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Triple Layer Banana Cake With Peanut Butter Filling & Ganache

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Ingredients
  

Cake

  • 3 cups cake flour
  • 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 4 ounces 1 stick + 1/3 cup butter, at room temperature, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 1 ¾ cups + 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 3 large very ripe bananas mashed (about 1 cup)
  • ½ cup + 1 tablespoon buttermilk

Peanut butter filling

  • 2 ounces 1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • ½ cup smooth peanut butter
  • ½ cup + 2 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar sifted
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Chocolate Ganache

  • 8 ounces good-quality bittersweet chocolate chips I like Ghirardelli
  • 8 ounces good-quality milk chocolate chips also Ghirardelli
  • 1 ½ cups heavy cream
  • 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
  • 12 ounces 3 sticks butter, cool but not cold, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • Peanut Butter for Piping decoration
  • Peanut Butter Cups halved for garnish

Instructions
 

Cake

  • Preheat the oven to 325F. Coat 3 8-inch round cake pans with Pam Spray w/flour and line the bottoms with parchment paper.
  • Whisk the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and set aside.
  • Beat the all of the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until you reach a light and fluffy consistency (about 5 minutes).
  • Add the sugar and beat for another 5 minutes.
  • Add the eggs one at a time.
  • Lower the speed and incorporate the vanilla and bananas.
  • Add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the buttermilk. Make sure to begin and end with the dry ingredients.
  • Pour the batter into the 3 prepared pans. Bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
  • Cool pans on a rack 30 to 45 minutes. Remove the cakes from the pan and let cool completely.

Peanut butter filling

  • Beat the butter until smooth in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
  • Add the peanut butter and beat until incorporated.
  • Add the confectioner’s sugar and the vanilla and beat until smooth.
  • Set aside (Can be made ahead of time.)

Chocolate Ganache

  • Put the milk chocolate and the dark chocolate in the bowl of the stand mixer.
  • Bring the cream and the corn syrup to a boil.
  • Immediately pour the cream mixture over the chocolate.
  • Do not touch the bowl of the stand mixer for 2 to 3 minutes. Then whisk the chocolate mixture by hand until it is silky and smooth. Set aside.
  • Once the chocolate mixture has cooled to room temperature, use the paddle attachment to beat it as you gradually add the butter to it. I had to place this in a fridge for a while to thicken it.

Assembly

  • Place one layer on a cake plate and spread half of the pb filling on.
  • Add 1 1/4 cups of the chocolate ganache on top and then I place in fridge 15 mins to firm it.
  • Add second layer of cake and top with the rest of the peanut butter filling. Again, spread on 1 1/4 cups ganache and chill for 15 minutes.
  • Place third layer on top and use rest of the frosting to coat the cake. (You can do a thin crumb coat layer and chill 15 minutes. Then, spread on the rest. I had a little left over but not tons.)
  • Pipe on peanut butte circles and top with Reese's halves.
  • Original says you can leave this at room temp but I found the chocolate to get too soft and kept mine in the fridge.
  • Recipe adapted from the book, Baked Elements