Banana Rum cake

November 2, 2010  •  Category:

 

Lebanon’s coastline is lined with banana plantations, especially in the south of the country, all the way to the border. Yet, unlike the American kitchen which is replete with banana recipes, there are none in the Lebanese repertoire.


In an effort to remedy this, here is a pudding-cake recipe I clipped years ago, which actually comes from the island of Guadeloupe.

This banana rum pudding-cake has a heady banana and rum flavor and the texture of a flan.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 6 ripe bananas (16 ounces or 475  g)
  • 9 slices of American-style bread (200  g), crusts removed
  • 4 ounces of  water (1/2 cup or 1 dl)
  • 4 ounces of white rum (1/2 cup or 1 dl)
  • 4 large eggs
  • Baking spray for the pan
  • 1 packed cup of brown sugar (250 g)
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla, a dash of fresh nutmeg
  • Vanilla ice-cream to serve with (optional)

  1. This pudding-cake should be made with very ripe bananas; let them sit out until they get brown spots all over, then mash them with a fork.
  2. Let the bread sit out for a while, in order to dry out a little. Place it in a food processor bowl and run the machine until crumbs form. Transfer the crumbs into a bowl; add the water and rum and let the breadcrumbs absorb the mixture for about 15 minutes. Toss with a spoon and transfer back into the food processor.
  3. Add to the bread mixture all of the bananas. Process for a few seconds until well mixed.
  4. Add the eggs, brown sugar, vanilla and nutmeg to the mixture. Process about 30  seconds to mix well and pour the mixture into a greased and floured pan. Use a baking spray if available to prep the pan.
  5. Place the pan in a larger pan filled up to one inch (3 cms) in hot water; bake in a 375F (200 C)  pre-heated oven for about 45 minutes or until a knife inserted in the cake comes out clean. Serve warm with ice-cream.

Comments

29 Comments  •  Comments Feed

  1. Nick Kezhaya says:

    After eating it, I realized that the past 20 years of my life have been meaningless.

  2. Rosa says:

    A lovely pudding! Yummy.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

  3. Katerina says:

    This is perfect for my son who loves bananas. Perhaps I could substitute the rum with water because he is too young to have rum in his sweets. What do you think?

  4. Meeta says:

    i love the flavor of cooked/baked bananas and can seriously taste this.

  5. Diane says:

    I am just going shopping when I come back I will make this it looks delicious. Diane

  6. Conor @ HoldtheBeef says:

    How interesting.. like a cakey bread pudding. WITH RUM AND BANANAS! Yes, sold.

  7. Joanne says:

    Eating banana-flavored desserts is my favorite way of eating bananas! This flan-like cake sounds delicious.

  8. Devaki says:

    This is lovely Joumana – Ooh I can taste the banana and rum with every bite. Such pure, delicious flavors here 🙂

    Ciao, Devaki @ weavethousandlfavors

  9. deana says:

    Isn’t that interesting, I never knew bananas grew in Lebanon… although the climate would support the crop beautifully. Great looking ‘international’ cake!

  10. Anita says:

    That looks really appetizing, I love bananas! great recipe.

  11. Caffettiera says:

    Me too, I was not aware of bananas growing in Lebanon! I wonder why they are not used that much, like you said. I’d love to taste tree ripened bananas once.

  12. Eve@CheapEthnicEatz says:

    Oh this looks rich, compact and moist. Great cake!

  13. Radhika @ foodfor7stages says:

    I get nostalgic when I see those banana trees. I miss them a lot here. And the banana rum pudding looks fab.

  14. Mo says:

    I’ve never seen anything like this – how wonderful. 🙂 It kind of looks like bread pudding, but in a smoother format… am I right?

    It’s funny that you don’t have a lot of banana recipes despite having banana plantations all over. If I lived near a banana plantation… man, I don’t think I could ever get sick of them!

  15. peter says:

    I see these small bananas from Crete…so cute! Classic bananas & rum combo but definitely a pudding for adults. Imagine getting the kids tipsy on this dessert?

  16. SYLVIA says:

    Banana bread is loved by everyone. This cake takes an upscale spin with a wake up call with rum, that makes it too delicious to resist. An elegant end to any meal!

  17. Lentil Breakdown says:

    Oooh, love the idea of a banana rum flan. And those little plump bananas are so cute!

  18. Hélène (Cannes) says:

    Je ne savais pas que le Liban produisait des bananes .. .En tout cas, je plongerais bien ma cuillère dans ce flan qui doit être exquis !
    Bisous et bonne journée
    Hélène

  19. Amanda says:

    Lovely recipe, Joumana, thanks. And thanks for the info – I had no idea that you grew bananas over there!
    Did you ever manage to find out about the publisher of that book for me?

  20. oum mouncifrayan says:

    le résultat est parfait!! bravo et merci du partage

  21. Oui, Chef says:

    Yum…what a delicious sounding dessert, and pretty as well. I think I even have tart molds shaped like yours, so I can make an exact replica when I try them. Warm out of the oven with ice cream….yes, please! – S

  22. Tall Clover says:

    I have a shelf of old pudding tins screaming to be used and this recipe fits the bill. This is comfort food at its best — thank you!

  23. Nadji says:

    J’ignore pourquoi je ne fais pas de gâteaux aux bananes.
    Ça a l’air tellement bon.
    Je note ta version.
    A très bientôt.

  24. Adelina says:

    Oooh Joumana!!! This is my type of dessert! I love rum cake and I think the bananas are a great addition.

  25. fimère says:

    ce pudding doit être délicieux, il est bien fait et joliment présenté
    bonne soirée

  26. Julie says:

    Coucou Joumana,

    Ça faisait longtemps que je n’étais pas passée te faire un coucou (pas mal de boulot et changement de blog qui m’a pris du temps!) mais je découvre avec plaisir toutes les recettes que j’avais loupé. Je note ce pudding dans mes recettes à tester pour mon chéri qui aime bien à la fois les bananes et le rhum, je pense qu’elle lui plaira beaucoup!
    Bisous !

  27. Tammy says:

    Ooh, I’m excited to try this, thanks for posting it, Joumana! I love cooked bananas (a banana tart and a banana clafoutis are two of my go-to recipes), and based on the positive comments, I think I’ll be happy I added this one to the repertory…

Add a Comment