Tutti frutti cake is a popular variety of Indian cake made with flour, tutti frutti (candied papaya), sugar and flavorings. This cake can be made both with eggs and without eggs. I share an eggless tutti frutti cake recipe that has a soft, light and moist crumb. This Eggless Cake Recipe is also easy and even newbies in baking can make this cake easily.
About Tutti Frutti Cake
This is a delightful cake with tutti frutti being one of the star ingredient. Of course there is the cake but without tutti frutti it will be a simple vanilla cake. The tutti frutti brings in some chewy bites and sweet pops of flavor in the cake.
To make this tutti frutti cake, I have adapted my recipe of Vanilla Cake . I have been making this tutti frutti cake for many years now. In this recipe, I have used fresh homemade curd (yogurt) as an egg replacement.
I also add some acidity to the batter with apple cider vinegar (can swap with lemon juice or white vinegar) – which when combined with baking soda, helps the batter to aerate and makes for a soft fluffier cake.
Earlier when making the cake, I used to add ½ cup oil or melted butter in the recipe, but later I started reducing the amount of oil. I felt that with even with ¼ cup oil or melted butter the cake gets a lovely light crumb and is moist.
You can use both melted butter or oil in the recipe. I have made the cake with both oil and butter on various occasions. Both give good results in the cake. If using oil, then use a neutral flavored and neutral tasting oil like sunflower oil.
What is Tutti Frutti
Tutti frutti are basically candied fruits made with pineapple, cherries, currants, watermelon rind, apricots, various berries etc. In India what we call tutti frutti are candied colorful bits of papaya. They are made from green unripe papaya. Making homemade tutti frutti is an extensive and time consuming process.
While you can make them at home, but if you live in India you can also buy them easily from grocery stores and online. If you live in US, then you can find them in Indian grocery stores and online as well.
Tutti frutti is one ingredient that I use, which has artificial colors. I don’t have the time and energy to make these candied raw papaya pieces at home. So I buy from outside when I have to add them in recipes. A few recipes where you can add them are these:
How to make Tutti Frutti Cake
Sift Dry Ingredients
1: Take a sieve. Keep a mixing bowl below the sieve. In the sieve add 1.5 cups all purpose flour – about 187 to 190 grams all purpose flour.
2. Then add 1 pinch salt, ¼ teaspoon cinnamon powder and 1 teaspoon baking powder.
If you do not have cinnamon powder, then you can skip it. Alternatively you can add ¼ teaspoon cardamom powder.
3. Sift all the dry ingredients.
4. Now add ½ cup tutti frutti.
5. With a spoon or spatula, just mix the tutti frutti with the sifted flour so that they get coated with the flour. Keep aside.
6. Grease a loaf pan measuring 8.5 x 4.5 x 2.5 inches with butter and oil and set aside. You can even line the pan with butter paper or parchment paper. Also preheat the oven at 180 degrees Celsius or 356 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes.
A round cake pan having 7 to 8 inches diameter also works well.
Mix Sugar with Liquids
7. In a bowl take ¾ cup sugar (160 grams sugar).
8. Add ½ cup water.
9. Begin to mix the sugar with water with a whisk or spoon.
10. The entire sugar should dissolve before starting with the next step.
11. After all of the sugar has dissolved, add ¼ cup melted butter or oil. You can melt butter in a small pan or bowl and keep it ready.
Use unsalted butter. But if you have salted butter then skip adding the salt when sifting the flour.
12. With a whisk stir briskly for 2 to 3 minutes so that the melted butter mixes with water evenly.
13. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or scrape half of a vanilla bean and add the tiny seeds in the solution. Here I have used vanilla bean. Mix again well. Keep this sugar solution aside.
Make Curd (Yogurt) Mixture
14. In another bowl take 3 tablespoons fresh curd or yogurt. Ensure that the curd is not sour.
15. Add 1 tablespoon water.
16. Add 1 tablespoon vinegar. You can use apple cider vinegar or white vinegar. I have used apple cider vinegar. You can also use 1 tablespoon lemon juice instead of vinegar.
17. Stir and mix very well with a spoon or small wired whisk.
18. Now add ½ teaspoon baking soda.
19. Stir and mix again very well.
20. You will see the solution frothing and bubbling.
Make Tutti Frutti Cake Batter
21. Quickly add the prepared sugar solution to the dry sifted flour mixture.
22. Immediately, add the bubbling curd solution also to the flour mixture in the bowl.
23. Be quick and begin to mix gently to a smooth batter with a wired whisk. Mix with light pressure from your hands on the whisk.
24. Do not overdo the mixing. You can even fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Tiny lumps are fine in the batter.
25. Pour the batter in the greased or lined cake pan.
26. Gently tap the cake pan on the kitchen table top once or twice.
Bake Tutti Frutti Cake
27. Place the cake pan in the oven.
28. Bake the cake at 180 degrees Celsius or 356 degrees Fahrenheit in a preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes or more or less if required.
Baking time will vary depending on the temperature conditions in the oven and the size of the oven. Remember not to open the oven door until the cake is 3/4 baked. Opening the door many times will cause your cake to sink in the center.
29. Check with a bamboo skewer or fork and it should come out clean. If the cake is baked well then the bamboo skewer will have a few crumbs on it and no sticky cake batter.
If the cake is under baked then keep back in the oven and bake for some more minutes.
30. Place the pan on a rack to cool down.
31. When the cake has completely cooled at room temperature, then using a butter knife loosen the edges of the cake. Invert the pan on a chopping board. Gently tap the bottom of the cake pan and remove the tutti frutti cake.
32. Slice the cake.
32. Serve tutti frutti cake slices as it is or with some milk or tea or coffee. Remaining cake slices or loaf can be refrigerated in an airtight container and lightly warmed before serving.
If you are looking for more Eggless cakes then do check:
Cake Recipes
Cake Recipes
Cake Recipes
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Tutti Frutti Cake
Ingredients
For dry mixture
- 1.5 cups all purpose flour – about 187 to 190 grams
- 1 pinch salt
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon powder (ground cinnamon) – optional
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ cup tutti frutti – approximate 80 grams
For sugar solution
- ½ cup water
- ¾ cup raw sugar or regular sugar – 160 grams, or add as required * check point 3 in notes
- ¼ cup melted butter or neutral flavored oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla powder or half of a vanilla bean, scraped
For curd mixture
- 3 tablespoons Curd (yogurt), dairy or vegan
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
Instructions
Sifting dry ingredients
- Take a sieve. Keep a mixing bowl below the sieve. In the sieve add the all-purpose flour, salt, cinnamon powder and baking powder.
- Sift all the dry ingredients.
- Now add the tutti frutti.
- Simply mix the tutti frutti with the flour so that they get coated with the flour.
- Grease a loaf pan with butter and oil and keep aside. You can even line the pan with butter paper or parchment paper. Also preheat oven at 180 degrees Celsius/356 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes.
Making sugar solution
- In a bowl take sugar and water.
- Mix the sugar with water till all the sugar granules are dissolved.
- After all of the sugar has dissolved, add melted butter or oil. You can melt butter in a small pan and keep it ready. With a whisk mix briskly for 2 to 3 minutes till the oil has mixed evenly with the water.
- Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or scrape half of a vanilla bean and add the tiny seeds in the solution. Mix again well. Keep this sugar solution aside.
Making curd mixture
- In another bowl take fresh curd or yogurt, water and vinegar.
- You can use apple cider vinegar or white vinegar. I have used apple cider vinegar. You can also use lemon juice instead of vinegar. Mix very well.
- Now add baking soda. Stir to combine so that the baking soda is mixed evenly.
- You will see the mixture frothing and bubbling.
Making tutti frutti cake batter
- Quickly add the sugar solution to the sifted dry ingredients.
- Then immediately add the bubbling curd solution.
- Mix gently to a smooth batter with light pressure from the hands on the whisk. Do not overdo the mixing. You can even fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Tiny lumps are fine in the batter.
- Pour the tutti frutti cake batter in the greased or lined cake pan.
- Gently tap the cake pan on the kitchen table top once or twice.
Baking tutti frutti cake
- Place the cake pan in the preheated oven.
- Bake the cake at 180 degrees Celsius/356 degrees Fahrenheit in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes or more or less as required. Baking time will vary depending on the temperature conditions in the oven and the size of the oven.
- Check with a skewer or fork and it should come out clean.
- Place the pan on a wired rack to cool.
- When the tutti frutti cake has completely cooled at room temperature, then using a butter knife loosen the edges of the cake. Invert the pan on a chopping board. Gently tap the bottom of the cake pan and remove the cake.
- Slice the cake.
- Serve the eggless tutti frutti cake as is or with some milk or tea or coffee. Remaining cake can be refrigerated and lightly warmed before serving.
Notes
Nutrition Info (Approximate Values)
This Tutti Frutti Cake post from the archives (December 2013) has been republished and updated on 23 September 2021.
How much grams is 1.5 cups??
about 187.5 grams of maida.
I am planning to make this cake how much grams is 3/4th cup of sugar?
3/4 cup sugar will be around 150 to 160 grams.
Hi Dasanna
Can I replace the half cup of water with half cup of regular milk?
yes you can add milk instead of water.
Hi,
Thanks for the recipe. The cake turned out really tasty. Entire process is well demonstrated by you. Will now try your other recipes 🙂
Want to ask you that can we reduce the amount of oil? If so then what will be it’s substitute?
thanks ritu. oil helps in making the cake moist. instead of using 1/2 cup oil, you can use 1/4 cup oil and 1/4 cup of a fruit puree. apple sauce is the best as the aroma and taste does not change must. but if you use any other puree like mango or banana or pumpkin, then the taste will change.
Hi.. Can I use coconut oil for this recipe? ..
you can use coconut oil.
Indeed very tasty..baked it yesterday using 1 cup whole wheat flour and 1/2 cup maida…turned out very good.thank u!!
thanks ashwini for this feedback 🙂
Yummy…..
Hi I try all your recipes but when I tried choco chips muffins the choco chips got stuck in the bottom ? So is it okay to add tutti frutti in the middle or should I only sprinkle on the top. also keep adding more cakes with wheat flour. It just makes me happy??
shreya, you can dust the choco chips with some flour and then fold in the batter. you even add tutti frutti. again just sprinkle some flour and coat them with flour. then add them to the batter. thank you. will be adding more baking recipes made with wheat flour.
Can I make it with buttermilk instead of curd?if yes,then how?
rakhi, add 4 to 5 tablespoons of buttermilk.
Hi dear.I always used to surf so many websites before trying any recipe.but den I came across urs.ever time I was so successful dat we r planning to start a small restaurant at our hostel basement.thanks to u.can u suggest how to make tutti fruity cake with buttermilk as I dnt have curd rite now?
thats nice to know rakhi. all the best. just add 4 to 5 tablespoons of buttermilk.
I have always been ur fan…the way u explain and display the things…u simplify even the toughest tasks of the kitchen…and ur know what’s the best part..every recipe that I try comes out awesome..sometimes even I don’t get to taste even
..thank you so much for all this
thank you very much saloni for this lovely and encouraging comment. means a lot to me 🙂
Hii this cake is good and easy but can this cake be made in a microvave
this recipe may not work in the microwave as the batter has a slight thick consistency.
hello Mam,
I have tried your eggless tutti frutti cake. Its very yummy.I just have one doubt why me cake not comes out yellowish in color in the middle . its comes whitish.
you mean golden in color. if you use OTG or the regular oven, then make sure you keep the top heating element on. doing this will give you a golden crust.
Hi amit,
Nice recipe. Can we skip cinnamon and nutmeg powder. And instead of vanilla essence can we use pineapple essence.
Also wht are the types of essence available. I know only vanilla and pineapple. Please let me know the different types and its usage.
Gonna try this today evening for my daughter. She dosent Luke the flavour of both the powders .that’s y I asked if I can skip them.will let you know how it turns .also can we make this with wheat flour.
Thank you..
thanks pooja. yes you can skip cinnamon and nutmeg powder. you can use pineapple essence. there are many kinds of essences available. depending on the recipe or dish you make, you can add the essence. but a suggestion would be to buy a natural extract. the edible essences that is available in indian markets is a generally a mix of synthetic artificial compounds. so better to avoid them. various extracts and essences are available like rose, strawberry, kewra, mango, vanilla, orange etc. the most commonly used in baking is vanilla essence.
i know kids can be very picky at times. sure do let me know and you can make with whole wheat flour too. just add some more water. as whole wheat flour absorbs more water due to the fibre content being more in it.
Thank u amit…
Finished baking. Super … No word to describe it…. Wish I could post a pic.
Thank u for great recipe.
God bless u…
But yeah please stop posting recipe… One full year will not b sufficient for me to try making all the dishes that u have posted so far… 🙂
Just kidding..
Guess u will b the next master chef.
Thank u
pleased to know this pooja 🙂 thankyou for your positive and encouraging words. god bless you and you are welcome.
Tried this cake today, N it was amazing. Thank you for such a simple recipe. I just have one doubt why me cake becomes hard from the top?
thanks mukta. if too much heat comes from top, then the crust hardens. you can always cover the top with an aluminium foil to avoid this over baking from top.
can i use whole wheat flour
you can, but with whole wheat flour, you will have to add more water as whole wheat flour absorbs more water than compared to maida. just add required amount of water to get the consistency of batter as shown in the pics. you can add the extra water later also when you start to mix the batter.