I made Ray a maple sugar sweetened Hummingbird Cake for his birthday party on Sunday (actual birthday tomorrow) and I must say it was quite a hit. I have included the traditional recipe I used from Food Network with my modifications in parentheses. This will be a regular on my special events menus from now on. Think of it as a jazzed up banana nut bread with a pineapple undertone. Very tasty indeed. The coconut oil I use makes this cake healthier. You will not taste coconut from the oil though in this particular case that would have just added another lovely flavor. Next time, I might add unsweetened coconut to the cream cheese frosting or lemon or orange zest, just for fun. Either way, I can promise this cake is delicious. Let me know if you try it!

Hummingbird Cake

Ingredients

Cake Batter

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans (or walnuts)
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar (or 1 3/4 cups maple sugar and 1/4 cup honey)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 3/4 cups mashed ripe bananas (about 4 large)
1 (8-oz.) can crushed pineapple (do not drain)
3/4 cup canola oil (or coconut oil)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Glaze

4 ounces cream cheese, cubed and softened
2 cups sifted powdered sugar (or 1/2 cup honey)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 to 2 Tbsp. milk (no milk if using honey)

Preparation

1. Prepare Cake Batter: Preheat oven to 350°. Bake pecans in a single layer in a shallow pan 8 to 10 minutes or until toasted and fragrant, stirring halfway through.
2. Stir together flour and next 4 ingredients in a large bowl; stir in eggs and next 4 ingredients, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Sprinkle 1 cup toasted pecans into a greased and floured 14-cup Bundt pan. Spoon batter over pecans.
3. Bake at 350° for 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a long wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on a wire rack 15 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack, and cool completely (about 2 hours).
4. Prepare Glaze: Process cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and 1 Tbsp. milk in a food processor until well blended. Add remaining 1 Tbsp. milk, 1 tsp. at a time, processing until smooth. Immediately pour glaze over cooled cake, and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup toasted pecans.