Healthier Old School Butter Cake

 I am planning to make old school butter cakes for my dad's and uncle's birthdays this year but with a healthier twist! Before I make the actual birthday cakes, I decided to to some trial bakes so here's a picture of my second attempt!

In case you are wondering, is the taste compromised? Answer is a no according to my taste testers of various ages!

**This is not a sponsored post. I bought the ingredients because I wanted to.**

How did I make it healthier? 

By choosing a recipe that begins with less sugar and using Alchemy Fibre as well. Alchemy Fibre is a blend of inulin and edible gum. It's a prebiotic soluble fibre blend that has well documented positive effects on cholesterol and blood sugar levels. 

How is this butter cake healthier?

✅ Contains 32% less sugar than Mrs SK Ng's butter cake recipe

✅ Contains prebiotic soluble fibres which are good for gut health 

✅ Fibres reduce bad cholesterol effects of butter

✅ Fibres reduce overall GI of the cake too!

✅ No sugar replacements so suitable for those sensitive to sugar alcohols 

I chose to adapt from Wen's Delight and she in turn took Cooking Crave's recipe as the reference. Why didn't I use the famous Mrs SK Ng's recipe as a reference then? Because it contains 20% more sugar and a higher proportion of sugar goes into the creaming of butter than the meringue. This will mean a less stable meringue and chances of the meringue collapsing or breaking down during the folding stage are higher, especially with such high fat content in the egg yolk batter.

What if you don't have access to Alchemy Fibre? 

You may just replace with inulin, which you may get from health supplies stores. In Singapore, Alchemy Fibre is easily available at supermarkets like NTUC and Sheng Shiong. Feel free to replace with sugar too.

Why did I think of using Alchemy Fibre? 

Besides the health benefits, I have found that it is a meringue thickener and stabilizer so I substitute part of the sugar when making the meringue. You may see my experiment from this reel that cakes leavened by meringues like chiffon cake can be made using Alchemy fibre and without sugar at all!

Can you replace even more sugar with Alchemy Fibre than the recipe in this post?

You can definitely try although personally I wouldn't substitute much more than what I share here because I find that the fibres cause a tendency for the chiffon cakes to crack at the tops during baking and the change in texture from the familiar old school butter cakes may become noticeable. There's also such a thing as too much of a good thing because overconsumption of soluble fibres may cause bloating too. If you don't mind the change in texture for an even healthier cake and are only having a little cake in each sitting (to avoid side effects of ingesting too much soluble fibres), go ahead and make the substitution 😊

Healthier Old School Butter Cake

125g Golden Churn butter*

34g caster sugar 

6g Alchemy fibre*

Pinch of salt 

2 egg yolks

15g milk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract 

100g cake or plain flour or a combination* 

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 egg whites 

1/4 tsp cream of tartar or 1/2 tsp lemon juice

34g caster sugar

6g Alchemy fibre*

* Golden Churn is the preferred choice of butter for most bakers. It tastes great & you don't have to worry about waiting for it to come to the right room temperature (narrow window sweet spot of 18-20C with other regular butter that needs refrigeration)  before using because it comes in a can at room temperature!

* Alchemy Fibre is a mix of inulin & edible gum. If you can't get this product, you may substitute with inulin or sugar

* Flour choice depends on preference of firm or more tender bite. Cake flour for more tender bite, plain flour for better structure stability/firmer 

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 170C, oven rack set to second lowest position or lower third of the oven. Line a 6" round or square pan at the base and grease the sides.

2. Cream butter, sugar, salt and fibre until pale & fluffy.

3. Sift together flour & baking powder. Add 2 tbs to step 2. Mix well with electric mixer. Adding flour at this early stage helps to prevent batter from splitting when the wet ingredients are added.

4. Add egg yolk one at a time. Mix well with electric mixer.

5. Add 2 tbs of sifted flour mix. Mix well with spatula or electric mixer on low speed.

6. Add milk & vanilla. Mix well with electric mixer. 

7. Gradually add flour 1 tbs at a time. Mix well with electric mixer on low speed or spatula after each addition until no trace of flour is seen. Set aside.

8. Whisk sugar & alchemy fibre together in a small bowl just before making meringue. Make meringue by beating egg whites with cream of tartar/ lemon juice & sugar mix to firm peaks.

9. Fold meringue into egg yolk batter in three additions, taking care not do deflate the meringue.

10. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 45min at 170C or until done. Adjust baking conditions according to your oven so watch the brownness during baking. Reduce temperature or tent your cake with foil if it browns too fast.

11. Invert onto wire rack to cool.

See my reel for the video tutorial of making this cake:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C-z1AfESges/?igsh=cGswaWp5Mjc0YnJo

Enjoy it while freshly baked and warm! Storage in the fridge will make the cake firmer and some people like my dad loves it this way. But if you prefer soft fluffy cake, steam or microwave with steam created from a separate bowl of hot water to reheat until moist and soft again.

with love,
Phay Shing