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.

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11 Responses to “Apple Cranberry Cake-Pie”

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    1
    nutmegnanny — November 16, 2009 at 4:02 pm

    This looks so homey and delicious!

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    lilybeth12 — November 16, 2009 at 9:39 pm

    RDQ: where should I add the cranberries? did you substitute them for the raisins? can i use fresh cranberries?

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    Jen — November 17, 2009 at 12:04 am

    Sorry – I updated the recipe to reflect that I used dried cranberries in place of the raisins.

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    Jane — November 22, 2009 at 12:29 am

    Looks just delicious! I’m crazy lately about cranberries too. Talk about a versatile fruit! I just used them this evening to make a cranberry-apple conserve that served as the sauce for almond-crusted pork tenderloin. It was a big hit.

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    Lisa — November 22, 2009 at 3:09 am

    I also wonder if you can use fresh cranberries since they are in season!

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    Jen — November 22, 2009 at 4:57 pm

    You could definitely make this with fresh cranberries if you wanted.

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    Lisa — November 22, 2009 at 6:15 pm

    How long did you bake this if you halved it in a 8 by 8 pan? So excited to try it 🙂

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    Jen — November 22, 2009 at 7:43 pm

    I think I started checking it at 30 minutes and left it in for about 45 based on the color of the top layer.

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    Lucy — November 22, 2009 at 11:03 pm

    I’ve seen this recipe around before but it never fails to look so delicious! Gorgeous flavours 🙂

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    Lisa — November 23, 2009 at 2:19 am

    Me again. It is DELICIOUS! I halved the recipe and used 1 cup of fresh cranberries, though I think I could have used more.

    Thanks so much!

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    Jen — November 23, 2009 at 2:26 am

    Glad to hear it Lisa! I will definitely have to try this with fresh cranberries next time I make it.

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