Happy birthday to my little sister! On Saturday, Anna turned 25. We celebrated by going to Marie Catrib’s (http://mariecatribs.com/) for some delicious sandwiches and spreads, going to see The Artist (blew my expectations away) and eating a big slice of Hummingbird Cake.
I have had Hummingbird Cake twice: once at Marie Catrib’s and once at Carrie’s a few weekends ago. Both blew me away and after some convincing, Anna agreed to let Hummingbird Cake be her special birthday cake this year. I am so glad she did!
Many of the recipes out there call for pecans in the cake and on top but I made a female (no nuts!) version and topped it with unsweetened flaked coconut instead. I love the look of coconut on a cake–it makes it look like a dreamy snowball.
I made my cake with a combination of a recipe from Carrie and a recipe from Southern Living. I wish I would have stuck more to Carrie’s recipe because it had more pineapple–my cake had a stronger banana presence than hers. Oh well, now I have a good excuse to experiment and make this again with more pineapple. Regardless, the results were great and my sister was a happy birthday girl that night.
Here is the Southern Living recipe–try adding more pineapple and reducing some of the banana for what I think would be a perfect balance!
HUMMINGBIRD CAKE
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3 large eggs, beaten
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple, undrained
- 1 cup chopped pecans (optional)
- 2 cups chopped bananas
- Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional–I used unsweetened flaked coconut instead)
- Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; add eggs and oil, stirring until dry ingredients are moistened. (Do not beat.) Stir in vanilla, pineapple, 1 cup pecans, and bananas.
- Pour batter into three greased and floured 9-inch round cakepans. Bake at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes; remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks.
- Spread Cream Cheese Frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake; sprinkle 1/2 cup chopped pecans on top. Store in refrigerator.
- Break out the ice cream and enjoy!
