I am thinking of baking a low cholesterol version of the refrigerator banana cake in RHC. In some of Rose’s other recipes, she allows 2 eggs to be replaced with 3 egg whites.  Would that substitution work in this recipe? Can this recipe be baked in a 9 x 5 loaf pan?

A few days ago I baked Rose’s Pumpkin Walnut Ring substituting the whole eggs for 3 egg whites.  I drizzled a soy ganache on top. At first bite I hated it. It was like biting into a pillow-way too soft. But the next day it was more dense and the day after that it was delicious.  Rose does mention that cake benefits from sitting a day or two. I would have baked that cake again today but I need to buy more pumpkin. 

I do have bananas though.

Hi, FG!

My guess is you are probably quite safe with that substitution, especially if Rose gives grams of egg whites to replace the two eggs.

I often see two whites replaces one whole egg, but it’s hard to say exactly what they mean, since weights can be anything—they might just be being “convenient” (so folks don’t have to use 1-1/2 egg whites per egg).

It seems that 1-1/2 is closer if it’s grams-to-grams.  If an egg is supposed to be 50g, and the white is supposed to be 30g, then 1-1/2 whites would be, in theory, 45 grams, which is closer than two whites (60g).  I’d guess that you can simply replace egg weight with egg white weight.

Also, I’ve made the Cordon Rose Banana Cake (same as Banan Refrigerator, except uses butter) in a loaf pan with perfect success. Keep in mind that this cake is designed to be flat, so if you want a dome, you might want to decrease the baking powder by 1/4 tsp or so.

Yum! Banana bread!!!!

—ak

Thanks Anne. I will do that with the baking powder or maybe just bake it in a 9” round pan so that I can see how the whites effect the cake without any other modifications which might distort the results.

In Roses’ Walnut Pumpkin Ring, she gives the weight of the 3 egg-white replacement as 3 oz. 

I appreciate your help, as always.

I will post my results.  Thank you!

Oh, that’s great!!!  Then 28 grams per ounce x 3 ounces = 84 grams of white to replace 2 whole eggs.  Thus, I would say you can safely sub 42 grams of egg white (or 1.5 ounces) for each whole egg.

Looking forward to hearing about it!!!

Thanks! I have the ingredients coming to room temp right now. I am using Greek yogurt (fat free) for the sour cream.  I assume the fat in the sour cream/creme fraiche is accounted for in Rose’s original recipe but this is a test run. 

I made a quickie ganache for the frosting and now just waiting, waiting for the ingredients

waiting, waiting

Sadly, staring at them petulanty won’t make it happen any faster!!!!!

Anne in NC - 31 January 2012 05:27 PM

waiting, waiting

Sadly, staring at them petulanty won’t make it happen any faster!!!!!

I actually think it makes it take longer

Do all egg white cakes bake faster?

I baked the cake for the minimum, 30 minutes and it is browner than when I follow the recipe.

It didn’t rise as high as usual either, but I expected that.

The batter tasted delicious.

I don’t know if egg white cakes typically bake faster or not.  You could look at the difference between the Downy Yellow Butter Cake and the White Velvet Cake in TCB—they’re identical, except one uses yolks and one whites—and see if their baking times are different.  Ditto the Golden Luxury Butter Cake and the White Chocolate Whisper Cake—same except yolks vs. whites. 

That top crust is my fave part!  Did the cake taste delicious? 

I want some of that stuff in the measuring cup!!!!

Mmmmmmm!!!!

The stuff in the measuring cup is a soy ganache with added maple syrup. It is really yum.

I will check out the baking times of those cakes. Thank you!

I didn’t try the cake yet. I’ll have it tomorrow but here are 2 pictures.

The crumb looks great.

The slice is going with my husband in his lunch tomorrow.  He’ll be the first one to try it.

This whole cake has 16g of saturated fat and 0mg cholesterol from Safflower oil.

The egg whites and the fat free Greek yogurt add 0g saturated fat and 0mg cholesterol.

For the ganache, I used 2 oz of chocolate which has 15g saturated fat and 0mg cholesterol and the soy milk has < 0.1g saturated fat and 0mg cholesterol for the 4TB used in the recipe. (I actually made the ganache with 4oz chocolate but only used half on the cake).

For 1/8 the cake: 3.8875mg saturated fat and 0g cholesterol.

Anne in NC - 31 January 2012 10:00 PM

I don’t know if egg white cakes typically bake faster or not.  You could look at the difference between the Downy Yellow Butter Cake and the White Velvet Cake in TCB—they’re identical, except one uses yolks and one whites—and see if their baking times are different.  Ditto the Golden Luxury Butter Cake and the White Chocolate Whisper Cake—same except yolks vs. whites. 

That top crust is my fave part!  Did the cake taste delicious? 

I want some of that stuff in the measuring cup!!!!

Mmmmmmm!!!!

Yes, you are right. All those cakes bake at a time range of 25-35 minutes.  Good catch, Anne. You really know your stuff! Thank you very much.

Next time I bake this cake, I will check it at 25. That is something I usually never have to do with Rose’s recipes. Her minimum times are always perfect for me without fail.

Thanks again.

The crumb looks great.  Let us know how you and hubby like it!

Thanks! Will do.

Anne in NC - 01 February 2012 07:44 AM

The crumb looks great.  Let us know how you and hubby like it!

We both liked it a lot. My husband thought it was good but not as good as the other piece of cake he took to work today which is Rose’s Apple Cinnamon Surprise (pictured below).  He even asked for a big slice of the refrig cake for work tomorrow too.

I liked it a lot and thought the soy ganache was a perfect accompaniment. It is lighter than the regular version but still very good. And at less than 4g saturated fat and 0mg cholesterol, it is practically a health food

Now I know I can use Rose’s recipes and I am happy about that.

Next, I want to try replacing the butter in a cake with oil.

A word on oil.  I watched Dr. Oz yesterday and he said Macadamia oil is the healthiest oil to use for baking.

Oooooh, I can see why he liked that Apple Cinnamon Surprise!!!!

I’m glad all your subs are working out so well for you!!!! 

Macadamia nut oil!!!  Yum!!!

You can also do what Julie does—if you enjoy almond butter, you can pour the oil off the top of it before stirring and collect it in your freezer until you have enough for a cake.

Your oil cake looks great! I’m glad it all worked out.

I love that apple cinnamon surprise! YUMMY! And baking with macadamia nut oil. It’s pricey stuff But I use it for the special occasions sometimes when not making a butter cake. I also like baking with avocado oil, which contributes a “buttery” flavor and is also a good fat. It isn’t much cheaper than macadamia nut oil here when buying it in smaller quantities, but we go through enough of it that I can buy a bigger bottle and get it cheaper-we use it for vegetables and things. I also think Julie’s pouring the oil off her almond butter and saving it is BRILLIANT.

Thanks so much George!

I wasn’t able to find macadamia oil in the store today. I’ll look for the avocado oil too. It’s interesting to know it imparts a buttery flavor.  Do you bake with oil a lot? 

Julie’s idea is brilliant! We don’t have almond butter, I should get it too.  Can you bake with it in place of peanut butter?

My Apple Cinnamon Surprise really isn’t apple. I made it with pear, my husband’s favorite fruit.  Below is a picture of the last slice. My husband loved it.