Ripe jackfruit cake or pansache dhonas is a delicious cake made with ripe jackfruit and rava or semolina. This Goan cake is also known as pansachi bhakri in Goa. This jackfruit recipe is a unique recipe in which the cake is made from semolina (rava) instead of flour and jaggery instead of sugar and tastes delicious.
Jackfruit means “panas” in Konkani and “pansache” means made of jackfruit. Dhonas pronounced as DHO-A-NAS is a baked preparation usually a sweet made from jackfruit or cucumber, rava, grated coconut and jaggery. Cashewnuts are also added to this sweet from jackfruit. However, raisins and almonds can also be added to make it nutritious.
Pansache dhondas is a traditional dish in Goa. Normally the “rasaal” variety of jackfruit is used in baking as it gives better “mhov” meaning honey. The jackfruit bulbs from the rasaal variety are so sweet that people call it honey.
Rasaal jackfruit has soft pulpy bulbs inside. They are also sweeter compared to the other variety of jackfruit named “kapo.” Kapo also known as barkai has jackfruit bulbs which are stiff and firm.
We also make cucumber cake known as tavsali in Goa in comparable way.
Ingredients used for making jackfruit dhonas:
- Jackfruit: The soft, pulpy variety of jackfruit named rasaal is used in baking this Goan cake. If you are making with firm variety of jackfruit, do add the jackfruit bulb without seed in a mixer and make soft puree.
- Coconut: Freshly grated coconut is added in this recipe.
- Semolina: Semolina or rava is used in this recipe. However, in Goa, people also make it with wheat semolina (dahlia) or rice flour too.
- Cardamom powder: Cardamom powder is added for enhancing the taste and flavor.
- Jaggery: Jaggery is added for sweetness. The flavor of jaggery, jackfruit, coconut and cardamom powder make this cake delicious and unique.
- Dry fruits: Traditionally cashewnuts are added in this recipe. However, raisins and almonds may also be added.
- Ghee: A little bit of ghee is also added in this recipe.
Also try other cake recipes like:
How to make jackfruit cake at home?
- Roast the rawa (semolina) till it is light brown or till aroma wafts into the air. Keep aside. Let it cool for atleast 20 minutes.
- Remove the soft yellow jackfruit bulb. Add them into a mixer and make a puree out of it. If you are baking the cake with firm jackfruit bulbs, remember to remove the seed first and only use the yellow bulb for making the puree.
- Add the jackfruit puree into a mixing bowl and mix all the ingredients namely jaggery, grated coconut, dry fruits, cardamom powder and salt and add them into a flat baking dish.
- You can either steam this cake or you can bake it.
- I steamed the cake for 20 minutes using double boiler method.
- Then I used a frying pan, spread 2 tablespoon ghee on it and fried the cake on both sides.
- Alternatively, you can bake this cake in OTG for 30-40 minutes at 180C.
- Insert a knife in the center of the cake, if it comes out clean, it means that the cake is done.
Jackfruit dhonas is usually made from rasaal jackfruit. Please note the variety names rasaal and kapo are commonly used in Goa. In places outside Goa, these names might be unknown or known by different names.
Jackfruit cake recipe is unique to Goa which is a small coastal state in India. When I told my non-Goan friends about a cake made with jackfruit, they were surprised and said “cake made out of jackfruit?”. I said “yes”… and here is the recipe.
Making this cake was a big achievement for me. I first thought of baking it. With power cut few minutes before starting to bake, it was not possible to complete baking. Thanks to the frequent power cuts in Bengaluru.
I used my pressure cooker and tried the double boiler method. But the things were not going proper. So, after 20 minutes I transferred the cake to a frying pan and almost fried it… result was impressive.
Ripe Jackfruit Cake / Pansache Dhonas
Ingredients
- 2 cups jackfruit pulp
- 1 cup rawa/semolina
- 1 cup coconut grated
- 1 cup jaggery
- 2 teaspoon cardamon powder
- 10 cashewnuts chopped
- 5-10 almonds chopped
- 10 raisins
- 2 tablespoon ghee / clarifies butter
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Roast the rawa (semolina) till it is light brown or till aroma wafts into the air. Keep aside. Let it cool for atleast 20 minutes.
- Remove the soft yellow jackfruit bulb. Add them into a mixer and make a puree out of it. If you are baking the cake with firm jackfruit bulbs, remember to remove the seed first and only use the yellow bulb for making the puree.
- Add the jackfruit puree into a mixing bowl and mix all the ingredients namely jaggery, grated coconut, dry fruits, cardamom powder and salt and add them into a flat baking dish.
- You can either steam this cake or you can bake it.
- I steamed the cake for 20 minutes using double boiler method.
- Then I used a frying pan, spread 2 tablespoon ghee on it and fried the cake on both sides.
- Alternatively, you can bake this cake in OTG for 30-40 minutes at 180C.
- Insert a knife in the center of the cake, if it comes out clean, it means that the cake is done.
Pin this image on Pinterest.
Note: This post was published on 19-Jun-2013 and is republished.
Babitha costa
Nice aromatic jackfruit cake,must have tasted great
Rafeeda AR
Interesting recipe…
Priya Suresh
Wow, jackfruit cake looks fabulous, never tasted it..
Swathi Iyer
Delicious cake Love it.I am fan of Jackfruit.
Akila
Great idea n innovative cake
Veena Theagarajan
interesting recipe with ripe jackfruit
Manjula Bharath
very innovative and delicious looking cake dear 🙂
Jagoda S
Looks very tasty:)
Lavanya T R
Super delicious cake Raksha. Great work dear!
Vimitha Anand
I would love to try this… so nice
Nisha
Delicious never heard of it
Preety
super yummy..
Sushma Madhuchandra
I'm sure it must have tasted great!
Raksha
Thanks everyone for the nice comments
Anonymous
I have just backed it, it is beautiful, thanks for nice recipe, I used half cup sugar ,because i do not like jaggery.
Suhasini
Nice & simple recipe. My family enjoyed it very much. What does double boil mean.
Raksha
Suhasini double boil means, keep one small utensil with the actual contents inside a bigger utensil with some water and to boil this.
Raksha
Anonymous, you can add sugar 🙂
Bindu Masurkar
I tried this cake yesterday. Instead of double boiler i baked the cake. It was very nice. everything was perfect. But baking required more than 30 mins. Approx 40 mins.
Unknown
Nice recipe, I tried it and my husband liked it. Thanks so much.
Unknown
I said my husband enjoyed it , the baking time was more almost 40 mins for me too. It is moist and lovely ! Thanks a lot for the innovation Raksha.
Arlene Senthilvel
Raksha
Yup it takes 30 to 40 mins if you bake it.
Raksha
glad to know that ur husband enjoyed it. Yuo, sometimes it takes 40 mins.
-Raksha
Nethravathi N
I don like sweets but still want to try this it looks so yum
Jewel
Hi Raksha, can we make similar cake with ripe banana too? Since jackfruits are not available the whole year round. Please can you let me know. Thanks
Raksha Kamat
Yes Jewel, you can.
E fram
Can you freeze jackfruit cake. Brought one home and would like to keep it until Easter.
Raksha Kamat
I am not sure, you can try freezing and later microwave it.
Vignesh
going to try it today 🙂 Thanks for sharing the recipe