of bowl and blend again.
- Scoop batter into mini bunt pans (like this one, alternatively use a doughnut pan like this), filling ⅔ of the way full.
- Bake for 24-28 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Cool for 10-15 minutes before inverting on a cooling rack to cool completely.
- While cakes are cooling, make the caramel sauce. In a small saucepan, heat honey over low to medium heat. Heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, allowing small bubbles to form but do not boil or burn. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla, allowing to cool for a few minutes. The sauce will thicken greatly as it cools.
- Place mini cakes on plates or serving tray and drizzle generously with warm caramel sauce. Sprinkle a few pinches of fleur de sel on top of bundt cakes to garnish. Enjoy!
About Caroline at Colorful Eats
Hello! I am Caroline, author of Colorful Eats, and passionate about encouraging a healthy and balanced lifestyle centered around eating real food and nourishing relationships around the kitchen table. Life currently has my husband serving in the US Navy at Pearl Harbor where we are enjoying soaking up the sunshine and salt water with our golden retriever puppy, Liberty. I am a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner who developed a love of nutrition after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes a few years back, but have since found healing through a grain and refined sugar free diet. I love the color and beauty found in real foods, hence the name Colorful Eats! Check out my website or follow along on Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest.
It is in the oven. Result in one hour
Very nice, only if it was one idea sweeter…I guess I likesugar too much.
I am so pleased to find your recipes made with coconut flour.I have the bunt cake in the oven right now, can’t wait to taste it.
I made 11 regular sized muffins, added chopped walnuts & chocolate chips, 20 minutes at 350.
This is the best paleo muffins I have made…i added chocolate chips and will add crushed nuts another time for a bit of crunch. They have perfect texture ie not dense and nice and light. LOVE ’em. Thanks soo much for a wonderful recipe! BTW I made 48 mini muffins using muffin liners – they got stuck on my pan without the liners.