1930s Banana Cake

This vintage dessert recipe dates all the way back to the 1930s! If you're a fan of banana desserts, you'll love this family favorite recipe for 1930s Banana Cake. The mashed bananas and added buttermilk make this cake moist and super delicious. This banana cake recipe is so good, it will become your new go-to recipe for banana muffins or banana bread as well. You can frost the cake with chocolate frosting if you wish, either way, you'll want to make it again and again.


1 ¼ cup white sugar
1 cup sour or buttermilk
½ cup butter
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
2 ½ cups flour
3 bananas
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp table salt


Prepare two 9 inch cake pans by greasing them with solid shortening and flouring them.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix flour with all of the dry ingredients and whisk to incorporate.

Mash 3 bananas in a medium sized bowl.

Cream the butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time and beat until fluffy.

Add buttermilk and vanilla to the bananas and mix well.

Fold banana mixture into the sugar, butter and eggs and mix well.

Slowly fold flour mixture into the other ingredients. Fold until all ingredients are moist.

Pour batter into the prepared cake pans and bake for 30 minutes. Make adjustments to baking time according to your own oven.