Ila Mami’s Veggie Cake

This is a forgotten recipe I am trying to revive. Ila Mami my aunt lived in the Andaman Islands and this veggie cake was so delicious that everyone in my family remembers it. I called up her daughter Rumni in California and she didn’t have the exact recipe either– so between the two of us we concocted it up. This is my second attempt. The first one was a disaster. I had used a store bought yellow cake mix as my base and it was disgustingly sweet and fluffy and the veggies were too little. For days I had this big fat grumpy cake in my fridge glaring at me and I just recently threw out. I tried it again with a corn bread mix from Trader Joe and threw in an extra egg, as I wanted a denser texture. This one came out real good…. Next time I may sprinkle roasted cumin seeds on top before baking or add poppy or sesame seeds into the batter. It may add a little zing, or it may be too much. We’ll find out…

1 box corn bread mix from Trader Joe
1 ½ cup shredded carrots (I bought a pack of the shredded ones from TJ and chopped it up even finer)
1 ½ cup boiled frozen peas ((boil for about 20 mins)
1” fresh ginger- chopped very fine
2 Green chilies – chopped very fine (optional)
¾ cup cillantro - chopped very fine
2 tbsp tomato ketchup
2 Eggs
½ cup Oil
¾ cup Milk

Beat eggs, oil, milk and ketchup then stir in cornbread mix. Add peas, carrots, ginger, cillantro and green chilies. Bake in greased cake pan at 350 for approximately 40 minutes or till toothpick comes out clean.