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Chunky Monkey Banana Cake

his delicious Chunky Monkey Banana Cake is a riff on the famous ice cream flavor made my Ben and Jerry’s. It features a homemade cake filled with bananas, milk chocolate chips and toasted walnuts. It’s finished with a generous drizzle of milk chocolate ganache.

Chunky Monkey Banana Cake

Easy Chunky Monkey Banana Cake Recipe

How to make Chunky Monkey Banana Cake: (Scroll down for full printable recipe.)

  • Toast Nuts – Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spread the walnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Toast for 6-8 minutes, then cool completely.
  • Dry Ingredients – Use a whisk to sift together the both flours, pudding mix, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.
  • Creamed Ingredients – Cream together the softened butter, sugar and vanilla until pale yellow and fluffy. Around 3 minutes.
  • Eggs – Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition.
  • Combine- Add the sifted dry ingredients to the creamed mixture alternately with the buttermilk. Beat until fully combined. Stop to scrape the side of the bowl and the beater as needed.
  • Mix-ins – By hand, mix in milk chocolate chips, toasted walnuts and cubed banana into the batter.
  • Transfer to Pan – Spray a standard 12-14 cup bundt pan with baking spray, then spread the thick batter into the pan.
  • Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a tester inserted into the center comes back clean.
  • Cool in the pan then remove to a cooling rack.
  • Chocolate Glaze – Melt together chocolate chips and heavy cream in a microwave safe bowl until completely smooth.
  • Drizzle glaze over cooled cake and sprinkle the top with reserved toasted walnuts.
Chunky Monkey Banana Cake

How to Make the Best Chunky Monkey Banana Cake

  • Ingredients you’ll need to make homemade Chunky Monkey Banana Cake: All purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, granulated sugar, cubed banana, one box instant banana cream pudding mix, buttermilk, butter, large eggs, milk chocolate baking chips for both the cake and the glaze, chopped walnuts heavy cream and vanilla extract.
  • Kitchen tools you’ll need: A stand mixer or a hand mixer, large bowl, medium bowl, small microwave safe bowl for making the glaze, a whisk, measuring cups and spoons, a 12-14 cup Bunt pan, rubber spatula, cooling rack and nut chopper or sharp knife and cutting board.
  • You can use all purpose flour in place of cake flour, if you prefer. Cake flour adds to the tender crumb, but rest assured this cake will be delicious when made with all purpose flour alone. No other adjustments are needed.
  • I have used a whisk for sifting together the dry ingredients for cakes, biscuits, cookies, breading mixes and beyond for years. It works like a charm.
  • It’s well worth the small amount of effort that it takes to toast the walnuts prior to adding to the cake batter. How do you roast walnuts? Spread then in a single layer on a sheet pan then place into a 350°F oven for 6-8 minutes. Roast until lightly golden and fragrant then cool completely before adding to the batter.
  • Store baked Chunky Monkey Banana Cake chilled in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
  • You can freeze this cake for up to 2 months.
Chunky Monkey Banana Cake

More Banana Desserts to Make

Over ripe bananas are a gift just begging to be turned into something delicious. Just like the ice cream this cake that will have you smiling from the inside out! More banana desserts you may also like to try:

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Chunky Monkey Banana Cake

Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time55 minutes
Cooling Time3 hours
Total Time1 hour 15 minutes
Course: Cake, Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: banana-bundt-cake, banana-cake-recipes, chunky-monkey-banana-cake, chunky-monkey-cake
Servings: 16 pieces
Calories: 516kcal
Author: Melissa Sperka

Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 cup chopped walnuts toasted & divided
  • 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 cup cake flour
  • 1 3.4 oz box instant banana cream pudding mix
  • 1 Tbsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 cup softened butter 2 sticks
  • 1 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 tsp pure vanilla
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 1/4 cup buttermilk
  • 1 1/4 cup milk chocolate chips
  • 1 cup cubed banana
  • Glaze:
  • 3/4 cup milk chocolate chips
  • 3 Tbsp heavy cream

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spread the walnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Toast for 6-8 minutes, then cool completely.
  • Sift together the both flours, pudding mix, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer cream together the softened butter, sugar and vanilla until pale yellow and fluffy. Around 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed.
  • To the bowl add the sifted dry ingredients to the creamed mixture alternately with the buttermilk.
  • After all of the ingredients have been added increase the mixer speed and beat for 1 minute or just until fully combined. Stop to scrape the side of the bowl and the beater as needed.
  • By hand, mix in 1 1/4 cup milk chocolate chips, 1 1/2 cup toasted walnuts and cubed banana into the batter.
  • Spray a standard 12-14 cup bundt pan with baking spray, then spread the thick batter into the pan.
  • Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center comes back clean.
  • Cover the top with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning, if needed. Cool completely in the pan then invert onto a cake plate.
  • Milk Chocolate Drizzle: Melt together 3/4 cup chocolate chips and heavy cream in a microwave safe bowl. Heat in 20 second increments stopping to stir each time. Repeat process until completely smooth.
  • Drizzle glaze over cooled cake and sprinkle the top with reserved toasted walnuts.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 516kcal | Carbohydrates: 60g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 28g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 295mg | Potassium: 240mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 39g | Vitamin A: 698IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 109mg | Iron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @melissassk or tag #melissassk!

9 Comments

  1. I want to make this cake but can’t find my Bundt pan – can I make it with a regular cake pan? Without changing ingredients?

  2. This cake sounds fabulous and I def want to try his soon. One thing that I was taught by ny Mom when I was learing to bake in my early teens was when adding things like nuts, raisins, dried fruits, chocolate chips, etc was to lightly dust them with some of the dry ingredients called for in the recipe – This was to prevent them from “sinking” to the bottom of the cake and insure they were evenly distributed throughout the cake during baking – This is just what my Mom shared with me, thought I would pass it on

  3. I baked your cake in my standard bundt pan but the pan was a lot fuller then shown in the photo. my cake baked oer and fell in the middle. Could you have mistaken the amount of Baking Powder??

    1. Hi Wendy, 3 tsp or 1 Tbsp of baking powder is correct. However, if your pan was full before baking it sounds like perhaps you added something extra by mistake? The baking powder would have nothing to do with how it fit in the pan initially for sure. I have never had this cake bake over, but if the amount of flour was increased it would be too much.

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