This one-bowl Chocolate Banana Applesauce Cake is made without oil or butter and is perfect for snacking! Beautifully moist and perfectly decadent, you won’t even miss the frosting!
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As much as I love banana bread, and believe me, I love it A LOT, sometimes I want something different. Something like this cake for instance. Incredibly moist and fudgy this cake is almost brownie-like in consistency and texture. The bold chocolate flavors mingle beautifully with the banana and the gooey pockets of melted chocolate chips are pure heaven.
This cake is perfect for snacking on since it’s made without oil or butter – applesauce only! I make it in an 8×8 baking dish so there’s just the right amount of cake for a couple of day’s worth of snacks. Or one day if we’re really hungry.
The boys enjoy this cake with a big, cold glass of milk and I have to say that’s my favorite way to indulge as well.
There’s no need to frost this cake either. It’s perfectly sweet with being overwhelmingly so and the sprinkling of chocolate chips on top of the cake serve as the “frosting”. I’ve yet to hear a complaint about missing frosting.
The flavors of this cake only get better with time and the cake stays beautifully moist for several days – even up to a week if it happens to last that long.
Next time you have a couple of ripe bananas lying around, try this cake out instead of banana bread. I know you’ll just love it!
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Chocolate Banana Applesauce Cake
Ingredients
- 2 bananas very ripe
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup applesauce no sugar added
- 1/3 cup water
- 1 tsp white vinegar
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Spray 8x8 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
- Mash bananas in a medium size bowl.
- Stir in sugars, applesauce, water, and vinegar until thoroughly combined.
- Stir in flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt just until combined.
- Fold in 1/3 cup of chocolate chips.
- Pour batter into prepared dish.
- Sprinkle remaining chocolate chips on top.
- Bake for 33-37 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean.
- Let cool, slice and serve.
Nutrition
Our favorite cake recipes:
No Bake Banana Cream Pudding Cheesecake
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Susudany says
I just made this cake. It tastes like banana bread. It is yummu but not moist as in the picture. Any idea what i could have done wrong?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Hmm.. There are bananas in it… and chocolate 🙂 My cake tastes like chocolate so maybe that’s where you went wrong? Double-check the ingredients and instructions. Thanks!
Nadia says
What a wonderful recipe. Super moust and easy. I did not add brow augar because my applesauce was sweet enough. I also baked mine in a 9 x 9 panin my oven for 28 min. Super yummy. I had 2 pieces already and don’t feel guilty. ?
Cathy says
I used gluten free flour and it turned out amazing. Has to be an all in one with the xamtham gum included into the flour if you have it. If you can avoid the robin hood brand don’t use that kind it is the worst.
Courtney says
In case anyone is curious, this makes 12 muffins perfectly. I cut the baking time to 25 minutes and they were perfect!
Gale says
I love chocolate but have never been a fan of chocolate and bananas together in a cake. BUT, this one changed my mind. And, it gets better as it hangs around for a couple of days. The banana flavor gets more subtle and the chocolate gets moist and chewy. A great recipe that I will make over and over again. Thanks for sharing.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Love that you enjoyed this recipe Gale! It’s one of our favorites 🙂
Cindy says
Can I omit the vinegar or replace it with something else?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Not really sure Cindy because I’ve never tried it any other way. If you do, let me know how it turns out!
Cindy says
Replaced with a teaspoon of freshly-squeezed lemon juice. It worked beautifully. I’m eating it right now and would NEVER EVER guess it is fat free!
Delina says
I made the Chocolate Banana Cake replacing the sugar with stevia. I baked it in 4 oz canning jars and sprinkled each one with chopped nuts. Everyone thought that it was full of fat and sugar! It was a huge hit. The up side of baking in the canning jars is portion control and I can freeze the leftovers and take out one or two as I need them. Thanks for a very satisfying clean dessert recipe. I don’t have any other clean dessert recipe that tastes this good!
Rosangel Potenza says
I made this a few weeks ago and it turned out AMAZING. Seriously, amazing. I want to make it again but want to know if I could use whole wheat flour this time?! I’m scared to attempt it and ruin it /:
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
That’s awesome and yes, you can sub in wheat flour. I would go half all-purpose, half wheat for the first go around and see if you’re okay with the flavor/texture. I find going half and half is the easiest test 🙂
Kat says
Just finished a square with some neopolitan ice cream…. Absolutely incredible!!! Better than a restaurant would do!
Michelle says
P.S. I made this GF by using Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour. Worked great!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
That’s great Michelle! Thanks for letting us know 🙂
Michelle says
Thank you for sharing this! It is delicious! I love that is is vegan, too, which makes it great for a few friends of mine.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Oh perfect Michelle! I’m glad you found me 🙂 Have a great weekend!
Tacy says
I found this recipe on Pintrest and it was SO perfect. Just what I was looking for!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
That makes me SO happy Tacy! Thank you and I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Laura says
Just made this yesterday and it was delicious! Boyfriend took a huge slice right when it came out of the oven – so good! Halved the recipe and cut out a little bit of sugar since I find applesauce sweet anyways.
Gemma says
Gosh this cake looks so incredibly moist and scrumptious! 🙂 I’m drooling!
xox
Janie says
I forgot to ask .. can this be doubled for a 9×13 pan ? Would you make any changes ?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
I haven’t tried it but I don’t see why not. It might take a few minutes longer but I would just keep my eye on it. Let me know how it goes if you give it a try Janie!