Ras Malai Pudding Cake

Name: Ras Malai Pudding Cake
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 50 min
Ingredients: 150 gm Condensed milk; 120 ml Heavy cream; 80 ml Milk; 10-12 Cardamom pods; 8 strands Saffron; Pinch of salt; 125 ml Milk; 100 gm Yogurt; 1 tsp Baking powder; 1/2 tsp baking soda; 75 gm Butter (melted); 70 gm Castor sugar; Pinch of salt; 175 gm Flour; 50 gm Almond flour; 2 tsp Cardamom powder; 5-8 strands Saffron; 50 gm Nuts (almonds and pistachios); 60 gm Ricotta; Almonds & Pistachios

An eggless cake that is spiced with cardamom, saffron and nuts is baked in a rich sauce filled with condensed milk and more spices. A special treat for the festive season of Diwali coming up.

I think I have been quite vocal about my love for Ras Malai. If you are new to the blog then check out my Ras Malai Loaf cake from last year to get you up to speed. This flavor combination is the bomb. If you don’t know what Ras malai is, allow me to explain to you one of the best dessert that exist on the planet. It is a traditional Indian sweet that has two major parts to it, the dumplings and the sauce. The dumplings are made out of paneer aka cheese curds and the sauce is what the dumplings soak into which is filled with milk, cream, cardamom, saffron, chopped nuts that is sweetened with condensed milk.

There are many versions on making this beautiful recipe the authentic way but I wanted to take this traditional recipe and twist it up a bit. Also this version is very simple and required little to no equipment to prepare it. The cake batter bakes into the sauce and creates this self saucing pudding situation that is rich, delicious and pretty to look at as well. But if you are anything like me, we need more sauce so the sauce quantities are on the higher side so we have enough t go around once its baked.

What ingredients do you need to make this Ras Malai Pudding Cake?

To make the cake batter we need yogurt, milk, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cardamom powder, saffron, salt, a little sugar, melted butter, flour, almond flour, ricotta and some nuts. The sauce requires milk, cream, condensed milk, saffron, cardamom pods and I garnish the entire thing with more nuts before it bakes.

What equipment do you need to make this Ras Malai Pudding Cake?

We need a sauce pot to make the sauce component with a wooden spoon. To make the cake batter we need a large mixing bow and you can use the same sauce wooden spoon to make the batter. We aren’t beating the life out of it so you don’t need a machine or whisk. I like to bake this cake in an 8×8 inch square tin or pyrex as well. As I mentioned bake, you need an oven to make this recipe. I have tried making it in the microwave as well. It is good but I prefer the over all texture from the oven.

What substitutes do you ned to make this Ras Malai Pudding Cake?

If you want to make this recipe Vegan, substitute the yogurt for any vegan yogurt – try using a neutral flavored yogurt as we don’t want the flavor to over power the spices. You can use vegan butter or veg oil instead of butter and almond milk/any nut mylk in place of the milk. To make this recipe gluten free you can use gluten free flour mix by Bobs Red Mill also.

The sauce does require a good amount of dairy but you can use almond milk in place of the milk (in fact this would taste even better), vegan whipping cream in place of the heavy cream and cane sugar instead of the condensed milk – you will need to cook this longer for it to get thicker. Also make sure the almond milk or the nut milk you use is Barista milk i.e. it can withstand high heat or else it will split as you heat it.

How to make this Ras Malai Pudding Cake?

We start by preheating the oven to 170℃. In a medium sauce pot add all the sauce ingredients and bring to a boil before simmering for 5 mins until it has reduced a little. Set aside. We then get on with the cake batter. In a large mixing bowl add the yogurt, milk, baking powder, baking soda, salt and stir. Let this sit for a few minutes, it will get bubbly and frothy. This is what is going to give your cake a tender crumb as it bakes. In the same bowl add the melted butter, sugar and stir together with a wooden spoon. Add the flour, almond flour, cardamom powder, saffron, salt and nuts. Mix together until the batter is smooth and looks lump free. Add the ricotta and gently mix through, we want little lumps of ricotta so don’t go over mixing at this point.

Pour half the milk sauce into the 8×8 square baking dish, and dollop large spoonfuls of the batter into the sauce. It might look wrong but it will work out, trust the process. Once all the batter is in the baking dish add more nuts on top. It should look like the batter is lesser than the sauce and like it is one big mess. If not add more sauce. A good indicator to know if the sauce is enough – I like to divide the sauce into half and use up one half for baking and the other half for serving later. Bake this at 170℃ for 45-50 mins until the top is golden, the batter is baked into a cake and the sauce is bubbling on the sides. You cannot do a toothpick test on this as it will be wet at the bottom. But it should be dry to the touch on top. I love to serve this warm with the extra sauce (which I chill in the fridge until it bakes.)

Storing the Ras Malai Pudding Cake?

Once this cake is baked I would recommend serving it immediately but it keeps well in the fridge for up to 5 days. When ready to serve, warm it up in the microwave and pour more sauce on top. The sauce can be made ahead of time and stored in glass bottles for up to 1 week. The flavor gets better with time and the color goes much deeper with the saffron in it.

Looking for more Diwali inspiration check out my Chai custard cups, Ribbon sandwich recipe and the Coconut ladoo recipe. Now that we have covered how to make this Ras malai pudding cake, you can have a look at the recipe video on my socials but let’s get to it.

If you try this recipe out, don’t forget to share it with me on instagram so I can see how it turned out. I’d love nothing more than to chat with you on your cooking/baking.