Tim bakes a classic Hummingbird Cake that’s moist, spiced and packed with pineapple, banana, coconut and pecans, sweetened with maple syrup. The batter is a simple one bowl mix, then it’s topped with a dreamy mascarpone cream icing and finished with toasted pecans and coconut for crunch. Perfect for afternoon tea, birthdays, or when you want a bakery-style cake without the fuss.
Ingredients
For the Cake
1 cup self-raising flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cardamom
½ cup maple syrup
1 × 440g can crushed pineapple
½ cup desiccated coconut
2 ripe bananas, mashed
½ cup chopped pecans
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup sunflower oil
For the Mascarpone Cream Icing
1 cup cream
250g mascarpone
1 tsp vanilla extract
¼ cup maple syrup
Garnish
½ cup chopped pecans, toasted
½ cup desiccated coconut, toasted
Method
Preheat oven to 170°C. Grease and line a 24 cm round springform cake tin. Sift the flour, cinnamon and cardamom into a large bowl, then add the maple syrup, crushed pineapple, coconut, mashed banana, pecans, eggs and oil. Mix until well combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for about 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Set aside to cool on a rack.
Whisk the cream, mascarpone, vanilla and maple syrup by hand or in a stand mixer until firm peaks form, then spread over the cooled cake. Lightly toast the extra pecans and coconut in a dry frying pan, allow to cool, and sprinkle over the top before serving.