Banana Almond Cake: Our Flourless Homemade Cake

See how we make a flourless banana almond cake with almond flour, ripe bananas, allulose, cranberries, and sliced almonds for a moist homemade treat.

A Flourless Cake We Make with Ripe Bananas

In our home, we sometimes end up with bananas that have become a little too ripe to enjoy as they are. Once brown spots begin to appear on the peel, however, those bananas become perfect for making a cake.

My wife has been making this banana almond cake since we lived in Korea. Using leftover ripe bananas was one reason she started making it, but another was that we wanted a homemade cake without wheat flour.

She adapted an existing recipe over time to better suit the way we like to eat at home.

There is no wheat flour in this cake. Almond flour is the main dry ingredient, and we use allulose instead of sugar. We also don’t add milk or cream. The moisture from the bananas and eggs is enough to keep the cake moist.

Of course, this does not mean that the cake is completely free of carbohydrates. Bananas and almonds naturally contain carbohydrates. What makes this cake different for us is simply that we make it without wheat flour or added sugar.

Bananas and Almonds Are the Main Ingredients

For one cake, we use two ripe bananas. Bananas with plenty of brown spots on the peel work especially well.

We mash the bananas rather than blending them.

For the batter, we use:

• 2 ripe bananas
• 100 g almond flour
• 2 eggs
• 2 Tbsp allulose
• 10 g butter
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• Sliced almonds
• Dried cranberries

We don’t add milk, cream, or salt.

Dried cranberries add a little extra flavor and texture, although raisins work well too.

In addition to the almond flour, we use sliced almonds on the outside of the cake. Sometimes we substitute other nuts, such as walnuts or pecans, depending on what we have at home.

How We Prepare the Bundt Pan

We usually bake this cake in a Bundt pan, which gives it the ring shape shown in the photo.

First, we lightly coat the inside of the pan with butter so the cake will release more easily after baking. Then we scatter sliced almonds across the bottom of the pan.

We mash the two ripe bananas and combine them with the eggs and other ingredients before mixing in the almond flour.

Once the batter is ready, we pour it into the prepared Bundt pan. We add a few more sliced almonds on top before putting it in the oven.

When the finished cake is removed from the pan, the toasted almonds are visible across its browned surface. We like both the flavor they add and the way they make the cake look.

Why We Lower the Oven Temperature

One small detail in our baking method makes a difference.

We first bake the cake at 180°C (356°F) for about 30 minutes.

Then we lower the temperature to 160°C (320°F) and bake it for another 10 minutes.

Lowering the temperature for the final part of baking helps prevent the outside from becoming too dark while allowing the inside to finish cooking.

To check whether the cake is done, we insert a toothpick or a longer bamboo skewer into the cake. If it comes out without wet batter sticking to it, the cake is ready.

After taking it out of the oven, we let the cake cool before removing it from the Bundt pan.

Slightly Crisp Outside and Moist Inside

One thing we like about this cake is that even though it contains no wheat flour, its texture isn’t dramatically different from that of a regular cake.

The outside becomes slightly crisp and well browned, while the inside stays moist.

Although we use two bananas, the banana flavor isn’t overwhelmingly strong. The almond flour and nuts give the cake a pleasant nuttiness, but the overall flavor is milder and lighter than you might expect.

It isn’t very sweet either. Because we use allulose instead of sugar, we can keep the sweetness at the level we prefer.

We also like the outside of the cake fairly well browned. The contrast between the slightly crisp exterior and the moist center is one of our favorite parts of this homemade cake.

A Cake We Make About Once a Month

We make this banana almond cake about once a month.

Like many of the foods we share in what we really cook at home, this isn’t something we save only for special occasions. We usually enjoy it as a snack or dessert, sometimes with a cup of coffee or tea.

We don’t usually add whipped cream, ice cream, jam, or other toppings. For us, the cake is best enjoyed on its own.

One cake lasts us about three or four days. We keep the leftovers refrigerated and sometimes warm a slice slightly before eating it.

The Bundt shape also makes it attractive enough to serve to guests or share with other people.

The Same Cake in Korea and America

We started making this cake while living in Korea, and we continue to make it the same way in the United States.

There has been little reason to change the recipe because ingredients such as bananas, almond flour, eggs, butter, and baking powder are easy to find in both countries.

One of the main reasons we continue making it is that it gives us a homemade treat that fits the way we prefer to eat.

It uses ripe bananas that might otherwise be left uneaten, contains no wheat flour, and doesn’t rely on added sugar for sweetness. The almond flour and nuts add a pleasant nutty flavor, while the bananas help keep the inside moist.

And because we make it ourselves, we can keep it much less sweet than many cakes we buy outside the home.

For us, banana almond cake doesn’t need to be a fancy dessert. It is simply a cake that looks beautiful, tastes good, and gives us a homemade treat we feel good about enjoying.