My Banana Crumb Coffee Cake with Pecans and Chocolate Chips is a deliciously moist banana cake loaded with pecans and chocolate chips. It’s easy to make and the perfect sweet treat for breakfast, brunch or dessert.
I’m not sure about your house, but it doesn’t matter how many bananas I buy, at the end of the week, I always have a few leftover overripe bananas. My Banana Coffee Cake Recipe is a great way to use up those bananas and a nice change from making your favorite banana bread recipe.
Think of my banana crumb coffee cake as a cross between banana bread and cinnamon coffee cake.
Moist and tender, topped with a crunchy sweet crumb topping, my banana crumb cake is one of my favorite banana recipes, and I’m sure it will be one of your favorites too!
Ingredients to make Banana Crumb Coffe Cake
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make a Banana Crumb Coffee Cake. In Chef Speak, this is called the “Mise en Place,” which translates to “Everything in its Place.”
Not only does setting your ingredients up ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
How to make Banana Crumb Coffee Cake
Grease and flour a 10-inch springform pan.
- Mix all the dry ingredients together in one bowl.
- In a separate bowl, lightly beat the eggs.
- Add the Greek yogurt and oil to the eggs.
- Mix all the wet ingredients together until well blended.
- Mash the bananas to a puree consistency.
- Add the mashed bananas to the wet ingredients.
- Stir until well blended.
- Add the banana mixture to the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
*Use overripe bananas to get the best banana flavor.
- Mix the ingredients together, just enough to blend. Don’t overmix!
- Add the pecans and chocolate chips to the batter.
- Fold in the pecans and chocolate chips into the batter. Again, don’t overmix.
- Pour cake batter into a prepared pan.
I like using a springform pan because it’s easier to get the cake out. But you can also use regular cake pans lined with parchment paper to make this banana cake.
Do I have to use chocolate chips and pecans?
No, you do not. You can make the banana cake without the extra ingredients, or you can swap them out for other types of chips, raisins, craisins, or other dried fruit.
How to a Crumb Topping
- Add the flour, sugar, and cinnamon to a large mixing bowl and blend the ingredients together.
- Add the softened butter to the flour mixture. (softened butter makes a better crumb layer than melted butter)
- Work the butter into the crumb ingredients until you get a crumb consistency.
- Add the crumb topping to the top of the cake batter.
*I use unsalted butter for all my baking.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 C)
- Place the cake on the center rack and bake for 25-30 minutes.
- Allow the cake to cool for 5 minutes, then carefully remove the outside of the springform pan.
- Let the cake cool for an additional 20 minutes or longer before serving.
Anytime you get to enjoy a baked treat warm from the oven, it’s a good day. And my Banana Crumb Cake is guaranteed to bring smiles to your table. You might even start buying extra bananas, so you have an excuse to make this cake!
Store any leftover cake in an airtight container.
Recipe FAQ’s:
The cakes are very similar. The major difference is the amount of crumb/streusel topping. Coffee cake has less streusel topping and more cake, while a crumb cake has a thicker and chunkier layer of streusel on top.
There are actually a few reasons your cake turned out dry. The usual reason is baking too long or at too high a temperature The other reason is using the wrong ingredients or making mistakes while mixing the batter. Changing the amounts of ingredients or specific ingredients can lead to a dry cake.
Try adding a little milk to the crumble if it seems to dry. If you have time to put it in the refrigerator for 15 minutes, this will also help the texture of the crumble.
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Banana Crumb Coffee Cake
Equipment
- springform pan 9 or 10 inch
Ingredients
Banana Cake
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup Greek yogurt vanilla or plain
- ½ cup oil
- 2 large eggs
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla powder or extract
- 3-4 medium ripe bananas mashed very well
- 1 cup chocolate chips or chips of your choice
- 1 cup pecan pieces or walnuts. May be left out if allergic
Crumb Topping
- ¾ cup flour Any type of flour can be used for the crumble
- ¾ cup sugar Demara sugar is the best choice if available. If not white sugar works.
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoon butter softened slightly not mushy
- 1 tablespoon milk *only if crumble is too dry
Instructions
Banana Cake
- Grease and flour the springform pan, set aside until needed.
- Mix all your dry ingredients together in one bowl.
- Lightly beat the eggs and add in the Greek yogurt, and oil
- Mix all these ingredients until well blended.
- Mash bananas to a puree consistency and mix into wet ingredients
- Add wet mixture to dry mixture and mix just enough to blend.
- Now fold in the pecans and chocolate chips. (do not overmix)
- Pour cake batter into a prepared 9 or 10 inch springform pan.
Crumb Topping
- Mix flour, sugar and cinnamon together
- Work in softened butter to a crumb consistency
- *If mixture appears to dry or not crumbly enough add in the milk. If you add the milk let the crumb topping sit in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm up.
- Top cake with crumb mixture and place on the center rack of the oven.
- Bake at 375 degrees F (190 C) for 25-30 minutes.
- Allow Cake to cool for 5 minutes then carefully remove the outside of the springform pan.
- Allow cake to cool for at least 20 minutes before serving.
Shelley says
Hi
Grease and flour the pan?
Chef Dennis Littley says
yes, thanks for catching that it wasn’t included in the instructions.
OLINE says
Yummy l will definitely try it. Tnx chef
Jade says
I send care packages to Florida. I’d like to include this cake. Can you freeze?
Chef Dennis Littley says
It will feeze well.
Holly says
I don’t have a springform pan. Can I use something else? What size? Thanks!
Chef Dennis Littley says
hi Holly
your best substitution would be a 10 inch bundt pan or tube pan.
You can also make it in a 10 inch cake round if you have one. If not the other option is a 9×9 baking pan and you’ll just have some batter left over to make into cupcakes.
Janice says
OMG – guess what I’m going to try making this weekend? Thanks for posting this irrestible-looking dessert!
Chef Dennis Littley says
you’re very welcome Janice, I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!
Bake says
It looks so tasty, thanks for sharing 🙂
Sandra Garth says
This is a great way to start the morning and end the night!
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thanks Sandra! I’m wishing I had a few slices right now
vicky says
it’s my number one!!!
Yolande says
Awesome….Sunday evening dessert!!
Carol | a cup of mascarpone says
I have to say that crumb cakes are probably one of my most favorite morning sweets…and this one looks and sounds absolutely heavenly!
Jeanette says
I just made a gluten-free version of this for my family this afternoon (“snack cake”) as I had lots of ripe bananas I wanted to use up – it was a huge hit – one of the boys simply said “that was amazing!” Thanks for sharing this – I did not have Cinnamon Pecans, but since I used almond flour as part of the gluten-free flour, I got the nuts into this recipe.