Eggless Semolina Gulkand Cake


semolina Gulkand Cake is a light snack cake with robust Indian flavours. Gulkand (rose preserve) adds a beautiful flavor and taste to the cake. Pistachios and almonds in every bite make it a delectable snack cake.




It has almost been three months since we shifted to our homestead. We are loving life in the Himalayan village. There is so much to learn and know. We have been tending to our garden and have planted Dahlias, daisy, hydrangeas, Lilium, lilies, chrysanthemums, sunflowers, and geranium. 



Every flower that blossoms spread so much happiness and positivity. 


The Dahlias are coming up well and the butterflies love them.

We have been getting grass from the forest every day to prepare our lawn. Wild grass is growing in the forest in abundance; we get bunches of them and plant in our lawn. It is picking up well and will spread in monsoons and hopefully by autumn, we shall have a lush lawn. 


While returning from the forest last evening, we saw a group of Himalayan Black Bulbuls on top of a pear tree.

Back home, the kids wanted me to bake a cake for them. Baking is a therapy for tired nerves. Keeping in mind the things we had in stock, we baked a Semolina Gulkand Cake. 



Every home baker at some time or the other has baked a Semolina cake. It is easy to bake, it is healthy and needs basic ingredients that are always there at home. Semolina adds a lovely texture to the cakes. Semolina cake is filling and makes a good snack cake and a great accompaniment to a cup of tea.


We had gulkand (rose preserve) at home and we added generously to the cake batter. We also added cardamoms, almonds, and pistachios.  The cake turned out to be delightful with robust Indian flavours. Gulkand did the magic.




Semolina Gulkand Cake (Eggless)

Ingredients

  • 1 cup+ 2 tablespoons fine semolina
  • 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup raw unrefined sugar
  • ½ cup thick yogurt
  • ¼ cup milk (a little more to get the right consistency later)
  • ½ cup oil (scant)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 5-6 green cardamoms (seeds powdered)
  • 5 tablespoons gulkand (rose preserve)
  • ¼ cup chopped pistachios
  • ¼ cup chopped almonds

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, mix together first six ingredients to get a smooth mixture.
  2. Cover and let rest for 25-30 minutes.
  3. Preheat oven at 180 degrees C. Grease and line one 9 inch round cake pan.
  4. Add gulkand and cardamom powder to the semolina mixture. Gulkand should mix well. There should  be no lumps in the batter.
  5. Check the consistency. If it is too thick add 2-3 tablespoons milk.
  6. Add baking powder and baking soda. Mix well.
  7. Fold in chopped pistachios and almonds.
  8. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 45-50 minutes or until the top turns golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  9. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes.  Remove from the pan and cool in the rack.
  10. Slice when cold.

 Note:
  •   Use a 9-inch cake pan. It will not bake well in a smaller cake pan.
  •   You may also add 1/2 cup desiccated coconut to the batter. 






NewerStories OlderStories Home

4 comments:

  1. Lovely pictures!
    Can I just use maida instead of suji? What modifications would be needed to accomodate the change?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello CrazyOcean, If you intend to use suji, i recommend that you try the recipe of thandai cake. Add gulkand instead of thandai powder to the batter and you'll love the medley of flavours. here is the link - https://www.ambrosiasoulfulcooking.com/2018/10/eggless-thandai-cake.html

      Delete
  2. My cake is baking right now. The top layer seems to have browned too much already and i have had it in the oven only for 20 mins. The cake is still not cooked so I lowered the temperature to 150 degrees and put it back. Any idea why it browned too soon?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Just an update... the final cake was crumbly and beautiful. Loved it. Can this be converted to a savoury cake by the way? Thank you very much for the recipe

    ReplyDelete