It took me 40 years to try it, but this week I finally made "Amazin' Raisin Cake", a recipe from the mid '80s that appeared frequently in magazine ads for Hellmann's. Originally shared as a clever way to bake with mayonnaise, the company also had a carrot and chocolate cake in the lineup. I definitely tried those at one point, but I seem to have forgotten about the raisin cake.
What's in Amazin' Raisin Cake?
Hellmann's calls this Amazin' Raisin Cake, but it actually has more apples than raisins, and plenty of walnuts as well. What it does not have is butter or oil. Mayonnaise is the main fat, and you'll need a full cup of it. Since it is the only fat, I recommend using full fat rather than light. To make up for the lack of butter, there are lots of spices in the cake, plus you get the tartness from the apples. Vanilla isn't one of the ingredients, but it's a good addition. Having made the cake twice, I can attest to that.
Very Thick Batter
This cake is so easy to put together, but the batter sure is thick -- even thicker than I expected, since the directions note that it's thick. What's strange is the order of ingredients. The recipe says to just mix everything together and beat. With the batter being so thick, it's a good idea to mix all the dry ingredients together in the bowl before adding the milk, eggs and mayo. You can do it all by hand or with an electric mixer, but be ready for a batter that is almost thicker than muffin batter and ready to stand up to 3 cups of chopped apples.
Whipped Cream Frosting
The original recipe says "fill and frost with 2 cups of whipped cream". I had my doubts about 2 cups being enough until I saw the picture which shows a cake with naked sides. By then I'd already made the decision to frost the whole thing with a cream cheese enhanced whipped cream. That worked out well and the whipped cream was the perfect contrast to the moist cake. A true cream cheese or vanilla buttercream might have been too heavy.
Using Other Pan Sizes
Amazin' Raisin Cake is a layer cake, but you can turn it into a Bundt cake if you prefer. For my first cake, I halved the recipe and made two six inch layers (as shown), but I couldn't resist testing it again as a half batch in an 8-inch square pan. Plus it was an excuse to re-make Sea Foam Frosting, and try to figure out why it sometimes comes out runny. Turns out it just needed to be beaten a little longer, but that's another story. This is a fun little weeknight cake which can be frosted with whatever you like!
Recipe
Amazin' Raisin Cake
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, un-sifted (375 grams)
- 2 cups sugar (400 grams)
- 2 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ⅓ cup milk (80 grams)
- 1 cup mayonnaise (240 grams)
- 2 large eggs
- 3 cups chopped peeled apples (300 grams)
- 1 cup seedless raisins (140 grams)
- ½ cup coarsely chopped walnuts (50 grams)
Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting (Makes a lot!)
- ½ cup softened cream cheese or mascarpone
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- ⅛ teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 2 9-inch round cake pans. For extra insurance, you may want to grease, line with parchment then grease and flour again. This is a sticky cake.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together all of the dry ingredients (Flour through cloves).
- Add the milk, mayonnaise and eggs and beat with a mixer at low speed beat for 2 minutes, scraping bowl frequently, or beat vigorously 300 strokes by hand. The batter will be thick -- very thick.
- With a spoon or heavy duty scraper, stir in apples, raisins and nuts. Spoon batter into pans, dividing evenly.
- Bake for 45 min or until tester inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pans 10 minutes. Loosen cake from the side of the pan with a knife and remove.
- Frost with any kind of light whipped cream frosting or something like a Sea Foam or Seven Minute. The recipe below is what I used in the photo.
Whipped Cream Frosting
- Chill the mixing bowl and the whisk attachment of a stand mixer.
- Beat the softened cream cheese until light and creamy. Add the powdered sugar, salt and vanilla and beat until smooth and creamy.
- With the mixer on low, stream in the heavy whipping cream, beating until incorporated. Increase to medium speed and beat until light and creamy. Keep an eye on it so that it doesn't go from creamy to curdled. Also, taste test and make sure you are happy with the amount of powdered sugar. You may want it a little sweeter.
- To frost the cake, spread 1 cup of frosting over the first layer and a second cup of frosting over the top layer. Leave the sides blank or frost the whole thing. Dust cake with cinnamon if desired.
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