Triple layer banana chocolate chip cake with peanut butter icing and chocolate shavings - Claire Gillian

My sister made this cake and posted a picture of the gorgeous end product on Facebook. She started with a recipe she found at Epicurious.com but made a few changes, reduction of calories not among them.

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Triple layer banana chocolate chip cake with peanut butter icing and chocolate shavings

Ingredients

Cake:

• Nonstick vegetable oil spray
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup (packed) light brown sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups mashed very ripe bananas
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 10-ounce bag mini chocolate chips

Frosting:

• 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Mini chocolate chips, crushed chocolate bars or shavings for garnishment

Equipment: Three 8" round cake pans, parchment paper

Preparation

For cake:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat cake pans with nonstick spray. Line bottom of pans with parchment; coat paper. Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat sugar, butter, and brown sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating to blend between additions and occasionally scraping down sides and bottom of bowl. Beat in vanilla.

Add dry ingredients; beat on low speed just to blend. Add bananas and sour cream; beat just to blend. Fold in mini chips. Divide batter evenly among pans; smooth tops.

Bake cakes until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Transfer to wire racks; let cool in pans for 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto racks; peel off parchment and let cool completely.

For frosting:
Using an electric mixer, beat first 4 ingredients in a medium bowl until light and fluffy, 2–3 minutes.

Assemble:
With a bread knife, even out the layers as needed to create level surfaces. Place one cake layer on a platter. Spread one fourth of the frosting over that layer and repeat for layer two. Place the third cake layer on top. Frost top and sides of cake with remaining frosting. Garnish with chocolate chips, crushed / shaved chocolate.

Cake can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and chill. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour before serving.

An all expenses paid, trans-Atlantic cruise has romance written all over it...unless you’re the poor sap who has to inspect the toilets and time the cafeteria lines. As if secret-shopping her company's failing cruise ship isn't bad enough, Lydia Johnson is forced to bring along a "top talent" new hire as her assistant. With a heart barely healed from her ex-fiancé’s deceit, she's in no mood to train a man who might cheat her out of an overdue promotion.

Paul Thomas may be new to J.P. Theriot Enterprises, but he certainly knows his way around cruise ships. The Cajun charmer also isn't shy about pursuing his desires, including his wary, but oh-so-sexy-when-she lets-her-hair-down manager. He's shared more about himself with Lydia than any other woman...except who he really is--J.P. Theriot.

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Claire Gillian Website