This Aloha Bundt cake is loaded with the very best Hawaii has to offer – bananas, pineapple, coconut, and macadamia nuts!
Last month at this time, I was sitting on the lanai of a fabulous condo on Maui, staring out at palm trees and bright blue water, listening to the birds. This month, even though our condo is pretty nice and the view is awesome, it’s certainly no Maui. Not to mention that the sound of birds is replaced by the sound of construction and trains. So, instead of daydreaming about being back on Maui, I decided to create a little bit of paradise at home… Sigh, a train is literally barrelling down the tracks and drowning out the sounds of any other life as I type this.
This month’s #BundtBakers theme — Fruit & Nut — comes to us from Shilpi at SimplyVeggies. I had originally planned to do a simple banana walnut bundt, but the trip to Maui inspired me to do something a little more tropical.
Ok, maybe a lot more tropical… this is one loaded bundt!
My sister-in-law, Nissa, had a pineapple banana bread recipe that I used as a base for this. It’s full of bananas, pineapple, and coconut, and I threw in some macadamia nuts for good measure. If that doesn’t scream Hawaii, I don’t know what does.
Deciding on a bundt pan and style is always a challenge (for me), but it’s also one of the most fun elements. Did you know that there is actually such a thing as an Aloha Bundt pan? Well, there is. I don’t have said pan, and I certainly didn’t need to try to track it down for what would likely be a one-time use, so I had to decide between the four bundt pans I do own.
The one that felt most tropical to me was the Blossom bundt, which I had just used for last month’s bundt cake. This was not ideal since I like to mix things up, but the Blossom bundt was easily the best fit for this.
I don’t know how I decided it would be a good idea to chop off the top of a pineapple and stick it into the center of the bundt, but I’m so glad I did. I love the way it turned out!
I know it doesn’t quite look like a pineapple, but I think it goes pretty well with the bundt pan.
I couldn’t decide if I wanted to glaze it, which is why there are two sets of pictures. I actually prefer the unglazed look and feel that it looks more like a pineapple, but it also looks a bit plain. It needed something, and the last bundt had a sugar dusting, so this one’s got a glaze. Plus, who doesn’t want glaze?? Just give me an extra bowl of glaze on the side so I can dip pieces of the cake into it.
This Aloha Bundt Cake truly tastes amazing. It’s super moist and flavorful, with just the right amount of varying flavors and textures. If you don’t like coconut or macadamia nuts you can easily leave them out, or change the type of nut. If you don’t like pineapple either, then how have you made it so far down this post??
Aloha Bundt Cake
Ingredients
Bundt
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon ground
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs
- 2 cups mashed bananas very ripe, approx. 5 medium*
- 1 cup crushed pineapple drained, reserve liquid
- 1 cup macadamia nuts chopped
- 1 cup shredded coconut unsweetened
Glaze
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 4 tsp pineapple juice
Instructions
Bundt:
- Preheat oven to 350F and grease a 10 or 12 cup Bundt pan with cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat sugar, oil, and vanilla until combined.
- Add eggs one at a time, fully incorporating after each addition. Beat till pale and fluffy (approx. 3-4 mins).
- Add banana, pineapple, coconut, and macadamia nuts and mix until combined.
- Add flour mixture and beat until just combined.
- Pour into prepared Bundt pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
- Rap Bundt pan on counter a couple of times to release air bubbles and fill nooks and crannies.
- Bake until a cake tester comes out mostly clean (approx. 60-70mins).
- Cool on a wire rack for 10mins.
- Rap pan against counter to loosen the cake and turn out onto wire rack.
- Cool completely before glazing.
Glaze:
- Combine sugar and pineapple juice in a small measuring cup. Whisk with a fork until combined and lumps are gone. Add more juice as needed until desired consistency is reached.
- Pour over cooled Bundt Cake.
Carol says
This looks and sounds wonderfully delcious!
Could this be baked in mini bundt pan moulds? I have a 12-hole pan and would love to try this.
Olivia says
Hi Carol! You can totally bake this in mini’s. How many cups of batter foes your mini pan take? This recipe works for a 10-12 cup bundt pan.
Pea says
Could I make this as a loaf? Looks to me like it would make 2 standard loaves. Thanks! 🙂
Olivia says
Hi Pea! For sure! The baking time might be slightly different though.
Marsha says
Your cakes are amazing. I have to make a variety for a brunch and I am wondering if the Aloha, Rocky Road and Oreo can be frozen with or without the glaze. Also the Oreo cake looks amazing in that pan, but I don’t have access to the pan. Do you have a suggestion what to use instead.
Also for the Mocha Chocolate and lemon poppyseed cakes can they be frozen.
Very excited to see your response
Olivia says
Hi Marsha! They can all be frozen without the glaze, but be sure that they are wrapped well in something airtight! For the Oreo Bundt, you can use any 10 or 12 cup Bundt pan. And yes, the Mocha and Lemon Poppyseed cakes can be frozen too. I hope that helps!
John Wilkes says
Hi Olivia I tried this but without success i am sorry to say, It came out very solid so I Guess I must have gone wrong somewhere along the line.A hint as to where I may have made any errors would be appreciated, Whenever I use banana’s I never seem to have much success, Best wishes
Olivia says
Hi John! I’m so sorry to hear that 😕 Baking with bananas can be a challenge. I sometimes get dense and heavy loaves too and am trying to figure out why. I know that over mixing can be a culprit — making the cake dense and heavy. Did you use fresh or frozen/thawed bananas?
John Wilkes says
Thank for replying Olivia, Yes I used fresh bananas and fresh pineapple also mashed them both with potato masher, I must admit I am a 79 year old novice I’m afraid Plus I am male so that could have a big bearing on it. But i will keep on trying.
Olivia says
Hi John! Hmm I wonder if the fresh pineapple had something to do with it, maybe it released more water or something and made the cake more dense? The fact that you’re 79 and a novice is amazing and I’m so excited that you’re trying my recipes! Have you tried my Triple Chocolate Banana bread? That one’s maybe an easier one to start with. You can do it all in one bowl and there’s less of a risk of overmixing too. Here’s the link in case you want to give it a go :).
http://livforcake.com/2015/08/triple-chocolate-banana-bread.html
John says
Thanks Olivia, I have looked at your recipe and will definitely give that a go, I am salivating at the thought, and I am sure my son and family will enjoy too. but I must give the bundt cake another go I will not be beaten.
Mallory says
How would you propose to alter this recipe for a nut allergy?
Olivia says
Hi Mallory! You can leave out the macadamia nuts altogether and it won’t affect the recipe 🙂
Brynne Garman says
Absolutely gorgeous photography! Making this for my Easter dessert tonight!
Olivia says
Thanks so much Brynne! I hope you love it 🙂
Krystal says
Thanks for the recipe! I made it today for a church party and it got great reviews! I had a few people ask for the recipe so I emailed them the link. I have to agree with Palma, the banana did overpower the pineapple in my cake. Next time I make it I will decrease the banana and cinnamon and increase the pineapple. Thank you so much for sharing, I really appreciate it!
Olivia says
Thanks so much for your feedback Krystal! I’m so glad you liked it 😄.
palma says
Made it this week and it was delicious. Next time I’ll use less bananas as the taste of them overwhelmed the pineapple’s and coconut. But the cake was moist and delicious
Olivia says
Glad you liked it Palma! 🙂
Bakingyummies says
Oh wow I love everything about this post Olivia. The cake looks absolutely delicious, the nuts have so appropriately taken their place in the cake! Photography is beautiful! You’ve done a splendid job 🙂 Thanks for being a part of this group.
Olivia says
Thanks so much Deepti! 🙂
Tux | Brooklyn Homemaker says
Gorgeous photos of an absolutely stunning cake! Such a beaut!
I’m sorry I wasn’t able to play along this month but seeing this makes me feel like I still got to join in on the fun.
Margaret says
Absolutely stunning! An Aloha volcano of glaze and deliciousness. Very creative!!
Olivia says
Thanks Margaret! I totally didn’t even THINK of the volcano aspect. Perfect!
Catherine says
Dear Olivia, I like to create little ‘stay-cations’ at home too. Your bundt is absolutely beautiful. It sounds like a tropical sensation. xo, Catherine
Olivia says
Thank you so much Catherine! 😀
Janice @Kitchen Heals Soul says
Hypothetically speaking, if I felt the need to bake more bundts and wanted to join you bundt bakers (to have the perfect excuse for said bundt baking), how would one go about joining you? I hardly ever bake bundts, but I love bundts, so it’s kinda sad! I need an excuse 😉
Olivia says
You should totally join! I love to have an excuse to bake more bundts and having a theme to work with each month is super fun :). The info on joining can be found here:
http://www.foodlustpeoplelove.com/p/bundtbakers.html
Natalia @ Enjoy Tribute says
In the process of yumming all the recipes form FBC I try not to get distracted by the photos (it’s tough work to yum them all!) but WOW your photos just screamed at me while scrolling. You do a gorgeous photography job. Had to stop and say it! Simply beautiful!!
Olivia says
Natalia, you just made my day. Thank you!! <3 🙂