So first, let’s talk cake. A maaaaajor major delicious cake flavor that I’ve never really paid attention to until recently. You see, my dear friend had her bridal shower earlier this month. She’s from Savannah, GA and she chose hummingbird cake as their wedding cake flavor. Sure I’ve tasted it a few times in the past, but I don’t think I’ve ever had traditional, stick-to-your-fork-moist hummingbird cake before. It’s her favorite and her sister even made it for the bridal shower that afternoon. I sliced off a sliver (literally the smallest sliver… what was I thinking?) and sat down to mingle with other guests as I ate my dessert.
I needed a moment of silence. In fact, I think someone asked me a question during those first few hummingbird cake moments and I blatantly ignored them. Excuse me, I’m with my cake here. Obviously 1 sliver turned into 1 sliver + 1 giant piece + weird moments of silence sitting with cake + zero guilt.
For years, I thought carrot cake was my favorite cake. Sadly, I’ve been mistaken. Tastebuds, you’re wrong. MOVE OVER CARROTS. Make room for banana + pineapple + deliciously spiced hummingbird cake. Of course we’re using cream cheese frosting and there’s toasted pecans too. Is there a better cake than hummingbird? Nope. The answer is a big fat straight-up no.
We’re working with 2 main flavors today: banana and pineapple. Well, we also have lots of cinnamon and a dash of allspice to round things out, but the main event is all about those fruits. There’s no butter; just oil. We want a delectably moist cake—and we don’t want butter to overpower the banana and pineapple. And since we’re relying on 2 fruits for flavor, we have to make sure we’re using the correct forms of both.
- BANANAS: Brown and spotty. The uglier your bananas, the better the flavor. Odd, but true. You can also use previously frozen bananas. Thaw the frozen bananas at room temperature. Drain off any excess liquid, mash, then use as instructed in the recipe below. See How to Freeze & Thaw Bananas for Baking.
- PINEAPPLE: Crushed and canned. You may want to use fresh pineapple that you crush yourself and yes, that’s absolutely fine!
I based this recipe off of Southern Living, the recipe that the bride’s sister made for the shower. I baked the original cake first, but found there were a few things I wanted to change. First, I reduced the oil and sugar and used some brown sugar in addition to white for some flavor. I also reduced the banana, so you can taste the pineapple a bit more. I left out the nutmeg and used allspice (and more of it) instead. Allspice’s flavor tastes like a mix of nutmeg + cinnamon + cloves, with a VERY slight peppery note. It’s phenomenal in hummingbird cake. I also increased the toasted pecans and used my own cream cheese frosting recipe.
Two bowls. 1 medium, 1 large.
Wet ingredients in medium. Dry ingredients in large. ↑
Mix together.
Up close and personal with those toasted pecans. ↓
Don’t skip the toasting part. You will *NEVER* regret toasting nuts for this cake.
Frosting: Cream cheese. A classic made for cakes like this. I increased my favorite cream cheese frosting recipe to ensure I had enough for the 3 layer cake. And by “enough” I mean thick layers. YES to thick cream cheese frosting layers!
If you’re not one for cream cheese frosting, this cake is equally fantastic with vanilla buttercream.
The cake is even better after a few hours because the flavors have had a chance to settle, mingle, and marry. For that reason, it’s a wonderful cake to make ahead of time—even the day before. Honestly, I enjoyed the cold leftover slices more than anything.
If you can’t get enough of these flavors together, try my hummingbird Bundt cake next.
You’ll need a moment of silence too.
PS: wondering why it’s called hummingbird cake? I found this article discussing some theories. Anyone know the real answer?!
PrintHummingbird Cake
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 28 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: serves 12-14
- Category: Cake
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Homemade hummingbird cake is exceptionally moist and flavorful with 3 delicious layers and silky cream cheese frosting!
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) chopped pecans*
- 3 cups (375g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 and 1/2 cups (345g) mashed bananas (about 3 large ripe bananas)
- one 8 ounce can crushed pineapple (do not drain)
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup (240ml) vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 16 ounces (452g) full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 4 cups (480g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- pinch of salt, to taste
Instructions
- Toast the pecans: Preheat oven to 300°F (149°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Spread the chopped pecans on the sheet and toast for 7–8 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10–15 minutes.
- Turn the oven temperature up to 350°F (177°C). Grease three 8-inch cake pans, line with parchment paper rounds, then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the cakes seamlessly release from the pans. (If it’s helpful, see this parchment paper rounds for cakes video & post.)
- Make the cake: Whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, and salt together in a large bowl.
- Whisk the rest of the cake ingredients in a medium bowl. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and whisk until completely combined. Fold in 1 and 1/2 cups toasted pecans. (Save the rest for garnish.) You should have about 6 to 7 cups of batter.
- Spread batter evenly between the 3 prepared cake pans. Bake for 26-29 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Rotate pans halfway through baking.
- Remove cakes from the oven and allow to cool completely in the pans set on a wire rack. Once completely cooled, remove cakes from pan and level the tops off so they are flat. I simply use a serrated knife. Discard the tops or eat. YUM!
- Make the frosting: In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on medium-high speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high speed and beat for 3 minutes until completely combined and creamy. Add more confectioners’ sugar if frosting is too thin, a little milk if frosting is too thick, or an extra pinch of salt if frosting is too sweet. Frosting should be soft, but not runny.
- Assemble and frost: First, using a large serrated knife or cake leveler, layer off the tops of the cakes to create a flat surface. Place 1 cake layer on your cake turntable, cake stand, or serving plate. Evenly cover the top with frosting. Top with 2nd layer, more frosting, and then top with the 3rd layer. Spread remaining frosting all over the top and sides. Decorate the sides and top of the cake with the remaining toasted pecans. Refrigerate cake for at least 15-20 minutes before slicing. This helps the cake hold its shape when cutting.
- Cover leftover frosted cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: Prepare cakes and frosting 1 day in advance. Keep cakes at room temperature, covered tightly. Refrigerate prepared frosting in an airtight container, then bring to room temperature when ready to use. Frosted or unfrosted cakes may be frozen up to 2 months, thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature, if desired, before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Baking Sheet | 8-inch Cake Pans | Parchment Paper | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Cooling Rack | Cake Turntable | Icing Spatula | Cake Carrier (for storage)
- Pecans: I’ve gotten several questions about leaving out the pecans due to allergy. You can leave them out without replacing with anything. Stirring in 1 cup of sweetened shredded coconut would be wonderful though!
- Frozen Bananas: You can use thawed frozen bananas in this recipe. Thawed bananas are extra wet, so drain off as much of the excess liquid as you can before mashing. See How to Freeze & Thaw Bananas for Baking.
- Cupcakes: This recipe will make at least 32-35 cupcakes. Fill liners 2/3 full and bake 20-22 minutes or until cooked through. You can halve the recipe for less cupcakes, but things get tricky with the eggs. I recommend using 1 egg plus this: crack a 2nd egg in a separate bowl, whisk it, and use about half.
- Non-Layer Cake: This recipe also fits into a bundt pan, though the bake time will be long—55-65 minutes. Use a toothpick to test for doneness. Or use my recipe for Hummingbird Bundt Cake. There is too much batter for a 9×13-inch pan, but a 12×17-inch sheet pan would be perfect. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, keep a close eye to not over-bake.
- Update in 2024: After continuous recipe testing, and in an effort to lighten up the crumb, I made a few changes to the recipe including adding baking powder, increasing the oil, and decreasing the banana (so it tastes less like dense banana bread and more like a moist cake). If you prefer the old version, leave out the baking powder, reduce the oil down to 3/4 cup (180ml), and increase the mashed banana to 2 cups.
- Adapted from Southern Living.
This turned out so perfect! Thank you!
What a show-stopping cake! It was incredible. I took out the pecans but added in a cup of shredded coconut to my family’s preference, and it really was so good. This is a super moist and flavorful cake that I’ll make again.
Hi,
Do you think this would work with a rum and cream cheese frosting? I was going to use 4-5 tbsp dark rum and just fix the consistency by adding some more icing sugar if needed.
Hi Sarah! We don’t see why that wouldn’t work – you can leave out the milk and use all rum if you would like. Hope it’s a hit!
Hi, Sally!
This recipe sounds amazing! I was wondering though, and sorry if it was already asked, would I be able to substitute spelt flour, whole wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour? Any recommendations for other alterations if I used one of those instead of all purpose flour? I was looking to reduce the sugar as well, as I saw that it still worked out great for a previous commenter.
Thanks!
Hi Mica, we haven’t tested this recipe with any of those flours, so we really can’t say for certain. They will change the taste and texture of the final cake, likely making them more dense. It’s best to stick to all-purpose flour here! Same with the sugar — reducing it will change the taste, texture, and structure of the cake, but certainly feel free to experiment if you’d like. Let us know what you try!
Hi Sally,
Fan/Lurker/Baker of yours (since your chocolate chip cookies in the old format). This is ANOTHER 10/10!!
Thank you for your loyal readership, Midge — we’re glad the Hummingbird Cake was another hit!
Thank you Sally for the detailed steps. I made it for a dinner party and it turned out really well, except that it wasn’t as moist as I was expecting it to be. I added exact amount of canned pineapple with quite some juice and four bananas. I wonder what can be done to make it moist. I divided the batter into two cake pans though instead of three.
Nevertheless the taste was incredible and everybody loved it!
Made this recipe as cupcakes for a bday at work yesterday. They are so good! I love all your recipes that I have tried and always refer everyone who asks to pick any recipe on here for when they need something something delicious.
First time making this cake (and I’ve never tried any before either) and it tasted delicious! Thank you for sharing a yummy recipe!
I made this cake for family and they couldn’t believe how moist it came out. My family aren’t big on nuts in cakes, this Hummingbird cake still got high ratings.
I’ll be making this cake to leave at the doors of friends dealing with covid.
I used this recipe and it won 2nd prize at the Fairtrade Cake off in Feb earlier this year before lockdown and all this craziness started! I tweaked it like I always do with every recipe- didn’t have allspice, add ground cardamom, ground cloves, ground nutmeg. Used rapeseed oil here in the UK. I think it’s the same as canola. Used a mix of dark brown & light brown sugar. For the cream cheese frosting I do it in reverse order as I find it gets too runny if I beat the butter and creamcheese together first. I beat the icing sugar & butter first then add the creamcheese bit by bit until I’m happy with the consistency. Thank you for your recipes Sally- they provide me with so much inspiration!!
Hello Sally, can i replace pecan nuts with walnuts? or it makes a lot of difference?
Also what is the best substitute for allspice & it’s measurement.
Im also thinking if it will be ok to just have 2 9” layer as i only have 2 pans, to save baking time. Then just put thicker middle frosting…
Thanks!
Hi Kath, you can use walnuts instead of pecans. For the allspice, feel free to leave it out. You could also replace it with the same amount of ground ginger, nutmeg, or cinnamon. (Making the total amount of cinnamon 2 teaspoons.
I’ve been wanting to try a hummingbird cake for years. So glad I started with this one. It’s delicious and it was so easy! The cake is moist and dense and lovely. The frosting is a tad sweeter than my usual cream cheese frosting, but they pair perfectly. I’ll definitely make this again.
Made this for the first time today. Lovely flavours but only a faint taste of pineapple. Would have loved it to be more fruity. Not sure if I should increase the amount of tinned fruit next time as the cake might get too soggy?!
Tried this for my daughter’s birthday cake and it was delicious. My family loved it.
Hello, do you know how this recipe would work with a gluten free all purpose flour or almond flour? I absolutely love hummingbird cake and would like to make this for a friend who is gluten intolerant. I have limited experience baking gluten free and don’t know if it’s a case of just switching out the flours needed. Thank you!
Hi Heidi, We haven’t tested this cake with gluten free flour. If you would like to try I recommend using an all purpose gluten free flour instead of almond flour (they are very different). Let us know if you try it!
Sally, I can’t wait to try out this recipe. My sister asked me to bake her a hummingbird cake for her birthday. I had never heard of one before and your recipes have been great in the past. My sister lives about 3 hours away. I plan to make the cake a day ahead of time and refrigerate it. I have a cake carrier. Should I do anything special to transport the cake in the car, like put ice packs on the sides of the cake carrier?
Hi Zach, It really depends on what temperature you keep your car 🙂 After decorating anything with buttercream or cream cheese frosting, it’s fine for 1 day at room temperature, so if it’s hot out just be sure your air conditioning is on. But, use your best judgment and whatever you are comfortable with- we’ve never had any problems leaving frosted desserts at room temperature for a day. I hope your sister has a great birthday!
Hi Sally,
When I removed the cooled cakes from the pan they were somewhat damp/wet on the bottom. Is this normal for this type of cake?
Also, do I wrap the un-iced cakes in one or two layers of saran wrap? I plan on making the rest of the cake tomorrow.
Your cake looks delicious and I can hardly wait to try it. Am baking it for my auntie’s birthday on Saturday.
Thank you,
Brenda
Hi Brenda! I’m just seeing your question/comment now, my apologies. The cake may be wet/damp on the bottom from the greased pan. Sometimes mine are as well (from the nonstick spray I use). This is a super moist cake. As it cools, the bottom should dry out a bit. I usually wrap the cakes in 1 layer of plastic wrap. How did it taste?
When my bananas are starting to get really ripe I freeze them. Is it okay to use them for this cake (after thawing of course)?
Hi Katie, absolutely! You can use frozen bananas. Thaw them at room temperature and drain off any excess liquid before using in the recipe.
My cake came out so flat! I followed it to the letter too, so sad, was so looking forward to it!
Hi Sue, These are thinner cake layers due to all the wet/moistening/heavy ingredients, but the cakes should still rise quite a bit. Make sure you’re following the recipe closely and that your baking soda is fresh. Thank you for trying this recipe!
Could this cake batter be baked in a half sheet pan for construction of a 3 layer cake like the Milk Bar Birthday cake? Would this cake hold up well enough to make the bottom layer out of scraps?
Hi Ashley, This cake batter fits into a 12×17 sheet pan. We have never tested assembling it that way so I’m unsure if the bottom layer would hold up. You can simply bake as instructed for three round layers though!
Hi Sally,
This recipe looks gorgeous.. and I cannot wait to try it.. but my only concern is the pecan nuts.. they arent available here… and i love the nutty texture so can they be replaced with Walnuts? Also we get tinned pineapple but in slices… and the tin contains a sweet liquid… so should I crush the pineapples with the liquid or without it ?
Hi Niyati, You can certainly use chopped walnuts in place of pecans. For even more flavor, try toasting them first. For the pineapple, crush the pineapple with the juice, then slightly drain the crushed pineapple. You want a little juice, but not all of it!
Hi Sally, I am going to make this for my mom’s birthday. She can cheat with gluten, but I was hoping to be able to substitute the flour a gluten free flour substitute. Do you have any tips or recommendations? I usually use Bob’s Red Mill one-to-one substitution gluten-free flour. My second son is due the same day as my mom’s birthday. Today, we made your amazing confetti sprinkle cupcakes with your buttercream frosting recipe and froze them to celebrate when he arrives. My husband’s grooms cake was your peanut butter double chocolate cake. Thank you for all the ways you have sweetened our lives through the years!
Hi Lindsay, We are thrilled that these recipes have played a part in your celebrations! We haven’t tested this cake recipe with gluten free flour but please let us know if you try it!
Just made this for my mom’s birthday (her request) and it came out beautifully! I topped with the toasted pecans and candied flowers and it was lovely. Thank you!
I made this for my birthday with just 2 layers of cake and everyone raved!
I made a 3 layered 6 inch cake and it turned out great! If I want to make cupcakes with the leftover batter in 2 days. Do I bake the cupcakes and refrigerate it or can I refrigerate the raw cake batter until I’m ready?
Thanks!
Hi Christina, It’s best to bake the batter right away. Once the batter is mixed the leaveners are activated and should be baked as soon as possible for the cake/cupcakes to rise.
Could you make this cake with just the banana? My son isn’t a big fan of pineapple.
Hi Tiffany, I recommend just making a Banana Cake! 🙂
This turned out so good!
I recently made this cake for father’s day, and it was a big hit! My family said it was the best cake I’ve made! Five stars, all the way! Most delicious hummingbird cake I’ve had. 🙂
Definitely an amazing cake! I have celiac, so I use gluten-free flour (walmart/great value) without any other modifications, and it is so delicious! My family NEVER tosses the brown bananas. Definitely do the three cake layers, as the frosting to cake ratios are perfect. I frost it, and keep in the fridge overnight to let everything set up, and it tastes even better the second day. My kids love eating this for breakfast, too!
I have made this recipe for my husband’s birthday two years in a row and it’s his absolute favorite. Everyone should have this cake before they die.