I met this super nice couple from the United states this summer. They were here in Iceland to get married so we talked cake 😉 They told me that they were planing on a wedding cake with three different flavors, one of them being Hummingbird cake which I (shamefully) had never heard of. My understanding is that the recipe for the cake originally came from Jamaica and later on traveled to the United states and got quite popular in the south.
The cake it self is packed with bananas, pineapple and nuts (pecans or walnuts) and infused with vanilla and cinnamon. It is super moist and loves to be covered in delicious cream cheese frosting. Yummy!
Although the recipe for the cake originates in a fairly hot climate I always think of fall when I bake it. It must be the cinnamon for it always reminds me of christmas. 
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3 large eggs
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup applesauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple, undrained
- 1 cup chopped pecans (or walnuts)
- 1/2 cup pecans for decorating the cake
- 3 medium size ripe bananas, chopped
Method:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour three 8 inch round baking pans or two 9 inch round pans.
Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; add eggs, oil and applesauce, stirring until dry ingredients are moistened. (Do not beat.) Stir in vanilla, pineapple, 1 cup chopped pecans, and bananas.
Divide the batter evenly between the cake pans and bake for 35 – 45 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool in pans on wire racks for 5 minutes; remove from pans, and cool completely ( still on the wire racks).
Cream cheese frosting – recipe:
- 7 oz cream cheese (I use Philadelphia) – room temperature
- 7 oz soft butter
- 1 pound icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Method:
- Place the butter, icing sugar and the vanilla in a mixing bowl and cream together until very pale and fluffy ( about 5 minutes)
- Add the cream cheese, a little at a time, to the butter mixture and mix at medium-high speed until the frosting is combined.
Here you can find the recipe for the caramel sauce that I drizzled over the cake.
Enjoy!
