This gluten-free banana cake flips the script: it’s bold, moist, and loaded with flavour. Think sweet, ripe bananas colliding with crunchy walnuts, then crowned with a luscious cream cheese frosting that makes you forget it’s even gluten-free.

It’s the kind of cake that disappears fast—whether you slice it neat or just attack it with a fork straight from the cooling rack

Gluten Free Banana Cake

Sweet, nutty, and topped with creamy frosting, this gluten-free banana walnut cake is the perfect way to use up overripe bananas.

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 35

Total Time 50

Course Dessert

Servings 9

Ingredients

125 g margarine spread or chopped butter
¾ cup brown sugar firmly packed
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup mashed very ripe bananas (about 2 large)
1 large egg
1½ cups Gluten Free Self Raising Flour
2½ Tbsp milk
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
125 g cream cheese at room temperature
1½ cups icing sugar sifted
50 g margarine or softened butter

Instructions

Preheat oven to 170ºC conventional or 150ºC fan-forced. Grease and line a 20cm square cake pan with baking paper.
Put margarine spread or butter , sugar and vanilla in a medium saucepan. Stir over a moderate heat until it melts. Remove from heat.
Stir bananas into butter mixture. Add egg, flour and milk; stir to combine. Mix in walnuts. Poor into prepared pan and smooth surface. Bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire rack to cool completely.
To make frosting: combine 50g margarine spread or soft butter, icing sugar and cream cheese into a medium bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Spread frosting over the top of the cooled cake.

Handy Tips

Use very ripe bananas – the spottier the better! They add natural sweetness and moisture.
Don’t overmix the batter – gluten-free flours can make cakes dense if overworked. Mix until just combined.
Add extra moisture – bananas help, but a splash of milk or yoghurt keeps the cake soft.
Check your flour blend – a good gluten-free self-raising flour with xanthan gum or a binding agent will improve texture.
Test for doneness early – gluten-free cakes can dry out quickly. Start checking with a skewer a few minutes before the suggested baking time.
Cool completely before frosting – gluten-free cakes are often more delicate, so let it set before spreading frosting.