Caramel Banana Upside Down Bread
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Drenched in homemade caramel sauce and loaded with bananas, this unique caramel banana bread is wonderfully moist and irresistibly delicious!
For more sticky caramel cakes be sure to try our Caramel Pear Walnut Cake and Sticky Toffee Pudding!
I couldn’t take it anymore. After two carb-free days to lose the 2 pounds I had gained after an indulgent week, I had to have CARBS. A few days ago I was back down to my desired weight and I approached the day with a smile on my face. An almost intoxicated giddiness set in. Rubbing my hands together – “I can eat carbs today!” I ended up going the majority of the day without carbs again, though the avoidance wasn’t deliberate this time, it just worked out that way. It was an absolutely gorgeous day and here in WA you learn not to take those days for granted. I loaded the kids up in the car and we headed down toward Mt. Rainier to Alder Lake Park.
A breathtakingly serene lake in an idyllic setting. Such a beautiful day – must have been in the high 70’s – and get this, we were the only ones there! Really strange. We had run of the park, the playground, the shoreline. …Where was I going with this? Oh yes, no carbs. I had just grabbed some fruits and veggies to take along and a few extra things for the kids, so it wasn’t until I got home later that afternoon that I allowed myself to indulge. And oh what a sweet indulgence it was!
The kids were both tuckered out from a day of play and took a nap as soon as we got home. In fact, this was the first time ever that my son fell asleep on the floor while playing with his toys. He had been making his usual choo-choo train sound effects and suddenly all went silent. I peeked in his room and there he was – fast asleep. My daughter fell asleep five minutes later and so I headed off to the kitchen to create something to satisfy my craving for carbs.
This creation wasn’t planned. I was just craving something cakey…something caramelly (like that magnificent Whole Wheat Pear Upside Down Gingerbread Cake with Caramel Sauce) I noticed the stash of bananas in my fruit basket and thought about making some kind of caramelly, carby banana thing. Some kind of twist on your standard ol’ banana bread. Then the upside-down concept occurred to me. Ohhhh, it was wunderbar!
Once again, I chose whole wheat flour (complex carbs = much better for you). But health benefits aside, I just think whole wheat tends to pair better with caramelly stuff. The richer, earthier, nuttier flavor really complements the sweet caramel. But feel free to substitute white flour if you prefer. Just cut the baking powder in half, increase the oven temperature to 350 and bake for about 45 minutes instead.
What a fabulous day it was! Beautiful drive, beautiful lake and surroundings, play time with the two cutest and happiest little kids in the world, and a deliciously moist, caramelly banana bread cake. Once you’ve tried this you may never go back to the original way of making banana bread again!
Caramel Banana Upside Down Bread Recipe
Let’s get baking!
Mash the bananas. (The more over-ripe the bananas are the more flavor they will yield.)
Lightly grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan and spread the brown sugar out on the bottom. I recommend aluminum.
I use and like Fat Daddio’s.
Evenly place the butter pieces on top of the brown sugar. Place the loaf pan in the oven preheated to 325 degrees F and leave in for 8 minutes.
In the meantime, combine the dry ingredients in a bowl.
I decided to add a little cinnamon too.
Take the loaf pan out of the oven.
Stir to combine the sugar and butter and spread the mixture evenly along the bottom of the pan.
Slice a couple of bananas in 1/4 inch rounds and layer them on top of the sugar mixture.
Add all remaining ingredients to the flour mixture.
Beat on medium-high speed just until combined.
Pour the batter over the bananas in the loaf pan.
Bake in the oven preheated to 325 degrees F for about an hour or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out moist but clean. Let the bread sit in the pan for about 20 minutes before inverting it onto a cake platter.
Make the caramel syrup (see instructions in recipe box) and pour and spread evenly over the banana bread. Serve immediately or wait until cooled. Note: The caramel glaze will firm up and discolor, so you may want to wait until you’re ready to eat it to spread on the glaze.
Enjoy!
Slice and Enjoy!
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Caramel Banana Upside Down Bread
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter , cut into several pieces
- 2 bananas , sliced in 1/4 inch rounds
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans , optional
- 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
- 3/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup mashed overripe bananas
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup coconut oil or oil of choice
- 1/3 cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- For the Caramel Glaze:
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.Spread the brown sugar on the bottom of the loaf pan. If using nuts, sprinkle them evenly over the sugar. Dot with the butter. Put it in the oven for about 8 minutes. Stir the mixture until dissolved and spread evenly on the bottom of the pan. Place a single layer of the banana slices on top of the sugar mixture along the entire bottom of the pan.Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add all the remaining wet ingredients and beat just until combined. Do not over-beat.Pour the batter over the sliced bananas in the pan.Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean but moist. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 20 minutes before inverting it on a cake platter.
- To prepare the Caramel Glaze, place the butter, brown sugar and heavy cream in a small saucepan (you can also microwave the ingredients for a minute). Bring to a boil and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let it sit for a minute. Pour the glaze evenly over the cake (on the upside down side with the bananas on top).
Nutrition
Originally published on The Daring Gourmet June 10, 2013
Hi, I’m Kimberly Killebrew and welcome to Daring Gourmet where you'll find delicious originals, revitalized classics, and simply downright good eats from around the world! Originally from Germany, later raised in England, world-traveled, and now living in the U.S., from my globally-influenced kitchen I invite you to tour the world through your taste buds!
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Hello Kimberly,
This recipe looks amazing! I teach a cooking class for young kids, and I am always on the look out for healthy and tasty recipes and this banana bread looks fantastic! My class is only an hour, so I was wondering if this recipe could be portioned out and baked in muffin tins to speed up the cooking process so it can fit into the time for my cooking class. I would really like to use this recipe because I think they would love it! Please let me know if this is possible and the changes I would need to make to create this successfully. Thanks so much for your time!
Hi Christine, thank you! I haven’t made this in muffin form before so I’m not sure how suited it is. The cake texture is fairly firm so it should work, but I’m not sure how well individual muffins will hold up under the weight of the caramelized bananas on top. If you try it, let us know how it goes!
Hello. Can I use regular milk or perhaps evaporated milk instead of buttermilk?
Hi Janet, yes you can use regular milk and simply add 1 teaspoon of white vinegar to it for the acidity component (needed to react with the baking soda). Just stir it into the milk and let it sit for 5 minutes or so before adding it to the batter.
Love this recipe. Made it for my Christmas brunch. One trouble I had was the bread stuck to the pan when I inverted it to take it out. The recipe didn’t call the grease the pan. Any thoughts you can offer on this? Is it my pan?
Hi Kate, the recipe does say in Step 1 to grease the pan so that’s the culprit. I noticed that the step-by-step pictures omitted to mention that step however, so if you were referring strictly to that instead of the instructions in the recipe box that would explain it. I’ve added the instruction to the pictured steps.
Any Suggestion for storing overnight for next day use?
Keep it stored in an airtight container so it doesn’t dry out and then I would probably wait until the next day to pour the glaze over it.
Hello, I want to try ot but I do not seethe receipt forbthe glaze.
Hi Alana, scroll down to the bottom of the post to the recipe box that lists the ingredients and directions for the banana bread. In the section that lists the ingredients, at the end of the list you’ll see “For The Caramel Glaze” with the ingredients underneath.
Hi Kimberly,
This time I didnot add pecans. But I kept the pan in the oven while I stirred to melt it. A total of about 10 minutes. I did cool for about 45 minutes and it flipped out better. Just onechunk off the top. I used regular brown sugar… I used the middle rack and I let my oven pre heat properly. Regardless, the bread is very moist and delicious. Very moist, dense and cake like! Thanks for your response!
I wish I could add my photo of it but I don’t know how!
Hi Lisa, thanks for the update and I’m happy it was a success this time! I know, I wish there was a way to upload photos via the comments but you can upload one on my Facebook page, I’d love to see it!
Just made this… I used some chopped pecans… First, the sugar didn’t melt… And 20 minutes was way too short of time to wait before flipping. Chunks of bread sugar and banana stayed in the pan. Next time I will let cool much longer and see if I can melt the sugar better. Smells very good though.
Hi Lisa, that is so odd that the sugar didn’t melt. Which oven rack did you have the pan on? Did you use regular brown sugar or turbinado sugar (larger sugar crystals)? The sugar won’t continue to melt once the bread is cooling, that is done while it’s baking, and the problem with waiting much longer than 20 minutes is that the caramelized mixture on the bottom of the pan will be too cool, making it more difficult for the bread to slip out. I think the problem lied in the sugar not being properly melted in the first place.