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Salted caramel banana cupcakes make the best dessert! Caramel lovers and banana lovers alike will fall for these soft and fluffy banana cupcakes topped with salted caramel frosting and caramel drizzle.
Flavored with brown sugar, a splash of bourbon (optional), and plenty of vanilla, the banana cupcakes bake up perfectly tender. Salted caramel buttercream made with homemade salted caramel sauce adds the perfect finish!
How to Make the Best Banana Cupcakes:
Room Temperature Ingredients – Room temperature butter, eggs, and buttermilk ensure perfectly moist and fluffy cupcakes.
Brown Sugar – Light brown sugar adds delicious caramel notes to the banana cupcakes. You can also use dark brown sugar – if you opt for dark brown sugar, the cupcakes will bake up slightly darker with a more intense flavor from the additional molasses.
Bananas – My favorite bananas for baking are ripe and speckled (not blackened). For this recipe, you’ll use 1 cup mashed ripe banana. This is usually about 2 large bananas, or 3 smaller bananas. Place the ripe bananas in a bowl and mash with the back of a fork or potato masher until completely mashed.
Bake Time – Bake cupcakes for 18 to 20 minutes, until top spring back to the touch and a tester emerges clean. Cool cupcakes for 2 minutes in pans before transferring to wire racks to cool completely before frosting.
Salted Caramel Frosting – The soft and creamy caramel buttercream is made with homemade salted caramel sauce! The caramel sauce can be made several days ahead and chilled before using.
Frost Cupcakes – Pipe swirls of salted caramel buttercream onto each cupcake. Chill cupcakes for 20 minutes before drizzling with salted caramel sauce. Enjoy!
Salted Caramel Banana Cupcakes
- Prep Time: 40 minutes
- Cook Time: 18 minutes
- Total Time: 58 minutes
- Yield: 18 cupcakes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
Salted caramel banana cupcakes make the best dessert! Soft and fluffy banana cupcakes topped with salted caramel frosting and caramel drizzle.
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 10 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 Tbsp bourbon (optional)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup mashed ripe banana
- 3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk, at room temperature
Frosting
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 1/2 cups powdered sugar, divided
- 5 Tbsp salted caramel sauce
Topping
- 6 Tbsp salted caramel sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line two 12-cup standard muffin pans with baking cups. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl.
- Beat butter and sugars in a large mixer bowl on medium speed until soft and creamy; beat in vanilla and bourbon. Add eggs one at a time and beat until combined. Combine banana and buttermilk in a small bowl. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with banana mixture (begin and end with flour mixture).
- Use a medium cookie scoop coated with nonstick spray to fill each baking cup 2/3 full of batter.
- Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until cupcakes spring back to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cupcakes cool in pans on wire racks for 2 minutes before removing from pans to cool completely.
- For the frosting, beat butter and salt in a large mixer bowl on medium speed until smooth. Beat in vanilla. Mix in 2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar on low speed until incorporated. Mix in salted caramel sauce until incorporated. With mixer on low speed, add remaining 2 cups powdered sugar. Increase speed to medium and beat frosting for 1 minute, until light and airy.
- Transfer frosting to a large piping bag fitted with an open star tip (Wilton 8B) and frost cupcakes. Chill 20 minutes before topping with salted caramel sauce.
- Store leftover cupcakes covered in the refrigerator up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Notes
Make Ahead: Salted caramel sauce can be made several days ahead and chilled before using.
Craving more caramel?
Pumpkin Caramel Sheet Cake
Salted Caramel Crumb Bars
Caramel Apple Bars
I love banana baked goods so much so that I chose it as my wedding cake. I have made so many banana recipes and this is the best recipe I have found. I make this recipe often as a three layer banana cake with chocolate chips and a peanut butter frosting. It is a hit every single time.
That sounds divine, thank you Martina! 🙂