Banana Butterscotch Cake

When I saw Maria's post for this cake on her blog, Two Peas and Their Pod, I thought it was an interesting idea. No butter or oil added? Brilliant! And healthy! But how would it taste? Well, it is safe to say that it is DELICIOUS. I brought a few pieces to work to share with some friends and I have been *cough* harassed *cough* by certain people at work to post right away!

So here it is. Maria uses cinnamon chips in hers but I couldn't find them in my sub-par grocery store so I decided to use butterscotch chips instead. They added a nice touch to the already moist, dense banana cake that resulted from this great recipe. The cinnamon-sugar topping really adds a nice touch too, so don't skip that!

Banana Butterscotch Cake

slightly adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod

Makes an 8 x 8 cake

3 very ripe bananas

2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup cinnamon or butterscotch chips

For topping:

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat an 8 x 8 baking dish with cooking spray (preferably with flour in it).

In a medium mixing bowl, mash the bananas well with a fork or potato masher. Add in the eggs and vanilla and mix until combined. Gently fold in the sugar.

Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and cinnamon in a small mixing bowl. Add to the banana mixture and mix until combined. Add 3/4 cup of the cinnamon chips, and stir briefly. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and set aside.

In a small bowl, stir together the topping ingredients. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the batter in the pan, and top with the remaining 1/4 cup chips.

Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes before serving.