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Sunday 30 September 2012

"Rich Coca Cola & Chocolate Cake" -- Eggless

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I had a really busy and fun weekend with friends and family. For dessert I prepared a dense and rich Chocolate and Coco Cola cake.The tempting flavours of Chocolate and Cola makes this cake irresistible and you want more with every bite. If you prefer having an eggless cake then you will surely love this one. 
Have a great week and keep baking .


"Rich Coca Cola & Chocolate Cake"

Ingredients :

1 can milkmaid ( condensed milk) - 400 gms
6 tbsp sugar - powdered
100 gms butter
250 ml aerated drink ( Coca Cola/ Pepsi/Thumsup)
5 tbsp cocoa powder
225 gms plain flour
2 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp soda bi carb

Preparation:
  • Preheat the oven at 150*C for ten minutes before baking
  • Take a big cake tin and grease with butter or oil. Dust with flour and line it with a baking or butter paper
  • In a bowl mix butter,sugar and condensed milk till smooth
  • Add sifted flour,cocoa,soda bi carb and baking powder in the above mixture slowly and keep mixing to avoid any lumps. Mix till it becomes smooth.
  • Add coco cola to the mixture and mix well. Transfer the mix to the cake tin and bake in the preheated oven at 150*C for an hour. Check with a knife or toothpick by inserting in the cake, if it comes out clean, cake is done.
  • Let the cake cool down before removing it out from the tin.
  • Slice and serve. 
Note : I served this cake with a chocolate glaze icing. You can try using any other icing or topping of your choice to make this cake more fancy. 



Wednesday 19 September 2012

"Saffron Modaks"

"Happy Ganesh Festival"

There is nothing more beautiful and fulfilling then celebrating festivals. Today the eleven day long Lord Ganesh festival has started. With the arrival of Lord Ganesha, every lane and house is filled with festive air and each person gets busy celebrating the sacred time.
To celebrate the arrival of this festival and to welcome Lord Ganesha, I prepared Modaks yesterday which is considered as one of his favourite sweets.
There are varied types of Modaks (sweet dumplings ) made in Maharashtra which are offered to the God during this festival. Steamed ones made with rice flour and filled with coconut and jaggery filling, fried ones made with flour and filled with nuts, coconut and jaggery and then there are the khoya ( dried whole milk) modaks which are soft and yummy in taste. 
Today I am sharing the recipe for Saffron Khoya Modak. This week Ill share one more recipe of fried modaks which I prepared last year. 
Indulge in some sweet treats and enjoy the festival :)


"Saffron Modaks" - Sweet Dumplings

Ingredients:

250 gms Khoya ( Dried whole milk)
100 gms - powdered sugar
1 tsp cardamom powder
few strands of saffron soaked in little warm milk
1 tsp ghee ( clarified butter)

Preparation:
  • Heat ghee in a non stick pan and saute the khoya till it turns light pink and  you can get the roasted smell
  • Remove from heat and let it cool
  • Add sugar, cardamom powder and soaked saffron to the cooled khoya and knead the mixture
  • Keep it in the fridge for an hour so it becomes firm and easy to shape
  • Make small round balls of the mixture and shape them into modaks ( Refer to the pic above). You can use a modak mould too to shape them. 
  • Chill for an hour and then serve. 
Note : You can use crushed pistachios, almonds or any other flavour to make different styled modaks using the above recipe. You can even add grated chocolate and make choco modaks. 
To add some more style to the modak, I used a toothpick and made fine lines around it. You can use your own creativity and decorate the modak. 






Friday 14 September 2012

"Sticky Fruit Loaf"

Am in the mood to share another eggless cake recipe today. We always land up baking goodies with a lot of eggs to add texture and fluffiness. So am taking a break from eggs and using them only for breakfast items :)
This cake is called as Sticky Fruit Loaf. Its sticky because its loaded with dry fruits and nuts which adds a lot of richness to this cake. Also this is made with vinegar and baking soda which will act as a substitute for eggs to make this loaf nice and fluffy.
Do try loaf this weekend and enjoy with coffee or icecream.
Happy Baking !!!!


  "Sticky Fruit Loaf"

Ingredients :

175 gms flour
3/4tsp mixed spices ( nutmeg/cinnamon and clove powder) -- this is optional
125 gms powdered sugar
100 gms butter
1/2 cup milk ( at room temperature)
1/2 tbsp white vinegar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp soda bi carb
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tbsp black raisins
4 tbsp chopped cashews
2 tbsp candied cherries
2 tbsp candied fruit ( red/yellow/green)

Preparation:
  • Preheat the oven to 190*C before baking
  • Prepare a loaf tin by greasing with a little butter and dusting with little flour
  • Sift flour with mixed spices in a big bowl. Rub flour and butter together ,till the mixture is crumbly ( Do not over mix)
  • Add baking powder and sugar and mix lightly. Add raisins,nuts and fruits to the mixture
  • Divide milk in two equal parts. To one part add vinegar
  • Warm the other part of milk slightly and add soda bi card. Now mix both the milk portions together
  • The milk will start foaming. Add vanilla essence and pour the milk in the cake mix very quickly.Mix fast and well to a smooth batter
  • Pour the batter in the loaf tin. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, then lower the temperature to 150*C and bake for another 20 minutes.
  • Remove from oven, let it cool and then remove it from the loaf tin
  • Slice and serve the cake with coffee or icecream.
Note : You can use any other nuts or dry fruits of your choice in the batter. You can even sprinkle some on top for decoration before baking. This loaf slice will taste nice as warm or even after being chilled. 


Monday 10 September 2012

"Nankhatai Cookies"/ "Eggless Shortbread Cookies"

Going nuts about cookies ... 
This weekend was another fabulous time to bake a set of mouthwatering cookies for my loved ones.. I have already shared some recipes of butter and chocolate cookies before . Today I'll share the old time granny recipe of a shortbread cookie which is popularly known as "Nankhatai" in India. 
This cookie is a classic when it comes to taste and looks. Round cookies with crunchy exteriors and soft interiors baked to perfection are an absolute delight.They are eggless and made with clarified butter which adds to the richness of the texture. Try one of these cookies with tea or coffee and you will keep asking for more :)

Enjoy this recipe and do share your thoughts and feedback

" Nankhatai Cookies / Eggless Shortbread Cookies

Ingredients:

1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup semolina
1/2 cup gram flour
a pinch of soda bi carb
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
1/2 cup clarified butter ( ghee )  / unsalted white butter
2/3 cup powdered sugar

Preparation:
  •  Seive the flour,semolina,gramflour and soda in a bowl
  • Add cardamom powder and sugar
  • Melt the clarified butter and add it to the flour mixture
  • Now knead the mixture in a soft dough with hands till its smooth and not crumbly
  • Wrap it in a cling film wrap and keep it aside for 2-3 hours to rest
  • Preheat the oven to 180*C for ten minutes before baking
  • Grease a baking tray with butter 
  • Now make small round balls and put them on the baking tray. Press the balls slightly with your fingers to make them look like a cookie ( Do not flatten them )
  • Keep space between cookies as they will expand while baking
  • Bake in the oven at 180*C for 15 minutes or till the top is slightly brown ( refer the picture in the recipe)
  • Remove from the oven and let them cool ( when you touch the cookies in the oven they will feel a little soft. Do not over bake thinking they are not cooked as they will become hard after cooling down)
  • Once cooled, store in an air tight container and enjoy them with a hot cup of tea or coffee
Note : I have given an option of using unsalted white butter if you cant find clarified butter. You can also make them look more pretty by putting cashew and pistachio pieces on top before baking.