This Old-Fashioned British Ground Rice Cake is an egg-free and dairy-free version of the traditional family favourite: Ground Rice Cake. This cake comes from the Victorian era and is prepared with everyday ingredients. With a texture similar to Madeira, Seed, or Pound cakes, the ground rice adds its own unique texture. It also shares similarities in flavour and texture with the sponge from a British Battenberg cake. Each bite is so moist, light, and soft with the flavours similar to almond frangipane and marzipan. As we are a plant-based family we use soya milk and Stork baking spread for this recipe but of course you can use your usual type of milk and baking fat such as butter.
A slice of home-made rice cake is perfect for elevenses, afternoon tea, high tea, or as a tasty suppertime treat. It was traditionally baked for Christmas, as well as enjoyed as part of a New Years Eve [Hogmanay] buffet or party food spread along with slices of fruit cake and slices of cheese!
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💕 Why You'll Love This Old-Fashioned Ground Rice Cake
- This cake is based on an old-fashioned British favourite that's been enjoyed for generations. A version of it even appears in Mrs Beeton's classic Book of Household Management from 1861.
- The ground rice gives the cake a soft, moist crumb with a slightly denser bite like a cross between a Battenberg and a Madeira cake with delicious almond frangipane and marzipan flavours.
- An egg-free version that doesn't sacrifice any of the traditional flavour.
- No fancy ingredients needed just everyday, budget-friendly ingredients and baking like our grandmothers would've done.
- Traditionally served at Christmas and Hogmanay, but also perfect for a vintage-style afternoon tea or even with a slice of cheese for supper.
💬 What Readers Are Saying!
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "This is a remarkable recipe. I've made it twice once with dried sour cherries and once as an upside-down plum version. Both were highly praised!"
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "Fantastic! My mother-in-law, 92, was taken back to her childhood Christmases. It made her very happy, and we won't be looking elsewhere for a rice cake recipe."
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "I used this to make ground rice tarts with raspberry jam. The tarts were a big hit, and I had leftover mix for a small cake too!"
🍰 What is an old-fashioned ground rice cake?
To find out more about old-fashioned ground rice cake click the toggle '🍰 ' below.
🍰 What is an old-fashioned ground rice cake?
A British ground rice cake is similar to a British Madeira cake, as well as the classic British seed cake, and the popular American Pound cake.
A British ground rice cake is prepared with ground rice which is simply white rice that has been ground to a coarser texture compared with rice flour. The other ingredients of a typical ground rice cake are - self-raising flour, butter, sugar, eggs, and flavourings such as almond extract or lemon essence.
The texture of a ground rice cake is different from the airy crumb of a Victoria sponge cake, as the rice cake is denser. However, despite being dense rice cakes are also deliciously moist, soft, and light - similar to Battenberg cake!
📜 Origins of ground rice cake
Old-fashioned ground rice cake dates back to at least the 1800s Victorian era, as Mrs Beeton's includes a recipe for rice cake within her iconic cookery book - The Book of Household Management[1861]. You can find an electronic version of Mrs Beeton's book over on archive.org.
Mrs Beeton's rice cake
Mrs Beeton's recipe for 'Rice Cake' contained - ½ pound of ground rice, ½ pound of flour, ½ pound of loaf sugar, 9 eggs, 20 drops of lemon or the rind of 1 lemon, and ¼ pound of butter. Beeton also suggests that the lemon could be replaced with the essence of almonds. Beeton's recipe is rather like an old-fashioned pound cake.
Phillis Browne's rice cake recipe
Browne published the book A Year's Cookery in 1885 and her Rice Cake recipe contains - butter, flour, salt, baking powder, ground rice, sugar, dried currants, candied fruit peel, eggs, and milk. Browne's recipe is a little different from other traditional rice cake recipes as she includes dried currants, which are similar but much smaller than raisins, as well as candied fruit peel.
Bero flour rice cake
The Be-Ro Flour Company, originally known as "Bell's Royal," was established in the early 20th century by Thomas Bell, a miller based in Newcastle upon Tyne in England. Be-Ro successfully promoted their flour through the publication of affordable cookery books.
The Be-Ro cookbooks, were first introduced in 1923, and were filled with easy-to-follow, traditional British recipes that were aimed at every-day home bakers. They quickly became very popular and a staple cookbook in many British households. Over the years, the Be-Ro cookbook has sold more than 38 million copies, and is now currently on the 41st edition.
Recipes for Be-Ro rice cake feature in many of their editions. During the 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s, ground rice cake was a very popular homely bake. The main ingredients for the rice cake recipe contained within the Bero cook booklets were usually - 5 ounce of flour, 3 oz of ground rice, 4 oz of margarine, two eggs, a little milk, and the grated rind of a lemon. By the 16th Bero edition their rice cake recipe suggested 12 drops of lemon or almond essence rather than lemon rind.
Modern ground rice cakes
Today's ground rice cakes are very similar to the Victorian era rice cakes as well as the vintage and old-fashioned Be-Ro rice cake recipes as there has been no reason to mess with the recipe as it works so well! Be-Ro still has a very loyal following of Be-Ro recipe book fans who love to recreate old-fashioned home-bakes that are filled with tastiness as well as fond memories of their nan, grannies, grandma, or mums home baking.
Egg-free ground rice cakes
For our egg-free ground rice cake we replace the egg with milk thickened with apple cider vinegar, as well as adding some baking powder, which all works amazingly as the cake is wonderfully moist yet rises well. We also choose to flavour the cake with almond extract rather than lemon as we were going for a tasty Bakewell tart or Battenberg cake flavour, and the result is very delicious. We baked a dairy-free cake as we used soya milk but of course feel free to use your usual milk.
This Vintage Ground Rice Cake is flavoured with almond extract so could also be called an Almond Cake as its very much similar in flavour to delicious frangipane or marzipan. A slice of our ground rice cake does make a great substitution.
🥣 How to prepare
The ingredients you will need for this ground rice cake are nothing fancy and are just everyday pantry ingredients - ground rice, self-raising flour, baking powder, caster or granulated sugar, milk (we use soya milk but any milk will do fine), apple cider vinegar, almond extract, margarine, spread, block, or butter suitable for baking: we like to use Stork baking spread.
If you have different dietary requirements then you can use your usual type of milk and baking fat.
Step 1: Add the milk, vinegar, and almond extract to a small jug or bowl, stir and set aside while you prepare the rest of the cake.
Step 2: Add the sugar and margarine to a mixing bowl and cream together using an electric hand whisk for about a minute. Alternatively, use a hand whisk or mixing spoon and beat the mix for longer.
Step 3: Sift the flour and baking powder into a separate bowl, and stir through the salt and ground rice.
Step 4: Add about a third of the flour mixture into the creamed margarine and stir. Next add about a third of the milk mixture to the creamed margarine and stir. Continue two more times until all the mixtures are combined.
Step 5: Transfer the cake mixture to a cake pan - we use a 6 inch cake pan - and bake for one hour. Cake has baked when its nicely golden, risen and firm, and a skewer popped in comes out clean.
Your ground rice cake may dip very slightly in the middle of the cake surface but it doesn't mean that it is under baked rather it just means that this is a deliciously moist cake with a tasty denser crumb compared with other sponge cakes. Its more like a Madeira cake, Seed cake, or a Pound cake. However, this ground rice cake texture is also soft and light.
***please note: for US measurements click the 'US customary button' within the recipe and the measurements will switch to tablespoons, cups, and ounces.***
📖 Recipe
Old-Fashioned Ground Rice Cake
Equipment
- 6 inch cake tin
- greaseproof or baking paper
- Mixing bowls
- mixing spoon
- small jug or bowl
- electric hand whisk optional, as can whisk by hand with a hand whisk or mixing spoon
- sieve
- cooling rack
Ingredients
Mix together:
- 220 millilitres milk [we used soya milk but your usual milk will work fine for this recipe]
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 ½ teaspoons almond extract
Rest of cake:
- 170 grams margarine [use one suitable for baking or use butter baking block, or a baking spread - we used Stork baking spread which is vegan-friendly]
- 140 grams caster sugar [or granulated sugar]
- 142 grams self-raising flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 85 grams ground rice
- ⅛ teaspoon salt [we used sea salt, UK self-raising flour contains no added salt, if using US self-rising flour the salt can be omitted as this usually contains salt]
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160°C Fan / 180°C / 350°F / Gas 4.
- Pour the milk, vinegar, and almond extract into a small jug or bowl. Stir and set aside while you prepare the cake.220 millilitres milk, 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 1 ½ teaspoons almond extract
- Grease the cake tin with margarine and line with baking paper.[For this bake do try and use a 6 inch cake tin as the size is important to achieve the good rise. We picked up an inexpensive cake tin from our local hardware store for just a couple of pound -£2.50 to be exact! It was the Wham brand]
- Add the margarine and sugar to a mixing bowl and cream together using the electric hand whisk, or an alternative such as a hand whisk or a mixing spoon, and mix until well combined. This will take about 1 minute using the electric whisk and longer using the alternatives.170 grams margarine, 140 grams caster sugar
- Sift the flour and baking powder into a separate bowl and add the ground rice and salt. Stir everything together.142 grams self-raising flour, 85 grams ground rice, ⅛ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking powder
- Next add about a third of the flour mixture to the mixing bowl with the creamed margarine and stir it in. Next add a third of the milk mixture and stir. Repeat two more times until the flour mixture and the liquid mixture are all mixed through the creamed margarine. If the mixture decides to split don't fret as the cake will bake fine.
- Scoop the cake mixture into the cake tin and level out the surface. Bake on the middle shelf for 1 hour. If using a fan oven check at 55 minutes baking time as fan ovens tend to bake faster. Don't be tempted to check the cake before these times unless you know your oven bakes unusually fast!
- Cake is ready when its risen, firm, and has a good golden colour on top although not too brown. A skewer popped in the cake will come out clean.
- Leave the cake in the cake tin to cool for at least an hour or for longer until its completely cool before removing from the cake tin.
- Your cake may dip very slightly in the middle this is normal and doesn't affect the cake at all.
Notes
- Nutritional data is for guidance only and is not an exact calculation as ingredients vary.
- Store the rice cake wrapped in parchment or baking paper and a second layer of kitchen or Aluminium foil and place into a cake tin or food container. The cake can be stored for 3-4 days, potentially a day or so longer if kept somewhere cool and dry.
- Or wrap well with food wrap and a second layer of kitchen foil and pop it into a freezer bag and freeze the entire cake or individual slices, for 2-3 months.
- Your ground rice cake may dip slightly in the middle of the cake surface but it doesn't mean that it is under baked rather it just means that this is a deliciously moist cake with a tasty denser crumb compared with other sponge cakes. Its more like a Madeira cake, Seed cake, or a Pound cake. However, this ground rice cake texture is also soft and light.
- Ground rice cake was traditionally prepared to be enjoyed over the Christmas festivities as well as part of a Hogmanay [New Years Eve] buffet or spread where it could be found along side slices of fruit loaf cake.
- It was also a popular old-fashioned afternoon tea, tea time, or High tea bake.
- Many people remember enjoying slices of cheese, such as Wensleydale cheese, along with ground rice cake. Slices of cheese are a nice accompaniment especially for a buffet. We like having dairy-free cheese with our rice cake as part of our Hogmany family buffet.
Nutrition
📋 Frequently asked questions
Ground rice is rice that has been milled or ground down into a coarse powder. It's slightly grainier than rice flour and is used in a variety of traditional British desserts such as shortbread, biscuits, puddings, tarts, and cakes. When used in baking, it provides a nice light texture to the bake.
In the UK, you can usually find packets of ground rice in the supermarket aisle where the custards, rice pudding, jelly's, ready-made flan and pie cases, and baking ingredients are located. Look for the Whitworths brand as this is commonly stocked in supermarkets as well as small grocery shops.
Ground rice may also be found on the world food aisle as its an ingredients that is also used in Indian cooking. Alternatively, online retailers such as Amazon usually have ground rice.
If your outwith the UK and find ground rice difficult to source then have a look in International stores, Asian stores, Wholefood stores, and online retailers such as Walmart online in their international [Indian] food section, or simply prepare your own batch of ground rice following the easy method outlined below.
You could technically replace the ground rice but it wouldn't be a ground rice cake. Instead of the rice you could use semolina [the type intended for cooking semolina pudding] which has a course texture similar to ground rice, or go with ground almonds.
Yes, some traditional ground rice cake recipes are flavoured with lemon instead of almond so you could add the zest of a lemon along with a few drops of lemon essence or extract. The exact amounts will depend on the how strongly flavoured your lemon flavouring is.
You can sub out the apple cider vinegar for fresh lemon juice, white vinegar or white distilled vinegar, or rice vinegar.
Traditionally, in Scotland we have a Hogmanay buffet spread to enjoy while waiting for the New Year bells to ring in the New Year, and this ground rice cake was served alongside the fruit cake, sultana cake, seed cake, Madeira cake, cherry cake, slices of cheese, sandwiches, sausage rolls, shortbread, crisps, and other nibbles! As we are now a plant-based family all our buffet spreads are now vegan-friendly and very delicious.
👪 More traditional bakes made egg-free & dairy-free
Reliable egg-free baking recipes are very handy recipes to have as you can enjoy your traditional favourite cakes and bakes even without the eggs. All our recipes use every-day storecupboard ingredients so you won't have to source any fussy ingredients that you may only use a small amount for a recipe and then are left with a large amount with no use.
A few of our family favourite bakes are this Old-Fashioned Gingerbread Cake and this Welsh Apple Cake which is so delicious served hot for dessert with custard. A good way to use up any leftover pumpkin (during Halloween & autumn season) is with this Pumpkin Fruit Loaf Cake, which can also be made with butternut squash instead of the pumpkin, and the number one all-time British favourite for an afternoon tea is always Victoria Sponge Cake.
💬 Comments
Prepared our Old-Fashioned Ground Rice Cake? We would love to know how you got on with the recipe so do pop back and drop us a comment below. It's very much appreciated. Thanks so much! Jacq x
Bill says
I wanted to have a go at this cake, but I don't have a 6" cake tin (that size seems unusually small).
How would I work out the ingredients to make this for a 7" or 8" cake and also the cooking time?
Thank you
Jacq says
Hi Bill, Thanks so much for your comment! Yes, a 6" tin is a bit smaller than standard these days, but it's true to the size used in many older recipes. I haven’t tested this one in a larger tin yet, but I’d imagine a 7" tin would work fine, the cake just wouldn’t be quite as deep. I managed to find a 6" cake tin in a local hardware shop (not one of the big chain stores) for just a few pounds, so it’s worth having a look in those sorts of places if you have any nearby.
If you do try it with a 7'' tin, keep an eye on the baking time as it may need a little less time in the oven since it’ll be thinner. I’d love to hear how it turns out if you give it a go. Jacq x
Barry Speakman says
Hi, I’m a first time use, my mother in law is 92 she was recently stopping with us and we had a trip down memory lane she told us all about her Christmases from when she was little the rice cake served alongside the Christmas cake she was so enthused I thought I would make the rice cake for her. My wife is really allergic to eggs so I googled a vegan version of this cake your recipe was the fi st on the list and sold itself to me as it was headed as being an old fashioned ground rice cake just what mother ordered it’s fantastic and we won’t be looking elsewhere, she absolutely loved it and it took her back to her childhood. Thank you for making a mature lady very happy.
Just one comment and I might have missed it but the instructions said to sift the flour and the baking powder only I couldn’t find baking powder in the ingredient list so didn’t know how much if any to add.
Jacq says
Hi Barry, thanks for the lovely detailed comment. It was so good to read about your mother-in-law and how the rice cake brought her back to her childhood. I am so glad she enjoyed the cake. Thanks for pointing out the baking powder omission I will go fix that right now. Jacq x
Barry says
Hi Jacq thanks for the nice reply, you haven’t by chance got a vegan Yorkshire pudding recipe I’ve tried all sorts but still searching for one that comes close to the original
Jacq says
Hi Barry, I have been meaning to do a vegan Yorkshire pudding recipe, and I am going to make that the first recipe for the New Year. I will let you know once I have published it. Thanks for asking. If you have any other recipe requests, please ask. Hope you and your family have a Happy New Year! Jacq x
Liz S says
I used your recipe to make some ground rice tarts today. There was plenty of mixture left over to make a smaller cake too.
The tarts were a big hit (I used raspberry jam in the pastry cases).
I look forward to trying some more of your recipes soon
Jacq says
Oh ground rice tarts sound like a great idea! Glad that the recipe worked well and you had leftover mix to bake a small cake as well. I am definitely going to try that out. Thanks for letting us know x
GEETA SINGH says
This is a remarkable recipe.
I've made it twice, adding dried sour cherries the first time which was amazing.
The second time I made an upside plum version, which was more flan/dessert like. Both were highly praised.
Thanks so much for this fabulous recipe.
Jacq says
Thanks so much Geeta! I’m glad you are loving the rice cake recipe and have also used it as the base for other desserts. I love creating recipes that can be repurposed for other bakes so I do appreciate you letting me know what variations you have tried. I do like the idea of adding sour cherries and an upside down plum cake sounds amazing! Jacq x