Ever heard of Toojays Banana Dream cake?
I hadn’t until someone asked if I had a vegan version. It turns out Toojays Deli offers a Banana Dream cake, but it’s not vegan—so I developed a plant-based take that keeps everything dreamy.
Move over Toojays — here’s a Vegan Banana Dream Cake we can all enjoy!
Light, fluffy banana cake layers filled with creamy vanilla custard and finished with just the right amount of chocolate ganache.
A sprinkle of walnuts for garnish but none in the batter!
This cake comes together in about an hour and disappears even faster.
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Notes for Success:
Baking the 3 — 7″ cake layers the day before assembling makes the build easier. Wrap them and refrigerate until you’re ready to assemble.
I prefer to fill this type of cake in a ring mold lined with acetate cake strips. That method lets hot custard set inside the cake, giving each slice stability and preventing the custard from oozing out the sides.
You can make the entire cake lower in sugar by substituting part or all of the sugar with your preferred sugar alternative. I often replace half the sugar in the cake with monk fruit sweetener and use it entirely in the custard.
Cornstarch is tricky to measure accurately by volume. I include both spoon/volume measures and gram weights in the recipe, but weighing the cornstarch by grams with a kitchen scale will give the most consistent custard texture. Inconsistent measurements are often why custards turn rubbery.
Bob’s Red Mill dry egg replacer is my choice for this recipe; I add it directly to the dry ingredients without reconstituting. Any similar dry blend egg replacer will work.
Banana Dream Cake
2 hrs
30 mins
2 hrs 30 mins
Ingredients
For the Banana Cake Layers
- 10 Tbs vegan butter, softened (approx 140g)
- 1 cup granulated sugar (200g)
- 2 cups mashed ripe banana (about 3 medium, approx 300g)
- 2/3 cup vanilla plant milk (155ml)
- 2 tsp apple cider vinegar (10ml)
- 1¼ cup all-purpose flour (approx 157g)
- 1 cup cake flour (approx 120g)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 4 tsp dry egg replacer (see notes)
- ½ tsp cinnamon
For the Vanilla Custard
- 2¼ cup plant milk (533ml)
- 5½ Tbs cornstarch (approx 42g) — weigh if possible
- ¾ cup granulated sugar (150g)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract (10ml)
For the Icing
- Ganache (use your favorite vegan ganache recipe)
- 2 Tbs walnuts, lightly toasted, for garnish (about 25g)
Instructions
- Grease and line three 7″ cake pans with parchment. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Cream the softened vegan butter with the sugar in a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
- Beat on medium-high until light and fluffy, about 4–5 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed.
- Combine room-temperature plant milk with the apple cider vinegar and set aside.
- Sift together the flours, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and add the dry egg replacer to the dry mix.
- Fold the mashed banana into the creamed butter and sugar, then whip briefly to emulsify. Scrape the bowl.
- Add one-third of the dry ingredients on low speed and mix just until combined, then add half the plant milk mixture.
- Repeat with another third of the dry ingredients, then the remaining milk, ending with the last third of dry ingredients. Mix briefly.
- Beat on high for 5 seconds to develop the batter, then divide evenly among the three prepared pans.
- Bake about 25–30 minutes, or until the cakes are springy when pressed and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely.
- While cakes cool, prepare the ganache according to your preferred vegan ganache recipe.
- For the custard: whisk the cornstarch and sugar together in a medium saucepan, then whisk in the plant milk until smooth.
- Cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture reaches a rolling boil and thickens. Remove from heat and whisk in vanilla.
- Assemble: line a cake ring with acetate, place one cake layer in the ring and pour half the hot custard over it. Chill for 5 minutes to set slightly.
- Add the second layer and pour the remaining custard over it. Top with the final cake layer and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to fully set.
- When the cake is firm, pour the ganache over the top, allowing drips down the sides, and garnish with lightly toasted walnuts.
Notes
Cornstarch measures vary by volume; for a reliable custard texture, weigh the cornstarch if possible. Inconsistent cornstarch measurements are a common cause of overly firm or rubbery custards.
Bob’s Red Mill dry egg replacer is recommended and can be added directly to the dry ingredients without reconstituting. Any similar dry blend egg replacer will work.
Storage: Keep the cake refrigerated at all times. Wrapped loosely, it will stay fresh for up to 5 days.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it turned out!