A gorgeous eggless mango cake with a light cream cheese frosting that is perfect for the summers or anytime when mangoes are available!
When life gives you mangoes, think of every possible desert that they would taste best with and then make it. Between my mango special desserts workshop that I hosted last month and some recipes for the blog, it feels like all I have made for the past two months is mango something or the other! Not complaining though because we’re a mango loving family and none of my experiments go to naught! This mango cake with a light cream cheese frosting is amazing because it truly highlights the fruit with dominating and subtle flavours complimenting rather than contrasting each other.
Mango cake
This recipe makes a light and airy cake with a few basic ingredients. The crumb is spongy and mildly flavoured with mango pulp which also gives it a light orange colour. Using mango pulp in the cream cheese frosting and fresh mango pieces in between the layers is what really amps up the mango flavor and screams “mango cake.” 
Mango pulp
This recipe uses mango pulp in both the cake as well as the frosting and thus it is an important element. Mango pulp is basically just a flesh of the mango fruit. I have used home-made mango pulp which is made by pureeing mango pieces in either a processor or mixer. A medium-sized Alphonso mango yields from 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of pulp. You don’t need to add anything to the mango pulp unless you want to thin it down with a few teaspoons of water. A lot of places also carry frozen mango pulp around the year which are also good to use. However store brought pulp usually has added sugar and so you will have to make that adjustment to balance the sweetness in the recipe.
Frosting
Cream cheese and mangoes makes a great combination together and this frosting is delicious to eat as it is. You could make several variations of this mango cake by making small changes to the frosting
- Add cardamom and saffron to both the base and the frosting to make a cardamom mango cake
- Add fresh or canned pineapple chunks and desiccated dry coconut to make a tropical mango cake.
- Add strawberry compote on top of the frosting in between the layers to make a mango and strawberry cake.
- Add powdered pistachio to the base and to the frosting to make a mango pistachio cake
…you get the drift.
Assembling the cake
To assemble the cake we start by cutting the cake horizontally into two layers. Next brush the cake layers with a simple sugar syrup to help keep it moist for longer. Add the prepared cream cheese frosting – as much or as little as you like and top it with chopped mango chunks. While I love adding fresh mangoes cut into small pieces in between the layers and also on top of the cake, you could also use mango compote, mango jelly, or mango pulp instead. Gently place the second layer on top and frost it with cream including on the sides too. Garnish with more mango on top.
Shelf-life
When using mangoes, like any other seasonal fruit, you have to know that addition of the fruit will reduce the shelf-life of the frosting. I recommend to not frost cake too much in advance before eating it. A few additional points that will help make your cake amazing
- When making the base do not mix the batter too much or you will end up with a dense or heavy cake.
- Use room temperature ingredients for both the base as well as the frosting.
- Do not frost while the cake is still hot or warm. Let it cool completely before you attempt to use the frosting.
- Use a serrated knife to cut any uneven parts of the cake so that you have a flat top to work with. It makes frosting much easier.
- Do not leave the cake lying open in the refrigerator as it may dry out. Either cling wrap the cake if you have not yet frosted it or keep the frosted cake inside a box.
To make your cake prettier, make a mango rose or add mango slices if you wish Like I have In this mango and almond praline cake.
Other some recipes on the blog you may like to try
- Eggless Mango Mousse
- Eggless No-bake Mango Cheesecake
- Eggless Mango Semolina Cake
- Eggless Mango Shortbread Bars
- Baked Yogurt with Passionfruit
- Fresh Cherry Cobbler
What other mango recipes would you like to see on the blog next. Drop me a message on my Instagram and I will definitely try and share that next.
Eggless Mango Cake
Ingredients
For Mango Sponge Base
- 1.5 cups All-purpose flour
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- ½ tsp Baking Soda
- ½ cup Yogurt
- ½ cup Oil
- 1 cup Castor Sugar
- ½ cup Mango Pulp (approx 75g)
- 2 tbsp Milk
For Frosting
- ¼ cup (56g) Butter softened
- ⅔ cup (120g) Cream Cheese
- 1¼ cup Icing sugar
- 2 tbsp Mango Pulp
- ½ tsp Vanilla Extract
For Garnishing
- ½ cup Fresh Mango Pieces
Instructions
INSTRUCTIONS
- Line and grease a 7 inch pan. Pre-heat oven to 180 degree C.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder and baking soda in a bowl and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, add the yogurt, oil, and sugar and whisk till sugar completely dissolves and oil is well combined.
- Add and mix the mango pulp. at this point you could also add additional flavoring like crushed cardamom, vanilla, saffron strands, etc.
- Finally add the dry mix and milk in batches and fold everything together so that no lumps of flour remain.
- Transfer the batter to your prepared pan. Bake at 180 degree C for 35-40 minutes or till a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- While the cake is baking, prepare your frosting. Frosting: In a bowl, beat the butter, and cream cheese together till its pale in colour. Add half of the sugar, and vanilla and beat for another minute. Add the rest of the icing sugar and beat till combined. Add the mango pulp and beat again till you have a thick spreadable consistency frosting. If you find it too runny, you could add more icing sugar as required. Refrigerate the frosting till you need it.
- Let the cake cool fully, then assemble by cutting it into two layers (optional), spreading the frosting and fresh mango pieces. Decorate and garnish the top layer with fresh mango pieces, mint, fresh flowers, or nuts.
Notes
- For measurement conversions to grams and ml, refer the conversion guide here – Measurements Conversion Guide
Do u need an electric beater for the butter and cream cheese frosting ?
You may do it by hand by an electric beater will make the job 10x easier and faster
Hi Pooja, I tried this cake today. While baking it rose nicely, but towards the last 2-3 minutes of baking, it sunk from the centre. Could you suggest why that might have happened? I covered it with the frosting and it tasted great so nobody else noticed it 😛
I read somewhere that cooking down the pulp on low heat and using makes the flavor more concentrated,can we do that and use 75 gm of cooked down pulp chef?
Hi sure you could use concentrated pulp. Do add a few drops of lemon while cooking though to ensure that the mangoes don’t turn black
Hi , is there a recording of your mango cake workshop… and I would like to see the almond praline recipe
Can i make it with whole wheat flour?
Hi Shruti, yes you can but the texture will be denser
Which cream cheese would you recommend to buy from market.
Hi Arjun, Dlecta is a good brand that i’ve used for cream cheese.
Hii… my cream cheese frosting split. After I made the frosting, I kept it in refrigerator for sometime. When I took it out to use I saw it has split. What could be the reason?
Hi! The flavour of cake changes if we don’t use alphansos?