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4.72 from 7 reviews

Banana bread lovers have to try this banana cake with oil! This light and fluffy banana cake is covered in my favorite chocolate frosting, made in one bowl, and you don’t even need a mixer to make the cake.

banana cake cut into square slices with chocolate frosting on top. One slice of cake is facing upwards.

If you’ve got overripe bananas on your kitchen counter, then you have to try this banana cake with chocolate frosting! It’s an easy one layer cake that can serve a crowd too. Sometimes I also like to pair it with a peanut butter cream cheese frosting.

This moist banana cake recipe is made with oil instead of butter which means it stays soft for days! I tested the cake with butter as well and found the version without butter resulted in the perfect fluffy texture.

Featured Reader Review

5 stars

“I appreciate your simple and delicious recipe. It’s a great way to use up overripe bananas. While I didn’t make the frosting, the cake itself is delicious (i just did a very basic cream cheese concoction/icing lol). Anyway, lovely recipe and I’ll make it again! Props for not needing a LB of butter too 😉” 

Jtine
Read more reviews

Ingredient Notes

Ingredients to make banana cake in small bowls on a grey countertop.
Banana Cake Ingredients
Ingredients to make chocolate frosting in small bowls on a wooden countertop.
Chocolate Frosting Ingredients
  • Oil: you’ll want to use a neutral oil like grapeseed, sunflower, or canola oil. You can use olive oil in a pinch but the cake will have a slight olive oil flavor.
  • Butter: now, this is a banana cake without butter, but we’ll need butter for the frosting! You can use regular butter or dairy free butter, the recipe has been tested both ways!
  • Milk: you can use regular milk or dairy free milk. 

How To Make This Cake

butter and eggs mixed in a large white bowl on a wooden counter.

Combine wet ingredients in a large bowl.

wet ingredients for banana cake in a white mixing bowl on a wooden countertop.

Add mashed bananas, then dry ingredients!

cake batter in a large cake pan before baking.

Bake!

Frosted banana cake on a piece of parchment paper, sitting on top of a gold cooling rack.

Frost the cake and dig in!

banana cake frosted and sliced into square pieces on parchment paper, with one slice of cake turned upwards.

Recipe Developer Expert Tip

  • Too much flour will dry out the cake, so I always recommend a kitchen scale for the most accurate measurements.
  • Be careful not to over-mix your cake batter too much – over-mixing will make the cake texture dense or tough!

More Banana Recipes You’ll Love

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Banana Mug Cake
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Peanut Butter Banana Cake
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Chocolate Chip Banana Bars
Banana Bread Chocolate Chip Cookies on a baking sheet

Banana Bread Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you make this recipe, let me know how it went in the comments below, I’d love to hear from you! You can also tag me on Instagram or Facebook so I can check it out!

Baking FAQ

These are the topics I’m asked about most frequently:

You can get these answers and more in my frequently asked questions post!

banana cake with oil cut into square slices with chocolate frosting on top
4.72 from 7 reviews

Easy Banana Cake with Oil

Gabby Kislanko
Banana bread lovers have to try this banana cake with oil! This banana cake is covered in my favorite chocolate frosting, and you don’t even need a mixer to make the cake. Plus, you can easily make it dairy-free so it’s perfect for those with food allergies!
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Bake: 20 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Servings: 18 slices
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Ingredients
 

Banana Cake

  • ½ cup (106 ml) neutral oil, (like sunflower, canola, or grapeseed)
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 cup (465 g) ripe mashed bananas (3-4 ripe bananas)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ¾ cup (150 g) granulated white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 2 cup (250 g) all-purpose flour

Chocolate Frosting (optional)

  • 1 cup butter, softened, (regular or dairy free)
  • ¾ cup (65 g) cocoa powder
  • 2-2½ cup (240 g) icing sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 Tablespoons milk, if needed, (regular or dairy free)

Instructions
 

Banana Cake with Oil

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×13 pan or line it with parchment paper.
  • In a large bowl, add oil, eggs, and vanilla. Whisk in the white sugar.
  • Mash the bananas with a fork to remove large clumps. Mix it in with the other liquid ingredients.
  • Add in the flour, salt, and baking soda.
  • Pour the batter into the pan and smooth it out evenly.
  • Bake for 17-23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely before frosting.

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

  • Make the buttercream. In the bowl of a standing mixer or handheld mixer, beat butter, vanilla extract, and cocoa powder until smooth.
  • Slowly add in ¼ cup of powdered sugar at a time until it reaches your desired consistency.
  • If the buttercream is too thick, you can add ½ tablespoon of milk in at a time, thinning it out as much as you'd like. If buttercream is too thin, add in more powdered sugar ¼ cup at a time.
  • Once the cake has cooled completely, frost and enjoy!

Equipment

Whisk
9x13 baking pan
9×13 baking pan

Notes

Flour: It is very important that you measure your flour properly! The right way to measure your flour is to weigh it using a kitchen scale, or use the scoop and level method.
Alternative Frosting Options: cream cheese frosting or vanilla buttercream are both delicious options for this cake!
Storage and Freezing Instructions:
Store in an airtight container at cool room temperature for up to 3 days. Freeze for up to 3 months by placing in a Ziploc bag. Thaw at room temp or heat one at a time in the microwave before serving. 
Calories: 307kcal, Carbohydrates: 42g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 8g, Trans Fat: 0.1g, Cholesterol: 18mg, Sodium: 215mg, Potassium: 141mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 27g, Vitamin A: 517IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 11mg, Iron: 1mg
Did you make this recipe?Please let us know by leaving a star rating and review!

The calorie information provided for this recipe is an estimate. The accuracy of the calories listed is not guaranteed.