This Banana Cake Roll is a soft, homemade banana bread cake wrapped around a delicious cream cheese filling. Each slice of this moist banana bread is better than the last! Top it off with our homemade caramel drizzle.
Homemade Banana Roll Cake
Roll cakes are super fun to make and they offer something unique and different from your normal sheet cake. They look so impressive but they are easy to put together. Actually, I think they are easier than a traditional cake because you don’t have to worry about what the whipped topping looks like since it’ll be rolled into the center anyway!
The flavor in this Caramel Banana Cake Roll is so delicious. It’s sweet but the banana flavoring keeps it light and the creamy whipped filling is to die for. Everyone loves this and requests it again and again. It’s super simple to make and only takes 20 minutes to prep and it’s completely put together from start to finish in just an hour and a half.
Why We Love This Banana Cake Roll Recipe
- Quick and easy to make
- A unique and fun dessert
- Homemade cake recipe
- Delicious cream cheese frosting filling
- Under 30 minutes prep time
- Simple banana dessert
- Looks beautiful when complete
- Moist banana bread recipe
Ingredients/Shopping List
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Ground cinnamon
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Eggs
- Granulated sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Bananas
- Powdered sugar
- Cream cheese
- Brown sugar
- Whipped topping
- Caramel topping
SEE FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD BELOW
How to Make This Caramel Banana Cake Roll Recipe
It works well to break this recipe into 3 sets of easy to follow instructions. Start by making the cake. Next, make the filling. Finally, putting it all together with the assembly.
- Whisk together flour, salt, baking soda and powder. Beat together the eggs, granulated sugar, and vanilla.
- Add in the mashed bananas and continue to mix. Fold the flour mixture into the wet mixture.
- Spread batter evenly in the jelly roll pan (do not use a regular cookie sheet – see FAQ below). Bake in the oven at 375 degrees for 12-13 minutes.
PRO-TIP: Keep a very close eye on the cake. If it overcooks, it will dry out and won’t roll properly. - Dust a linen tea towel with powdered sugar, and place it powder down on top of the cake. Place a cutting board on top of the towel and flip the cake pan. Dust the top of the cake. Roll one end of the cake towards the other and place on a cooling rack.
Pro-tip: Make sure to wrap the cake in the towel right out of the oven to prevent a risk of cracking when rolling for the second time. Be very patient and slow when rolling the cake and unrolling. Rushing can cause cracks.
- To make the cream cheese filling, beat together the cream cheese, brown sugar, and vanilla. Then, fold in the whipped topping.
- Once cooled, unroll the cake. Spread the filling over the cake.
- Roll the cake back into the roll. Wrap the cake in plastic wrap.
- Let it chill 1 hour to overnight. Dust with powdered sugar and drizzle with caramel before serving.
Variations / Options / Add-ins
- CARAMEL TOPPING: The caramel drizzle is an optional topping, but it adds a nice flavor. You could also use chocolate sauce to drizzle as well.
- ICE CREAM: This cake is delicious with a scoop of caramel ice cream!
- CREAM CHEESE: If you want to save on calories, you can use reduced-fat cream cheese for this recipe. You won’t notice a difference in the overall flavor or texture!
- WHIPPED TOPPING: As with the cream cheese, you could use a reduced-fat whipped topping as well.
Tips
- Make sure you are using an actual jelly roll pan. Cookie sheets are not an appropriate substitute and will not produce the cake you are hoping for. (see FAQ below)
- Make sure you do not use any fabric softener when washing the tea towels. It will transfer to the cake and cause the flavor to be off. Do not use a terry cloth towel as the lint will transfer to the cake.
Frequently Asked Questions
The short answer is no. Cookie sheets are not an appropriate substitute and will not produce the cake you are hoping for.
A jelly roll pan is smaller than a cookie sheet and it has a rolled edge to help contain the batter.
We used a 15x10x1 sized jelly roll pan.
Here are a few pointers to make sure your cake doesn’t crack. Make sure to use parchment paper to line your baking sheet. This helps make sure that the cake won’t get stuck in the pan.
Do not overbake the cake. When it’s done baking, you immediately want to roll it up so that the cake takes the roll shape while it’s still warm.
Be sure to use powdered sugar on your tea towel.
Lastly, let it cool completely before adding the filling so that the filling doesn’t melt and spill out.
Store any leftovers tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. You can freeze the cake roll before you add toppings for up to 3 months.
Wrap the cake roll in plastic wrap, then wrap tightly in aluminum foil. Allow the frozen cake roll to thaw before topping and slicing.
Other Easy Cake Recipes
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Banana Cake Roll
Ingredients
Cake:
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1½ tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup mashed bananas (1 medium-sized banana)
- ½ cup powdered sugar divided, for dusting
Filling:
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¾ cup whipped topping
Topping:
- 1 tbsp powdered sugar
- 3 tbsp caramel sundae topping
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 15x10x1 jelly roll pan with parchment paper and spray with nonstick spray. Set it aside.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Set it aside.
- Using either a stand mixer, or a medium-sized mixing bowl and a handheld mixer on high speed, beat the eggs, granulated sugar, and vanilla for 4-5 minutes, until a frothy pale yellow.
- Add in the mashed bananas and continue to mix on medium until well incorporated.
- Fold in the flour mixture.
- Using either a silicone spatula or an offset spatula to spread the cake batter evenly in the jelly roll pan.
- Bake for 12 to 13 minutes.
- Remove the cake from the oven. Run the tip of a sharp knife around the edges of the pan that were not covered by the parchment paper.
- Heavily dust the tea towel with powdered sugar.
- Immediately place the dusted tea towel powdered side down on top of the cake.
- Lay the cutting board on top of the dusted tea towel. The cake pan will be hot, you will need to be careful to protect your hands. Quickly flip the cake pan over so that the cake is now on top of the dusted tea towel.
- Carefully and slowly peel the parchment paper away from the cake.
- Flip one end of the tea towel over one of the short ends of the cake. Carefully begin to roll one end towards the other. Place the rolled cake on a cooling rack to cool completely.
Filling
- Using a handheld mixer on medium-high and a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat together the softened cream cheese, light brown sugar, and vanilla until the brown sugar is completely incorporated.
- Fold in the whipped topping. Set this aside.
Cake Assembly
- Once the cake is completely cooled, carefully and slowly unroll the cake (If there are a few small cracks, it will be ok).
- Using either a silicone spatula, or an offset spatula, spread the filling over the top of the cake, avoiding the edges.
- Slowly, and with gentle even pressure, carefully roll the cake back into a “roll”. Tightly wrap the cake in plastic wrap to ensure the cake holds its shape. Allow the cake to chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour to overnight.
- Just before you are ready to serve the cake roll, dust the cake with 1 tablespoon of powdered sugar. Drizzle the caramel sundae topping on top of the powdered sugar. Slice the cake roll in ½ inch servings.
Jenn’s Notes
- Make sure you are using an actual jelly roll pan. Cookie sheets are not an appropriate substitute and will not produce the cake you are hoping for.
- Keep a very close eye on the cake. If it overcooks, it will dry out and won’t roll properly.
- Make sure you do not use any fabric softener when washing the tea towels. It will transfer to the cake and cause the flavor to be off. Do not use a terry cloth towel as the lint will transfer to the cake.
- Make sure to wrap the cake in the towel right out of the oven to prevent a risk of cracking when rolling for the second time.
- Be very patient and slow when rolling the cake and unrolling. Rushing can cause cracks.
the cinnamon really brings out the flavor of the banana excellent
I used a cookie sheet and it turned out so well! Mine was 12x16x0.5 but I didn’t have any batter left over. I cut 2 minutes of the baking time and it was amazing! My family isn’t a huge fan of cream cheese filling, so I made a chocolate one instead. Honestly, this cake is one of the best I’ve ever made. Thank you so much!
Yay! So glad you all enjoyed it!
I used a cookie sheet. Actually 2 at a time. I used the recipe x3 for the two pans. Worked beautifully. I just baked 8 of them to freeze for the holidays.
Hi Carol! thank you so much! I am so glad they worked out so well for you.
Easy recipe and light on the ingredients.
Millions of star
First time trying will cut baking time down a little but overall a nice and easy recipe.