Hummingbird Cake
intro
Moist, spiced Southern layer cake loaded with ripe banana, crushed pineapple, and toasted pecans, slathered in tangy, fluffy cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients
Steps
Prep oven and toast pecans
Preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F). Spread 120g chopped pecans on a small rimmed baking sheet and toast for 5-7 minutes until fragrant and lightly golden, then set aside to cool. Grease three 9-inch round cake pans with butter or nonstick spray, line the bottom of each with a circle of parchment paper to prevent sticking, and set pans aside.
Whisk dry ingredients
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together 360g all-purpose flour, 400g granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and 1/2 teaspoon table salt for 30 seconds until fully combined, with no visible clumps of spice or leavening.
Fold cake batter
Add 340g mashed ripe banana, 227g undrained crushed pineapple, 180ml vegetable oil, 3 room-temperature large eggs, 2 teaspoons of the vanilla extract, and 90g (3/4 cup) of the cooled toasted pecans to the dry ingredient bowl. Stir gently with a rubber spatula just until no dry flour streaks remain, about 45 seconds—do not overmix, as this will create a tough, dense cake.
Bake cake layers
Divide the batter evenly between the three prepared pans (roughly 430g of batter per pan for level layers). Bake on the middle oven rack for 25-28 minutes, testing doneness by inserting a wooden toothpick into the center: it should come out with 1-2 moist crumbs attached, no wet batter. Let layers cool in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely to room temperature (about 1 hour) before frosting.
Make cream cheese frosting
Using a stand mixer or electric hand mixer on medium speed, beat 452g softened full-fat cream cheese and 113g softened unsalted butter for 2 minutes until completely smooth and fluffy, scraping down the bowl sides once halfway through. Reduce speed to low, slowly add 480g sifted powdered sugar and the remaining 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, then increase speed to medium-high and beat for 1 minute until light and spreadable—do not overbeat, as this will cause runny frosting.
Assemble and frost cake
Set one cooled cake layer on a cake stand or serving plate, spread 3/4 cup (about 180g) of frosting evenly across the top. Add the second cake layer, spread another 3/4 cup of frosting over it, then top with the final cake layer. Use the remaining frosting to spread a thin, even coat over the top and sides of the cake (a semi-naked finish is traditional). Press the remaining 30g (1/4 cup) of toasted pecans along the bottom edge of the cake for garnish.
Tips
2.Wait until cake layers are fully cooled to room temperature before frosting; even slightly warm layers will melt the cream cheese frosting, causing it to slide off the cake.
3.Use heavily spotty, very ripe bananas for the deepest, sweetest banana flavor; firm, underripe bananas with green tips will result in a bland, starchy cake.
OMG y’all, I made this for our church potluck last Sunday and people were begging for the recipe before we even got to dessert! The cream cheese frosting is perfectly tangy to cut the sweetness from the banana and pineapple, and I added a handful of toasted pecans on top like my grandma used to. SO good, even my picky teen asked for a second slice!
This was my first time making a hummingbird cake ever and I was so nervous it would turn out dry! I followed the recipe exactly, baked it for the full 70 minutes, and it came out so moist and flavorful. My husband said it’s better than the one we got at that fancy bakery in St. Louis last month. Only note: I drained the pineapple a little extra so the layers wouldn’t get soggy, would definitely recommend!
I swapped the all-purpose flour for a 1:1 gluten free baking blend and it worked like a charm! Didn’t change a single other thing and my whole book club devoured it at our last meeting. The spice level is spot on, not too much cinnamon, just warm and cozy. 10/10 will be making this for Easter dinner this year.
Wait, has anyone tried making this as cupcakes instead of a layer cake? My kid’s class is having a bake sale next week and I feel like cupcakes would be way easier to pass out than slicing a whole cake. Worried the cook time will be off though!
Game changer! I used to make my hummingbird cake with crushed walnuts instead of pecans because that’s what my mom did, but I followed this recipe to a T and the pecans are way better paired with the banana and pineapple. Frosting is not too sweet, which I love—so many cream cheese frostings taste like straight powdered sugar these days. Brought it to a work potluck and zero leftovers, as expected.
I made this for my partner’s birthday and he said it’s the best cake I’ve ever made for him! I added a little drizzle of salted caramel on top of the frosting for extra decadence and it paired so well. The medium difficulty rating is totally fair—my layers stuck a little to the pans the first go round so make sure you grease AND flour those pans really well, folks.
Help! I made the frosting last night and it was super runny? Did I do something wrong? I used full fat cream cheese like the recipe said, but it was so soft it slid right off the cake layers. I had to stick it in the fridge for an hour before I could get it to stay put. Tasted amazing but the texture was off for me.
This cake is so perfect for summer cookouts! I made it for our Fourth of July BBQ last weekend and everyone kept going back for more. I added a handful of shredded coconut to the batter because I love coconut in tropical-adjacent cakes and it was chef’s kiss. Will absolutely be adding this to my regular baking rotation.
I baked the cake layers on Sunday, wrapped them tight in plastic wrap, and kept them in the freezer until I was ready to frost them on Wednesday for my sister’s baby shower. Worked perfectly! No weird texture change, they were just as moist as if I baked them that day. Total game changer for when you have a busy week and don’t have time to do all the baking day of. Everyone raved about how moist it was!
Y’all, I was skeptical about the banana in a hummingbird cake because I hate banana bread texture, but you can’t even really tell it’s there! It just adds moisture and that little hint of sweetness that pairs so good with the pineapple and cinnamon. My kids loved it, even the one who swears he hates all fruit in desserts. Total win for this mom!
I’ve been making hummingbird cake for 40 years and this recipe is hands down the best one I’ve ever tried! Most recipes skimp on the pineapple or use way too much cinnamon, but this one is perfectly balanced. I brought it to my senior center potluck and all my friends asked for the recipe, I told them it was from this site! Only thing I did different was add a little extra cream cheese to the frosting because I’m a frosting fiend.