Zucchini Banana Cake with Maple Frosting
Zucchini Banana Cake with Maple Frosting tastes like a giant maple bar! Bake the moist cake ahead or freeze; frost before serving! Delicious!
Calling all banana cake lovers! If you love the moistness of banana bread and zucchini bread or cake, then you’ll love this Zucchini Banana Cake with Maple Frosting combination today!
Zucchini Banana Cake with Maple Frosting
And the frosting? Well, it’s pretty amazing, I must say.
Here’s what you need to make this Zucchini Banana Cake:
- Flour (you can use all purpose or whole wheat)
- Baking powder + baking soda + salt
- Cinnamon + cardamom (this really makes the cake delicious, so don’t skip it)
- Ripe bananas
- Granulated sugar, light brown sugar + turbinado sugar (optional, if you frost the cake)
- Eggs
- Sour cream
- Vegetable oil
- Vanilla extract
- Zucchini
You need a good hour to bake the cake, and then let it cool before frosting it.
Best Maple Frosting EVER
Ingredients for maple frosting:
- Packed brown sugar
- Butter + 2% milk
- Maple extract
- Confectioners’ sugar (powdered sugar)
Friends, when life gets hard, what keeps you focused?
For me, reading and devotions and meditation and music.
Walks, and being with my family and friends.
Nature for sure.
And then, baking or cooking in my kitchen.
Who says no to a good bite of cake? :)
Moist, delicious fall cake
This cake IS a fall cake. You can even bake the cake and freeze half, and frost each half before serving!
The kitchen has played a pivotal role for me in all seasons of life, including so much as a young girl.
Not only through the four seasons we all know and love, but also when times get rough.
When my father-in-law passed away, my aunt and uncle brought over a pie.
How many cakes have I taken to a family in need? Many many.
Or how many special desserts have we made for dinner guests?
Food binds and anchors us to one another. I love to turn my oven on, now that the mornings are nice and cool.
What about you? What does baking do for your soul?
More zucchini recipes
Zucchini Cheese Enchiladas Verde

Get the Recipe:
Zucchini Banana Cake with Maple Frosting
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, but you can also use whole wheat flour
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp cardamom
- 3 large ripe bananas mashed
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ⅔ cup vegetable oil
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cup shredded zucchini, leave skin on
- 3 Tbsp turbinado sugar, optional
Maple Frosting
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- ½ cup butter, cubed
- ¼ cup 2% milk
- 1 tsp maple extract
- 2 cups confectioners’ sugar, + more, if needed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x13 pan and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cardamom, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the mashed bananas, granulated sugar, brown sugar, egg, sour cream, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Using stand mixer, mix until well combined for 1-2 minutes. Add in the flour mixture and mix for 1-2 more minutes.
- Place the zucchini on a paper towel and squeeze the liquid out of it; add it to the batter.
- Pour the batter into cake pan. Sprinkle top with turbinado sugar (optional, especially if you choose to add frosting). Bake for 45-50 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean when placed in the center. Cool on a wire rack for 20-30 minutes before frosting.
- For frosting, combine brown sugar, butter and milk in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook and stir until thickened, 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in maple extract. Cool to lukewarm.
- Gradually beat in confectioners’ sugar until frosting reaches spreading consistency. Frost the cake.
- Store the cake covered with plastic wrap on the counter for up to 3 days. The cake also freezes well; freeze before frosting. Completely defrost before frosting.
Do you think you could freeze this cake? with the icing, or no?
Yes, you can freeze it. I would not add the frosting until ready to serve.
Cake was very good but 30 minutes is no where near long enough baking time. I left in for 45 minutes and it could of used another 10-15 minutes as the center was still not set. I bake a lot so i dont think its an oven issue
Thanks! Everyone oven is different. That’s why we always check with the toothpick :) I added a bit extra time :)
This was soooo good! Super moist and flavorful. It doesn’t need the frosting, but that sure is good. Quite sweet but great with coffee. I’ll be making it again.
What is a good non dairy substitute for the sour cream?
I’ve never tried this, but you can buy non-dairy Greek yogurt!