This fluffy gluten free banana cake with chocolate icing is soft and delicious. Browned butter and cardamom add depth of flavor, and the rich slick of chocolate on top is the perfect finishing touch.

This lovely little number is a sturdy brown butter-infused, cardamom-scented banana cake topped with a thick swipe of chocolate icing. Unlike my gluten free banana cake with cream cheese frosting, a simple yet decadent-feeling dark chocolate frosting made with bittersweet chocolate takes this cake over the top.
I love a classic banana cake served this way: The cap of chocolate elevates the humble cake into something more elegant. In this recipe, brown butter brings a deep, dark depth of flavor that's complemented by hints of vanilla and cardamom. (You'll find a bit of ginger, too, but cardamom is the overarching flavor note.)
This is not quite a one-bowl cake, but it's so simple to put together that you could whip it up in minutes on an afternoon when you have a lot of ripe bananas. The main effort comes in browning the butter, but it's so worth the little bit of extra time needed to watch the butter get deliciously crackly. For a cake that features chocolate in the cake itself, try my gluten free banana chocolate chip cake (or make a gluten free banana peanut butter cake).
Jump to:
Why I Love This Special Banana Cake
- Depth of flavor. The browned butter and warming spices play together to create a complex and interesting cake.
- Bananas! The natural sweetness of bananas makes this cake sweet without requiring too much added sugar (just a scant 1 cup for the whole cake). Bananas are a wonderful fruit for baking because they lend flavor, texture, and moisture.
- Whole grain flour. Naturally gluten-free, whole-grain oat flour is so perfect in this cake. Alternatively, you can use spelt flour or whole grain pastry flour by weight in this recipe if you don't need to keep gluten-free.
- Banana + chocolate = delicious. Remember those frozen bananas dipped in chocolate you loved as a kid? This cake is a grown-up version of that favorite childhood treat, but in cake form.
Ingredients You'll Need
Make sure to scroll down to my recipe card at the bottom of this post for the full ingredient amounts and instructions!
- Butter - Unsalted butter works best, but if you need to use salted butter, just reduce the amount of added salt.
- Oat flour - Learn how to make oat flour at home, or pick up a package at the store. Substitute sorghum flour or brown rice flour if you can't have oats.
- Granulated sugar - I use a scant 1 cup of sugar. You can reduce the sugar by ¼ cup if your bananas are very ripe and sweet. Alternately, try light brown sugar.
- Baking powder
- Salt - I always use fine sea salt or table salt.
- Spices - A combo of ground cardamom and ground ginger.
- Eggs - Large eggs are best.
- Vanilla - Use pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste.
- Greek yogurt - Full-fat or non-fat yogurt works, and you can use plain or vanilla yogurt.
- Bananas - Use very ripe bananas. You'll need about 1 ½ cups of mashed bananas.
- Frosting - Butter and semisweet chocolate chips (milk chocolate will work, too).
How to Make Banana Cake with Chocolate Icing
Here's an overview in photos of how to make this easy cake:
1. Melt butter: Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
2. Brown the butter: Butter will begin to foam and crackle as it melts. When the butter browns, remove from heat and cool.
3. Make dry mix: Whisk together the dry ingredients.
4. Make wet mix: Combine the wet ingredients, then whisk in the cooled butter.
5. Combine: Mix the wet into the dry, then place in a lined pan. Rest the batter.
6. Bake: Place in a 350 F oven and bake for 45 minutes. Cool completely.
7. Make icing: Place the chocolate and butter in a bowl.
8. Melt: Set the bowl over simmering water and melt until smooth.
Baking Tip: Save Your Bananas!
If you're not ready to use your ripe bananas, take them out of their skins and store the fruit in a plastic freezer bag. Freeze the bananas for up to 6 months. Then, bring to room temperature or gently defrost in the microwave before using in recipes.
Tips & Some Variation Ideas
- Rest the batter - Let the batter rest for about 15 minutes before baking it. This will help create that lovely, fluffy crumb.
- Bake in an 8-inch pan - For a thicker, even fluffier cake, feel free to bake the batter in an 8-inch cake round.
- Can my bananas be too ripe? Not really! The riper bananas are, the better they become for baking, bringing loads of natural sweetness and flavor to your bakes. That being said, if you notice any mold on your bananas, toss them straight into the compost and do NOT use them!
- Add nuts - Scatter sliced, toasted (or not) almonds across the top of the icing before it fully sets.
- Skip the icing - For a super simple cake, simply sift a little powdered sugar over the top of the cake instead of the chocolate icing.
- Other spices - Play around with the spices here—swap cinnamon for the cardamom, add a pinch of nutmeg, or try adding 1 tablespoon of peeled, grated fresh ginger.
Proper Storage
- Counter - Cover the cake with foil and let it sit on the counter for up to 2 days.
- Fridge - Wrap the cake tightly and keep in the fridge for up to 5 days. Serve cold or at room temperature.
- Freezer - Place the cake (the icing will firm as it cools) in a freezer-safe bag and freeze it for up to 2 months. Thaw the cake in the freezer overnight before serving.
More Gluten Free Banana Recipes
Happy baking! If you make this recipe, I’d love to know. Please leave a comment below, reach out with any questions, and tag me on Instagram @Cucina Nicolina ❤️
Gluten Free Banana Cake with Chocolate Icing
Ingredients
For Cake
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 2 ⅓ cups oat flour (280 grams)
- ¾ cup granulated
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¾ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ cup Greek yogurt
- 3 bananas, mashed (about 1 ½ cups mashed bananas)
For Frosting
- 100 grams unsalted butter
- 90 grams semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
Make Cake
- Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Grease a 9-inch cake pan with butter and line with a round of parchment paper.
- Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Butter will begin to foam and crackle as it melts. When the crackling subsides, the butter will begin to brown. Swirl the pan as the butter cooks. When the butter browns and begins to smell nutty, remove the pan from the flame and transfer the butter to a small bowl. Taking the butter out of the hot saucepan will stop the butter from overcooking and burning. Set aside to cool.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the oat flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cardamom, and ginger.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla extract, yogurt, and bananas. When butter has cooled, whisk in the browned butter.
- Add the wet ingredients all at once to the dry ingredients. Fold together, making sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and rest it for 15 minutes. Then bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to rest in the pan for 15 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Make Frosting
- In a heatproof bowl, combine the butter and chocolate. Set the bowl over a pot of simmering water, and cook until the butter and chocolate is melted, stirring if necessary. Stir very well to make sure they are combined and smooth, then let cool. When both the cake and icing are cool, cover the top of the cake with the icing.
Notes
- Rest the batter - Let the batter rest for about 15 minutes before baking it. This will help create that lovely, fluffy crumb.
- Bake in an 8-inch pan - For a thicker, even fluffier cake, feel free to bake the batter in an 8-inch cake round.
- Can my bananas be too ripe? Not really! The riper bananas are, the better they become for baking, bringing loads of natural sweetness and flavor to your bakes. That being said, if you notice any mold on your bananas, toss them straight into the compost and do NOT use them!
- Add nuts - Scatter sliced, toasted (or not) almonds across the top of the icing before it fully sets.
- Skip the icing - For a super simple cake, simply sift a little powdered sugar over the top of the cake instead of the chocolate icing.
- Other spices - Play around with the spices here—swap cinnamon for the cardamom, add a pinch of nutmeg, or try adding 1 tablespoon of peeled, grated fresh ginger.
I'd love to hear from you! Please leave me a note.