DOMINICAN CAKE

This recipe is quite popular in the Spanish speaking community.

Ingredients

  • 4 sticks of salted butter (Hotel Bar)
  • 2 cups of granulated sugar (Dominoes)
  • 12 eggs (6 yolks/ 6 whole eggs)
  • 3 cups of All-purpose flour (Pillsbury, all purpose, bleached and enriched)
  • 2 tablespoons of baking powder (Davis Baking Powder, double acting)
  • 1 cup of pineapple juice (Dole 100%)
  • 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon of lemon zest

Instructions

  1. Preparation:

Before you start it is very important that the following steps are done:

* The butter needs to be at room temperature
* Measure the sugar
* Separate 6 eggs (save egg white for the “Suspiro” Meringue)
* Sift the flour and mearure
* Measure the baking powder and sift
* Measure the juice
* Measure the vanilla extract
* Prepare two baking pans 10×2 with PAM baking Spray for baking or grease and flour the bottom of the pans
* Preheat oven to 350F

Cream the butter on speed 2 (with paddle attachment), add the sugar and increase the speed to 4. Let it cream until the mixture is light and creamy. Start adding the 6 egg yolks, one by one until each yolk disappear. Then add the 6 whole eggs one by one. Include the vanilla an let beat for 12 minutes.
When the 12 minute are up-lower the speed to stir. Alternately, add the flour and liquid mixture in three turns, starting and ending with the flour. Do not over beat at this point, just enough to combine the batter (about 10 seconds). Also add the lemon zest in the last 10 seconds.

Divide the batter into the two prepared pans and take to the oven for about 35 to 45 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Tips:

* The Original recipe calls for 4 cups of flour, but I prefer only using 3 cups to obtain a lighter cake. (Try it both ways and see what works for you best).
* You can use 100% pineapple juice, 100% orange juice or milk.
* I mention the brand I use so this way a rookie will be able to know exactly what to purchase. But you can always try the recipe with other brands. Now, I do always recommend to first try it out exactly like I call for before adventuring out with other brands.
* Once your cake is out of the oven- cooled for 10 minutes and then wrap with plastic. This helps the cake stay moist and juicy.
* We never freeze or refrigerate Dominican cake. But you can bake it 2 days ahead and keep it wrap in a cooled room.

Comments (34)

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I have tasted this type of cake and it is amazing! What do is that icing that is put on it? It is almost a marshmallowy spongy type of a taste.......

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thank u soooo much for the recipe....i use one that is similar but uses less eggs and i add 2 tablespoons of brugal dominican rum for a little extra kick :)

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love dominican cake.... do you have the recipe for the suspiro i will love to try it with the merenge.

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actually suspiro is different than italian merengue, the italian merengue has butter and suspiro doesn't.

Here is the recipe for Suspiro

12 oz of granulated sugar 4 oz water a few drops of lemon juice ( to make sugar stable) 1 Tsp of Vanilla extract 1/8 Tsp cream of tartar ( optional, use it if you are nor used to making merengue, I find that cream of tatar it's kind of salty so watch the salt) 1/8 tsp Salt.

Make sure the egg whites are room temp for better volume. Put the sugar, water and lemon in a sauce pan and turn the heat to high ( do not stir, to avoid crystalization ). When you see that bubbles are starting to form, add the egg whites, salt and cream of tartar to a mixing bowl (make sure bowl it's nice and clean, free of any grease) Start whipping the egg at high speed until it forms stiff picks. by this point your sugar has completetly dissolve in the pot and it's boiling ( it should be at 240 or it will scramble your eggs) don't let the sugar get any color, it needs to be clear. Lower the speed to very low (stir or 1 in kitchen aid) and slowly pour the hot syrup, as close to the inside of the bowl as you can to avoid splashing. Once all the syrup it's in increase the speed to 10. The merengue will get marshmellowy as it beats.. continue beating until the bowl it's cool to the touch or it will water down. That's it.

TIP for Icing .... I have learned that the best way to ice with this frosting, it's to always frost in the same direction and do a very thin crumbcoat with a crusting American Brutter cream.

Enjoy !!! Anna

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P.S The ABC goes under the suspiro !

I will be posting the merengue recipe as an individual recipe.

@ Cindy, you read my mind, I was about to post it.. Question, I just read a recipe where the egg whites were beaten seperatly, like for a sponge cake.. It was really weird for me.. have you done it like this?

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@ Smanan Yes you can decorate using anything, it's a very moist cake but also firm enough to take the weight of fondant.

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Standard American butter often can be purchased in a pack of 4 sticks equal to 4oz each. The it's broken down to that size for convenience. The entire package is usually 1 pound.

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Hi everyone!! The type of icing we use is Suspiro (Meringue), and yes you can frost the cake with suspiro over night and cover with fondant. Luvlyrics : the one you mention with folding of the beat egg-white...I call it Pudin Dominicano. And yes...it will be more spongier using this method. The best filling or the most popular for this cake is Pineapple, Guava, strawberry and dulce de leche. Yes...the 4 sticks of butter equals 1 pound. Luvlyrics recipe for the suspiro is fantastic!! And I am so glad you all like the recipe!!

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A friend of mine has asked me to make them a Guava filled cake my question is what kind of guava do you use? Can you use the Goya kind and how do you prepare it or do you buy it somewhere. Almost all of my cakes are pineapple filling it's my families favorite.

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Hi LuzSaida- am sorry I just got to your question!! Yes- i use the Goya brand which you must thin down with water.

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Oops- I just re-read luvlyrics suspiro recipe and I notice now that the amount of egg whites is not there. For a 12 oz of sugar its 4 oz of egg whites. Also- you should never crumb coat a cake with buttercream if you are planing to cover/decorate with Meringue. The buttercream will curdle the Meringue. Crumb coat with the meringue- also known as suspiro. @luvlyrics- thank you sweety for sharing with us your suspiro recipe!! Lots of hugs and blessing for you!!

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Hi Cindy, I was looking at your recipe and I wanted to ask you if the baking powder amount is accurate? you put two tablespoon. I have this recipe and I been struggling with making it nice and light but my recipe calls for 4 cups of flour, 4 sticks of butter ( I use 2 sticks of butter and 2 sticks of margarine), 1 tablespoon of baking powder, 6 eggs (3 whole and 3 yolks). Please take a look and let me know what you think. I would really appreciated. I notice that the cake when it comes out of the oven it sinks a little bit and I don't like that because I want to keep the air in :( P.S. Why you don't refrigerate or freeze the cake? to be able to put fondant the cake has to be refrigerate so the fondant stays nice and stable. Thank you so much for sharing and for you help.

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Hello Wendy, sorry that i just saw ur message. Everything on my recipe is accurate. This is the recipe i use for my clients and teach to my students. Remember that everyone has their own version of what the Dominican cake Recipe is- but I can assure you, my is the original recipe, just that I made it out more simple to follow. I personally don't like to use Margarine on my cake, to me the cake tastes cheaper, but this is all on my taste buds and opinion. I hear other people likes this cake with the margarine. My cakes never sinks in the middle- that is not how a cake should come out! So u are right to worry on that. The Dominican cake is a "nona" (cry baby), one miss step and everything falls apart! I have seen chefs cry over this cake, but they try again until they are able to make to perfection. Try to watch out your oven, if the cake over heats - or under heat it will ruin the cake. I had students saying that there is nothing wrong with ther oven beause they had made other cakes and it comes out good- then i go to their house with a termometer and test their oven only to find that it was 375F or 300F. Once they realize this, they have no other problems. Other times is that even though they promise me that they did follow the recipe to the dot- they end up either cutting the time of the creamy process, o over beat on the end.

We never refrigerate a Dominican cake because it has too many butter and eggs -it will get hard- and it will never return to its proper texture. Remember- dominicans likes their cakes moist and juicy. When i use fondant, i frost the cake a day before and let it set on a cool room and the over it with fondant.

If your recipe works for u- and your cake is good and acceptable to your crowd, then stick with it. The important thing is that is already a crowd pleaser! Good luck!

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Hi! Thank you so much for your recipe. It is great! Only thing is, the Dominican cakes I've had have a more coarse, almost cornbread type texture, and that was missing in my cake. Does that mean I overbeat it at the end? My husband says it tastes right (he's Dominican), and that maybe it's because I've had those other cakes a day or two later, or after they've been refrigerated. Is this true? I like that coarse texture and was looking for it! lol. Do your cakes come out a little like cornbread-texture? Thanks again.

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Cindy thanx for the recipe, I have seen so many versions of the Dom cake, but this sounds like the original. my aunt who has been baking Dom cakes for over 15 yrs uses almost the same recipe except she preffers orange juice instead of pineapple. I will try it soon and will giv you a feedback. Cupcakefrost... I am Dominican and when we have cakes that taste cornbreaddy or w/ a cornbread texture is usually labled as a bad cake. Dom cake should be light and moist.

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I know this is an older forum, but I have a quetion. I've seen a few recipes and some say to bake pineapple in with the cake to achieve a super moist cake. I notice this recipe doesn't call for that. Have you ever done it that way? What are your thoughts on that?

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Hi everyone! The cornbread flavor/texture is considered "Cheap" Dominican cake. But even that type of cake have a few followers! lol...You achieve that by adding corn flour to the mixture, less juice (for dryer texture) and Margarine.

Nessa14...I LOVE orange juice on my cake too! and my hubby likes it with milk -instead of the pineapple juice! But, with the pineapple the cake is more moist for some reason!

Pinkpanther...yeah, I saw that recipe too...but, its not a Dominican cake even though this person is calling it so (I am saying this with respect since she has a fantastic blog), that recipe is more like a pineapple turnover.

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Doh!  never mind.. I saw it.  :(  sorry!  I am going to try this as my THIRD try to get a MOIST Dominican cake.  This has one less cup of flour in it.  That seems like a lot less than the cake i made yesterday.  I hope it fills the pans. 

Wish me luck!

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I have been making Dominican cakes for years using my tried and true recipe but decided to try this one for a change.  This is one of the best dominican cakes I have ever made and tasted.  I have gotten such great feedback that my old recipe has been permanently retired.  I made it exactly as shown and would not change a thing!  Amazing taste and texture.  Spoongy and moist. 

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Hello Cindy, I have to make this cake and cover it on fondant for Saturday, any recommendations ?  And I need it for 50 Lol, two tiers... 

Will a 14 inch with a 9 inch be good?

 

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I was able to bake this on a 14x3 And it came out perfect! Best cake ever... I made a test cake and all my family came back to try it.  

Thank you for such an awesome and easy to follow recipe!

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I was able to bake this on a 14x3 And it came out perfect! Best cake ever... I made a test cake and all my family came back to try it.  

Thank you for such an awesome and easy to follow recipe!