This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
This hummingbird cake is rich, moist, and packed with mashed bananas, crushed pineapple, and toasted pecans. It has that old-fashioned banana cake feel, but the pineapple keeps the layers extra soft.
The batter comes together in one bowl, and the cream cheese frosting is sturdy and easy to work with. Three layers make it feel special enough for a birthday or holiday, but the ingredients are simple enough that you don’t need a special grocery run or a dramatic pep talk before baking.
Southern Hummingbird Cake
Balanced moisture: Mashed bananas and undrained crushed pineapple keep the cake soft without making it dense or soggy.
Oil-based batter: Vegetable oil keeps the layers tender for days, even after refrigeration.
Toasted pecans: A quick toast brings out the nutty flavor and adds real texture, not just filler.
One-bowl batter: No creaming butter or dragging out extra bowls. Everything comes together quickly without sacrificing texture.
Key Ingredients
Bananas: Use very ripe bananas with plenty of brown spots. They bring the main flavor and help keep the cake soft.
Crushed pineapple: Use canned crushed pineapple with the juice. It adds moisture and a subtle brightness that keeps the cake from feeling heavy.
Vegetable oil: Oil keeps the cake tender and moist longer than butter, especially after refrigeration.
Pecans: Toasting them makes a big difference. It brings out the flavor and keeps them from getting lost in the batter.
Cream cheese: Use full-fat, block-style cream cheese for the frosting. It gives the frosting structure and that classic tangy flavor.
Powdered sugar: This sweetens and thickens the frosting. Adding it before the cream cheese helps keep the texture smooth instead of loose.
If you like this flavor combination, take a look at my pineapple coconut carrot cake or my coconut layer cake.
Recipe Tips
Use very ripe bananas: Dark, spotty bananas bring deeper flavor and better sweetness than yellow ones.
Measure the banana: Stick to 1¾ cups mashed banana. Too much can make the cake heavy.
Don’t drain the pineapple: The juice is part of the batter and helps keep the layers moist.
Sift the dry ingredients: This keeps the crumb lighter and prevents pockets of baking soda or flour.
Cool completely before frosting: Warm layers will melt the cream cheese frosting and make the cake slide.
Toast the pecans ahead of time: Let them cool completely before adding to the batter so they stay crisp and don’t soften.
Line your pans with parchment: Even well-greased pans can stick with this kind of moist batter. Parchment makes the layers release cleanly.
Divide the batter evenly: Use a kitchen scale if you have one, or eyeball carefully so the layers bake at the same rate.
Easy Banana Pineapple Cake
Hummingbird cake always reminds me of church potlucks, where somebody’s aunt or grandma knew exactly what kind of cake belonged on the dessert table. It’s humble, familiar, and always worth making room for.
This is also a good cake for getting kids into the kitchen. The batter is forgiving, there’s no creaming butter or fussy technique, and mashing bananas is basically permission to make a controlled mess.
For another way to use ripe bananas, take a look at my lemon banana cake.
Pin this now to find it later!
Pin It
Hummingbird Cake
If you make this recipe, please leave a star rating and comment.
Ingredients
Cake Layers
- 1 ¾ cups bananas, mashed (about 4 bananas), 390 grams
- 2 cups granulated sugar, 400 grams
- 1 ⅓ cups vegetable oil, 266 grams
- 3 large eggs
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, 360 grams
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, do not drain, 227 grams or 1 cup
- 1 cup chopped pecans, toasted, 120 grams
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 cup butter, softened, 227 grams
- 5 cups powdered sugar, 600 grams
- 16 ounces cream cheese, softened, 454 grams
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease three 9-inch or 8-inch round cake pans and line them with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl mash the bananas until mostly smooth (you should have 1 ¾ cups of mashed banana). Whisk in the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla until combined.
- Place a sifter or fine-mesh strainer over the bowl and add the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon. Sift into the wet ingredients. Stir until the batter is combined and no dry streaks remain.
- Stir in the crushed pineapple with its juice and toasted pecans.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans.
- Bake 9-inch cakes for 25 to 30 minutes or 8-inch cakes for 32 to 36 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Turn the cakes out onto wire racks and cool completely.
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter until smooth and creamy.
- Add the powdered sugar gradually, starting on low speed and increasing to medium-high. Beat until smooth and well combined. (Beating the butter with the sugar first coats the sugar in fat, so it doesn’t pull as much moisture from the cream cheese later).
- Add the cream cheese and beat on medium-high speed until smooth and combined. Add the vanilla extract and salt. Mix until fully incorporated.
- Spread the frosting between the cake layers, then over the top and sides of the cake. If desired, garnish with additional toasted pecans.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
