When it comes to a tasty cake, you can’t compete with the flavors of this Chocolate Hazelnut Cake all topped with caramelized banana and chocolate shavings.

If you are looking for the perfect flavor combination, you absolutely cannot go wrong with this Chocolate Hazelnut Cake.
I’m a huge chocolate hazelnut spread fan myself, so incorporating those flavors into a cake recipe just makes your mouth water.
The caramelized bananas that we add on top are a fun extra touch and really give a nice balance of flavor to this cake.
Desserts are one recipe that we try not to skimp on, and this cake is absolutely one of them. The flavor is not overwhelming, but perfectly balanced with all aspects.
Also I love that banana and hazelnut go so well together, that is why the addition of the caramelized bananas on top is one of our favorite things to do.
If you’ve been looking for that fun cake recipe that is different but still tastes amazing, you have to make my Chocolate Hazelnut Cake.
Some of my other favorite cake recipes that we have on our site include: German Chocolate Cake, Chocolate Chip Cake and Grandma’s Butterscotch Cake.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
- Fun and easy to find ingredients make this cake a breeze to throw together.
- The flavor components work so well with one another.
- This is great for breakfast or dessert!
INGREDIENTS NEEDED (FULL RECIPE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST):
All-purpose flour
Cocoa powder
Salt
Baking powder
Granulated sugar
Chocolate milk
Coffee
Eggs
Vanilla extract
Unsalted butter
Chocolate hazelnut spread
Chocolate shavings, optional
Brown sugar
Bananas
HOW TO MAKE A CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT CAKE, STEP BY STEP:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9×13-inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, gently whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder.
- Add in sugar, chocolate milk, coffee, eggs and vanilla extract and whisk until fully combined.
- Lastly, mix in the butter.
- Pour cake mixture into the prepared pan.
- Place the chocolate hazelnut spread into a piping bag or a sandwich bag and cut the tip off, draw lines down the top of the cake batter.
- Drag lines in the opposite direction with a toothpick or knife to create a zigzag pattern on top of the cakes surface.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes. The cake is done once a toothpick comes out clean from the center.
- Remove the cake from the oven and let cool to room temperature.
- While the cake cools, prepare the caramelized bananas. Slice the bananas into ยผ-inch slices. Set aside. Melt the butter on a frying pan on medium heat.
- Once melted, mix in the brown sugar just until combined.
- Add in the bananas. Fold the bananas into the sugar mixture on medium heat for 4-5 minutes.
- Serve warm over individual slices, sprinkle with chocolate shavings if desired.
DO I HAVE TO MAKE THE CARAMELIZED BANANAS?
No, this is absolutely optional. We do not frost the cake or anything so we love that extra element to the recipe.
If you decide not to use the bananas you can eat as is or even sprinkle with some powdered sugar as well.
WHY DO YOU USE CHOCOLATE MILK?
This is just how we have always made the cake, it give a little subtle chocolate element to the cake through the liquid.
You can use regular milk, but you will not have as much chocolate flavor as if you were to use chocolate milk.
CAN I ADD ANYTHING TO THIS CAKE?
Absolutely, you can really add some fun stuff to the cake batter if you’d like. Some of our favorites include:
- Chocolate Chips
- Chopped Nuts
- Banana Slices to the top
- Toffee Bits
- Chopped Cookies
Whatever you think would taste great as an addition to this cake, I think would work well.
DO I HAVE TO USE THE COFFEE?
The coffee helps accentuate any chocolate flavor in the dessert itself. It give it a nice rich, nutty flavor and you really do not taste the coffee.
If you do not want to use the coffee, you can use water in it’s place.
HOW TO STORE:
This can be stored without the topping in an airtight container on the countertop for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5-6 days.
The bananas can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator where they will keep for up to 2 days. To reheat place in the microwave until warmed through.
The cake can also be frozen without the bananas, wrap any slices in plastic wrap and place into a freezer container or bag, this will keep for up to 1-2 months.
To defrost, remove to the refrigerator or countertop until thawed, to reheat place in the microwave until heated through if desired.
TIPS AND TRICKS:
- To get an easier piping chocolate hazelnut spread, microwave it for a little bit.
- The bananas add an extra element of flavor that really goes well with this cake, you do not have to make them if you do not want to.
- Other additions can be added to the cake batter, see above on how to do that.
- This can be frozen, see above on how to do that.
- You can eat this cake as is or even with a dusting of powdered sugar.
- The chocolate milk really adds a nice chocolate flavor, but regular milk can be used.
- If you do not want to use the coffee you can substitute it with water.
- This can be served for breakfast or dessert, we do both!
Love a good cake that has fun and tasty flavors? Then you cannot miss out on this Chocolate Hazelnut Cake.
If you like this recipe you might also like:
If you’ve tried thisย CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT CAKEย or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and what shenanigans I’m getting into!
Chocolate Hazelnut Cake with Caramelized Bananas
Ingredients
Cake:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon cocoa powder
- ยผ teaspoon salt
- 4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 ยผ cups chocolate milk
- ยผ cup brewed coffee
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ยฝ cup melted butter
Topping:
- 1 cup chocolate hazelnut spread
- Chocolate shavings optional
Bananas:
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- ยฝ cup packed brown sugar
- 4 bananas
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9×13-inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, gently whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder.
- Add in sugar, chocolate milk, coffee, eggs and vanilla extract and whisk until fully combined.
- Lastly, mix in the butter.
- Pour cake mixture into the prepared pan.
- Place the chocolate hazelnut spread into a piping bag or a sandwich bag and cut the tip off, draw lines down the top of the cake batter.
- Drag lines in the opposite direction with a toothpick or knife to create a zigzag pattern on top of the cakes surface.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes. The cake is done once a toothpick comes out clean from the center.
- Remove the cake from the oven and let cool to room temperature.
- While the cake cools, prepare the caramelized bananas. Slice the bananas into ยผ-inch slices. Set aside. Melt the butter on a frying pan on medium heat.
- Once melted, mix in the brown sugar just until combined.
- Add in the bananas. Fold the bananas into the sugar mixture on medium heat for 4-5 minutes.
- Serve warm over individual slices, sprinkle with chocolate shavings if desired.
Notes
- To get an easier piping chocolate hazelnut spread, microwave it for a little bit.
- The bananas add an extra element of flavor that really goes well with this cake, you do not have to make them if you do not want to.
- Other additions can be added to the cake batter, see above on how to do that.
- This can be frozen, see above on how to do that.
- You can eat this cake as is or even with a dusting of powdered sugar.
- The chocolate milk really adds a nice chocolate flavor, but regular milk can be used.
- If you do not want to use the coffee you can substitute it with water.
- This can be served for breakfast or dessert, we do both!
Nutrition
Tornadough Alli is not a nutritionist or dietitian, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and nutritional value is important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and values can vary depending on which brands were used.
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