Usually when I have mushy, overly ripe bananas, I make muffins, but the day I baked this, I was feeling like cake,  so I pulled out an old cookbook, the Land O’Lakes Treasury of Country Recipes, and found this great recipe.

I didn’t want to make a layer cake because this one needs to be refrigerated so I adapted it for a 9 x 13 inch cake pan with a lid for ease of storage.

Icebox Banana Cake

• 1 cup sugar
• 2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup {2 medium} mashed ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup dairy sour cream
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

1. Heat oven to 350°.
2. In large mixer bowl combine sugar, butter and 2 tsp. vanilla.  Beat at low speed, scraping bowl often, until light and fluffy {1 to 2 minutes}.  Continue beating, adding eggs one at a time, until creamy {1 to 2 minutes}.  The cookbook calls for the rest of this to be done by hand but I continued to use my mixer set at the lowest speed.
3. By hand, stir in 1 cup bananas and sour cream.  Fold in flour and baking soda.  Pour into a greased and floured pan.
4. Bake for 28 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool completely.

Chocolate Cream Frosting

• 1 1/2 cups whipping cream
• 3 Tbsp. powdered sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted

1. In chilled small mixer bowl, beat chilled whipping cream at high speed, scraping bowl often, until soft peaks form.
2. Gradually add sugar and 1 tsp. vanilla; continue beating until stiff peaks form {1 to 2 minutes}.
3. Add melted chocolate; continue beating until well mixed {1 minute}.  {Do not over beat.}
4. Frost cooled cake.  Refrigerate or freeze cake 2 hours or overnight.  Serve!