Dhondus/Cucumber Cake

NO OIL!!!….That’s right no oil. Whatever food we consume has been without any added oils. That definitely doesn’t mean the food is fat free..it isn’t it’s just oil free. Every food, like grains, pulses, legumes and even vegetables have some inherent fat in them. Foods like nuts and seeds are very good sources of fat and when eaten in their natural form the body gets the other nutrients too along with the fat like fiber, vitamins and minerals.
Oil in the food is just a form of hidden calories. I consider it as the ticking time bomb. 1 tbsp of fat equals 14-15 gms which is almost equivalent to the calories in a small candy bar. On an average 6-10 tbsps of oil is present in our daily food in the form of added oils which totals to a whopping 800-1300 cals. So eliminating these calories automatically results not only in weight loss but reversal of lifestyle associated disorders like type 2 diabetes, hypertension etc.
The following recipe is an example where removing the added fat doesn’t really affect its taste or texture, just makes it utterly guilt free.
Yesterday darling hubby left for US and my mom was adamant that he should have something sweet before leaving (like curd and sugar) so looking in the refrigerator for ingredients the dish that sprung out was ‘cucumber cake’ traditionally known as ‘dhondus’. This is an all time favorite in my family and lack of clarified butter in the recipe didn’t really affect the outcome. Only 6 ingredients and its delish!!

  • 1 cup grated cucumber (approx. 2 small/1 big cucumber with peel, do not drain the water)
  • ½ cup jaggery/maple syrup (you can increase this amount if you have a sweet tooth)
  • ½ -3/4 cup semolina (the amount of semolina also depends on the amount of water the cucumbers release, thoroughly dry roasted till light brown).
  • ¼ cup peanut powder
  • A handful of Cashew pieces
  • ½ tsp cardamom powder
  1. Mix the grated cucumber and jaggery and keep aside till the jaggery is completely dissolved.
  2. Add the peanut powder, cashews and cardamom and mix well.
  3. Add the semolina. First ½ cup.The batter should be wet and not dough like if there is excess water add semolina little at a time to get desired consistency. If you add the semolina when hot/warm you bake it immediately if the semolina is cold you need to keep the mixture aside for 30-45 mins.
  4. Pour it in oven proof/ microwave safe dish .
  5. For the oven preheat oven at 350F/180F and keep it for 30-35 mins till an inserted knife comes out clean.
  6. In a microwave (grill setting on high) 5-7 mins or till a knife inserted in the centre comes clean. (The end product from microwave will differ depending on your microwave, its wattage and settings.)
  7. I have done this in the microwave due to time crunch, in the oven the cake would be golden brown on top.
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