Easy Eggless Gulab Jamun Cake

Gulan jamun is a decadent and ever popular dessert, now enjoyed the world over but originating in the Indian subcontinent. I have turned it into the most joyous cake, perfectly encompassing the flavours and textures of the dessert. If you are a fan of this glorious dessert, you will love my gulab jamun cake!

What is gulab jamun?

Gulab jamun is a popular Indian subcontinent sweet, flavoured with rose water, cardamom and saffron. It is often served during festivals, celebrations and at special meals, and are enjoyed all over the world. They are essentially milk dough balls, deep fried until golden brown, then soaked in a sugar syrup flavoured with cardamom, rose water and saffron. Pretty decadent a dessert, huh?

What does gulab jamun taste like?

Whilst being a dessert enjoyed on special occasions, gulab jamun itself is not meant to be enjoyed in larger quantities like you would a cake. Instead, it is meant to be eaten in smaller portions as it is very sweet and heavy.

It can be hard to describe the flavours of gulab jamun to someone who has never tried it before, however the closest would be very sweet with aromatic cardamom and light floral notes. Since the dough is soaked in the syrup before serving, it absorbs much of the moisture along with the flavour, making it soft, moist and melt-in-your-mouth irresistible.

Ingredients you’ll need to make this gulab jamun cake

• Yogurt: part of the liquid requirements for this eggless cake, helping to keep it tender and moist.
• Bicarbonate of soda/baking soda: mixed with the yogurt for a magical reaction to result in a light and fluffy cake.
• Flour: I use plain (all purpose) flour to make this cardamom cake. I prefer this as I can control the amount of rise in my cakes better.
• Cardamom: this is one of the key flavours in gulab jamun, and so had to be included in the cake. Add with caution, depending on your taste preferences and the source of the spice. More details on this in the “additional tips” section below.
• Baking powder: an additional raising agent used to give a light texture in the gulab jamun bundt cake.
• Sugar: for sweetness in this cake. I use three different sugars here: caster sugar in the cake, granulated for the syrup and icing sugar for the pretty pink glaze.
• Oil: the fat content in the cake.
• Vanilla: rounds off the sweetness of this bake beautifully.
• Saffron: gives a subtle sweet and lightly floral aroma to the cake. Used in making the Indian sweet, so naturally had to be used in this cake too!
• Cardamom: this is one of the key flavours in gulab jamun, and so had to be included in the cake. Add with caution, depending on your taste preferences and the source of the spice. More details on this in the “additional tips” section below.
• Rose water: easily found as a syrup in the baking aisle, go easy when measuring this as it is pretty potent stuff! Gives a floral flavour that is not to everyone’s taste, hence the word of caution using it.
• Pistachios: purely used for the gulab jamun cake decoration. Omit if desired.
• Dried rose petals: used for the decoration of the bundt cake. Purely for the pretty pink colour!

What equipment do I need to make this cake?

• Digital kitchen scales*: I provide all my measurements in cups too, however I would encourage all bakers to weigh out ingredients using weighing scales when baking. A set of digital kitchen scales is so useful and an essential baking tool for me.
• Measuring spoons*: a set of measuring spoons is essential for any baker. This is because these are more accurate than using everyday teaspoons and tablespoons, which can vary greatly in size.
• Sieve*: useful to remove lumps from the dry ingredients before blending together when making the eggless gulab jamun cake.
• Whisk*: used to mix together and aerate the dry ingredients before adding in the wet.
• Jug*: to mix together the wet ingredients before adding to the dry when making the gulab jamun cake.
• Mixing bowl*: for mixing together the cake ingredients.
• Spatula*: used to scrape the bowl down when making the cake as well as for stirring the sugar syrup and the icing ingredients together.
• Bundt tin*: to bake the cake in. See my tips below to ensure a clean release from the tin every time.
• Small saucepan*: to make the sugar syrup in before brushing it all over the baked and cooled cake.
• Pastry brush*: I prefer using this tool when brushing my cake with the syrup to ensure I cover the entire surface of the cake evenly.

How to make gulab jamun cake

First make the eggless cake. Once the cake is baking, make the sugar syrup that will be brushed all over the cake once it has cooled. Finally, make the icing and drip over the cake before finishing with a sprinkling of additional pistachios and rose petals. Beautiful!

For the cake

Step 1: First, bloom the saffron. Crush the strands using a pestle and mortar if you have one. Alternatively, crush using the side of a knife on a chopping board. Place an ice cube in a small bowl or ramekin, then sprinkle the crushed saffron over the top. Set aside for the ice to melt completely, combining with the saffron.

Step 2: Prepare the bundt tin. Melt a little butter, then brush it all over the inside of the bundt tin, ensuring the butter has been brushed into all the creases of the tin. Sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of (plain) flour into the tin, then tip and turn the tin around to allow the flour to stick to the butter, coating the inside of the tin completely. Turn the tin upside down and tap firmly to release and remove any surplus flour in the tin. Set the tin aside.

Step 3: Place a shelf in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 160C/320F whilst you prepare the cake mixture.

Step 4: In a large jug, place the yogurt and bicarbonate of soda (baking soda), stirring well to combine and ensuring there are no lumps of yogurt. Set aside to go bubbly and foamy.

Step 5: Sift the flour, ground cardamom, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Whisk together to combine then set the bowl aside.

Step 6: Once the yogurt mixture in the jug has bubbled up and is light and foamy, stir in the sugar, oil, vanilla and bloomed saffron (including the melted ice water). Gently fold the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients in the bowl until fully combined.

Step 7: Scoop the cake mixture into the prepared tin, levelling the top. Run the rounded side of a teaspoon around the cake mixture in the tin to create a channel (see notes for why). Bake in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes until a wooden skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin for five minutes before turning out on a wire rack to cool.

For the gulab jamun syrup

Step 1: Place all the ingredients in a saucepan and heat gently to dissolve the sugar. Once dissolved, bring to a gently bubble and cook for 5-7 minutes until syrupy and fragrant. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.

Step 2: Once the cake and the syrup have cooled, the fun can begin! Using skewer, poke holes all over the cake, being careful not to poke all the way through. Saving a few tablespoons of syrup to make the glaze, brush the cake generously with the syrup all over. Go back over brushed areas until all the syrup has been used. Leave the cake to absorb the syrup for at least an hour.

For the icing and gulab jamun cake design

Step 1: Place the cake on a serving plate or cake stand. It will be moist and heavy from absorbing the gulab jamun syrup, so be careful it does not break!

Step 2: Sift the icing (powdered) sugar and cardamom powder into a bowl, then add in enough of the reserved syrup to make a thick glaze. Add in some pink food colouring to achieve the shade you prefer, then drizzle the glaze over the cake.

Step 3: Sprinkle the top of the cake with chopped pistachios and dried rose petals to decorate. Serve immediately and enjoy!

What bundt tin do I use?

Bundt tins scare a lot of people, due to all the different places cake can stick during baking, ruining a cake. However, I have found there are two key factors that will guarantee perfect cake release every time. The first, is to always use a good quality tin. Second, always ensure proper preparation of the tin prior to baking.

How to choose a bundt pan

When choosing a bundt tin, there are three things that will give you the best bakes:

• The tin should always be made of metal as it helps conduct heat evenly for a better bake.
• It should have a nonstick finish. This helps with ensuring the cake is released cleanly and easily.
• Choose a tin of a light colour. Darker tins often lead to over browning, whereas lighter tins will give you a lovely golden baked finish.

How do you grease a bundt pan?

If you search the big wide internet, there are many different opinions on how to prepare a bundt pan before baking. For me personally, I prefer the butter and flour/cocoa method. Melt a little butter (I find butter works better than oil for this, so oil is not a substitute) and working quickly, brush it all over the pan. Make sure to get into all the crevices and cover enough of the pan to allow for the cake rising during baking. Place a tablespoon of flour in the pan and turn it, tapping as you do, to allow the flour to stick to the pan. Add more flour if required. Once the flour has stuck entirely on the inside of the pan, turn it upside down and tap firmly to remove excess flour. If making a chocolate cake, use cocoa powder instead of flour.

How can I tell when my cake is baked?

You will know when the eggless cake is done as it will be firm to touch and will have shrunk away from the sides of the pan slightly. Additionally, a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake will come out clean or with one or two crumbs only.

How can this gulab jamun cake be eggless?

This delicious Indian inspired cake is entirely eggless, and relies on the reaction of yogurt and bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) to give it its light and fluffy texture. I promise you, no one will ever know it is eggless!

Is this gulab jamun cake vegan?

No, this cake is not vegan as it contains yogurt. If you wish to make it vegan, please substitute the yogurt with a dairy free alternative. Please note, I have not tried this recipe with dairy free yogurt, so I cannot guarantee it will work as a substitute.

How to serve eggless gulab jamun cake

Simply slice and serve this cake with a hot cup of tea (spiced chai is my favourite, but English breakfast is good too!). There is no need to chill or heat this gulab jamun cake, or serve it with any additional toppings. It is beautifully moist and decadent just as it is!

How long does this eggless cake last and how do I store it?

This cake is best eaten within 2-3 days of being made to be enjoyed at its best. Store it in an airtight container to keep it at its best, away from direct sunlight.

Additional tips for making this gulab jamun cake recipe

• Make sure you have prepared all tools and ingredients before you start mixing the cake batter. So, prepare the bundt pan, preheat the oven and get the ingredients out ready to use.
• Use yogurt at room temperature. This helps it react better with the bicarb, making for a better cake.
• When the cake comes out of the oven, leave it for about five minutes in the tin to cool a little before turning it out onto a cooling rack to cool completely. Removing it as soon as it comes out of the oven risks breaking the cake as it comes out of the tin. No one wants that!
• Allow the syrup to cool before using it to brush the cake. The syrup will continue to thicken a little as it cools, so you will get a wonderfully rich syrup.
• Serve the cake soon after decorating. Due to the syrup used to brush the cake, it will be extra moist, which could affect the glaze, making it drip off or change in colour or consistency.

Troubleshooting

If you have any questions about this gulab jamun cake eggless, please comment below and I will do my best to help. And do remember: if you make this eggless gulab jamun cake, please do consider leaving a rating and review below. It would mean so much to me, and I know many others really will appreciate it too. You could even post a picture on Instagram and tag me when you share it with the world. You already know I would love to see!

More eggless cake recipes from my blog for you to enjoy

Eggless red velvet cake: You will love this rich and moist eggless red velvet cake recipe. It has three layers of beautiful decadent red velvet sponge with a smooth and totally irresistible cream cheese icing. This is one showstopper of a cake you will not want to miss!

Rose pistachio and cardamom loaf cake (eggless): this cake is inspired by the stunning smells and flavours of India. Earthy pistachio, fragrant cardamom, and floral rose come together in this eggless bake to create an incredible stunning cake that is truly out of this world.

Eggless chocolate cake: You will love this rich and moist eggless chocolate cake recipe. It has two layers of beautiful decadent eggless chocolate sponge cake with a smooth and totally irresistible but so simple to make chocolate buttercream frosting. This is one showstopper of a cake you will not want to miss!

And that is all there is to it! This gulab jamun cake is all yours to be enjoyed!

Happy baking my friends! x

Recommended equipment I used *

Digital kitchen scales	Measuring spoons
Sieve	Whisk
Jug	Mixing bowl
Spatula	Bundt tin
Small saucepan	Pastry brush