Adhi’s Gulab Jamun Cake

I had to eat my words. Beautiful looking cakes are never tasty, I was convinced. Until I met this Eggless Gulab Jamun Cake that was as lip-smacking as it was eye-catching. And no, I did NOT make it. 

But Adheshwari Ramesh is not a professional baker. She is a Researcher in Biotechnology. She crafted this addictive concoction amidst her in-person lab responsibilities, husband’s PhD defense and managing their 15-month-old daughter. And if you know the trouble she takes for each cake, it can seem unbelievable.

My sincere thanks to Ms. Adheshwari Ramesh for her lovely cake made whilst juggling so many things – expected and unexpected, and to her husband Dr. Jashwant Raj Gunasekaran who played a key role coordinating. All photos and videos are courtesy Ms. Adheshwari.

Some 3 years ago, when husband raved about the cake that he had had at a birthday party, and that he had never eaten a better cake, it was a note-worthy moment. For he is rarely impressed. Son further sang its praises – had they been musically inclined, doubtless An Ode to Adhi’s Cake would have been composed then and there, accompanied by bells, whistles and more. Son explained how unlike so many cakes that are just fluff with cloyingly sweet icings, Adhi’s cake was a perfect marriage – the cake had substance by itself and all the added accoutrements complimented each other to perfection. An ideal concert of gastronomical proportions.

For most family birthdays these past 15 years, my husband has been alone. Last year, I thought we could change that. Son requested Adhi for a Badam Halwa cake and organised a surprise party for his dad’s birthday, inviting several of the PhD students. She created a masterpiece – son literally salivates merely thinking about that cake.

Daughter, the most committed dessert lover of the family, craved such a cake. Realising Adhi and we are in the same place in time for daughter’s special day, I requested her to make a Gulab Jamun Cake. Adhi came up with this stunner. Every bite breathed succulent gulab jamun, and every aspect was home-made – from the khoa for the jamun, to the from-scratch saffron-rose cake to the icing to the piping and to the writing in lovely calligraphical lettering made entirely in chocolate(not shown here). I am certain that all of us have gained at least a pound each pigging out like there is no tomorrow.

Enough of my thoughts. Here is more on Adhi, the lovely lady who made this memorable cake, and how she went about constructing this delectable treat.

Adhi says she has always been creatively inclined. From learning some Carnatic music, to being extensively trained in Bharatanatyam to several art projects (ice cream stick houses, pistachio shell flower paintings, sand paintings, any projects made in art class in school, birthday cards, mother’s day and father’s day cards, etc.) to send back with her mother to display in her parents’ home. Adhi spent her initial years with her grandparents in T. Nagar in Chennai before moving to Cedar Rapids IA in 2005. She continued dance, training and performing Bharatanatyam and completing her Arangetram too –  even learning some Kathak.  In Fall 2010, she joined University of Massachusetts at Lowell where she did her Bachelors and Masters in Biotechnology.

Her family moved to Acton MA soon after. There, between her brother being in high school and her being a day-scholar in college, they found themselves more home-bound. Boredom turned her towards baking in 2011, starting out with desserts like Tiramisu and Madeleines. Then her brother requested a shark shaped cake. That kick started her journey on cakes.

Here is Adhi herself on her ensuing journey. “Every year, I tried to challenge myself a little bit in terms of refining my baking and decorating techniques.”  

“I’m a completely self-taught, amateur home-baker. I watched tons and tons of youtube videos on cake decorating. Google was my go-to for trying out new cake recipes (I’m teaching myself how to create my own recipe right now). Initially I followed the online recipes to a T. However, as years went by, I started tweaking certain elements such as: switching out butter with oil, changing up the flavors of the cake, substituting sugar with fruit sauces, etc. Baking became my hobby (albeit an expensive one lol). Seeing my interest and passion, my parents also supported me and helped me purchase any necessary equipment I needed for it. They even presented me with a KitchenAid stand mixer for my Birthday! I now have my own collection of cake pans, decorating tools, flavorings, and sprinkles.  

My baking journey exponentially grew after moving to PA. It is here that I started my baking Instagram account @adhicakesndcards. It’s here that I started exploring new flavors (my family is 75% vanilla and 25% chocolate lovers). Baking different types of cakes for all of Jay’s friends gave me more and more practice to hone my skills further. After joining Instagram, I started trying new styles of cake decorating. I began connecting with home bakers all over the country and expanding my baking/cake decorating knowledge. I even started learning to make different types of cookies and mousse cakes! In Christmas 2019, I made a cookie sampler box for all the professors (it had 3-4 types of cookies).

So, coming to this cake. I originally made this a few years ago for my husband’s friend for his 25th birthday. That was the first time I attempted a completely eggless cake for a layer cake. Baking a layered cake like this is normally a 2-3 day process depending on the type of cake and filling.

Three nights before, I made some Khoya from whole milk to use for making the gulab jaamuns. The following morning, I made the gulab jamuns and let them soak in flavoured sugar syrup. In the night, I baked four (2 batches) 6-inch layers of eggless Saffron-Rose cake. While baking, I used “Wilton Bake-Rite Strips” to prevent the domes from forming and allowing the cakes to bake somewhat evenly. Bake-rite strips are adjustable cloth-like belts that have to be completely soaked in water. Once the strips soak up all the water, you squeeze out the excess and attach them to the outside of the cake tins. I also line the bottom of the cake pan with parchment paper and then add butter to the sides of the pan and dust it with some flour for smooth removal (you don’t need to do this for the sides if you have a non-stick pan). Then you bake it as usual. After a toothpick comes out clean, I take them out of the oven and cool them for about 5-10 mins at Room Temp (RT). Then I release the cake edges from the pans with a knife and invert them onto a drying rack. I always make the cake layers and filling 2-days ahead of the delivery date.

On Wednesday I prepared two types of frosting: Buttercream to frost the outside and use as decoration on the outside of the cake and whipped cream to use in-between the cake layers. Both types of frosting were flavored with Rose essence and cardamom powder. Once I completed the frosting, I started assembling the cake. My cake layers were a bit tall, if I used it as is, the cake would have been at least 10 inches tall (which was not the look I was going for). So, I cut the cake layers in half using my Wilton Cake Leveler. I saved the unused layers for munching later (or makeing another dessert later). Then, I started assembling the cake.

First, I added a bit of frosting to the cake board, it acts as a glue to hold the cake onto the board. Then added my first layer. Added some simple syrup (in this cake our jamun sugar syrup). Then I made a small border with buttercream (it’s the most stable frosting). Inside that border, I first added a layer of whipped cream, then added some chopped gulab jamun pieces, and then sealed it with more whipped cream. I repeated the aforementioned steps three times. After adding the fourth, and final layer, I went on to crumb coating the cake.

The purpose of a crumb coat (thin layer of icing), is to seal in all the crumbs of the cake, lock in the moisture of the cake, and serve as a clean canvas for further frosting and decorations. It’s very essential to do the crumb coat. Once I let the crumb coated cake sit in the fridge for about 30 mins (in my case, overnight), I added the final layer of frosting. Since I’m still learning, I cannot free-hand the frosting to get clean edges and lines. I use acrylic cake discs (on the very top and bottom of the cake) as a guide to get a smooth coat of frosting all over the cake and also achieve clean lines and edges. In addition, since this was a very moist cake, I used some straws to provide extra support and stability, so that the cake didn’t collapse during the building process.

After the final frosting, I started working on the decoration. I filled some piping bags with the buttercream frosting. I had 4 piping bags, same frosting but different types of decorating tips. Then I proceeded to decorate the cake. Secured the jamuns on the cake with some toothpicks and frosting. Added some pistachio, saffron strands, and dried rose petals to add some color and texture.

I used tempered chocolate melts for the lettering. I first printed the greeting out in a cursive font. Then layered it under an acetate sheet. Since I only needed a small amount of chocolate, I melted it in the microwave in 10-second bursts until the chocolate was fully melted (I normally use a double boiler to melt the chocolate). Then I transferred it to a piping bag fitted with a small writing tip and started tracing the words on the acetate sheet. Once it dried, I slowly released the chocolate writing from the acetate sheet and transferred it onto the cake.”

I knew beautifully decorated cakes took work but I did not know how much until Adhi explained the process above. Besides, one requires such thought to decorate with an aesthetic sense – garnishes that compliment and give a muted and classy look without being in your face. We actually feel bad that we ate this thing of beauty! In Japan, all restaurants keep 3D models of their dishes out on display. I wish we could have had a model keepsake of this one.

Our family considers it a privilege to have had the opportunity to partake of a cake made by such a passionate, sincere person – a confection that tasted so good with a texture to die for, besides being so absolutely beautiful to look at. Thank you, Adhi. God bless you and your family.

I will leave you with Adhi’s quick video summary of this cake and another picture of the tantalising final product.