A Secret Family Recipe, Crater Cake

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Shhh don't tell anyone but this recipe, it is a family secret and a family favorite, one all the cousins and uncles would know all too well.
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​This my friends is a cake that is similar to coffee cake, I am pretty sure it is a coffee cake but it is what we call "Crater Cake". This moist cake that fills my house with the most amazing cinnamon and banana smells is something that takes me back to my Grandparents home that they lived in while I was growing up.

A few years ago my Grandparents house got sold and bull dozed over, it was one of those moments in your life where it was okay to cry over the loss of a physical object. Their home was grand central station, a place where no matter when you popped by Grandma had fresh baked buns or a pie in the oven, Gramps would be listening to music or strumming on his guitar. It was a home and a home to all of us in the Ryder family.

Now my Grandparents are kinda nomads and travel between living with my uncle and looking after my second cousins summer home. I know they miss their home, as do all of us, but certain smells bring me back there and to my Grandma who taught me a lot about cooking. So close your eyes and pretend you can smell this cake and think to yourself this is what Kim's childhood smelt like. I almost got teary eyed there!

Crater Cake

Ingredients:

1 cup of butter
2 cups of sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla
3 ripe bananas
3 cups of flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
2 teaspoons of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of sour cream

Directions:

​Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare a 9 by 13 inch pan by buttering the sides and bottom well.

With an electric mixer or by hand beat the sugar and butter till it is light and fluffy. 
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​Beat in eggs and vanilla, then add the bananas and beat well.

Alternate between adding the dry ingredients and the sour cream into the banana mixture. Make sure each incorporation is mixed in well.

Add the batter to the prepared cake pan. Prepare the topping.

Topping:

1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups of chocolate chips (I did half semi sweet and half milk)

​Directions:

​Mix all the ingredients together, then layer it on top of the cake evenly so that there is a nice layer and eat bite has the topping on it (it's so good).

Bake the cake for 50 minutes and then allow to cool before serving, otherwise the chocolate is like lava and it burns like you know what!

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do, I know it has a lot more meaning to me then you but at least it is a tasty treat that you can use old bananas for that isn't just banana bread.

​Enjoy!

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