Whole Wheat and Bajra -Pearl Millet flour Sheet Cake with Zucchini, Pineapple and a smattering of coconut with Cream Cheese

This is a first for me.
Not the Bajra-Pearl Millet flour ,but the sheet cake.
I adore coarse grains and I was introduced to bajra when I lived in Rajasthan. Loved it ever since.
Rotis and breads are Fine, but it is difficult to bake with a coarse grain flour.
The flavor profile is earthier... I mean a cake will never be as smooth and as spongy as a APF or maida cake, but the cake is whole some and guilt free.

This is the second time I am using zucchini, and I also added coconut and pineapple.
I could taste the coconut because I knew it was there ,but to someone who had just tasted it...It was almost like what good girls were once upon a time -Seen but not heard. OK ,that wasn't too good a metaphor.
Pineapple, however will always make its presence felt. Tart and Sweet. Like a woman?
It is past 12 at night.
I also attempted home made cream cheese frosting with butter for the first time.
I have either used cream cheese from a tub or hung curd and whipped cream. So this was awesome.
So awesome that sweet child scraped off the frosting first and ate the sheet cake later.
The pearl millet or bajra grains on the cake were an accident first and then were just sprinkled for beauty.

So here goes ...

Whole Wheat and Bajra -Pearl Millet flour Sheet Cake with Zucchini, and Pineapple...

You need
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup Bajra-Pearl Millet flour
1/4 cup maida or plain flour
2 cups grated and squeezed zucchini
1/2 cup grated fresh coconut
1 can pineapple drained and finely chopped
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup ground sugar (you can reduce a little-it was a bit too sweet for me)
1 and 1/ 2 tsp
3 tbsp canola or any vegetable oil
2 eggs
2 tsp cinnamon powder
1 tsp ginger and nutmeg powder
1 tsp almond or vanilla essence

One bowl wonder.
I used a borosil 5 *9 inch container and a large loaf tin that I liberally sprayed with PAM .You can also lightly brush with oil.

Oven on 175°C to preheat.
Grate the unpeeled zucchini and squeeze dry.
I cracked a fresh coconut and peeled the brown skin .It gets stuck...the peeled coconut just melts.
It melted.

Drain the pineapple, I used Del Monte 500gms ,leaving once slice out for munching and err decorating.
into the bowl add the dry flours and ingredients, the zucchini, coconut and the pineapple.
Blend the eggs ,oil and vanilla in a small bowl and lightly whisk.
Use a steel spoon fold in the wet into the dry. It starts doughy ,but the pineapple is wet and the batter becomes like a brownie batter.

Pour into the cake tins dividing it so that it is approximately 1 inch high.
The zucchini and pineapple and bajra will not allow this to rise so...

Pop Into the oven for about 40 minutes. Turn the tray around once.
Poke the cake once it looks cooked and just for your satisfaction poke with a knife...it would have moved away from the sides. No Crumbs.
Like so.

Get the cream cheese frosting ready.
I generally use home made Chenna or paneer... but Jalandhar is blessed with Lovely Sweets and their paneer is absolutely the best.

30 gms Amul butter salted
125 gms fresh Paneer or chenna made from 500 mils full fat milk
1 tsp drained liquid from tje pineapple tin.
Buzz in the wet grinder till smooooooooooooth.


Allow the cake to cool and slather on the frosting with an offset spatula. Chill.

Cut into pieces and Enjoy.

Tastes best with green tea...
Or coffee...
Or without...

Its not something that children will enjoy straight away...but the frosting was so yum that at first sweet child scraped off the frosting and then grudgingly ate the cake.


This weekend baking is all about wholesome low fat stuff.
There's more coming up.

This wholesome cake is off to the Kitchen Aid Pro baker Contest.

Wish me luck.

So what are you baking today???