Whole Grain Banana-Orange Sports Cakes

I'm really excited to share the latest movie snack recipe in my ongoing collaboration with Netflix! As you may know, each month, I create and share a recipe based on a streaming playlist theme that Netflix is featuring that month.

February's theme? Inspiration and teamwork, inspired by the Olympics!

With the Winter Olympics right around the corner, it's the perfect opportunity to check out a few of the amazing sports-themed movies, TV shows, and documentaries available on Netflix.

These kid-friendly titles are a great way for parents to open up a conversation about teamwork, inspiration, and competition--and what it means to "go for the gold"--both on and off the field.

And to make the conversation a little bit sweeter, why not serve some of these cute sports-themed mini cakes!

Made with whole wheat, mashed bananas, and fresh orange juice, they're a slightly healthier alternative to the usual sugary or salty TV & movie-watching snacks. (But don't worry--they taste just as good as regular cakes--I promise!)

I've included the recipe and directions below, but definitely feel free to play around and customize them as you'd like. Use different frostings or small candies for the topping--you can even play around with the flavors of the cake, adding other mashed fruits or spices.

Use these as an inspiration, and have fun baking, eating, and watching great stories, and even better moments, with your kids.


Note: This post is sponsored by Netflix. Thank you for supporting cool companies like Netflix who make it possible for me to keep creating fun new content for you to enjoy. All photos, opinions, and recipes are (of course!) my own.

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Whole Grain Banana-Orange Sports Cakes
Makes about 12-16 mini cakes

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 3/4 cups granulated white sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 large eggs, slightly beaten
1 1/2 cups orange juice
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas (about 3 large bananas--the riper, the better!)
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

For the toppings
Footballs & Hockey Pucks: 1 bittersweet cup chocolate chips
Baseballs & Soccer Balls: 1 cup white chocolate chips
Basketball: 1 cup orange candy melts
Black and red frosting pens, for details (I like gel pens)

Special equipment: Round and oval (or football shaped) cookie cutters (about 2-4" each)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and line two 8" square baking sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk together both flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, beat butter, eggs, orange juice, bananas, and vanilla.

Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and mix gently just until combined. Divide into the two prepared pans, and bake about 30-35 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Remove from pans to a cooling rack and let cool completely.

To make the mini cakes: Use the cookie or biscuit cutters to cut out circles and ovals from the cakes in a couple different sizes.

Melt the white chocolate chips in the microwave until smooth, and then use a spoon to spread on top of a few of the cakes. Repeat with the dark and orange chips. Let set completely (about 30 minutes). Use black and red frosting pens to add the details (you can also tint canned frosting or cream cheese with food coloring and use a piping pen).

Let the mini cakes set, and then serve all together.