Coffeecakes are good, but sometimes the basic cake part with cinnamon or streusel just does not have the depth of flavor that I am looking for. However, this tropical treat really satisfied my craving. The bold, yet complimentary, flavors of rum, bananas and coconut are all tied together in this 9 inch cake. It has a moist texture with a wonderful little bit of crunch from the topping of macadamia nuts and cinnamon sugar.
Coconut Banana Coffee Cake
courtesy of Coffee Cake Cookbook by Lou Pappas
Ingredients
2 large eggs (room temp)
1 1/4 cups mashed bananas (about 3 large)
1/3 cup olive oil or canola oil
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tbs dark rum or amaretto
1/2 cup finely chopped macadamia nuts
1/2 cup sweet coconut flakes
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
mixture of 1 tbs sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon
Prepare a 9 inch springform pan by greasing the inside with butter and dusting with flour. Then preheat the oven to 350 degrees (farenheit) or 175 degrees centigrade.
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Whisk in the brown sugar and set bowl aside.
With a food processor, pulse together the wet ingredients (bananas, oil, rum or amaretto, sour cream, vanilla and eggs). Then sprinkle in the coconut into the batter. Make sure that there are no big lumps dropped into the batter. Stir to combine.
Fold batter into the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until it has a smooth consistency and no dry spots remain. Pour batter evenly into pan. Then cover the top with the chopped nuts. Lastly, sprinkle on the cinnamon sugar mixture.
Place pan in the oven. Baking time should be about 30-35 minutes. The cake is done when tester inserted into center comes out clean and top is golden brown.
Remove cake from the oven and place pan on rack to cool. Once pan is cool to the touch, remove the pan sides. Can be served warm or at room temperature.
