Vegan Banana Pudding Poke Cake with Caramel

Preparation:

1. Preheat your oven to 177 Celsius (350F) and line an 8-inch, square cake tin with parchment paper. Set aside.

Make the banana cake batter:

1. Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and bananas inside a large mixing bowl.
2. Now, pour in the soy milk, apple cider vinegar and vegetable oil. Fold into a smooth cake batter until there are no pockets of flour remaining. Make sure that you don’t over-mix the batter so that you can achieve the best texture possible.

Bake the cake:

1. Pour your banana cake batter into the prepared cake tin and bake in the centre of the oven for 20-25 minutes. A skewer will come out clean.
2. Let the cake cool inside the tin for 10-15 minutes then transfer onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
3. Once the cake has cooled, use the bottom of a wooden spoon to poke holes into it in 1-inch intervals. Don’t poke all the way down to the bottom of the cake. Instead, go about ¾ of the way down.
4. Mix together the condensed milk, soy milk and mashed bananas until combined. Pour the mixture over the cake so that the holes become full. Spread it around the cake with a palette knife or the bottom of the spoon.
5. Don’t let the holes overflow with banana pudding. If you have any of the condensed milk banana pudding filling leftover you can use it for something else such as, an oatmeal topping or a banana smoothie.

Make the frosting:

1. Add the whisk attachment to your stand mixer and cream together the vegan cream cheese, vegan butter and coconut cream on a high speed. The mixture will become creamy and a little lumpy due to the coconut cream.
2. Switch your stand mixer to a medium speed, then gradually pour in the powdered sugar in increments until it is all combined.
3. Continue to beat the frosting on a high speed for 5 minutes until it is creamy, thick and the lumps have disappeared.

Assemble the frosting:

1. Spread the frosting over the banana pudding poke cake and smooth it out with a palette knife. Place the cake in the fridge while you make the caramel.

Make the caramel topping:

1. Add all of the caramel ingredients to a small saucepan and place over a medium heat. 
2. Stir continuously until the coconut cream melts. Once the caramel starts to bubble, reduce to a simmer and cook for a further 2-3 minutes. Continue to stir constantly.
3. Remove the caramel from the heat and let it cool at room temperature so it can thicken. Drizzle the caramel over the cake. 
4. Place the cake back in the fridge for a further 1-2 hours before serving.