Banana Split Cupcake
Cupcake Hero is BACK! This is one of the first blogging events I ever participated in. After a 9-month or so hiatus, CB has brought it back for all of us cupcake fans out there. This month’s ingredient is banana, which was a shocking selection since CB does NOT like banana. I struggled all month to think of a creative use of banana in a cupcake. Finally, on a restless night, I came up with this idea.
As you know, a classic Banana Split has a split banana, vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry ice cream, topped with pineapple, strawberry, and chocolate. Then the whole thing is topped with chopped nuts, whipped cream, and of course a cherry.
These cupcakes are so freaking cute! I can’t wait to make them again. They taste just like a banana split with the added bonus of having some cake in it! I opted to leave the nuts and whipped cream out, but you could definitely add those if you wanted to.
First I started with some Martha Stewart yellow buttermilk cupcakes. They are my current go-to white cupcake. Although the recipe makes a TON of cupcakes! Then I used my round cookie cutter to cut out the center of the cupcake.
Next I added a slice of banana.
On top of that I added some mushed up strawberries. You could also use strawberry ice cream topping, but I just took some frozen strawberries, thawed them out, put them in a ziplock bag and mushed them by hand.
Then I topped the strawberry with another banana slice. At this point I realized I wouldn’t need the top of the cupcake that I had cut out. So I ate it. Tasty!
For the frosting, I used the pineapple cream cheese frosting that I’ve made tons of times, except I bumped up the amount of pineapple in it. Then I got it really cold by putting it in the freezer for about an hour so that I could scoop it with my cookie scoop to make it look like ice cream.
Next I drizzled some pourable chocolate ganache over the top of the frosting.
Lastly I topped with a cherry.
I wanted to do a shot of the inside of the cupcake. It’s quite messy in there, but that is definitely the way a banana split looks after you take the first bite.
I am Jen the Beantown Baker. Engineer by day and baking maven by night. Hubby serves as my #1 fan and official taste tester. We got hitched back in 2006. Barefoot. In the sand. With the waves crashing behind us. It was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. 
Cute idea and they look so easy to make. Must try.
And the stick makes them perfect for milk dipping.
oh my…i’ve tried my hand at these and just about every oreo ended up cracking when i tried to insert the stick. *frowny face* not even dipping the sticks first seemed to help? do you have any suggestions on how to slide them in without any hiccups. *wink*
thank you SO much for your help…yours came out adorable!
Wow, these are such a great favor idea! They look easy, but impressive (and delicious)!
Sues
I am loving all of these new parents/new baby posts, because friends of ours just had a baby boy last week and I can just do everything you’re doing! 🙂
Jess@pen – are you using Double Stuffed Oreos? If you’re using regular Oreos, maybe the center isn’t thick enough to support the lollipop stick between the cookie ends. Or maybe the lollipop stick isn’t thin enough (do they even make different sizes?). Just thinking out loud. Good luck. 🙂
jen@pen – I agree with Sarah, be sure to use double stuff Oreos and thin sticks. You’ll notice that the craft store has at least two thicknesses of sticks. You want the thinnest ones. I did slide the sticks in slowly but didn’t have any issues with breaking cookies.
Why must this kind of thing be posted when I’m trying to lose weight? 😉
YUM! I love the idea of doing the initial on them!
Kim @ http://frostmeblog.blogspot.com
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Awesome post.
How far ahead can you make these and will the Oreo get soggy ?
beantownbaker — February 23rd, 2014 @ 8:45 pm
We made them a week in advance and the Oreos did not get soggy.
I can totally see the hiccups @jess, the Double Stuf Oreos have a far more thin and brittle cookie than the original Oreos. They crumble, split and crack very easily, I would imagine irregardless of stuffing volume, the structural integrity of the original Oreo cookie would hold up better for this project.
Can u freeze them?
Hi just wanted to say I have made these every year since 2009 when you posted them, still love them just as much!