Going bananas! yes I am

I promised you cake and cake you'll have. I don't often put more complicated recipes up but this is worth the effort! First are the secret ingredients in the picture - banana liqueur, fresh nutmeg and frozen bananas. YEP slipped that one right in there, frozen bananas are something I began while running the bed and breakfast in Colorado. In B&B's you almost always have bananas going too ripe to use and nobody can make that much banana bread! So I learned to throw super ripe bananas into the freezer - then when I need ripe, squishy 'naners for muffins, bread or CAKE all I do is pop it into the micro for a minute or so - then measure the amount and ta DA you have usable mashed bananas.
OK here goes - I'll put the recipes in BOLD so you don't have to read my foolishness just to make a yummy cake. Update - I've heard from several people "I hate bananas" - well everyone is entitled to cake - so just use a good moist yellow cake recipe and add that yummy nut filling - I thought of doing yellow cake with raisins and nuts (a modified Lady Baltimore cake) so don't limit your indulgence horizons - go for it! It IS still a free country so you do NOT have to eat bananas unless you like bananas! Thank you and now we return to my previously posted razzamatazz.

Banana One Egg Cake
2 cups cake flour (I used softasilk)
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/3 cup Crisco
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup mashed bananas
1 tablespoon banana liqueur

1 egg
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease/flour two 8 inch cake pans. Blend flour, sugar, baking powder, soda , nutmeg and salt. Add buttermilk, shortening, egg, liqueur all at once and beat at medium speed on power mixer for about 2 minutes. Scrape the bowl to make sure everything is blended in. When blended - pour evenly into prepared cake pans. Bake about 25 minutes or until layers test done when you insert a toothpick in the cake. Remove from oven and turn out onto a rack to cool.

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Toasted Walnut Filling
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon water
1 egg yolk slightly beaten
3/4 cup chopped and toasted walnuts

Mix brown sugar, butter and water in saucepan. Heat until sugar is dissolved. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Pour at least half of the hot mixture into egg yolk. Blend into remaining hot mixture. Boil 1 minute more, stirring constantly. Cool slightly and stir in walnuts.

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Light Cream Cheese Frosting
1 (8 ounce package) Neufchatel cheese
1 tablespoon butter
5 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Beat cream cheese and butter at high speed with an electric mixer until soft and creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed just until mixture is light and smooth. Gently stir in vanilla.

To assemble cake - place one cooled layer on cake stand and spread all the walnut fillling evenly over that layer. Place second layer on top and press down slightly so the top layer is connected with the filling. Frost cake with cream cheese frosting and store covered cake in refrigerator.

Delicious - light banana flavor enhanced by the liqueur - if you don't like to use alcohol in your cooking just go with vanilla.

I promised and truly delivered. Cake is tasty, rich and worth the effort for special occasion. It is overly sugared today on Buhlaland - but good - very good!
As my friend Pam would say - 'tis so sweet!