Name: Chinese Bakery Raisin Egg Cake Recipe {Ti Zi Dan Gao 提子蛋糕}
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 120 g homemade cake flour; 6 eggs, separate whites from yolks; 3 tsp white vinegar; 60 g cane sugar, organic unrefined preferred; 1/8 tsp salt, such as Himalayan Pink Salt; 60 g whole milk; 60 g avocado oil; 3 tsp vanilla extract; 1 cup raisins; 1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds

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Raisin Egg Cake or Ti Zi Dan Gao {提子蛋糕} in Chinese is a classic and well-liked Chinese Bakery. The vanilla sponge egg cake and raisins complete each other perfectly. Pumpkin seeds are often used as garnishing, adding additional texture, flavor, and nutrients.

Chinese Bakery Raisin Egg Cake {Ti Zi Dan Gao} Recipe

Fun Facts about Hong Kong Style Raisin Egg Cake

It is more of a snack vs. a dessert. As a matter of fact, it is an excellent choice to go with a cup of tea or coffee for breakfast thanks to the high egg content and semi-sweetness level.

Traditionally Hong Kong Style Raisin Egg Cake is in a mini-loaf shape. I use this mini-loaf pan, which works perfectly for this recipe, making 8 mini-loaf egg cakes.

I also went on to make my own mini-loaf liner when experiencing challenges finding mini-loaf liners made of non-toxic unbleached parchment paper.

mini loaf pan with homemade liners made of unbleached parchment paper

How to make mini-loaf pan liners at home using non-toxic unbleached parchment paper?

You can start with a 9-inch x 13-inch rectangle of unbleached parchment paper or a roll. For this 8-cavity mini loaf pan, each cavity is about 9×6 cm. I usually start with a 9-inch x 13-inch rectangle of unbleached parchment paper. Use an edible pen to draw the layout of the liner as illustrated below.

homemade mini loaf pan liner design drawing

One sheet of 9-inch x 13-inch unbleached parchment paper can make 4 of the mini loaf pan liners.

The Solid lines represent the cut line, while the dotted lines are folding lines. Though the pen is edible, I draw the lines on the back of the parchment paper where the food touches the liner. This means you fold the outer word and have the drawing lines on the external surface.

What makes this Chinese Bakery Style Raisin Egg Cake so special?

First of all, it is a sponge cake

Therefore, no baking soda is used for the recipe. The fluffy yumminess is coming from whipped egg whites, or meringue. When beating egg whites with sugar until forming peaks. Its volume will expand often 5x plus. When you fold this into the cake batter, it makes the cake batter extremely airy and smooth. The secret for a soft sponge cake.

While you can try to beat the egg whites manually using a whisk or use a handheld mixer, a Stand Mixer gets the job done easier and faster. It takes about 5-6 minutes at medium speed. When the peak forms and stays in shape and doesn’t drip, you know the meringue is ready.

Secondly, it uses homemade cake flour

Of course, you can use store-bought cake flour for this recipe. However, when you can make a homemade cake four nice and easy using your favorite organic all-purpose flour, why bother buying another type of flour? Plus the homemade cake flour tastes so much better.

Simply steam the all-purpose flour in a bamboo steamer double layered with organic cheesecloth. Wait for it to cool and dry, then roll it into powder again and store it in an airtight large glass jar.

Most Importantly, all the ingredients are nutritiously healthy with loads of eggs

Chinese Bakery Style Ti Zi Dan Gao is hearty and semi-sweet with pumpkin seeds and raisins, which makes it a perfect healthy snack or breakfast item.

Loads of eggs are included which makes this egg cake fluffy and hearty. Only a small quantity of avocado oil is used too, which also makes this raisin egg cake nutritious and healthy.

Fill the batter all the way to the top

At first glance, you might think there is too much batter. Don’t worry, just patiently build up the layers to fill the cavity all the way to the top. A little bit of overflow in the center is expected. Because it is a sponge cake, which is super light, fluffy and we do not use baking soda. The cake will shrink a little bit after cools down.

Chinese bakery raisin egg cake batter in the mini loaf topped with pumpkin seeds

Chinese Bakery Raisin Egg Cake Recipe {Ti Zi Dan Gao 提子蛋糕}

Yield: 8 servings

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Chinese Bakery Raisin Egg Cake or Ti Zi Dan Gao {提子蛋糕} is a classic angel soft hearty egg cake. They are semisweet and nutrients dense, therefore perfect for breakfast or a snack.

Ingredients

120 g homemade cake flour
6 eggs, separate whites from yolks
3 tsp white vinegar
60 g cane sugar, organic unrefined preferred
1/8 tsp salt, such as Himalayan Pink Salt
60 g whole milk
60 g avocado oil
3 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds

Instructions

Make Homemade Cake Flour In Advance:

Homemade cake flour is easy to make using organic unbleached all-purpose flour. Simply steam the all-purpose flour in a bamboo steamer double layered with organic cheesecloth. Wait for it to cool and dry, then roll it into powder again and store it in an airtight large glass jar. Read here for a detailed guided recipe.

If you decide to use homemade cake flour, do it a couple of days in advance.

Make Mini Loaf Pan Liner:

I use this mini loaf pan, which is 15 1/8 x 9 7/8 x 1 3/8 inch (38.5 x25 X3.5 cm) which has 8 cavities. This recipe is meant to make a full pan, 8 raisin egg cakes shaped in a mini loaf.
Since I couldn't seem to find the mini loaf pan liner made of heavy-duty unbleached parchment paper. I decided to make my own. Starting from this 9x13 inches rectangle of heavy-duty unbleached parchment paper. The parchment usually has a more glossy side and a more matte side. Let the matte side face up, and use an edible pen to draw using a geometry set of rulers.
Each of the parchment paper can make 4 mini loaf pan liners, thus you need two sheets to make 8 liners. Draw a 28 cm x 20 cm rectangle, noting the outside of the 28 x 20 cm rectangle will be trimmed. Mark a midpoint at 14 cm and 10 cm respectively and draw the cross line and make an "X" at the crossing. This is where you cut into 4 liners.
Draw the 3 cm line from the top, bottom, left and right for each 14 cm x 10 cm rectangle. The center of each portion becomes an 8 cm x 4 cm rectangle.
Use a scissor to trim the outside portions if

Prepare the Cake Batter:

Measure out and gather ingredients. A kitchen scale is a very handy tool if you cook/bake a lot.
Separate egg whites from egg yolks. Place the whites in the Stand Mixer bowl, along with 3 tsp white vinegar. Add the yolks to another large mixing bowl, along with avocado oil, milk, and vanilla extract. Add cane sugar, homemade cake flour, pumpkin seeds, and raisins in small bowls respectively.
Use an electric handheld mixer or an egg whisk to whisk the egg yolks with the rest of the ingredients very well until fully blended.
Turn the Stand Mixer to medium-high (e.g. 6 out of 10), and set a 5 minutes timer. Add sugar after 2 minutes along the whisking process. Carefully add the sugar slowly by sprinkling it into the Stand Mixer. Stop the mixer once the egg whites volume expands significantly and forms peaks and the peaks stay.
Sift the flour/salt and add to the egg yolk mixture and fold into the mixture. Do not stir, but use a fold motion.
If you see lumps of flour, use a large egg whisk to pound up and down and whisk to separate them until smooth.
Add half of the whipped egg whites with sugar, called meringue, to the batter mixing bowl, using the fold motion. Remember not to stir, but only fold the meringue into the batter. A silicone spatula is a handy tool that does scraping. scooping and folding motion all in one.
Pour the cake batter back into the Stand Mixer, and then pour the cake batter back into the large mixer. Use a silicone spatula to scrape the bottom of the Stand mixer and add everything to the large mixing bowl. Continue to use this fold motion until the meringue is fully blended with the cake batter.

Bake the Raisin Egg Cupcake:

Preheat the oven to 350 F (~177 C).
Line the mini loaf pan with the liner we made, and use a large long relatively shallow spoon to scoop the batter and fill each opening halfway. Sprinkle generously with raisins.
Carefully fill the mini loaf pan all the way to the top with the rest of the batter. It may appear to be overflowing, but it is OK and expected. The batter is so light, it will deflate slightly after the cake cools down.
Sprinkle generously the raw pumpkin seeds on the top.
Add the cupcake pan to the oven, middle rack, and bake for 25 minutes. Then remove it from the oven and cool it on a wired rack.
As soon as the pan is not hot to touch, remove the raisin cakes from the loaf pan and continue to cool on the wired rack. Otherwise, the condensation may build up in the bottom of the mini loaf pan bottom.
Enjoy a nutritiously yummy Chinese Bakery Style Raisin Egg Cake! Store the rest in an airtight container. They are good at room temperature for about one week.

Notes

If you do not have a mini loaf pan and/or are not in a position to make the liner yourself, you can also use the jumbo muffin pan, coupled with an unbleached jumbo cupcake liner.