Banana Sour Cream Cake

Lori made an amazing Banana Sour Cream Cake for our January Enrichment I've been wanting to make for the family. Last week Sam and the girls wanted something to do after school and I suggested they make this cake for our dessert. I printed out the recipe, told them where to find the ingredients and with little more instruction from me, let them make the cake.

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BANANA SOUR CREAM CAKE

1 pkg. (2-layer size) yellow cake mix
3 eggs
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3 bananas)
1 cup fat free sour cream
1/4 cup oil (or applesauce)

1 pkg. (8 oz.) 1/3 fat cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 pkg. (16 oz.) powdered sugar (about 4 cups)
1 cup Walnut Pieces, finely chopped

HEAT oven to 350°F. Beat cake mix, eggs, bananas, sour cream and oil with mixer on low until moistened, scraping bottom of bowl often. Beat on medium 2 min. Pour into greased and floured 13x9-inch pan.

BAKE 35 min. or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake completely in pan on wire rack.

BEAT cream cheese and butter with mixer on medium until blended. Gradually add sugar, beating well after each addition.

REMOVE cake from pan. Carefully cut cake crosswise in half using serrated knife. Place 1 cake half, top-side down, on plate; spread top with frosting. Top with remaining cake half, top side up. Frost top and sides. Press nuts onto sides. Refrigerate leftovers.

Note: Lori says you can successfully substitute applesauce for the oil!

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Apparently, Rebecca was in charge of reading the directions and Sam and Emily were in charge of putting the ingredients in the mixer. Halfway through making the cake they realized they had put the cream cheese in the cake batter instead of waiting and using it for the frosting.

It was a great teaching moment ... I was able to talk to the girls about the importance of instructions and why you need to read through them a couple of times before you get started ... and I learned that I really need to give them more opportunities to make things in the kitchen with little interference from me - they can do it and they are old enough, even if the mess is out of control! Honestly, given the way the recipe is written on Kraft's website, it wouldn't surprise me if a number of adults haven't made this same mistake.

We baked up the cake anyway, frosted it (it's the cake pictured) and had it for dessert Wednesday night. It's not a mistake I recommend making. Thanks to the frosting, it was eatable. The cake hadn't baked correctly and we all decided a second attempt was necessary. Thursday afternoon I made it a second time so I could prove to GR (who had flatly refused to eat any of the girls cake) that it was an excellent cake and so I could take it to Julie's for Survivor. Everyone loved it! This is my new favorite cake that is not chocolate - where was this recipe when Anna couldn't tolerate any chocolate in my system?!