Ube Cake Recipe
Make a purple cake! While fresh ube yam is hard to find here in the States, make this Ube Cake Recipe with liquid ube extract for a delicious, unique, and PURPLE cake and lightly sweet icing!
Ingredients
For the cake
- 1-½ c all-purpose flour
- 1 T baking powder
- ⅛ t salt
- 1 can of sweetened condensed milk 14 oz
- 4 eggs
- ½ c melted butter
- 2 t vanilla bean paste or 2 t vanilla extract
- 2 ¼ T ube extract
For the icing
- ½ package (4 oz) cream cheese room temperature
- ½ stick (4 oz) butter very soft, not melted
- 2 c powdered sugar divided
- 2 T heavy cream
- 1 T vanilla extract
- 1/8 t or generous pinch of salt
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350F. See above for a thorough list of tools and ingredients to get out before getting started.
- Prepare the 10-in round or 9x9 square cake pan: Spray the pan with a generous coating of nonstick spray. Cut parchment paper to fit the bottom of your cake pan. It’s ok if it goes up the sides slightly. Press the cut parchment onto the sprayed pan. Set aside.
- With the sifter over your large mixing bowl, sift the 1-1/2 cup of flour and 1 Tablespoon of baking powder. Mix in the generous pinch of salt. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, beat the 4 eggs, then whisk in the 1/2 cup of melted butter and 2 teaspoons of vanilla bean paste (or extract) until combined. Then add the 2-1/4 Tablespoons of ube extract and entire can of sweetened condensed milk and gently whisk til fully combined.
- With the spatula, scrape the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients. Using a hand-mixer on low, beat just until combined, scraping the sides of the bowl, until no dry ingredients can be seen.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and slide pan into the center of the preheated oven. Set timer for 40 minutes. (The more shallow the pan, the less time it will need. An 8-inch diameter may take 45-55 minutes, for example.)
- Test the center of the cake with a toothpick or butterknife. It should come out with no batter clinging. For a 9x9 glass pan or 10-in round pan, it will probably take 40 minutes, but since ovens may vary, keep checking. It takes as long as it takes, and the center should be done before removing from the oven to cool.
- Let cool completely before removing from pan. Then turn out onto a serving plate and right it. Ensure the cake is cool before applying any icing. If the parchment has stuck to the bottom of the cake, peel it off gently and discard.
For the icing:
- Start with clean beaters on the hand mixer.
- Ensure the butter and cream cheese are at room temperature, so for best results remove from the refrigerator at least two hours before ready to use.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat 4 oz (half a stick) of room temperature-soft (but not melted) butter and 4 oz (half a package) of room temperature-soft cream cheese together until combined and creamy with soft peaks.
- Add the pinch of salt, 1 Tablespoon of vanilla, 2 Tablespoons of heavy cream and ½ cup of powdered sugar at a time beating on low, until all the powdered sugar has been used. If needed to get desired consistency, add a bit more powdered sugar (if too loose or if you like it sweeter) or cream (if too thick).
- Using an offset spatula or butter knife, smooth the icing over the completely cooled cake.
- You can apply the icing in a loose fashion as I did, leaving the bottom of the cake un-iced for a "snow-capped" effect.
- For a bit of purple accent icing, before frosting the cake, transfer ½ cup of the prepared icing into a bowl and add 5 or 6 drops of ube extract. Mix to evaluate the color and continue adding drops of ube extract until desired purple color is reached. (As shown was a full Tablespoon of extract.)
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!