When I came across this recipe, the first thing that surprised me was that the cake has no butter in it. Also, it had quite a bit of mango. This let me to believe that there was an error in the recipe. In my mind I pictured this soupy batter that would never even bake up to a solid mass.
I forged ahead and popped the pan into the oven to bake. I kept peeking through the window on the oven door to see the progress of it. It actually got quite brown, most likely due to all that fruit.
All in all, the finished product is a wonderfully moist cake. Even though the walnuts are optional they added another layer of texture in the bite. Also, the sweet cream cheese icing really pairs well with the cake.
Some days your instinct is not on the right track and this was one of those times. The cake was a hit at the luncheon, so it will be something that I will make again.
Now I am off to make 12 dz cookies for donations, so I will be baking up a storm!
Miami Mango Cake
adapted from Three Guys from Miami
Ingredients/Cake
2 1/2 cups mashed/pureed mangoes (approx. 3 large mangoes)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp natural mango extract (I added this into the recipe, so it is optional)
1 cup chopped walnuts, optional
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
Ingredients/Frosting
2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter
8 ounces of cream cheese
Ingredients/Topper
12-15 walnut halves
1/2 batch of above frosting
1/2 cup or more powdered sugar
2-4 drops of orange food coloring
To make the cake, grease the inside of a 9X13 inch pan. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In another bowl cream together the sugar and the eggs. Then beat in the extracts. Add the mango in 1/2 cup intervals, beating after each addition.
Then, using a wooden spoon, fold in the sifted ingredients until no dry streaks remain. If you opted for nuts, stir them in at this point. Pour the batter into the pan. It will be easy to pour and will even out on its own. Bake until a tester comes out clean, which is about 35-40 minutes. Let cool in pan.
Take out a medium size bowl for the frosting. Beat together the butter, vanilla extract and cream cheese. Once blended, sift confectioners sugar into mixture and then beat again until smooth and creamy. Then frost the top of the cooled cake.
For the orange/walnut topper, make 1/2 a batch of the frosting and beat in orange food coloring. Then sift in another 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar and beat again. If it is not your desired consistency or color continue to add drops of food coloring and tablespoons of powdered sugar, beating after each addition. Mixture should be smooth and creamy with no streaks of food coloring or powdered sugar.
Cut the cake into serving pieces and then pipe a swirl on the top center of each piece. Place one walnut on top, pressing down lightly. Then you are ready to serve.
**LAST YEAR: Shrimp Cakes**
