You may agree or disagree with me...
Based on many different chiffon cakes that I have baked at here, here, here, here and especially this banana chiffon cake recipe, I realised something! The chiffon cakes that I baked without adding cream of tartar, baking powder or any cake raising agents are the BEST being so moist, tender and cottony soft!!!
Really? Despite the fact that the cream of tartar and baking powder will make chiffon cakes looking tall, fluffy, impressive, structurally stable and easier to bake and handle, these cake-rising ingredients tend to make the cakes structurally stiffer and kill their ultimate softness! Hence, in my opinion, chiffon cakes with cream of tartar and baking powder are good but they are NOT as ultimately good as those that are made with NO cake raising agents!!!
Convinced? Here, I have an ULTIMATE banana chiffon cake recipe to share. With NO cream of tartar, I have to say that this is the BEST banana chiffon cake that I have baked so far!!! It is tall, fluffy, impressive, very very very moist and very very very ultra soft!!! Trust me... I have never taste any chiffon cakes that are softer and moister than this. This is truly the ultimate!!! Best of all, it contains no sourish cream of tartar aftertaste. So delicious and banana-y that you don't even need to add aromatic spices like cinnamon or vanilla to boost its flavours.
Must try!!! Must try!!! And I hope that you will be convinced that my chiffon cake theory is right!!!
Ultra Soft and Moist Banana Chiffon Cake
This is the BEST banana chiffon cake that I have baked so far!!!
Finally... This is the ultimate banana chiffon cake that I'm after! My husband and son can clearly tasted its ultimacy and told me the same too!!!
In order to bake this tall and ultra soft chiffon cake, you can fill 90% of your chiffon cake pan with the cake batter and with no worries!!! This chiffon cake will rise above the rim of your pan and won't create any mess with dripping cake batter or exploding cake top.
However, without the addition of cream of tartar or any raising agents, the cake will shrink but only slightly to the exact size of the pan after cooling.
After baking...
The cake will rise above the rim of the pan but will shrink to the exact size of the pan after cooling.
Still looking good!
This is how the cake looks after it is completely cooled.
Want to bake this cake? I have a few tips to share...
One: The most important, Egg White Mixture!
The success of this chiffon cake is highly depending on the egg white mixture used because there is no other chemical agents used to stabilise the cake structure.
To make sure that the egg white mixture is whipped into its best form, it is essential to beat egg whites in the lowest speed at the beginning for at least 10 mins to stabilise the mixture. Then, increase the beating speed to medium. Please be aware... To avoid large bubbles forming, do not use high beating speed. To avoid the meringue from being too dry and stiff, do not over-beat the mixture. Stop beating immediately when stiff peaks form.
Two: Please handle me with care!
Without the cream of tartar, please be aware this cake is very cottony soft and can be very fragile to cut and handle!
Thus, please do not unmould the cake by pressing it!!! To unmould, please use a blunt thin plastic spatula or knife to run along the cake's edges and gently push the cake out from the pan.
Three: The cake has to be baked for at least 65 mins!!!
Due to its high moisture content, this cake has to be baked for at least 65 mins. If the top of the cake turns brown too quickly, cover the top loosely with a foil after 30-40 mins of baking and continue to bake it until it is thoroughly cooked. Please be aware that uncooked cake will shrink very badly to form patches of doughy area!!! Ewww... And over-cooked cake will be too dry. Therefore, I would say 65 to 75 mins of baking is the best.
Four: This banana cake is so good on its own!
Believe me or not! It's true that this cake is mostly naturally sweetened by lots of banana and the minimal 75g sugar added is essentially adequate enough to whip up a decent meringue! So please do not reduce the amount of sugar any further as the sweetness of this cake is just right.
As mentioned earlier, I reckon that the addition of the aromatic cinnamon or vanilla is absolutely not required in this recipe! However, if you think that you want to add these ingredients into your cake, please feel free to do so. I wouldn't because I just want to taste nothing but only the banana in this cake. Now who want to sing the minions' banana song? Ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-nana LOL!
Too complicated?
Nay!!! Watch my one-minute video and see how I baked this cake. It is a typical way of baking chiffon cake but just without the addition of cream of tartar. That's all! If you follow my recipe to the tee, I'm sure that you won't go wrong...
See how soft is this cake...
Now, what do you think about my chiffon cake theory?
Agree? Disagree? Agree to disagree? LOL!
Why not try baking this cake? And see what I mean...
After baking this ultra soft banana chiffon cake, I feel like I have gained some sort of cake enlightenment!!! LOL! Thus, if you like this ultimate ultra soft banana chiffon cake, I have a lot more of my newly-derived ultra soft chiffon cake recipes to share in the near future and so please stay tune! You can follow me at either my Facebook at here or here or my Instagram @zoebakeforhappykids.
Before proceeding to the recipe, I like to mention something...
It's time again that I need a break!!! I just did my 5th marathon and my timing is 03:52:59. Just seconds faster than my previous run but I felt so much better this time because I was running in a steady pace. Too old already... So no need to chiong (meaning dash in Singlish)... LOL!
Hence, I won't be running, baking and blogging for the next 2 weeks as we are going to Singapore and Japan for our holiday. If you wish to "come along" with us to see what we will do at Singapore and Osaka, please follow me at my Instagram @zoebakeforhappykids
Bye baking and blogging and I will see you again in 2-3 weeks time :)
Happy that I have completed 5 marathons!
Here's the recipe that is mostly adapted from here.
IMPORTANT: Please use the exact weight and make sure that all ingredients are at room temperature.
Makes one tall and perfect 8-inch (20 cm) chiffon cake
For the egg yolks mixture:
360g ripe bananas, peeled and this is the weight without the skins
75g egg yolks (about 4-5)
55g neutral tasting vegetable oil
60g milk
120g cake flour with 8% protein
1/4 tsp salt
For the egg white mixture:
240g egg whites (about 7-8)
75g caster sugar
Preheat oven to 170°C/330ºF.
For the egg yolk mixture:
Use a handheld blender or a small food processor to process the bananas into smooth purée. Set aside.
Using a hand whisk, combine egg yolks, oil, milk and bananas in a large mixing bowl until well combined. Sift in cake flour and salt and whisk gently until the batter is smooth and combined.
For the egg white mixture:
Using an electric mixer with a whisk attachment, beat egg whites in the lowest speed for at least 10 mins to stabilise the mixture. Increase beating speed to medium (not too high to avoid large bubbles forming). While beating, add sugar gradually and continue to beat until stiff peaks form and the meringue should be smooth with very tiny bubbles. Do not over-beat the mixture.
Using a hand whisk or a spatula, gently fold in the egg whites to the egg yolks mixture in 3-4 batches. It is ok to mix the 1st batch of egg white more vigorously into the egg yolk mixture but the subsequent portions must be folded in very gently. Make sure that most of the white is not visible after folding.
Pour batter into an un-greased 20 cm chiffon tube pan. Use a spatula or spoon to distribute the batter evenly in the pan. Give the pan a gentle tap and bake at 170°C/330ºF for 10 mins. Reduce temperature to 160°C/320ºF and bake for 55-65 mins or until it is thoroughly cooked. Total baking time has to be at least 65 mins. If the top of the cake turns brown too quickly after 30-40 mins of baking, cover the cake top loosely with a foil and continue to bake until it is thoroughly cooked.
Remove from oven and invert the cake immediately to cool on a wire rack. Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan before removing it from the pan. The cake is fragile and so it is easier to slice with a serrated knife. Enjoy!
Store any uneaten in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. This cake will stay super ultra moist and soft for many days until they are all gone!
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