If you're a regular visitor of this blog, by now you would be knowing my love for plain cakes. Anyways, I was hoping that my next baking post in this space would be a layered frosted cake. But as usual, I ended up with a plain cake. I dont know, I just can't get myself to make a layered cake. Hopefully, some time soon I'll be able to do it.
This is a great plain cake, a very good accompaniment for tea time. It's just a simple teacake, but the cinnamon flavor can be considered as the “icing” on the cake (isn't that a good consolation ;) )
Here is the recipe:
Recipe source: Cooking Class Cakes by Australian Women's Weekly
Ingredients
- 60 gms Butter (softened)
- 1 tsp Vanilla essence
- 2/3 cup Caster sugar (150 gm(refer notes))
- 1 Egg
- 1 cup Self-raising flour (150gm(refer notes))
- 1/3 cup Milk (80ml)
- 10 gms Butter (melted, extra)
- 1 tsp Ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp Caster sugar (extra)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180 degree C/350-375 F, 10 mins before baking. Grease deep 20cm-round cake pan; line base with baking paper. Beat butter, essence, sugar & egg in a small bowl with electric mixer until light & fluffy; this process will take 5-10 mins, depending on the type of mixer used.
- Using wooden spoon, gently stir in sifted flour and milk. Make sure that there are no lumps.Spread mixture into prepared pan.
- Bake cake in the preheated oven for about 30 mins. Turn cake onto wire rack then turn top-side up; brush top with extra melted butter, sprinkle with combined cinnamon & extra sugar. Serve warm with butter, if desired.
Notes
Taking care to thoroughly beat the butter, essence, sugar and egg will result in a light-as-air texture to this cake, best when eaten warm with butter (courtesy:Australian W omen's Weekly Magazine) . Though this is best eaten on the day its made, you can store this cake at room temperature in an air tight container for up to 2 days.
Substitution for self raising flour – to get 1 cup self-raising flour, add 1 1/2 tsp baking powder+ 1/4 tsp salt to 1 cup all purpose flour.
Substitution for caster sugar: to get 1 cup caster sugar. process 1 cup granulated sugar (usual sugar) in a food processor/mixer until fine, but don't powder it like icing sugar.
Substitution for caster sugar: to get 1 cup caster sugar. process 1 cup granulated sugar (usual sugar) in a food processor/mixer until fine, but don't powder it like icing sugar.
Tried this recipe? Let others know by…mentioning @mariasmenu or tagging #mariasmenu
Turned out well.nice and fluffy.but there is a mild bitter aftertaste which i cant put my finger on.could it be the baking powder?any suggestions?
Thanks Remya :) Did you use fresh cinnamon powder? Sometimes, if the cinnamon powder is not so fresh, it can leave a bitter aftertaste.
Cheers
Maria
Thanks for your reply.it was a slightly chemical bitterness,cinnamon flavour was not overpowering or bitter.will try again :)
Hi Maria,
Tried it a few days back. it was delicious. I dint have egg, instead i added a few extra mLs of milk to correct the consistency. I also avoided the brushing with melted butter, and still it was a yummy cake.
Thanks a lot Ambili :) Good to know that it worked out well even without eggs, that’s great!
Cheers
Maria
Hi maria, I have a doubt.I made a cake but the middle portion of the cake is not rising up as much as the side.could u tell me a solution
Hi Bindu,
Are you referring to this particular cake recipe or in general?
There are a number of reasons that cause a cake to sink in the middle.
It can sink if the batter is overeaten, also under beaten batter causes sinking. If the cake is undercooked, it will sink. Also if you open the oven door in between it will cause sinking…
Cheers
Maria
Hello Maria…
The cake came out very well.
Hi Renjana,
Great to know that the cake turned out well for you. Thanks for keeping me posted :)
Cheers
Maria
Hi Rose,
I use the electric oven which is a part of my cooking range. I use the top & bottom mode from the beginning of baking itself.
About the oven, I havent bought myself one yet, so I’m not sure about the details of it. Mine is a fully furnished apt and so it’s provided by the apt. I’ve used both gas and electric oven, and I prefer electric oven. I’m sorry dear, I cant be of much help :( Hope you could find a good oven. All the best!
Cheers
Maria
That’s Ok dear,I think i should google more :)
Hi Maria,
I am a regular visitor to your site.. your recipes are simple, and your presentation style is excellent…
Now, my doubt is, is it necessary that we should be lining the base of cake pan with baking paper? I normally do not do it, what difference would it make?
Hi Priya,
Great to know that you are a regular visitor here, thanks!
Normally, cake tin is lined with parchment paper to avoid the cake sticking to the bottom of the cake tin, especially if the cake is going to be a super moist one.
Sometimes, if you use a generous qty of butter on the tin, it prevents the cake from sticking. I think it all comes down to your cake tin, some tins require, where as others ( if it’s non stick )may not require.
If your cake comes out well even without lining the tin, then no need to :)
Cheers
Maria
Hi Maria,
Thank you for the recipe..Have some questions for you.
When you say ‘butter softened’ what does that mean ? And, is it okay to take the butter out of the fridge and mix it with other ingredients right away ?
I tried this recipe today annd in the first step, the egg+vanilla+butter+sugar mixture curdled. Is there any thign I can do to avoid that ? I went ahead with the cake though. Also, I did get a nice golden brown colour as in the picture that you have attached to the recipe. Any tips ? I have the old style oven. Round one.
Thanks,
Kat
Hi Kat,
Butter softened means butter kept @ room temp. When you press the butter with your finger, you will get a dip in the butter. That’s softened butter. Unless otherwise specified in the recipe, its always better to use softened/room temp butter for baking.
Sometimes the cake batter tends to curdle( it can happen due to a number of reasons like the proportion of diff ingredients or the temp of diff ing etc;), but if it comes together in the end, then its ok.
You meant, you didnt get the brown colour? I’m not sure why it happened like that/ Do you have a separate setting for browning mode or something like that in your oven? Also, I’m not very familiar with the type of oven you are using…
Cheers
Maria
Hi Maria,
Thank you very much for answering my queries..Yeah, I meant to write I did not get the brown colour. Typo :) Will try this out again. It is an old battered down oven that I have inherited from my aunt. It is the aluminium kind that is round in shape. No wire racks,it bakes just fine though.
I have many recipes of yours and none has let me down. Thank you for sharing the recipes..and continue posting !!
You are welcome Kat :) I remember my amma having a similar type of oven when I was in KG, but she never baked much.
Thank you for the feedback about the recipes dear, I’m happy that you like them :)
Hope the cake comes out well next time…
Take care
Maria
Here’s something that I just read today in the internet about ‘batter curdling’on a cake recipe for Victoria Sponge Cake –
.. Then in a separate jug or bowl, beat the eggs thoroughly together, then
add them a little at a time, beating well after each addition. For a
beginner, I would recommend just a teaspoonful of egg at a time: if you
add it like this, it won’t curdle. (Why shouldn’t it curdle, you’re
thinking? Well, some of the hidden air that by now has been beaten into
the mixture will escape if the mixture ‘breaks’ and as air is what makes
a cake light, curdling will make it heavier.)
Hi…My first cake baked from scratch and came out fantabulous !!! I also was too excited with the end result and both me and my hubby ended up eating it without even allowing to cool ! Have sent you the cake pic already.
Hi Gayathri,
Great to know that you selected this recipe for your first baking from scratch attempt. I’m so happy that it came out well for you :)
Btw, I havent got the pic yet dear :( Can you please send it to maria.jpmartin@gmail.com
I’d love to see your cake pic..
Cheers
Maria
Hi dear Maria…….I am a big fan of yours…manytimes i tried out your recipes…all comes to perfectly delicious…i am a beginner in baking..yesterday i made your cinnamon cake and today ur butter cake…it tastes super ..but when ever i made cakes the top side willnot comes crispy and brown( as in ur picture).always it look like yellowish.Can u give me any sugession to make it brown and crispy.Is it because of my bankin pan. its 18 cm wide and 9 cm height. or may my my oven.its black n decker. or which mode i have turn on..baking or broiling……expectin ur valuable sugession dear…
Hi Amina,
Thanks a bunch dear for the lovely feedback :) I’m thrilled to hear that the recipes from here works well for you.
About the cake, you need to switch on both top & bottom heating. From your mail, I assume that the heating is there only in the lower part. May be that’s why the browning is not taking place. Also you’ve to select baking mode.
Hope this helps…
Cheers
Maria
hai dear MAria…thanks a lot….i wl try at the earliest
hey just a quick quest. can i substitute butter wid oil
Hi Ruma
You can use oil instead of butter.
Cheers
Maria
Mariaaaaa…..,
Just came back to tell you that I couldn’t sit still after reading your recipe for this simple tea cake and so went ahead and made it right away! It came out soooooo….moist and dainty that i felt like a proper princess while having it…My brother (whom i served it to!!!) couldn’t stop ooohhhing and aaahing over this cake. Im more of a plum/christmas/fruit cake person and made this cake especially for my bro who loves teacake and even more so the flavour of cinnamon! Shall send in pics when i bake it the next time (which should be soon), bcos as of now only crumbs of the cake are left, a bare two hours after i baked it!!!
i think that itself speaks praises of your culinary expertise and recipes you post online…thank you once again!!!! You’ve got me hooked on your website for sure!!!
Hi Suni,
Thank you so much for such a lovely comment. I’m so glad that the cake came out well for you. It’s one of my fav’s :). As for your query about using SR flour, I’ve used SR flour for baking this & I gave the details of plain flour in notes as substitute for SR flour.
Its nice to know that your brother also enjoyed this cake :) I’d love to see your pics & share it here, please do send them when you bake next time. I also got your other comment. Thanks :)
Wish you & your family a wonderful year ahead!
Cheers
Maria
Maria,
First off, its the first time I’ve visited your site and it’s an absolute delight to surf through the various recipes posted here!
I have a query, in the cake recipes where you mention plain flour and baking soda/pwdr, could I substitute it with self-raising flour and avoid the extra addition of baking soda/pwdr?
I tried this cake once but had problems with not having enough batter/cake mix to fit inside a 20cm tin. Has anybody else experienced this? Only 1 cup of flour? It barely filled the bottom of the cake tin – can anybody please help with advice?
Hi Schtef,
i’m sorry to hear that this recipe didnt work well for you. I used the above qty measurements & in the mentioned pan size & it was ok. There are a few others also who have tried this cake, but nobody mentioned having a problem with the pan size.
Please try it in a smaller pan size & I do hope it comes out well.
Cheers
Maria
Amazing recipe. Loved following the instructions. Im fairly new to the kitchen and whenever i bake a cake used to crack but this one didnt!! So happy :D love the smell of cinnamon ahh! keep it up and keep posting yumm recipes!
Hi May,
Thank you so much for sharing your feedback here. I’m really happy that it came out well for you :)
Please do check out other baking recipes here, hope you find something interesting!
Cheers
Maria
Hey maria.. how could i have missed that? thanks a ton…..
Hi Maria,i just made this cinnamon cake,followed your measurements,steps,except i replaced self raising flour with cake flour,came out very good . Thank a lot for the simple ,tasty cake.
Hi Mathari
Happy to hear that you liked this cake. Thanks for letting me know about it :)
Cheers
Maria
Hi maria.. I tried out this cake.. It was delicious.. an express cake indeed.. I wanted to know how to substitute self raising flour with plain flour. I dont have self raising flour here. So if i am to use plain flour, how much baking powder would i need? And baking soda needed too?? Please give it a thought… and let me know..
Thanks,
Liza
Hi Liza
Happy to hear that the cake came out well for you :)
Regarding substitution of self- raising flour, I’ve mentioned it in my notes, please refer to that. I’ve given the proportions there. You dont need baking soda, it can be done with baking powder & salt.
This cake looks lovely. Im not a great fan of simple tea cakes, But my husband loves them like anything…… Ithonnu try cheyyunnundu…Will let u know once i try em ok….may be this ramadan itself.
Hi Maria,
I tried it out and it turned out to be fantastic again :-)
thanks dear..
keep posting..
Thanks,
Ann
Thanks Ria. Btw, very happy to know that you find that link useful. Its a very good book, it will be very useful for a baking genius like you :)
Ann, ya I remember seeing that beautiful pound cake at your place :) and hey me too love cinnamon flavor.
Thanks Varsha dear :)
Thanks Pooja :)
hey mishmash, that was super fast!! thanks a lot for trying this :) and yes, I was also tempted seeing the lesser number of ingredients :). The other thing is that the word “teacake” reminds me of home :)
Thanks Rachel & Sandhya :)
lovely cake maria, even i prefer plain cakes…
sometimes plain cakes are always the best and your cake looks perfect.
WOW! that’s what I said when I cut this cake just 5 mts back :) the texture is so soft and moist….!!!
The lesser quantity of ingredients and the word ‘teacake’ tempted me so much, i had to make it immdtly :)
I had to use substitutes , so thx for sharing those info too….and when i opened the fridge, i realised i dont have vanilla essence either, so added a touch of nutmeg to flavour it…
THANKS a ton :)
That is a beautiful soft spongy cake Maria! I too love cakes without frosting since I like to enjoy the flavours of the cake alone! I do frosting only for special occasions!
That looks too goood Maria..:)
Maria,we have that passion fror plain cakes in common..i personally wont go for decorated/iced cakes…and this one..Oh my..I am gone for it !! Cinnamon flavour is one thing I love most..looks awesome dear..would love to try.
Hey Maria, that’s such a beautiful cake!! Looks really good sans icing :)
And you have done such a big favour for me…I was in search of that book!!!! Thanks for the link! :)