A healthy smash cake recipe for your little one’s first birthday cake! Made with oat flour, sweetened with bananas (no added sugar) and easy to make! Gluten free friendly and dairy free.
I cannot believe we are celebrating Finn’s first birthday!
I made this healthy smash cake recipe for those that want something made with more wholesome ingredients, is easy to make and perfect for your little one’s first birthday cake.
If you’re planning cake smash photos, this recipe works for that too.
What is a Smash Cake
A smash cake is a small cake meant to be smashed into by your little one – it’s not really for serving a crowd.
The point of a smash cake is for your little one to smash their hands into the cake themselves – makes for a great photo opp! Perfect for a birthday photo shoot or birthday parties where the baby can feed themselves.
Smash Cake Ingredients
Less than 10 ingredients is all you need for this smash cake recipe. Most you probably already have on hand!
- banana – just a couple small ripe bananas, mashed well, will give you enough for this recipe. If you’re shy by a tablespoon or so, just add a little more oil or even a nut butter.
- egg – the egg helps gives the cake some structure. I am working on testing a flaxseed version to make this egg free.
- oil – any mild oil will work here. Avocado or light olive are my preference here. If using coconut oil, make sure it is melted, cooled and the rest of your ingredients are room temperature.
- milk – just a touch to help thin out the batter.
- vanilla extract – for some flavor.
- oat flour – I used homemade by blending some gluten free quick oats into flour.
- baking powder – will help get the right rise for the cake
- Pinch of salt – optional, since you’re just serving this for your little one.
- Dash of cinnamon – again optional but adds a nice little flavor your babe might enjoy!
Baking Tools
How to Make a Smash Cake
This smash cake recipe is truly so simple. It comes together in one bowl using just a spoon or spatula.
First add in all of the wet ingredients: well mashed banana, egg, oil, vanilla and milk.
Then add in dry ingredients: oat flour, baking powder, and a pinch of salt.
Stir to combine until the batter is smooth.
Evenly distribute the batter into two, 4″ round cake pans, filling halfway full for each pan.
Mini Cake Pans
Use 4″ cake pans for this recipe and make sure to grease the edges and line with a cut out circle of parchment paper so the cakes release perfectly.
Allow the cakes to cool completely before frosting.
You can also make the cakes one day in advance.
Healthy Frosting Options
If you want to keep this cake on the healthier side, you can use a coconut whipped cream frosting or a yogurt frosting (use a non-dairy skyr or thicker yogurt if you need to keep this cake dairy free).
Add a hint of maple syrup if you want some flavor for the coconut cream, or just leave as is.
Coconut Whipped Cream – For a 2-tiered smash cake, you’ll need one (14 ounce) can of canned coconut milk, chilled for at least 6 hours. Make sure to not shake the can, to keep the cream separate from the water. If you’re making a 4-tiered smash cake, use two cans of coconut milk.
Yogurt Frosting – To make a yogurt frosting, use a thicker yogurt so you don’t have to strain it. Greek yogurt or Skyr works great here.
Tips for Frosting Smash Cake
Chill the cake between each layer of frosting so the cake is easier to frost – this is especially true if using coconut cream.
Here I added about 2 tablespoons of whipped coconut cream onto the first layer, added the second layer and then placed both the cake and the whipped cream in the fridge for 15 minutes.
I repeated this step before completely frosting the cake.
Coconut cream frosting chills and holds well, just be sure to not let it sit out too long before letting your little one dive in (or you’ll have a melty mess before they even start).
Let me know if you make this recipe by leaving a comment and rating below! It helps others learn more about the recipe too! Xx Ashley
Healthy Smash Cake Recipe
Easy to make healthy Smash Cake recipe! Perfect for your little one’s 1st birthday cake. Whether you’re planning a smash cake photoshoot or having a party, this recipe is great for serving to your little one. Made with oat flour, sweetened with bananas (no added sugar) and easy to make! Gluten free friendly and dairy free. Use coconut whipped frosting or yogurt for a healthier no added sugar frosting.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 1 smash cake 1x
- Category: dessert
- Method: oven
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
Cake
- 3/4 cup well mashed banana (2 small bananas)
- 1 large egg
- 1.5 Tbsp oil
- 1 Tbsp milk
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup oat flour (I blended my own)
- ½ tsp baking powder
- Pinch of salt
- Dash of cinnamon
Frosting
- 1 (14 ounce) canned coconut milk, chilled for 6 hours
Instructions
Recipe as written is for a 2-layer cake. If you’d like a 4 tiered cake, make 2 batches of cakes. Or use double recipe and use 4, 4″ round cake pans.
- Preheat oven to 350ºF and line 2, 4″ cake pans with cut out parchment paper, grease edges with coconut oil or butter; set aside.
- In a medium bowl combine mashed banana, egg, oil, milk and vanilla extract. Add in oat flour, baking powder, pinch of salt and a dash of cinnamon. Stir until batter is smooth.
- Evenly distribute batter into preparted pans, filling about 1/2 way full.
- Bake cakes for 15-18 minutes, or until inserted toothpick in center comes out clean.
- Allow cakes to rest in pan for 10 minutes before flipping onto cooling rack. Make sure cakes are cooled completely before frosting. You can place in fridge to speed things up.
- Make coconut whipped cream frosting: Do not shake canned coconut milk before opening. Carefully scoop out cream and discard liquid. Using a chilled metal bowl (if possible) place coconut cream in bowl and whip with electric mixer until light and fluffy. You can use food coloring here if you’d like, a hint of maple syrup or leave plain.
- Frost cake: Place cake on cake stand or plate, add a couple of tablespoons of whipped cream on first layer, top with second layer and frost rest of cake. Be sure to keep cake chilled right up until serving, since coconut cream will melt at room temperature. Note: if making 4 layers, secure cake with wooden dowel (cut skewer to size of stacked cakes before frosting).
Notes
Sub for banana: this recipe works with applesauce in place of the banana, but you’ll only need 2/3 cup applesauce and omit milk. The cakes are not quite as dense as the banana version so I recommend only making a 2-layer cake for the applesauce version.
Linke to “one” cake topper (affiliate). Perfect size for this cake!
Keywords: first birthday cake, baby smash cake, how to make a smash cake
Marie says
This cake was a smash 💥 for my grand daughter. She ate it with gusto and the guests were horrified that she was eating “so much sugar” hahaha we frosted with whipped coconut cream. Added the one and voilà, a very naturally sweet moment.
Thank you Ashley.
★★★★★
Ashley says
Aw, amazing! Thank you so much for sharing with me. I love that this cake was a part of your family’s special day 🙂
Cathy says
I made both banana and applesauce cakes. They smell delicious so waiting to assemble them tomorrow for our grandson to ‘smash’ and eat.
The applesauce one rises higher but both look appetizing for breakfast so another day I might make myself one.
★★★★★
Ashley says
Thanks for the feedback Cathy! Appreciate it 🙂
Audrey says
Made this recipe **TWICE** and my little one loved it both times!
So glad I found this recipe ❤️
★★★★★
Ashley says
So happy to here Audrey! Thanks for sharing and leaving a review 🙂
Allysa says
Cake turned out great. My son tore it up, and it tasted like banana bread to me! I used 6 inch pans and had to double the recipe to get 2 layers. I couldn’t get my coconut milk to whip though. I only took the top thick part out after having it in the fridge for 2 days, and it was a soupy mess. I improvised and used yogurt.
Ashley says
Hi Allysa, Thank you for your comment and feedback! Canned coconut milk can be a little finicky, depending on the brand. Make sure it isn’t shaken at all prior to putting in the fridge. You may have just had a really shaken up can that combined the water with the cream prior to freezing. Glad you could make it work with yogurt though! Some other tips using coconut milk – use a metal bowl that has been stored in the freezer for 30 minutes. That may help for next time if you try making coconut milk frosting another time.
Rebecca says
I’m really excited to make this for my son’s first birthday. Have you ever use this recipe for cupcakes? I don’t know enough about baking to kind of translate to cupcakes myself or to know if I can just follow the recipe but put it in a cupcake pan instead
Ashley says
Hi Rebecca, thanks for your comment! I haven’t made this into cupcakes myself but you can try by making sure to non-stick paper liners or silicone liners in a cupcake pan. Bake at 350ºF and watch baking time after 8 minutes. I am not sure how long they will take to bake, but I’d start at 8 minutes and check again at 10, then 12, etc. Cupcakes should still rise slightly like cakes in pictures. And inserted toothpick should come out with no wet batter when done (light crumb okay). Hope that helps! Would love to hear how it goes if you try. Thanks!