I am a huge fan of dates but when I was pregnant with Lil Dude somehow I was not in mood to eat these. The problem was people who came to visit us during that time got fruits, sweets and a box of dates!Everyone knows the importance of taking an Iron rich diet during pregnant and one of the easiest way to incorporate this mineral is to have at least 2 pieces a day.
Our food preferences change during pregnancy and for me it manifested as hating my favorite fruit. I had to eat this as my pantry started over flowing with boxes of dates! I made cakes, ladoos, bars, milkshakes and other dishes so that I will inclined to eat them and Lil Angel will also get in a bit of nutrition as she is dead against eating dates!
My dislike for dates continued even after Dude was born but now I am forcing Lil Angel to eat dates by making some dish out it and literally masking the presence of Dates!This way I am also starting to like my 'once upon a time' favorite fruit...
This recipe is one which I saw on Tickling Palates, Radhika's blog and had bookmarked it to make later. The time has come finally and I baked it a few weeks ago. Lil Angel enjoyed every bite of it and wants me to make them more often even after she knew I had sneaked dates into the cake!
The method of preparing this cake is very different from the usual method, yet the result is totally awesome. Also there is no Butter , Milk, Eggs and yet the cake is very spongy!!
D- Dates Cake - Eggless, Butterless and No milk!!
Category - Baked
I served this with a simple custard sauce. A portion of this cake was shared with my SIL who lives down the street and she and my niece were totally bowled over by the fact that it is eggless and yet very soft and spongy. Take a look and you will surely agree with me....
Now to the recipe...
I used:
Recipe Source : Tickling Palates
Maida / All purpose flour - 2 cups
Dates - 10 large, seeds removed, finely chopped [1/2 cup,packed]
Baking soda- 2 teaspoons
Sugar- 1 cup
Cinnamon powder- 1/2 teaspoon [ See notes below]
Water- 2 cups
Canola oil - 1/2 cup
Salt - 1/4 teaspoon
Broken cashew - a handful
- In a pan , take sugar, salt, water,cinnamon powder, chopped dates, oil.
- Mix well and heat the mixture and bring to boil.
- When you see bubbles around the edges, simmer for 15 minutes and allow to cool completely.
- If using immediately make sure you use the mixture after 2-3 hours or after it is completely cook. I left it over night in the fridge.
- Sieve the maida and baking soda thrice and transfer into a bowl.
- Add the dates mixture, cashews and mix well to combine. I suggest you to use a hand blender if you have one as it make the mixing a lot easier.
- Pre heat the oven 180 C for 10 minutes.
- Pour the mixture into a greased tray / tin and bake for 45 minutes @ 180 C or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool completely before cutting.
- Serve as such or with a simple custard sauce.
For the custard sauce, I prepared the custard the usual way [ as mentioned in the back of the pack]. I made it a little watery by adding extra milk than mentioned so that it can be poured over the cake.
Note :
- The original recipe uses 1 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon powder. We are not a huge fan of this flavor, so I have added 1/2 teaspoon only. Yet I could get a strong aroma of the cinnamon while cooking the dates mixture and the cake had a faint hint of cinnamon. So adjust the quantity to suit your taste.I will be omitting the cinnamon powder the next time I bake it.
- The sugar quantity imparted the right amount of sweetness .Add more if you need the cake to be extra sweet.
- I had the canola oil that was sent for a review and hence used it. You can use any vegetable oil.
- You can add any nuts of your choice or you can omit it.
Take a look at the Blogging Marathon page to check out what my friends are cooking in this A- Z series...
Previously in this series...
A - Azuki Bean Brownies - Baked
B - Butterfly Pea Flower Drink - Misc. / Thai
C - Congyou Bailuobosi - International / Chinese
Updated - 15/7/2014 - This recipe is off to Srivalli's Kid's Delight Event, hosted by Kalyani with the Theme - Iron rich recipes...
Bon Appetit...
Labels: Bakes, Blogging Marathon, cake, Oven Fresh Eggless Bakes, Vegan varieties
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