Banana, Vanilla, Rhubarb and Salted Caramel Cake

I made this cake for my friends today! the base is a plain banana cake (best and easiest banana cake recipe you will ever ever ever try in your life) then I iced it with a vanilla cream cheese icing and topped it with stewed rhubarb and salted caramel sauce.

Best Banana Cake

1 ¼ cups self-raising flour

½ tsp baking soda

½ cups caster sugar

2 eggs

2 mashed bananas

½ cups oil  (I used canola)

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Pre heat oven to 180deg. Grease and line 2 15 cm small round cake tins.

Sift flour & baking soda into a bowl. Make well in the centre & stir in the sugar, eggs, banana, vanilla & oil. Mix gently into a smooth batter.

Pour into the prepared tin and bake for approximately 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

If your cake are really raised on top, you cut slice the tops of the cake off so you have a flat surface.

Cream cheese icing

50g softened butter

300g icing sugar

100g cream cheese

1 tbsp unsweetened thick greek yogurt

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

Beat the butter and icing sugar together until all the butter is broken up and there are no big lumps. Add the cream cheese and beat until all combined and a thick icing forms. Add the yogurt and vanilla and beat until smooth and fluffy (about 4 minutes).

Caramel Sauce

3/4 cup sugar

2 tbsp golden syrup

3 tbsp. unsalted butter

1/4 cup heavy cream

pinch flaky sea salt

Place sugar, golden syrup and 1 1/2 tsp. water in a small saucepan. Cook the sugar mixture over medium heat without stirring. With a pastry brush and some water, rinse off any sugar crystals that may for on the sides of the pan.

Gently swirl the pot as the sugar melts, but don’t stir (that could crystallize the sugar again).

Once the caramel is darker in colour and smells like caramelized sugar, removed from heat and stir in the butter. Whisk in the cream and salt and chill in the fridge.

The caramel will thicken as it cools.

To Finish

Stewed Rhubarb (strain though a sieve to remove most of the juice so the cake doesn't get soggy, keep the juice though as it is good to make drinks with!)

Toppings of your choice (I used chopped pistachios, edible flowers and freeze dried raspberries)

Place the first cake on a cake stand. Spread on about 1/3 cup of icing. Arrange on some of the stewed rhubarb and drizzle over a few tablespoons of caramel sauce. Place the second cake on top and spread over another 1,3 cup of the icing (you will have a fair amount of icing left over). Drizzle over a few tablespoons of the caramel and top with a little more stewed rhubarb. Sprinkle chopped pistachios around the rim of the cake and arrange edible flowers and freeze-dried raspberries in the middle.