You mash the ripest bananas, the batter is just right, and you add a handful of chopped apricots for that sweet-tart zing. The cake bakes up wonderfully, has that homey aroma, and the crust is golden brown. But when you cut it, the apricots are a disappointment. Hard and chewy and sometimes bitter. They hadn't been like that before. What changed?
This is something many home bakers go through. Banana cake is a comfort recipe—warm, easy, forgiving. It’s the go-to for leftover bananas, and with a few tweaks, it becomes a great festive sweet, breakfast bite, or snack box treat. Apricots, with their bright color and tang, seem like the perfect upgrade. But if you’ve added them without prepping them right, they dry out during baking. The water in the batter flows one way, and the dried fruit flows the other.
There are simple solutions to this. You don't have to avoid apricots or soak the batter in syrup. You simply need the correct prep and baking techniques that work for Indian kitchens, whether you bake in an OTG, air fryer, or convection oven. Let's begin with the recipe.
Ingredients:
Method:
Dried apricots from a packet are too thick to soften when baking. If you don't soak them, they suck water out of the batter and become rubbery in the cake. Soaking them in warm water (not boiling) for 15–20 minutes lets them rehydrate and soften. Drain them thoroughly before adding to the batter so that there's no excess water. For a richer flavor, soak in orange juice or light tea instead of water. This is not negotiable if you desire the apricots to remain moist within the cake.
Even rehydrated apricots will sink to the bottom or stick together. Toss them in a little flour before folding into the batter to distribute them evenly. It also prevents them from drawing in too much water from the cake surrounding them. This prevents the apricots from sinking into the cake. Flour coating creates a thin barrier, allowing the fruit to steam within the cake instead of dry-baking.
Banana cakes are heavy, and introducing moist apricots tends to make the center even more heat-sensitive. A marginally reduced oven temperature of about 170–175°C rather than 180°C provides sufficient time for the cake to be cooked through without making the fruit dry. It also makes apricots heat slowly while retaining their softness. In case the top is coloring too rapidly, cover it midway with foil. The cake cooks inside in this way, and the apricots remain soft without charring or becoming stiff.
To add an extra dose of moisture, you can set aside some soaked apricots and fold them into the batter only towards the end. This avoids them spending too much time in the batter, where they might begin drying out again before even baking starts. Folding them in at the last minute helps them hold on to the plumpness they achieved through soaking. It also allows you more control over the placement of fruit—so each slice has a few juicy bits rather than dry spots.
How you store the cake is just as important as how you bake it. Left uncovered, the cake—and particularly the apricot pieces—will dry out fast. Once cooled, store the cake wrapped in foil or cling wrap inside an airtight container. Don't put it in the fridge except in hot, humid weather. Refrigerate for longer shelf life and warm slices lightly before consuming. Brush the top with a light sugar syrup as well—this seals the moisture in and prevents the apricots from drying out further.