Brazilian Cuca de Banana

Hailing from Southern Brazil, this delicious cake has a layer of banana and a sweet crumb topping. It is somewhere between banana bread, coffee cake and a German streusel, making it one of the most mouth-watering treats around. You can store it in the refrigerator for up to a week (though it will probably be eaten in a day!)

Ingredients 

For the cake:

• 4 eggs (separate yolks and whites)
• 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter 
• 400g sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 375g flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 4 bananas, peeled and sliced
• 180ml milk

For the crumb topping:

• 150g dark brown soft sugar
• 90g plain flour
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Instructions

1. Grease a springform cake tin and preheat your oven to 180C.
2. Mix all the ingredients for the crumb topping together until the crumbs are pea-size. Set aside to use later.
3. Whip the egg whites until they form stiff peaks which hold their shape. Set aside.
4. Mix together the flour and baking powder in a medium sized bowl, set aside.
5. In an electric mixer (or by hand in a large bowl) beat together the egg yolks, sugar and butter until creamy, then add vanilla.
6. At a slow speed add the flour mixture a little at a time, then a little milk, alternating between the two. Fold your egg whites into the mixture.
7. Pour half the cake mixture into your prepared cake tin. Add a layer of half the bananas, then half the crumb topping. Pour the remaining cake mixture on top and add the rest of the bananas, then the rest of the crumb topping.
8. Bake at 180C for an hour. Check the cake is fully cooked by piercing it with a skewer- if it comes out clean, the cake is ready. Leave to cool for 15 minutes before slicing.