Pineapple Banana Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 p. salt
1/2 tsp ground cloves
3/4 cup butter, softened
2 cups mashed ripe bananas (5-6)
1 8 oz. can crushed pineapple, undrained
3 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 cup finely chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  In a medium bowl stir together flour, sugar, baking soda, nutmeg, salt and cloves.  In a large bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for about 30 seconds.  Add bananas, undrained pineapple, eggs and vanilla.  Beat until combined.  Add flour mixture 1 cup at a time beating on low speed until all has been added and combined. Turn up to medium speed for 1 minute.  Fold in pecans.  Pour into a tube pan sprayed with non-stick spray.  Bake 70-75 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.  Cook in pan for 10 minutes.  Transfer to a plate.

Comments:  I found this recipe in one of my old cookbooks and since I had bananas that were ripe and I didn't want to toss them so I decided to give it a try.   I did add a glaze to mine due to not having an 8 oz. can of crushed pineapple.   I'll explain. .. I had a large can of sliced pineapple.  I put about half of the juice and pineapple in my food processor and created my own crushed pineapple.  Now, what to do with the left over pineapple and juice.  I poured the rest of the juice, about 1/2 cup into a pot, brought it to a boil, removed it from the heat and added about 1 cup of powdered sugar.  Then I cut up the rest of the pineapple and added it to my glaze.  When finished I poked holes in my cake and drizzled this over my still hot cake.    Yummy!

Banana Toffee Cake

1 yellow cake mix
1/3 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 tsp. almond extract
3 med. bananas, mashed (about 1 1/4 cups)
1 pkg toffee chips
cream cheese icing

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl beat together cake mix, water, oil, eggs and almond extract on low speed for about 30 seconds.  Continue to beat for another 2 minutes on med.  Beat in bananas until smooth.  Take out 1/4 cup of the toffee chips and set aside.  Stir remaining chips into batter.  Pour into 9 x 13 baking pan sprayed with non-stick spray.  Bake 35-40 minutes or until cake springs back or toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  After taking cake out of oven spoon 6-8 teaspoons of icing over cake.  Allow to sit for 3-4 minutes.  With a knife smooth over cake.  Sprinkle with remaining toffee chips.  Also, the bananas add just enough flavor that the cake doesn't end up tasting like a box cake.

Comments:  I had 3 bananas that needed to be used so I started thumbing through some of my older cookbooks. I found this recipe in a 1996 cookbooklet from Betty Crocker.  The only changes made was the addition of the cream cheese icing and sprinkling the toffee chips on the icing.  I also found that you can take a can of store bought icing, spoon a small amount onto a hot cake and give it a glaze.  If the cake has cooled off enough that it won't melt, put it into a still warm oven.  This makes the perfect glaze for any cake.

Banana Nut Rum Cake

1 yellow cake mix
3 eggs
1/2 cup water
1 stick butter, melted
1/2 cup rum (2 mini-bottles)
4 med. ripe bananas
1/4 cup chopped pecans


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mash bananas and set aside.  In a large bowl combine cake mix, eggs, water, butter and rum.  Beat with electric mixer about 1 minute.  Add bananas and pecans and beat until blended.  Pour into 2 loaf pans and bake 30-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. 

Comments - This idea came to me when I discovered 2 mini-bottles of rum in the cabinet and some bananas that were ripe and needed to be used, quickly.  The 1/2 cup of rum mixed with the bananas gives this cake/bread a deliciously, unique taste.  The only changes I've come up with so far would be to add coconut instead of or with the nuts.  You could use strawberries instead of the bananas or change the flavor of the cake mix.  This is a must try!