How to Make Banana-Date Seder Cake

Coming up with a unique, tasty dessert to follow a Passover Seder can sometimes be a challenge. Flour is prohibited due to its leavening, so a regular cake cannot be served. Using matzo meal and ground almonds as a base, you can make a delicious banana-date cake to serve at the end of your Seder.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• 7 eggs
• 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. grated orange zest
• 4 tbsp. lemon juice
• 2-3 large bananas
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 cup matzo cake meal
• 1 cup ground almonds
• 2 cups pitted dates
• 3/4 cup cherry wine
• Small mixing bowl
• Large mixing bowl
• Electric mixer
• Tube pan
• Saucepan
• Long, serrated knife

Prepare the Banana-Date Cake Batter

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Separate the eggs by carefully passing the yolks between the two halves of the eggshells. Put the egg whites in a small mixing bowl and set aside. Place the egg yolks in a larger mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until thick.
3. Add the sugar, orange zest and 3 tbsp. of the lemon juice to the egg yolks. Beat until completely incorporated into the eggs.
4. Mash up enough banana to fill up a 1 cup measure. Depending on the size of the bananas, you may use 2 or 3 whole bananas. Add the bananas, salt, cake meal and ground almonds to the egg yolk mixture.
5. Rinse off the beaters of your mixer, and then beat the egg whites until they are stiff. This may take a couple of minutes.
6. Fold the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture.
7. Spread the banana-date batter into an ungreased tube pan and bake for approximately 45 minutes.

Make the Date Filling

8. Slice the dates while the cake is baking. Put the dates into a small saucepan.
9. Add the cherry wine, the remaining tbsp. of lemon juice and a pinch of salt to the dates.
10. Stir over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes until the date mixture is smooth and thick.

Assemble the Banana-Date Seder Cake

11. Remove the cake from the tube pan.
12. Use a long, serrated knife to slice the cake into 2 layers. It may be easier to slice if you make a cut on one side of the cake and slowly turn it as you slice.
13. Spread the date filling evenly on the bottom half of the banana cake.
14. Place the upper half of the cake on top of the date filling. Press down lightly to allow the layers to adhere to one another.
15. Cut the cake into slices and serve after your Seder has been completed.

Tips & Warnings

• Allow the banana cake to cool completely after baking.