This tender, velvety pound cake tastes is covered in fluffy banana pudding! Make this for the banana pudding lovers in your life.
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons banana extract (optional, if you can find it)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
8 large eggs, room temperature
4 1/2 cups cake flour or White Lily All Purpose Flour
1 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream, room temperature
1 box (3.4 oz) Instant Banana Cream Pudding Mix
Preheat oven to 300°F. Prepare Old Country Kitchenware square tube pan by fitting a parchment paper square between the two pieces and brushing with pan coat. Beat butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer until pale, light and fluffy (about 6 minutes at medium speed). Add extracts, baking powder, salt, and 1/2 cup flour, beat until combined. With the mixer running, add 1 egg and beat until fully incorporated. Repeat with each egg, beating well after each addition. Add 2 cups of flour, beating until it just disappears. Slowly drizzle in half the cream with the mixer running on low. Beat in the rest of the flour, then drizzle in the remaining cream. Beat in pudding mix. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl and beat for another 15 seconds on medium speed. Pour batter into prepared tube pan and gently shake to settle the batter. Place on middle rack of oven with a baking sheet on the rack below it to catch any drips. Bake 2 1/4 to 2 1/2 hours or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Prepare Banana Pudding (recipe below). Let the cake cool until the pan is cool enough to handle. To unmold, place it over a metal can and push down to remove the outer piece. Once the tube is cool enough to touch for 4 seconds, lift or turn the cake out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Banana Pudding
1 cup cold milk
1 box (3.4 oz) Instant Vanilla or Banana Cream Pudding Mix
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk, cold
2 cups (1 pint) heavy whipping cream, cold
1 ripe banana, sliced
6 vanilla wafers, crushed
Approx 12 vanilla wafers, for decoration
Whisk together milk and pudding mix until smooth, then place in fridge to set. Refrigerate at least 1 hour. Add sweetened condensed milk to bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk on high for 5 minutes or util fluffy. Add heavy cream, then start whipping on medium speed, then raising to medium high until firm peaks form. Add prepared pudding and whisk again to combine. Apply to cake. Just before serving, sprinkle top with crushed wafers, then place banana slices and whole wafers to top of cake. Layer any leftover pudding, vanilla wafers, and bananas together to serve on the side of the cake. Aim to serve within the same day as applying the pudding and toppings, and refrigerate the cake if left out for more than 3 hours.
