Glazed Banana Zucchini Cake — With sweet vanilla pudding mix, ripe bananas, and grated zucchini, this cake is fall-apart soft and tender. It’s a snap to make with just a whisk, one bowl, and is ready to be baked in just minutes!
Best Ever Banana and Zucchini Cake
It seems that I either have no ripe bananas on hand or I have more than I know what to do with.
I made this cake because it was one of those times I could have fed all the monkeys in the zoo because I had so many. I also had a little zucchini in the crisper drawer that needed to be used before it turned into a limp noodle.
I decided using zucchini in cake sounded better than just, you know, slicing it on top of a salad.
The cake turned out to be falling-apart-soft, tender, and moist.
I cannot stand dry cake and between the stick of melted butter, the soft bananas, the high moisture content in zucchini, and the six ounces of Greek yogurt added to the batter, this little cake was as moist as they come.
And it is just a little cake, baked in a 9-by-9 inch pan. Although having too much cake laying around isn’t the worst problem in the world, I prefer smaller cakes since they’re eaten and finished up while still at their freshness peak.
Plus, variety is the spice of life and with large cakes, I’m ready for a change long before the cake is anywhere near finished, so I try to bake smaller cakes whenever possible.
I added one packet of dry instant vanilla pudding mix to the batter to turn this cake into a pudding cake. I just love the pudding cakes that are sold in grocery store bakeries and figured I could make my own and this cake turned out to be a close approximation, full of creamy and sweet vanilla pudding notes.
When it comes to banana cake, I prefer denser as opposed to light and airy, and bewteen the mashed bananas, the Greek yogurt, and the pudding, this golden nugget is definitely dense. I wouldn’t call it a lead balloon, but it’s not a fluffy angel food, that’s for sure. It’s a pudding cake.
I could have made it lighter by adding baking powder, but purposely did not because I wanted the crumb to remain more compact and wet, as opposed to drier and lighter. I find that as much as baking powder leavens, it also dries out whatever it’s added to and I don’t prefer that result.
Instead, I added just enough baking soda to get the job done, omitted baking powder entirely, and my strategy paid off because I got what I wanted in the form of a melt-in-your-mouth, rich, pudding cake.
The flavor of the cake is definitely one of banana, rather than zucchini. Zucchini is so flavor-neutral, otherwise known as bland, and is masked or takes a backseat to whatever other ingredients and flavors are present.
On the opposite end of the scale, bananas tend to dominate the flavor profile whenever they’re present, and they dominated this cake.
Likely due to the stick of melted butter in the batter, as I was shoveling forkfuls of this cake into my mouth, I couldn’t help but think it tasted like a banana-butter cake or a banana-based rendition of a yellow cake-mix cake, with the familiar sponginess and springiness that yellow cake-mix cakes have.
Sticking with a butter theme, I glazed the cake with a browned butter glaze that complemented the sweet bananas and pudding beautifully. If you’ve never had or cooked with browned butter, you need to board this butter train.
Browned butter adds a depth of flavor, nuttiness, boldness, and an intensity and richness to everything it touches. It brings out everything that’s good and right with butter to begin with. You can do it on the stovetop but I brown butter in the microwave and it’s a piece of cake. Pun intended.
If there’s one way to make fruits and vegetables taste decadent, a browned butter glaze on top of a slice of this cake is how. Just think about all the servings of fruit and vegetables you’ll be working into your diet by way of cake!
Banana Zucchini Cake Ingredients
For this easy zucchini banana cake recipe, you’ll need:
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Light brown sugar
- Egg
- Greek yogurt
- Vanilla extract
- Bananas
- Zucchini
- Instant vanilla pudding mix
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Mini chocolate chips (optional)
- Confectioners’ sugar
- Cream or milk
How to Make Banana Zucchini Cake
This is such a simple zucchini dessert to make! Here’s a look at how the cake comes together:
- In a large microwave-safe mixing bowl, melt the butter.
- To the melted butter, add the sugars, egg, yogurt, vanilla, and whisk to combine.
- Add the bananas, zucchini, and stir to incorporate.
- Add the dry pudding mix and stir to incorporate.
- Add the flour, baking soda, salt, and stir until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
- Pour the batter into a foil-lined 9×9-inch pan and bake until the top is set and golden, the center is not jiggly, and edges have pulled away slightly from sides of the pan.
- Allow cake to cool in pan for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving.
- While cake cools, make the glaze. Glaze just before serving!
Can This Recipe Be Doubled?
Yes! Simply double the ingredients list and bake the cake in a 9×13-inch pan.
Can I Use Cook and Stir Pudding Mix?
No! You must use instant vanilla pudding mix. Add it to the batter like a dry ingredient, do NOT actually make pudding with it.
Do I Need to Wring the Excess Moisture from the Zucchini?
I didn’t wring the shredded zucchini between kitchen towels to remove the excess moisture, but if your zucchini appears to be too wet you can certainly do so.
Can I Add Different Mix-Ins?
Of course! I added mini chocolate chips, but a different baking chip, chopped nuts, or dried fruit could all be used instead.
Tips for Making a Banana Zucchini Cake
I added just one-half cup of mini chocolate chips to the cake batter and I used mini chips because they sink less easily to the bottom of the cake than regular sized-chocolate chips do, but regular-sized chocolate chips will work just fine.
I didn’t want to overwhelm the cake with chocolate so kept it at a modest half cup of chocolate chips. I wanted it pudding-laden, buttery, and banana-ey more so than chocolaty. There’s just a enough to chocolate to complement the bananas.
However, you’re welcome to add more chocolate chips if desired.
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Glazed Banana Zucchini Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted (one stick)
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 large egg
- 6 ounces vanilla or plain Greek yogurt (one standard-sized small container, about 3/4 cup; sour cream may be substituted; I use Chobani Vanilla Chocolate Chunk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 to 1 ¼ cups mashed ripe bananas, about 1 1/2 large or 2 small bananas
- 1 cup coarsely grated zucchini, 1 small zucchini
- one 3.4-ounce box instant vanilla pudding
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt, optional and to taste
- ½ cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips, regular-sized chips may be substituted, optional
For the Vanilla Browned Butter Glaze
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, half of one stick
- 1 cup+ confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoons+ cream or milk, optional and to taste
Instructions
For the Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350F, line a 9-by-9-inch pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray or grease and flour the pan; set aside.
- In a large microwave-safe mixing bowl, melt the butter, about 1 minute.
- To the melted butter, add the sugars, egg, yogurt, vanilla, and whisk to combine.
- Add the bananas, zucchini, and stir to incorporate.
- Add the dry pudding mix and stir to incorporate (You are not making pudding; simply add the mix as a dry ingredient).
- Add the flour, baking soda, salt, and stir until just combined, taking care not to over-mix or cake will be tougher as the gluten will over-develop.
- Stir in the chocolate chips.
- Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for about 35 to 38 minutes, or until top is set and golden, the center is not jiggly, and edges have pulled away slightly from sides of the pan. A toothpick inserted in the center will likely not come out completely clean because this is a dense cake and both the gooey bananas and melted chocolate chips may prevent a clean toothpick test.
- Allow cake to cool in pan for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving. While cake cools, make the glaze.
For the Vanilla Browned Butter Glaze:
- Brown the butter in a small saucepan on the stovetop, heating over medium heat. Swirl the pan or stir frequently for about 4 to 7 minutes, or until the sputtering, crackling, and foaming has subsided, the butter has browned and has a nutty aroma. Watch it closely so that it doesn’t go from browned and nutty to burnt and inedible.
- Or, brown the butter in the microwave in a microwave-safe bowl by heating it on high power, uncovered, for 3 to 5 minutes, until the sputtering, crackling, and foaming has subsided, the butter has browned, and has a nutty aroma as outlined here. The same rules apply in the microwave as on the stovetop; watch it closely and start checking it approximately every 15 seconds starting at about the 3-minute mark, so that it doesn’t go from browned and nutty to burnt and inedible.
- Transfer hot butter to medium-sized mixing bowl and allow it to cool for about 5 minutes.
- Add the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and whisk to combine.
- Based on desired glaze consistency and taste preference, add the cream one tablespoon at a time, until desired consistency is reached, playing with sugar and cream ratios as necessary. (I only use butter, sugar, and vanilla in this glaze, no cream).
- Drizzle glaze over the top of cake before slicing and serving; or slice, serve, and glaze each piece individually. I use the glaze like butter and spread it liberally on the interior surface of a slice.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Easy Banana Cake Recipes:
Soft & Fluffy Strawberry Banana Cake— This cake is so soft, moist, fluffy! It’s packed with creamy bananas and sweet strawberries. It’s such a rich, flavorful cake!
Six-Banana Banana Chocolate Chip Cake — Yes, 6 bananas in 1 cake means it’s super SOFT, moist, and has robust banana flavor with chocolate chips in EVERY bite!! EASY and one bowl!
Upside-Down Banana Bread Cake — Don’t settle for making another loaf of plain banana bread when you can have caramelized banana slices on top of soft banana cake!! A decadent spin on banana bread!
Caramelized Banana Upside-Down Cake — This upside down cake is super moist thanks to the combination of sour cream, buttermilk, and vegetable oil. It’s so easy to make, and the caramelized banana flavor is impossible to resist!
Hummingbird Cake — A super SOFT and moist cake with bananas, pineapple, coconut, cream cheese frosting, and pecans!! Makes a huge cake that’ll feed a crowd!
Apple and Banana Bundt Cake – Apple cake meets banana bread with a to-die-for glaze! Best ever!
A moist cake and a glaze?! Love!
Broken record – but looks amazing! Love the green flecks in there too. I’ve had pudding cakes but never made one. Well maybe from a box. Didn’t one of the brands once upon a time include pudding in their mixes?
Yes and Pillsbury strawaberry cake mix still says on the box “with real pudding included inside” but when you open it, there’s not like a separate pudding mix with the cake mix. It’s all just one mix.
I have yet to bake with zucchini, but this recipe looks too scrumptious to pass up! (Definitely bookmarking.) And yes, 9 x 13-inch desserts start to get boring at the halfway point. :D
It adds almost zero flavor but adds full-on moisture and a touch of texture, which is a bonus. I think zucchini is so flavor neutral, that even if you ate it raw with your eyes closed, you may still not even know what it was. Lol
Thanks for the pin!
Too many bananas is one of my favorite problems to have! Also, I LOVE the idea of a smaller cake. I’m totally with you that I’m ready to switch it up far before the 9×13 pan is depleted. Dense, gooey, pudding, love. That’s what I see with this pan of yum! Thanks Averie.
Cake boredom definitely strikes me with 9 x 13 cakes and so love 8×8 or 9×9 cakes. Variety is the spice of life!
I always have so many bananas in the freezer! I never know what to do with all of them, you can only make so many loaves of banana bread, right?!
Exactly – “you can only make so many loaves of banana bread, right?!”. Even though I love it, I have to have versions on a theme!
I totally understand what you mean about having either no ripe bananas or too many. I am on the too many end of the spectrum! I’ve got way too many bananas in my freezer right now! Fortunately, now I have something to make with them – love the cake!
I start freezing them too but they usually end up in smoothies at that point. Good luck with your banana abundance right now! :)
Averie this cake looks exactly like a dense cake batter blondie but MUCH softer….more buttery…. and better. Is that possible? You know I love my little cake blondies! I am so impressed – from the pudding to the BS vs BP strategy and all of that butter… you have yourself a real winner here. I’m convinced. I need to make that vanilla brown butter glaze. You clearly like it too much for me NOT to try it girl. :) the extra bananas vs no bananas… story of my life! my freezer is FULL of frozen bananas and my archives have way too much banana bread (not a problem in my book!)… and I have more waiting to be used up this weekend. Of course when I’m sick and want something comforting to the tummy.. I have none. And all that’s in the store are grass-green. Life is so hard. :(
Small cakes/small batches are my blogging solution. I can bake so much since the recipe yields are small. I swear by them. And I have cake A.D.D. too. i am in LOVE with this cake Averie! Crisp clean pretty photos. Ok I’ll shut up now.
In many ways this was sort of like a blondie; more cake-like and less cookie-dough like than a blondie, but that same denseness and pan-style kind of cake/bar. This vanilla browned butter glaze is good but the one I have here is THE BEST
https://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2012/09/spiced-apple-and-banana-bundt-cake-with-vanilla-caramel-glaze.html
It was just more ‘glaze’ flavor that I needed. Very pronounced and intense caramel flavor which I wasn’t in need of with this b/c there was already plenty going on.
Cake A.D.D. – great way of putting it! Me too. And as you know as a blogger, content needs to rotate and I cannot/will not just make something ‘just’ to make it. We do need to be able to eat it (or a good portion of it) and I can’t be making 9×13 cakes or layer cakes all the time or 2-3 dozen cookie batches all the time. Gah! So yes, smaller cakes/batches are key!
Banana and Zucchini..what a wonderful combo…the cake looks so moist and filling! Baking it this weekend….
..
Keep me posted how it goes for you!!
I could definitely see myself swapping the zucchini for pumpkin and making this case for Thanksgiving! It looks so moist and delicious.
this one was pumpkin and banana and it was so good!
https://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2012/09/pumpkin-banana-bread-with-browned-butter-cream-cheese-frosting.html
More bread like than cake like but you can play with the ratios and get it a bit more cake like by baking it in a 9×9 and adding a little less flour!
I do love a good pudding cake too! And I like the way you think…add the zucchini to the cake instead of salad:-) I can’t wait to try this out…we always have way more bananas on our counter too. That cake is absolutely amazing looking…so rich and decadent and perfectly heavy!
I hate airy cakes. Normally they are just…dry. The kind where you end up with crumbs all over your lap b/c the cake is just so dry it start flaking off on you. Not this one :)
Dang Averie. You are the queen of all thing Banana Bread! I love pudding cakes (have a couple varieties on my blog), the dense moist cake is delish! Totally going to have to put this on my to-make list! Pinned!
I need to check your archives and find your pudding cakes and see how you made them!
Thanks for the Pin, too!
Yay! So excited to make this! I have been waiting to see whaqt the next banana recipe is :)
Enjoy it! Hope you like it as much as we did and keep me posted!
SO true! I am always in the same situation. I actually take brown banana donations from family that I freeze for baking :) The cake looks just scrumptious
I love that you have an open brown-banana collection/donation-program going! That is awesome! My mom used to do that with her mom when I was growing up; they’d swap brown/black bananas based on who had what cooking project going on. Now I get it :)
I’m just the same! Have so many leftover bananas and I think this zucchini pudding cake would be a great way to use it. I love that brown butter drizzle too – absolutely delicious!
I love browned butter anything and it pairs really well with the sweetness from the bananas. It was perfect on this little cake!
I’ve never used a pudding packet in baking, but I have heard of it before. Looks amazing, Averie! Happy Friday!
It adds such unbelieveable softness & moisture to anything! From bread, to cakes, to cookies…one little packet just does wonders for any dough whatsoever!
I have 4 bananas that are approaching the perfect state, and looking for a treat to greet my partner when he arrives home from a long business trip (I’ll be at work). I just so happen to have ALL these ingredients on stock (even the pudding)… Looks like I’m baking a pudding cake. Could I make this in a loaf pan? Otherwise, I don’t have a 9×9, but I do have an 8×8.
I would not use a loaf pan – it will never set up in the middle before the edges were too dark. You could try an 8×8 but you’ll have to watch the baking time and use your judgment. Enjoy!
I’m the same way! I always have too many ripe bananas or when I actually need them, there are nowhere to be found! It’s so frustrating. But I’m so glad you had some on hand to make this because it is amazing! The combination with the zucchini is just pure genius, and that glaze is to die for!
Or RIGHT as I’m about to have like 2 or 3 that are perfect, a family member will get a craving for potassium and just ‘have to have’ a banana. Like, really? Couldn’t you have…an apple. Or a cookie. But I need the bananas! Lol and thanks for the Pin! (your cake board is amazing!!)
My cake board is amazing thanks to your awesome cake recipes! :)