Easy Eggless Pineapple Tea cake - Bakery Style

Tea cakes also known as sponge cake or foam cake are usually moist, bouncy, light and fluffy. As the name suggests, tea cakes are the perfect accompaniment to evening tea/coffee. As I was having coffee one evening, I had a huge craving for this cake. I immediately put together all the ingredients and ended up with this delicious cake within the next hour. 

Prepared with just the basic ingredients and with a few simple steps, you can easily end up this with perfect sponge cake at a very less time. Have a slice of this cake along with a sip of hot coffee or tea. It will just make your evening  complete.

Let's get to the recipe now. 

Ingredients:

• All Purpose flour - 1 Cup - 130 gms
• Condensed Milk - 1/2 Cup 120ml
• Milk - 2/3rd Cup - 160ml
• Powdered Sugar - 1/4th cup - 60gms
• Baking Powder - 1 tsp
• Baking Soda - 1/3 tsp
• Oil - 2 tbsp
• Butter - 2 tbsp
• Pineapple Essence - 1 tsp
• Vinegar -  1 tsp

All purpose flour: I have used regular all purpose flour. You can use organic unbleached flour for this recipe.

Condensed milk: Condensed milk is used in place of eggs in this recipe. It helps in giving a moist cake. 

Milk: Milk is also used in this recipe to bring out the soft spongy texture along with retaining the moisture in the cake. It is added along with vinegar and curdled before adding it along with the dry mix.

Vinegar: Vinegar is added with milk to make buttermilk. This buttermilk mixture helps in giving a soft moist cake.

Powdered sugar: Powdered sugar also known as Icing sugar is used in this recipe as it is easily soluble. 

Baking powder: This is a leavening agent used to make cakes rise properly.

Baking soda: Baking soda is also a leavening agent which is used to make cakes rise well.

Oil : I have used neutral oil (odorless, flavorless sunflower oil) for this recipe.

Butter:  I always prefer using unsalted butter to my recipes. This way I will have a control over the amount of salt added. And, for this recipe I have not added salt as the sweetness in this cake is mild and perfect for a tea cake. 

Pineapple essence: Adding pineapple essence or extract for this recipe takes you back in time to those days when we used to get spongy melt in mouth cakes from nearby local bakeries. Your entire house will be filled with the aroma of this pineapple essence taking you into a completely different world.

Step-by-step pictorial representation:

Step 1: To a bowl add milk and vinegar. Give it a mix, set it aside and let it curdle. This will be our        milk vinegar mixture.

Step 2: In another bowl, place a sieve. Add all purpose flour, baking powder and baking soda, one after another. 

Step 3: Sift it to get rid of lumps if any. Now the dry mix for our cake is ready.

Step 4: It is now time to make the wet mix. Into a bowl add oil, butter and Powdered sugar one after    another.

Mix them to combine. Cream them well. 

Step 5: Now add the Condensed milk and combine. This will be the wet mix.

Step 6:  Now we have 3 different components. One is the dry mix, the second one is the wet mix and    the third one is the milk and vinegar mixture. 

             

 Add a portion of the dry mix into the wet mix. 

Now add half of the milk mixture into the wet mix bowl.

Combine them gently by folding the mixture. DONOT OVERMIX. 

Step 7:  Repeat the process and add the balance of dry mix and milk mixture into the wet mix bowl.    Fold them gently to form the batter. 

Step 8:  Preheat the oven to 170°c for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, grease a 7 inch round tin and line it with parchment paper. 

Step 9:  Now add the batter into the cake tin and tap it on the counter to remove any air bubbles.

Step 10:  Once the oven is preheated, place the cake tin into the oven and bake at 170°c for 30-35        minutes. I baked mine for 32 minutes. 

Step 11:  To check for the doneness of the cake, insert a toothpick into the cake. If it comes out clean    the cake is done. If not, put it back into the oven and bake for a few more minutes. 

Step 12: Let it sit it in the cake tin for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes slide a palette knife onto the sides to release the cake from the tin. Remove the cake from the tin and place it on the cooling rack. Let it cool completely before slicing up the cake. 

Step 13: Once the cake is completely cooled Slice it up into smaller pieces.

Store it in an airtight container and it will be good to be consumed within 5 days. 

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Recipe Card:

 

Eggless Pineapple Tea cake - Bakery Style Description: Spongy, fluffy cake that is flavorful, moist, bouncy and light.  Prep Time: 20 mins  Cook Time: 30-35 mins Total Time: 1 hour Makes: A 7 inch round cake   INGREDIENTS ·       All Purpose flour - 1 Cup - 130 gms ·       Condensed Milk - 1/2 Cup 120ml ·       Milk - 2/3rd Cup - 160ml ·       Powdered Sugar - 1/4th cup - 60gms ·       Baking Powder - 1 tsp ·       Baking Soda - 1/3 tsp ·       Oil - 2 tbsp ·       Butter - 2 tbsp ·       Pineapple Essence - 1 tsp ·       Vinegar -  1 tsp Instructions: 1. To a bowl, add milk and vinegar. Give it a mix and set it aside to curdle. This is the first component needed - the milk vinegar mixture.  2 In another bowl, place a sieve. Add together All-purpose flour, baking powder and baking soda. Sift it to break lumps and set it aside. This is the dry mix, the second component. 3. Now, the third component - Wet mix. Into a bowl, add oil, butter and powdered sugar. With the help of a whisk or a spatula cream them well. Once they are well combined, add in condensed milk. Combine them well to form a thick wet mix.  4. Now we have three components - Milk vinegar mixture, the dry mix and the wet mix.  5. It is now time to make the cake batter. Into the bowl of wet mix, add in small quantities the milk vinegar mixture and the dry mix. Combine them well using the cut and fold method. DONOT OVERMIX. JUST COMBINE. 6. Repeat the process until the entire dry mix and milk  mixture is added into the wet mix. 7. Once the cake batter is prepared, transfer it onto a 7 inch round tin that is greased and lined with parchment paper. 8. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 170℃ for 10 minutes.  9. Tap the cake tin gently on the counter to remove air bubbles if any.  10. When the preheating is done, place the cake tin inside the oven and bake @ 170℃ for 30-35 minutes(Refer notes).  11. Once done, take it out of the oven and let it sit in the cake tin for  5-10 minutes. Then slowly slide a palette knife onto the sides of the tin and release the cake. Now gently remove the cake from the cake tin and place it on a cooling rack. Let it cool completely. 12. After it has completely cooled, cut them into smaller pieces of the desired size. 13. Store them in an airtight container and it is good to be consumed within 5 days. These will be a perfect accompaniment as an evening snack with a cup of hot coffee or tea.      Notes:   1. Using unsalted butter is preferred. Also make sure the butter is at room temperature. 2. Sifting of dry ingredients helps in incorporating air, which leads to soft, spongy cakes. 3. I baked at 170℃ for 32  minutes. After 30 minutes keep an eye on the cake. You can check for the doneness of the cake by inserting a toothpick slowly and taking it back. If it comes out clean, it means the cake is baked. If it is greasy, put it back for a few more minutes.