I think I mentioned I live practically in Cuba.
There are some definite pluses to living in South Florida. I’m talking about food things.
- Amazing fruits and vegetables from all the Latino countries that surround this bountiless peninsula.
- A rockin’ caffe’ con leche on any corner…just like you would find in say, little Havana.
- Miami.
- Cool little Argentinine and Cuban bakeries with pastries like: guayabas, guayabas con queso.
- And the number one reason: DULCE DE LECHE
Update to post: October 6, 2010 I posted this summer how to make your own yummy caramel with sweetened condensed milk. A couple of my sweet readers mentioned how you can make your own if you can’t find Dulce de Leche. Here is the link to make your own caramel . As a bonus, you can see my pancake recipe. It is really good! I make them every day. Not exaggerating.
This is the brand I used from my supermarket:
Upside-Down Banana Cake with Dulce de Leche
8 tablespoons unsalted butter,room temp
2 -3 ripe bananas peeled and sliced on an angle in thick slices (about 1/2 inch thick)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/3 cups cake flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/2 cup milk
6 tablespoons dulce de leche
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Place 4 tablespoons of dulce de leche in an 8 inch square cake pan. Heat in oven until it softens, about 5 minutes. Remove from oven; spread evenly around bottom of pan. Arrange banana slices to cover bottom of pan evenly.
2. In a large bowl, cream 8 tablespoons of butter with sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until combined after each.
These are some other reasons why I like living here:
beautiful beaches
Cake Duchess is where you can follow the baking adventures of me! Hi! I'm Lora, a mom of two cuties in South Florida. I got into all this baking mess because of them. 
{ 31 comments… read them below or add one }
love the flavours delicious
lovely pictures
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I love dulce de leche! Did you know you can make it by slow cooking a can of condensed milk for 8 hrs? Well… to be honest, it looks more like dulce de leche than it tastes. It was fun trying it out though.
I think I could live on dulce de leche! Your cake looks fantastic.
That is a devilish combination”It looks delicious.
Cheers,
Rosa
Love your baking Lora! so delicious! I wish I lived in Florida so I could join you for a walk on beach!!!
Sweet! I just happen to have a jar of dulce de leche in the pantry, so it’s obvious that this recipe was meant to come into my life right now.
Guess I know what I’m making later this week, just as soon as I buy some bananas!
Just adorable! I loved seeing pictures of the beach…but what I loved even more was that delicious cake. I’m such a sucker for all banana baked goods, especially those with dulce de leche on top! Perfect recipe, perfect post. Thanks for sharing.
Wow, this looks SO good. I am a huge fan of dulce de leche, and the idea of combining it with banana cake sounds completely amazing!! Can’t wait to make this
Oh, Yum…this cake looks so delish! Great pics, thanks for sharing!
I love dulce de leche and since I can’t eat a pineapple upside down cake (allergic) this seems like the perfect alternative. Great pictures too.
Love the pictures! Great post!
This sounds so good! Thanks for the invite on TastyKitchen!
Have you ever made your own dulce de leche? I found a recipe on TastyKitchen some time ago and it sounds really easy and tasty, too. Here’s the link:
http://thepioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen/recipes/desserts/dulce-de-leche/
Stef at TooMuchToDoSoLittleTime.com
Esto es unpecado.. Dulce de leche con pastel de plátano….viva el cuerpo 10!!!
Besos
We have to make our own dulce de leche here, but it’s totally worth the little fear of the milk can exploding in the saucepan! This dessert looks delicious, and a great use for the sweet goodness
Sounds amazing! My mother in law cooks with dulce de leche a lot being from South America and I can’t get enough of it!
Sinful – I want some with my coffee right now!
- Butter
oh decadent and so good! bananas and DDL are like THE pair made in heaven. This looks awesome!
Your pictures make me rethink where I’m living.. if I posted pictures of where I live there would be a lot of plains and cows.. not as exciting as the beach!
My boyfriend is going to love this recipe!
Wow, your mom’s comment is making me wish I had an oven that worked… I can’t wait to make this!
Stef at TooMuchToDoSoLittleTime.com
Lora, bananas & dulce de leche are a match made in heaven. This may have to take the place of pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving this year. Thanks for posting this great recipe (and beautiful pix!)
I am so making this. Just printed recipe. Wow! I want some right now with a cup of tea
I can imagine how that cake tastes like, all goey, sweet caramel running down the chin as you take a bite and chew on the soft texture of the cake! yums!
A mouthwatering combo!! This cake is irresistible!!
Wow! I’ve rarely seen a banana dessert that was so tempting or mouthwatering. I can just imagine the fabulous flavors together. And your pics now have me dreaming of Florida beaches…
Looks like banana heaven on a plate!
~ingrid
could you add some mashed bananas to the cake mixture?
Hi Renne,
Yes, go ahead and add a mashed banana. I wanted to do same thing, but ran out of ripe bananas;)
Lora
Hi Lora, I already wowed on twitter but want to add my two cents here too. That caramelization is dead on gorgeous! Every upside down cake you produce I swoon over as it was part of my childhood memories. I am now inspired to make one thanks to you. muah! Shulie
Congratulations on the Top 9, for your banana dulce de leche cake, Lora. Well deserved!
It is absolutely beautiful, and no doubt, delicious.
Thank you dear readers for all your kind comments. I really appreciate you looking at my blog and recipes and taking the time to comment.
Thank you Shulie. It has been so great getting to know you recently. You are an amazing and talented woman.
Mom, you’re the best! xoxo love you!
I was at our new WalMart yesterday and they had the Nestle Dulce de Leche you mentioned in your post.
Grabbed a can as well as a can of condensed milk to try making my own. 
Since the Nestle was only $1.78 and the condensed milk was $2.28 plus the time it will take to make it, I will likely just stick with the pre-made stuff.
Thanks for the ideas.
Stef at TooMuchToDoSoLittleTime.com