Banana Cupcakes With Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosting

Soft, moist & fluffy banana cupcakes with a luscious chocolate peanut butter frosting. Switch it up with your favourite cream cheese frosting for a classic flavour combination!

Banana cupcakes and cakes are such warm and comforting desserts, always bringing a satisfying smile to anyone who eats them. Banana desserts are definitely one of my favourites. When they come in the form of soft, moist cakes topped with a luscious, creamy frosting, I have no self control.

This recipe is my go-to for simple banana cupcakes. They’re soft, moist, banana-y and easy to make especially since the recipe calls for pantry staple ingredients.

This is also my favourite frosting flavour combination. Chocolate and peanut butter is truly my weakness.

Let’s break down the recipe a little:

• Straight forward cupcake recipe using the standard creaming method.
• Pantry staple ingredients.
• Cake is super soft and moist. The banana flavour pairs well with endless frosting flavours.
• Batter is thick enough for add-ins such as nuts , toffee bits or chocolate chips.

Important Ingredients

• Baking Soda: Since we’re using bananas and sour cream, we need the baking soda/bicarbonate of soda to react with the acidity of those ingredients.
• Spices: According to how you like, feel free to add in any spices like cinnamon, nutmeg etc.
• Soft brown sugar: the addition of brown sugar adds a delicious caramel undertone to the cakes as well as extra moisture.
• Vanilla extract: the combination of vanilla and banana is a match made in heaven so make sure to add a decent amount of good quality vanilla extract.
• Sour cream: sour cream is interchangeable with buttermilk (real buttermilk not substitutes) and is crucial for the overall cake crumb. It adds so much undeniable moisture as well as a delectable soft crumb.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosting

This frosting is amazing. It’s made from one batch of frosting so no need to make two different frostings. It starts with my classic vanilla buttercream which can be made in advance and stored in the fridge. Once the buttercream is ready, we divide it into two and add cocoa powder to one, and peanut butter to the other.

Achieving the swirled effect is super easy too! All you need to do is add a log of chocolate frosting beside a log of peanut butter frosting. I use cling film/plastic wrap to make this easier. Roll the frosting up then add into a piping bag with your favourite piping tip. As you start to frost the cupcakes, the two frostings become more and more distinct giving that gorgeous swirl.

These cupcakes are so delicious and I’m sure this banana cupcake recipe will become a staple.

If you make this or any of my other recipes, please make sure to tag me on Facebook or Instagram @dutchbakerblog. I love to see your bakes!