A delicious super-sized chocolate cake, perfect for large gatherings and celebrations. Decorate with coloured buttercream icing, sprinkles and lollies for an easy Birthday Cake, or with chocolate ganache for a morning tea.
When our son Henry turned 5, we decided to have a big party with friends and family to celebrate the milestone. Because a big party calls for a big cake, I created this jumbo Celebration Chocolate Cake recipe. It was perfect for decorating!
We love the flavour combination of chocolate and banana in our family. I also like the way the banana helps to keep the cake moist over time. If you don't like banana, feel free to leave them out. The cake still works without them.
This cake really is huge. Feel free to halve it if you prefer. Or, split in into two 23cm round tins and use one and freeze one.
Henry's skatepark cake using the Celebration Chocolate Cake as a base. He loved it!
How to make this Celebration Chocolate cake:
To begin, preheat the oven to 160°C fan bake. Add the eggs, peeled bananas and vanilla essence to the bowl of a large stand mixer. Whisk until it is getting fluffy and the bananas are fully mashed. Switch the mixer attachment to the flat beater.
Add flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cocoa. Mix baking soda with milk and then add to the bowl. Add oil and mix on a low speed until everything is incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Slowly pour in the boiling water with the mixer on level one and mix until everything is combined.
Line a large baking tray or roasting dish with baking paper going up both sides. Pour the mixture into the lined tray and bake for 80-90 minutes until a skewer comes out clean from the centre. Leave in the tray until it is cooled completely before icing.
Do you have a birthday party coming up? I have some great posts on my website featuring Kids' Birthday Cakes and Classic Kiwi Party Food. Be sure to check them out!
How to make a skatepark cake:
This cake was so much fun to put together. I bought some Tech Deck skatepark toys that were part of Henry's birthday present and a 5 candle. I printed out some cute pictures of the boys on their scooters to sit on top.
I placed the cooled cake on a sheet of baking paper on a wooden board. I made some grey buttercream icing and spread it over the whole cake.
I added in the Tech Deck toys, some biscuits and lollies to decorate and the pictures of the boys scootering. Super fun!
Archie's 8th birthday Football cake :
When our oldest son turned eight, he requested a Football 8 cake. Who am I to say no to that? Again, this was actually a really fun cake to make!
This recipe fitted perfectly into two standard ring tins.
Once the cakes had cooled, I removed them from the tins and trimmed the top of the cakes off.
I then flipped them over to ice the smooth undersides with green buttercream icing.
Then I decorated the cake with coloured coconut and football accessories. Archie loved his cake so much!
Recips FAQs:
Frozen bananas are great for baking. However, it's a good idea to let them defrost in a bowl before adding them to baking. This way you can drain off any excess liquid that comes out.
My recipe for Vanilla Buttercream Icing is super easy to make and produces enough to cover a large celebration cake.
Storage:
Did you know you can freeze cakes? If you want to get ahead on an event, you can make the cake earlier in the week and store it in the freezer. Simply allow the cake to cool completely, then wrap it in two layers of cling film (to prevent freezer burn). Defrost completely before icing and serving.
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Celebration Chocolate Cake
A huge, rich chocolate cake made with mashed banana. Perfect for a large gathering or celebration.
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- 2 ripe bananas (optional)
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
- 4 cups plain flour
- 3 ½ cups sugar
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 ½ cups cocoa
- 1 Tbsp baking soda
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup oil
- 1 cup boiling water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 160°C fan bake.
- Add eggs, bananas and vanilla essence to the bowl of a large stand mixer. Whisk until fluffy and the bananas are fully mashed.
- Add flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cocoa.
- Mix baking soda with milk and then add to the bowl. Add oil and mix on a low speed until everything is incorporated and the mixture is smooth.
- Slowly pour in the boiling water with the mixer on level one and mix until everything is combined.
- Line a large baking tray or roasting dish with baking paper going up both sides.
- Pour the mixture into the lined tray and bake for 80-90 minutes until a skewer comes out clean from the centre.
- Leave in the tray until it is cooled completely before icing.
Notes
- You can make this cake up to 2 days in advance and store it in the fridge until you are ready to decorate it.
- If you want to freeze wrap tightly in cling wrap and keep in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- I used my large glass lasagne dish which measures 33 x 23 x 8cm
- This recipe can be made with or without the bananas, I like the flavour and the moisture they bring to the cake.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 20 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 388Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 39mgSodium: 407mgCarbohydrates: 62gFiber: 2gSugar: 37gProtein: 6g
Nutritional values are approximate. Please use your own calculations if you require a special diet.
Thank you for checking out this recipe. I hope you enjoy making and eating it! If you have
any questions, queries or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below.
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Vanya
Kristen says
Looks amazing! How long would you cook it if using two round tins (without the hole)?
Thank you
VJ cooks says
Hi Kristen, as every oven cooks differently I would be checking the cakes from the 45 minute mark. They are cooked when a cake skewer comes out clean from the centre.
Shae says
Hi Vanya, How long would you allow to defrost? Thank you
VJ cooks says
I would remove the cakes from the freezer the night before I want to decorate them.
Katie says
If I had to make a large quantity of cupcakes, do you think I could use this recipe but bake as cupcakes instead? My kids all love this cake
VJ cooks says
Hi Katie, yes I'm sure that would be fine. Just remember to reduce the cook time and pull the cup cakes out when a skewer comes out clean.
Lisa says
Hi Vanya, what type of oil is best to use? Thanks!
VJ cooks says
Hi Lisa, something with a neutral flavour. I used vegetable oil.
Emma Olliver says
Hiii do you think this would work using soy milk to make it a dairy free option? Looking to bake a cake for my son’s bday Thursday but he’s got a dairy allergy. Thanks x
VJ cooks says
Yes I think that would work. Let me know how you get on.
Kylie says
Hi, did you use plain or self raising flour? Also if I need to use gluten free flour, do I just substitute cup for cup? Thanks in advance
VJ cooks says
Hi Kylie, this recipe uses plain flour. I have made this gluten free though and used a 1:1 ratio of plain flour:gluten free flour.
Julie Greenwood says
Hi
Did you use this chocolate cake to make your pirate cake please
VJ cooks says
Yes I did 🙂
Megan says
Do you think j could replace the bananas with courgettes?
VJ cooks says
I haven't tried that sorry! Let me know how it goes 🙂
Sarah says
Hey Vj, how much butter cream would I need to ice these cakes- would you double or triple your recipe for vanilla buttercream? Thanks
VJ cooks says
I just use one batch of my buttercream! If you're worried about no having enough you could multiply it by 1.5
Vicki says
I made this cake for a 70th birthday. I didn’t have bananas on hand so omitted them. It did sink in the middle but when I turned it over the following day for icing it stayed level. Iced with buttercream icing and piped ganache around the outside. Decorated it with strawberries. All enjoyed it.
Will make it again in a few weeks and include bananas.