It is again time for the month’s Secret Recipe Club Reveal. A club that was started a year ago has grown for 19 members in the first month to 300+ members doing reveals every Monday of the month. To know more about this amazing group and join it go HERE.
I was pleasantly surprised and delighted to be assigned Jocelyn’s delicious blog Inside Bru Crew Life. She had been assigned my blog last month and the magic she created with my Strawberry Cheesecake had me drooling all over. A beautiful lady with three lovely children, Jocelyn is addicted to sugar (mainly chocolate) and she bakes and blog about all the yummy treats she makes. After going through her blog all month long it was a struggle to decide what to choose. The options ranged from Chocolate Mint Donuts, Chocolate Toffee Banana Cookies, Homemade Twix Bars. The choices were innumerable and delicious. Finally my search ended at pop tarts . My first reason being, that the post started with the word “nutella” and the second was that I have been reading about pop tarts for some time now and they sounded fascinating. A hybrid of a biscuit and a tart, these delicious looking pop tarts had me hypnotized. They came out delicious and flaky. The biscuit baked to perfection and the nutella filling and white chocolate topping completed a delicious picture. Here’s to delicious dreams …
Homemade Poptarts:
Notes:
•This recipe can easily be doubled. I halved the main recipe. But, I suggest you make the original quantity as these tarts disappear without warning.
•Don’t reduce the quantity of butter in the recipe. My natural instinct is to reduce the butter a recipe demands by ¾ to ½. In this recipe the first batch came out dry because of the reduced quantity of butter.
•The main recipe asks for an additional egg for the egg wash. I just set aside 2 tbsp of beaten egg and that served the purpose. Thus I have omitted the second egg in my recipe.
•Add the salt in if you are using unsalted butter. Otherwise the dough will become too salty.
All-purpose flour 1 cup
Sugar 1 tbsp
Salt ½ tsp
Unsalted Butter, cut into small squares 100 grams
Egg 1 large
Milk 1 tbsp
•Preheat oven at 175ºC and lightly grease a baking sheet.
•Mix the flour, sugar and salt in a bowl.
•Work in the butter with your fingers till pea-sized lumps of butter are visible, and the mixture holds together when squeezed.
•Whisk the egg and remove 2 tbsp for egg wash. Add in the milk and stir the mix into the dough, mixing just until everything is cohesive and knead briefly on a well-floured counter to bring the dough together.
•Divide the dough in half. Place one piece on a lightly floured work surface, and roll it into a rectangle about 1/8″ thick.
•Cut each piece of dough to form 8 equal portions.
•On 4 pieces apply the egg wash. This will be the “inside” of the tart and the egg will help to glue the lid on.
•Place a heaping tablespoon of filling into the center of each rectangle, keeping a bare 1/2-inch perimeter around it.
•Place the second rectangle of dough atop the first and using your fingertips press firmly around the pocket of filling, sealing the dough well on all sides.
•Press the tines of a fork all around the edge of the rectangle. Repeat with remaining tarts.
•Gently place the tarts on the lightly greased baking sheet.
•Prick the top of each tart with a fork so that steam can escape.
•Bake them for 10 to 15 minutes, until they’re a light golden brown.
•Cool in pan or rack till they come to room temperature and then decorate with desired toppings.
Fillings I used :
•Nutella.
•Butterscotch chips.
•Gulkand.
I finally decorated the tops with melted white chocolate and sprinkled some decoration. The Gulkand pop tarts I left undecorated.
Makes : 16 pop tarts. 
Enjoy ! ! !
Chocolates & Dreams
About My Food Fetish
Blog posts in Baking
Homemade Poptarts - SRC - Inside Bru Crew Life
Cheena Pora - Indian Cooking Challenge - March 2012
It has been a while since I have participated in the Indian Cooking Challenge. The last few months have flown by in an eye wink. The last month’s challenge got photographed and achieved but never saw the light of day. But this Challenge had me on my toes the minute I saw it. The whole concept was very new to me and what surprised me was it stark similarity to the New York Cheesecake. From the looks of the cake, to the simplicity of the ingredients, here was an Indian version of the New York Cheesecake.
The recipe is adapted from Shibani’s lovely blog Any One Can Cook.
The Chenna Poda turned out delicious and filling. And there was nothing ‘Poda’ i.e. burnt about this cake other than the delicious caramel on the top. 
Chenna Poda :
Adapted from : Any One Can Cook.
Notes :
• Make sure that the paneer is freshly made. It should be really soft to make the chenna poda.
• This recipe can easily be doubled.
Chenna squeezed (freshly curdled) 250 grams
Suji / Semolina / Rava 1/8 cup
Sugar ¼ cup
Cardamom powder ¼ tsp
Raisins ¼ cup
Broken pieces of Cashew nuts (optional)
• Make the paneer. Don’t squeeze it out completely. Just leave it in a strainer for 10 minutes and remove.
• Preheat the oven at 180C.
• Put it in a big bowl and mash it thoroughly.
• Then add in the suji and sugar. Mix them well. The mix should turn very soft and crumbly. Now add the cardamom powder, nuts and raisins. Mix again.
• For the caramelized, apply a tablespoon of ghee to the ramekins. Sprinkle a tablespoon of sugar and turn up the heat in the oven to 220C. This will take some time, around 5-8 minutes but watch the sugar carefully as it will burn very quickly. The other option is to make the caramel in a bowl and spread it on the base of the ramekins.
• Now, top the caramel with the chenna mix.
• Then bake the ramekins for 15 minutes. When a toothpick comes out clean the cheena poda is done.
• Cool for about ½ hour. Release the sides with the help of a sharp knife and invert to remove.
• It will stay fresh for a week in the refrigerator.
Makes : 4 portions/ramekins.
Enjoy ! ! !
Chocolate Lava Muffins – Secret Recipe Club – Cyndi’s Recipes
Another month of deliciousness! The Secret Recipe Club is back again. The SRC as we love to call it, is a group of blogger who come together every Monday of the month to reveal delicious mouth-watering delicacies they have been making in their kitchens. So, you wonder, isn’t that what food bloggers do? But this is the interesting part; the delicacies come from the blog we are assigned every month. Interesting! Go HERE to know all about it.
This month’s assignment was Cyndi’s Recipes. A delicious blog, with an amazing collection of mouth watering delicacies. After going throw her blog for days, and choosing a new recipe every day, I finally found a soul soother. I choose to make the delicious Chocolate Lava Muffins http://cyndisrecipes.blogspot.in/2006/01/chocolate-lava-muffins.html.
But first a little about Cyndi. In her own words, “So many places to see. So many pieces to stitch. So many foods to eat. Never enough time.” Could anyone have described their passions better? And her passions come out through 9 different blogs that she manages. Wow! Hats Off to you! Go visit all her blogs from HERE.
And now back to chocolaty gooey goodness ….
Chocolate Lava Muffins : -
Recipe from : Cyndi’s Recipes
Notes :
•My first batch of muffins set all the way. I had baked them for almost 13 minutes.
•In the second round I baked the muffins for 10 minutes. At this point just the center is not set. Turn on the heat. The center will set in the next 10 seconds. Quickly take out the muffin and serve.
•Another thing that I noticed was that as soon as the muffin comes out of the oven it sink with a minute. So be ready to jump right in.
•WARNING : Don’t put the muffin into your mouth immediately. That will burn you. Just cut the muffin and enjoy the gooey goodness spill all over the plate. You can lick it off later. What fulfillment ….
Dark Chocolate 1 cup
Butter (softened) 60 grams
Vanilla essence ½ tsp
Flour 1 ½ tbsp
Salt ¼ tsp
Brown Sugar ¼ cup
Eggs 2
•Preheat the oven at 190C for 10 minutes. Grease and line one 6 cup muffin tray.
•While the oven is preheating mix the dark chocolate, butter and vanilla essence in a microwave safe bowl and melt the mix. Just put it in the microwave for 30 seconds. Take out and give it a mix. Put it back and heat another 30 seconds.
•Add in the sugar, flour and salt. Mix well.
•Now mix 1 egg at a time.
•Pour the mix equally amongst the 6 cups and bake for 10 – 13 minutes.
•What worked best for me was to bake the muffins for the first 10 minutes and then watch them rise. As soon as the top is set take them out.
Makes : 6.
Enjoy ! ! !
Homemade Bagels – Secret Recipe Club – Anne Jesica’s Healthy Pursuits
What excitement ! The very first post for Secret Recipe Club this year. Time seems to be flying by, it seems like yesterday when we were all headed into the holiday season with Christmas & New Year upon us. We were all preparing to make new resolutions and think of all the things we would certainly be doing this year.
And, then suddenly it’s the end of February ! ! In the one month break SRC has come of age. The forum that was born from a need to get more exposure to an individual blog has become a phenomenon in the food blogging community. SRC began with 19 members in the first month and has grown to 300+ participating blogger who are now divided into 4 groups and a long waiting list of many who would love to be part of all the fun. Do you want to know more? Go HERE to know all about Secret Recipe Club.
This month I was assigned the blog Anne Jesica’s Healthy Pursuits. A beautiful lady with two adorable little sons she creates wonders in her kitchen. All her recipes are tweaked to be delicious, wholesome & healthy at the same time. What you must visit is her list of desserts, they are mouthwatering delicious. She has also had her very own Home Baking Business for over 2 years, and this lady is not one to keep her secrets to success hidden. Go check out all her wonderful tips on how to start a Home Baking Business. The tips are well detailed and compiled. She is sharing all her love, go give some back.
So after reading about all the bread, bagels, muffins, cookies, whoopee pies, Christmas bake trays and cinnamon rolls that she sells, I choose to make bagels. It is something that I have been meaning to make for a long time now.
Bagels, the very sound of this word makes me go all fuzzy in the brain. I start dreaming, a sun washed balcony looking onto this vast green pasture, a small stream flowing by, the birds chirping in the trees and this tray full of bagels with different preserves and butter and cheese on the table and a mug of the most delicious caramelly hot chocolate ……
I think you know where this is headed. So here are some delicious home-made bagels for your dreams.
Homemade Bagels
Notes :
•What works best for me is to warm the water in the microwave oven till it is just warm to touch, then adding in the sugar and yeast and giving it a good stir and putting the vessel back in the microwave oven. The warmth inside the oven helps the yeast to grow.
Warm water 1 1/2 cups
Yeast 2 tbsp
Sugar 3 tbsp
Salt 1 tbsp
Wheat flour 2 cups
White flour 2 cups
Egg white, lightly beaten 1
Water 1 tbsp
•In a small bowl, mix yeast, sugar and warm water together and let stand in a warm place till the top is foamy.
•Add salt and 2 cups flour. Stir until combined and slowly mix in the rest of the flour.
•Knead dough on a floured surface for 5 minutes, adding additional flour if necessary. Dough should be fairly smooth and somewhat firm.
•Place dough in a greased bowl, cover and let rise until double.
•Punch it down. Divide and shape into 12 balls and let rise.
•Make a hole in each ball of dough and pull open about 2 inches, making a bagel shape. Place the shaped dough onto a cookie sheet and cover for 10 minutes or until risen again.
•Fill a deep bottomed pan with water. Bring the water to a rolling boil and drop 2 or 3 bagels for about 45 seconds, turning and cook for the same duration.
•Drain bagels on a wire rack.
•Mix egg white and water; brush tops with egg white mixture and top with toppings of your choice. I topped half my bagels with grated cheese and the other half with sesame seeds.
• Place bagels on greased baking sheets. Bake at 175ºC for 35 minutes, rotating them once half-way through baking.
•Bagels when done will be lightly browned and shiny. My second batch got a little to brown, but it was equally delicious.
Makes : 12 bagels.
Enjoy ! ! !
Quick Bread – Daring Bakers Challenge – February 2012
It is that time of the month again. The Daring Bakers’ Reveal for February 2012 is here. This month we have a very special host amongst us. Lisa from La Mia Cucina is one of the ladies who keep the Daring Bakers & Cooks in pristine shape & time. She is the co-founder of this wonderful forum and is always there to help us in need and just for fun. Thanks a lot Lisa!
Lisa stepped in last minute and challenged us to create a quick bread we could call our own. She supplied us with a base recipe and shared some recipes she loves from various websites and encouraged us to build upon them and create new flavor profiles. To see all the amazing creations and to download the instruction manual with some amazing tips & researches from Lisa & Audax go HERE.
What I finally decided to make were popovers. I have been reading about them, seeing their photographs and drooling all over my lappy for a long time. All the things he puts up with!
After going through quite a few recipes, I settled with these delicious Orange Popovers. The recipe is a Contribution by Grace Parisi at the Food & Wine website. I halved the recipe and it still gave me 12 popovers. Delicious and fluffy, they are perfect to enjoy with a hot cup of tea or coffee.
Orange Popovers :
Large eggs, room temperature 1
Sugar 1 tbsp
Finely grated orange zest 1tsp
Milk ¾ cup
Butter, melted 2 tbsp
All-purpose flour ¾ cup
Baking powder ¼ tsp
Salt ¼ tsp
•Preheat the oven at 210°.
•In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with sugar and orange zest. Add in the milk and 1 ½ tbsp of butter.
•In another bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt.
•Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until only small lumps remain.
•Brush the muffin tin with the remaining ½ tbsp of melted butter and heat the muffin tin in the oven for 5 minutes; the butter will turn a nutty brown.
•Carefully fill the muffin cups halfway with the popover batter. The batter will sizzle when you pour it in.
•Bake the popovers for about 15 minutes or until they are risen and browned.
•Turn them out onto a serving platter and serve immediately.
Makes : 12 popovers.
Enjoy ! ! !
Better Late Than Never – Scones – Daring Bakers Challenge – January 2012
It was just a few days back when we were all celebrating Christmas and waiting eagerly to welcome a New Year. Suddenly a month of that New Year has passed us by. How time flies. And, with its flight it has left me a little in disarray. With a lot of travelling and other things that have occupied most of the month I had almost let this month’s Daring Bakers Challenge pass. But, how could I let pass an opportunity to bake Scones, especially those that had been remade 16 times and were at a point of complete perfection.
This month’s Daring Bakers Challenge was hosted by Audax from Audax Artifex. A beautiful blogger and a lady who so particular in her quest for perfection that she had 288 recipes of scones bookmarked and made them 16 times till she was happy enough to hand over the recipe to us. Who can say no to such an easy task? A simple recipe; simpler steps, and the output, a delicious, ‘flaky or moist’ scones. 
Scones :
Notes :
1. Triple sift the dry ingredients –It is recommended to sift the dry ingredients thrice from a height as it help incorporate air into the mix leading to lightness of the scones and equal distribution of the leavening agents.
2. Rubbing in the fat – When the fat is rubbed in to form a fine grain the dough is tender. On the other hand, the larger the fat pieces the flakier the scones. But, what is most important is to rub in the frozen fat as quickly as possible.
3. Moistening and bringing the dough together - Add all the liquid at once to the rubbed-in dry ingredients. When mixing the dough, stir vigorously from bottom to top and mix just until the dough is well-moistened and begins to come together. It should be wet & sticky.
4. Handling the dough – It is important not to overwork the dough but under-working is also a common mistake. Overworking leads to tough, dry and heavy scones while under-working leads to crumbly ones.
5. Kneading or folding/turning the dough – This is where you decide whether your scones has distinct layers or not. When the dough is simply kneaded by 1) only kneading the dough will create an even tender crumb while only turning and folding the dough will be flaky and have a layered effect.
6. Pat or roll out the dough –It is best to use your fingers to gently pat out the dough once it has been kneaded or folded and turned. Use a very light touch with little pressure and forming the dough into a rectangle to be cut into rounds for the scones.
7. Cutting out your scones – Use a well-floured cutter. You can use a sharp knife to cut out shapes. The knife should be floured before each cut.
8. Baking your scones – Always preheat the oven.
9. Extra comments about resting the dough – In her researches Audax found that resting the dough in various stages in the recipe had different effects on the scones. If you rested the mixed dough (in the fridge) for 20 minutes there is a huge improvement in the dough's handling qualities and the final scones height, lightness and crumb are outstanding. Also she found that if the patted dough was rested, covered in plastic for 10 minutes in the fridge that the rounds were easier to stamp out and the baked goods raise higher and have a better crumb. 
All purpose flour 1 cup
Fresh baking powder 2 tsp
Salt ¼ tsp Frozen grated butter 2 tbsp
Cold milk ½ cup Milk 1 tbsp, for glazing the tops of the scones
•Preheat oven at 240°C for 10 minutes.
•Triple sieve the dry ingredients in a large bowl. (If your room temperature is very hot refrigerate the ingredients until cold.)
•Rub the frozen grated butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles very coarse bread crumbs with some pea-sized pieces if you want flaky scones or until it resembles coarse beach sand if you want tender scones.
•Add all the liquid at once into the rubbed-in flour/fat mixture and mix until it just forms a sticky dough. The wetter the dough the lighter the scones (biscuits) will be.
•Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board, lightly flour the top of the dough. To achieve an even homogeneous crumb to your scones knead very gently about 4 or 5 times (do not press too firmly) the dough until it is smooth.
•To achieve a layered effect in your scones knead very gently once (do not press too firmly) then fold and turn the kneaded dough about 3 or 4 times until the dough has formed a smooth texture.
•Pat or roll out the dough into a 6” by 4”rectangle by about ¾” thick. Using a well-floured scone cutter, stamp out without twisting the scones or just cut squares or wedges.
•Place the rounds just touching on a baking dish if you wish to have soft-sided scones or place the rounds spaced widely apart on the baking dish if you wish to have crisp-sided scones. Glaze the tops with milk if you want a golden colour on your scones or lightly flour if you want a more traditional look to your scones.
•Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes until the scones are well risen and are lightly coloured on the tops. The scones are ready when the sides are set.
•Immediately place onto cooling rack to stop the cooking process, serve while still warm.
Serves: 8, 2” scones or 5, 3” scones or 8 squares and wedges.Delicious with Black Current Preserve or Orange Marmalade.
Enjoy ! ! !
To see all the other amazing scones go HERE.
Sans Rival – Daring Bakers Challenge – November 2011
I had hardly gotten over the sadness of missing out on making the delicious Povitica in the last month’s challenge when the November challenge was announced.
The simple reason why I look forward to every Daring Bakers Challenge is that it gets better with every passing month. Like old wine, this challenge matures and presents us bakers with amazing surprises & unique desserts.
This month Catherine of Munchie Musing challenged us to make Sans Rival. Born to a Philipina mother & British father she is in the process of getting closer to Philippine culture cooking. What could have been a better way to sharing her experiences and experiments than to challenge us to something deliciously Philippine.
The meaning of the word Sans Rival simply means “Without Rival”. The dessert is Philippine but has its origins in France. This delicious cake is full of the goodness of cashews that are incorporated into a meringue base which forms a Dacquiose. It is then baked dry until the base is crisp and then iced with a rich & delicious French butter cream.
This delicious Sans Rival is unique & different from anything that I have tasted before and is truly “Without Rival”.
To see all the other amazing creations go HERE.
Sans Rival :-
Notes :
•It is very important that you brush the parchment paper with oil. It is really helpful when you peel it off the Dacquiose.
•Don’t grind the nuts to fine flour. They taste much better when they are grainy. They add to the crunch of the cake.
•Remove the Dacquiose from the oven once done & immediately remove the parchment paper. It is almost impossible to take it off when cold.
•Ensure that you bake the Dacquiose to a nice crisp layer or else it will stick to the parchment paper. Every over bakes differently so keep the time as a bench mark but do bake a little more if it seems soft in the centre.
•Once cool the layers become crispier.
•If you have a small oven and will be baking the layers one at time I would suggest mixing the batter in two rounds. The meringue looses all it air if left out for too long. That is what happened in my case. But the time I was ready to bake the 4th layer the meringue was a watery mess. My last layer was a complete waste.
•I have halved the recipe from the original so it can be doubled easily.
Large egg whites, room temperature 5
White sugar ½ cup
Cream of tartar/White vinegar/Lemon juice ½ tsp (I used vinegar)
Cocoa 1/8 cup (optional and not traditional)
Chopped, toasted cashews 120 grams
•Preheat oven to moderate 325°F/160°C/gas mark 3.
•Line the baking dish base with parchment paper and butter and flour the sides really well.
•In a large, clean & dry glass or metal bowl, beat egg whites on medium until foamy, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle with cream of tartar/vinegar/lemon juice. Sprinkling this helps to build in more air into the egg whites and makes them fluffier.
•Gradually add in the sugar, a couple of tablespoons at a time. Continue to beat at a high speed until stiff shiny peaks form, about 7-10 minutes.
•Once done fold in the cashew flour slowly. Make sure that you set aside some of the cashews for decoration.
•Now divide the Dacquiose into four equal portions. Bake each for at least 30 minutes or till it turns a beautiful golden brown.
•Remove and quickly take out of the baking dish & remove the parchment paper. Let the baking dish cool completely if reusing.
French Butter Cream :-
Notes:
•Thread Stage: Drops of sugar syrup when dropped into a bowl of cold water form thin threads, this is the thread stage. When using a candy thermometer the temperature should reach 235F/112C.
•It is best to make the butter cream while the layers of cake are baking as it needs setting time before it is spreadable.
Large egg yolks, room temperature 3
White sugar ¼ - ½ cup
Water 1/8 cup
Butter, room temperature 80 grams
Optional Flavorings:
Unsweetened chocolate, melted 50 grams
OR Almond essence ¾ tsp
OR Vanilla essence ¾ tsp
•Put the egg yolks in a mixing bowl and beat at high speed until the yolks have doubled in volume and are lemon yellow in colour.
•Put the sugar and water in a heavy pan and cook over medium heat, stirring the sides down until all the sugar is dissolved and the syrup has reached the thread stage. (See notes above)
•With the mixer on high, very slowly pour the syrup down the sides of the bowl, until all of it has been incorporated. Be very careful as the syrup is hot and could burn you if it splashes from the beater.
•Continue beating on high until the mixture reaches ROOM TEMPERATURE, about 15 minutes.
•Beating on high, add in the soft, room temperature butter a tablespoon at a time till all of it is incorporated.
•Add the flavoring after you beat in the butter.
•Refrigerate the butter cream for at least an hour, and whip it smooth just before you use it.
Assembling :-
Place the 1st layer of cake and cover with butter cream, repeat the same till all the layers are done and then ice and decorate the cake with the remaining butter cream & reserved cashews.
Serves : 8.
Enjoy ! ! !
Secret Recipe Club - Breakfast Skillet Cake & Choco-chip Cookies from Gastronomical Sovereignty
This is my very first participation at the Secret Recipe Club. The club was formed by Amanda of Amanda’s Cookin and was formed to get better exposure to her blog. An event which began with 19 participants in the first month has grow to have four different groups with different hostesses with reveal dates each week and around 300 participants with many wait listed.
The concept of the Club is that each month members are assigned a participating food blog. The members are supposed to cook or bake from the blog without the owner’s knowledge and then on the reveal date all members get to see the different dishes prepared and tested.
This month I was assigned Kristy’s blog Gastronomical Sovereignty. I related to Kristy’s love for food almost instantly. Her love for food began at a much later stage in life and she hasn’t looked back since. From a girl who believed that she did not need or want to learn cooking to a person who can go on about food endlessly her journey is exciting and adventurous.
Her blog is full of delicious treats for the body, mind and soul. Her simple instructions and the last command of “Eat!” after every post just makes you wonder when technology will reach a stage where we won’t just be looking but also tasting all the delicious treats. With many amazing options available I would recommend you try her Homemade Cabbage Rolls.
I tried two different recipes that came out amazing. Breakfast Skillet Cake was delicious and filling and the combination of cake batter with sausages and apples gave it a distinct taste. Mom’s Home Baked Choco-chip Cookies are to die for. They are delicious, soft, moist and addictive. Be warned! 
Breakfast Skillet Cake :-
Notes :
•I used two different varieties of flour to make the dish healthier.
•I used chicken cheese sausages. The result was a taste of gooey cheese in the cake. It makes me think that grated cheese and vegetables will also taste delicious in this recipe.
•I found 2 sausages to be a little less. I will be using more sausages or even fried, chopped salami next time.
All-Purpose Flour ¾ cup
Whole Wheat Flour ½ cup
Baking Powder 1 tbsp
White Sugar 2 tbsp + 1 tbsp
Sea Salt 2 tsp
Milk 1 cup
Egg 1
Melted Butter, room temperature ½ tbsp+ 1 tbsp
Vanilla Extract 2 tsp
Apple, cored & cut into 1/2" wedges 1 large
Sausages 2
Ground Cinnamon 1 tsp
Maple Syrup for drowning the cake
•Pre-heat oven at 170ºC.
•Heat oil in a frying pan and add in the sausages to fry till nice and brown. Remove and cut to 1” pieces.
•In a mixing bowl mix flours, baking powder, 2 tbsp of sugar and salt.
•In another mixing bowl mix milk, egg, 1 tbsp butter, vanilla essence.
•Mix in the dry and wet ingredients. The mix will form bubbles. Pour the mix into a skillet or a prepared baking dish.
•Sprinkle the sausages to cover the mix. Decorate the top with apple wedges and sprinkle with 1 tbsp sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon mix and dab with ½ tbsp room temperature butter.
•Bake for 25-30 minutes till the base is set and the apple looks cooked. A skewer inserted should come out clean.
•Remove, cool, slice and drown in maple syrup.
Serves : 6.
Enjoy ! ! !
Mom’s Home Baked Choco-chip Cookies :-
Notes :
•I substituted ½ cup all purpose flour with whole wheat flour. The final results were still delicious and fluffy.
•These cookies are pretty addictive so make them small as you won’t be able to stop at just one.
All-Purpose Flour 1 cup
Whole Wheat Flour ½ cup
Baking Soda ½ tsp
Milk 1/3 cup
Egg, lightly beaten 1
Brown Sugar 1 cup
Butter ½ cup
Vanilla essence 1 tsp
Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips/chunks ½ cup
•Pre-heat the oven at 170ºC. Grease a baking sheet and set aside.
•Cream the butter and sugar till light and fluffy.
•Add in the egg and vanilla essence and beat well.
•Now add in the milk & flours mix alternately beginning and ending with flour.
•Fold in the choco-chips/chunks.
•The consistency of the batter will be thick.
•Drop by spoonfuls onto prepared baking sheet leaving a gap of 2” for the cookies to expand.
•Bake for 10-12 minutes till the base is brown and the cookie looks well set on the top.
•Remove and cool.
•Take a large glass of milk or a cup of coffee and enjoy these cookies warm.
Makes : 18 – 25 cookies.
Enjoy ! ! !
You can find all the other creations after the comments section.
Croissants : Daring Bakers Challenge - September 2011
After a chocolate filled challenge last month the Daring Bakers presented an equally alluring challenge in September. Sarah challenged us to make Croissants this month. Buttery, flaky & filled with sweet or savory treats Daring Bakers gets better with every passing month.
Sourced from Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume 2 by Julia Child and Simone Beck this recipe was a dream come true for me. I had always dreamt of making croissants at home but had never had the motivation or the courage to give it a try, after having said that I have already made 2 batches this month & there is more to come.
The only challenge is that these take a very long time to make. The hand on time is limited to less than 2 hours but the resting is time consuming & necessary. This can be made over a period of 12 hours, 2 days or even 3 days. So give it your time & patience once and the second time will be like a breeze.You can go HERE to see all the beautiful creations this month. Here is a small but helpful chart of the minimum time required as given to us by Sarah.
Preparation time: In total, 12 hours.
Making dough, 10 minutes
First rise, 3 hours
Kneading and folding, 10 minutes
Second rise, 1.5 hours (or overnight in the fridge)
Rolling in the butter (turns one and two), 25 minutes
First rest, 2 hours
Turns three and four, 20 minutes
Second rest, 2 hours (or overnight in the fridge)
Forming croissants, 30 minutes
Final rise, 1 hour (or longer in the fridge)
Baking, 15 minutes
Croissants :-
Notes :
•Be very particular about the kind of yeast that you use. It is best to buy fresh yeast as it makes a lot of difference to the dough.
•While rolling you will need to keep using flour, do not hesitate, it is important to keep the butter inside the layers and for that you will need flour.
•Sarah highly recommended that the recipe be made as it is once. I completely agree with her. The buttery, flaky croissant can be had plain with a cup of tea or coffee. The flavours are perfect and what I would suggest for fun is to use flavoured butter.
•Go wild with your filling. Sweet or savory, the choice is yours & the options are limitless.
•Baked Croissants are best eaten the day they are made. They will survive till the next day in a sealed container. If they seem a little stale, quickly refreshed by warming them in the oven.
•Unbaked Croissants should be frozen after shaped and before the last rise. Shape them, put them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and cover with plastic wrap. Freeze. Once frozen, you can put them into a freezer Ziplock bag or other freezer container. When you want to bake them, take them out, place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and allow them to thaw completely and proof one more time – meaning, don’t bake them when they hit room temp., wait until they have risen again before baking. Bake them as you would normally.
Fresh yeast 1 ¾ tsp or Dry-active yeast 1 ¼ tsp (I used dry-active)
Warm water 3 tbsp (10 seconds in the microwave)
Sugar 1tsp
Flour 1 ¾ cup (I used maida)
Sugar 2 tsp
Salt 1 ½ tsp
Milk ½ cup
Refined oil 2 tbsp
Butter, chilled 100 grams
Egg 1 + 1 tsp water (for egg wash)
•Mix the yeast, warm water, and first teaspoon of sugar in a small bowl. Set aside for the yeast and sugar to dissolve and the yeast to foam up a little. I usually put it back in the microwave for the warmth.
•Heat the milk until lukewarm, and dissolve in the salt and remaining sugar.
•Place the flour in a large bowl.
•Add the oil, yeast mixture, and milk mixture to the flour. Using a rubber spatula mix just until all the flour is incorporated.
•Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, and let it rest a minute.
•Knead the dough eight to ten times only. The best way is as Julia Child does it in the video.
•Place the dough back in the bowl, and place the bowl in the plastic bag.
•Leave the bowl at approximately 75°F/24°C for three hours, or until the dough has tripled in size.
- After the dough has tripled in size, remove it gently from the bowl, place the dough on a lightly floured surface, and use your hands to press it out into a rectangle about 8"X12".
•Fold the dough rectangle in three, like a letter, pull the top third down, and then the bottom third up.
•Place the dough letter back in the bowl, and the bowl back in the plastic bag and leave it to rise for 1 ½ hours or until it has doubled in size. This second rise can be done overnight in the fridge.
•Place the double-risen dough onto a plate and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Place the plate in the fridge while you prepare the butter. This is where I forgot all about the pictures and got engrossed in making the dough. These pictures I will add the next time I make croissants.
•Once the dough has doubled, incorporate the butter. Place the block of chilled butter on a plain surface. Using the rolling pin beat the butter down a little, till it is quite flat. Use the heel of your hand to continue to spread the butter until it is smooth. The butter should stay cool, but spread easily.
•Remove the dough from the fridge and place it on a lightly floured surface. Let rest for a minute or two. Spread the dough using your hands into a rectangle about 14”X8”. Remove the butter from the board and spread the butter all across the top 2/3 of the dough rectangle, keep a ¼” distance from the edges.
•Fold the top third of the dough down, and the bottom third of the dough up as earlier.
•Turn the dough 90 degrees. Roll out the dough gently so you do not push out the butter until it is again about 14”X8”.
•Again, fold the top third down and the bottom third up.
•Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, and place it in the fridge for 2 hours.
•After 2 hours, take the dough out and place on a lightly floured surface. Tap the dough with the rolling pin, to deflate it a little and let it rest for 10 minutes.
•Now roll the dough out to 14”X8” again and fold in three as before. 
•Turn 90 degrees, and roll out again to 14”X8”. Fold in three for the last time, wrap in plastic, and return the dough to the fridge for 2 hours. This rise can also be done over night, and in that case place something heavy on top of the dough to stop it from rising.
•Now cut the dough and shape the croissants.
•First, lightly butter your baking sheet so that it is ready.
•Take the dough out of the fridge and let it rest for 10 minutes on a lightly floured surface.
•Roll the dough out to 20”X5” rectangle. Cut it into half creating two rectangles each of 10”X5”.
•Place one of the rectangles in the fridge, to keep the butter cold.
•Roll the second rectangle out until it is 15”X5”. Now cut it into 3 equal pieces of 5”X5” each.
•Place 2 of the squares in the fridge. The remaining square may have shrunk up a little bit. Roll it out again till it is a rectangle. Cut the rectangle diagonally into two triangles. 
•Stretch 2 sides of the triangle out a little, so that it is more of an isosceles. 
•Starting at the wide end, roll the triangle towards the point, and curve into a crescent shape. At this point add in any filling that you desire. I used sausages, chocolate, brown sugar & cinnamon and mushrooms & onions sauteed in salt and pepper as filling. When adding filling be certain to seal the ends while forming the crescent. Place the croissant on the baking sheet. 
•Repeat the process with the remaining squares of dough, creating 12 croissants.
.Leave the tray of croissants, covered lightly with plastic wrap, to rise for 1 hour, the final rise.
•Preheat the oven to 475°F/240°C/gas mark 9.
•Mix the egg with a teaspoon of water. Spread the egg wash across the tops of the croissants.
•Put the croissants in the oven for 12 to 15 minutes, until the tops are browned nicely.
•Take the croissants out of the oven, and place them on a rack to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Makes : 12 croissants.
Here are a few more interesting links that Sarah provided:
Vegan Croissants
Gluten-free Croissants
Lemon Bars
“If life throws you a lemon - make lemonade.” Joan Collins.
Life has been throwing a few lemons my way and I thought it would be a far more delicious idea to make some lemon bars. These sweet delicious treats will make any bad situation seem easier and sweeter. This is also probably the only recipe where I do use all the sugar that is given. When you dig your teeth into these sweet and tangy treats the first sensation that hits you is the amazing flavour that these bars produce. The first bite makes your teeth tingle with amazing sensations and then God help you. The bars will vanish like they never existed and you’ll be in the kitchen making a fresh batch. It’s an addiction that won’t leave you easily, so be warned.
The icing on the bars is some lemon cheese cream frosting I had and it added to the beauty of the bars. My lemon bars browned slightly from the edges and those where the pieces I finished off first. You have no clue how delicious slightly browned lemon bars taste until you have one. The perfect center pieces loose there charm. Addiction, addiction, addiction ! ! ! I will probably some day write a song dedicated to lemon bars … but as of now you go get addicted …
Lemon Bars :
Crust :
Flour 1 cup
Sugar ½ cup
A pinch of salt
Butter ½ cup (cold, cut to small cubes)
Filling :
Eggs 4
Sugar 2 cups
Lemon juice 4 tbsp
Flour 4 tbsp
Lemon essence ½ tsp
Baking powder 1 tsp
Lemon Cottage Cheese Frosting :
Cottage cheese 100 grams
Sugar ½ - 1 cup
Lemon juice 2 tbsp
Butter 4 tbsp
•Preheat the oven at 175 C and grease and line an 8”X8” baking dish.
•Put all the ingredients for the crust in a food processor and pulse till mix is crumbly.
•Press the mix to the bottom of the pan and bake for 10 – 15 minutes.
•Remove from the oven and let cool. Start making the filling.
•Pour all the filling ingredients other than the baking powder and mix till smooth.
•The crust must be at the room temperature before you pour the filling. If the crust is warm it may crack.
•Right before pouring in the filling add the baking powder and give the filling a good mix.
•Pour gently over the crust and bake for 25 minutes or till the top is set.
•Cut to squares or any other shape.
•For the frosting mix all ingredients other than sugar and make a smooth paste.
•Now slowly start adding sugar to the mix. Keep adding sugar till it is thick enough for frosting. You may need more sugar than mentioned so keep adding.
•Fill into an icing bag and with a thin nozzle attached decorate as you please.
•The lemon bars will taste equally good without the frosting. So go get addicted.
Makes : 50 small pieces.
Enjoy ! ! !
Baklava - Daring Bakers Challenge - June 2011
This month’s Daring Bakers Challenge was hosted by Erica from Erica’s Edible. She challenged us bakers to make Baklava with homemade Phyllo dough. The origins of the Baklava cannot be clearly traced but it is mostly of a Central Asian origin. A baklava is made with layers of Phyllo dough, butter, nuts and sweet syrup. The actual output is a sweet and flakey dessert which is mouthwatering delicious.
The main challenge was making the Phyllo dough at home. The trick is to roll the dough as thin as possible so that the crusts separate while baking and once drenched in syrup they are moist and flakey at the same time. I made my dough in the evening and wrapped and refrigerated it. I made the baklava the next afternoon. The dough keep pretty well if made in advance. I did not try to roll my Phyllo to large. I took really small quantities of dough and just rolled them real thin to almost fit the size of my baking dish. The rolling took around an hour.
The syrup needs to be made once the baklava is in the oven. Well mine boil a little too long and was thicker than needed. Without giving it much thought I poured it into the baklava as soon as it came out of the oven only to realise that the syrup was not enough to soak the baklava. The logical thing to do was to add in a bit of water and get the right consistency but logic only works when you’re not obsessed with playing Angry Birds on your tab PC. Once the syrup is poured the baklava is supposed to let rest overnight for it to soak up the syrup. Since the syrup was not sufficient and it looked like it had already soaked what it could I decided to taste a piece. The baklava came out in layers, and I had to put in considerable time and imagination to take out the other pieces intact. This did not hamper the taste a bite. The syrup was beautifully soaked and the baklava tasted heavenly.
Lesson: Newton’s third law of Motion: Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. It holds true in this case. When you’re to busy playing Angry Birds the syrup thickens, then you’re so preoccupied thinking about the game that you don’t bother diluting it before pouring, the baklava gets stuck and shows you who’s boss. I should have paid more attention in Physics class, all I ever did was make cartoons.
All’s well that ends well. The baklava was delicious and the recipe a huge success. The rest was little spice in an otherwise dull day.
Baklava :
Notes :
• You can add any filling that your want. Traditionally a baklava is only filled with nuts and soaked in syrup but I added peaches.
Phyllo Dough:
All purpose flour 1 1/3 cup
Salt 1/8 tsp
Water ½ cup + 1 tbsp per addition
Vegetable oil 2 tbsp
Apple cider vinegar ½ tsp (substitutes: white wine vinegar/ red wine vinegar, but could affect the taste)
•In a bowl combined flour and salt. In a separate bowl combined water, vegetable oil and apple cider vinegar.
•Add in the liquid mix into the dry mix slowly while operating the mixer on a slow speed.
•The mix will slowly become a soft ball and come together. If the mix seems dry add 1 tbsp water at a time till it comes together.
•Now change to dough hook and kneed for around 10 minutes. If doing by hand around 20 minutes. By now the dough will be soft and elastic.
•Remove from mixer and knead for another 2 minutes.
•Shape into a ball, coat will oil and wrap in a cling wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours.
•To roll the Phyllo take out a quantity that is needed to sufficiently cover your baking dish. Flour the surface, the rolling pin and dough well and roll out as thin as possible. Erica had attached some amazing links that will be helpful in rolling, I am doing the same. It’s better seen than explained.
•Once done keep on a floured surface and flour well between layers.
•Cover once all the dough is rolled out.
Filling :
Pistachios 100 grams (broken to pieces)
Peaches 2-3 (skinned and cut to slices)
Butter ½ cup (for coating)
•To assemble the baklava, first butter a 7" baking dish. Now place one sheet and butter it. Now add the next sheet and butter it and so on till 4 sheets have been done.
•Spread pistachios generously and cover with Phyllo and repeat the same process with 4 sheets.
•Then spread some pistachios and cover with peaches. Again add on 4 sheet and spread pistachios and again cover with sheets and finish the last layer with butter on top.
•You can make 4 to 5 layers. I made 4 layers, the next time I will make 5 layers and add in another layer of peaches.
•With a sharp knife cut to desired shape and bake in a pre-heated oven at 180C for 35 minutes.
Syrup :
Honey 1/3 cup
Water 2/3 cup
Sugar 1/8 cup
Cinnamon 1 stick
A piece of lemon or orange skin
Cloves 3-4
•Add all the ingredients in a thick bottomed pan and bring to boil on medium heat and stir till the sugar dissolves.
•Boil for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once done remove cinnamon stick and citrus peel from the syrup.
•Let the syrup cool while the baklava bakes.
•The baklava or the syrup one thing has to be hot when they are combined. Erica advises cooler syrup and hot baklava for better results.
•Once the baklava is baked add in the syrup and let rest overnight.
•Serve garnished with pistachios.
Seves : 8
Enjoy ! ! !
Useful Links : How to Roll Phyllo Dough
Three Part Video For The Whole Process
Tomato & Bell Pepper Quiche
There are days when we carve for a certain
food. I have been craving for a quiche for some time now. Any kind of quiche
would make me happy but the only problem was that I wanted it homemade and I haven’t
been well lately. Monsoon’s came with a breeze of relief and some almost flood
like situations in Mumbai. Now, they have disappeared as suddenly as they
appeared. We are under this dry, humid spell that makes me run for cover. Dry heat
I can handle, but all the humidity is getting the better of me. And it did, I have
been down with fever, cold and cough for the past 5 days and they are showing
no signs of retreat. Amongst all this I started craving a quiche. The simple
solution would have been to ask my sister. She would have brought me different
varieties that would have satisfied my palate and added a few more grams to my
weight. But then I am really, seriously watching what I eat accept that little
slip up that happened around the 15th. So, I thought I’ll do better.
Bake myself a quiche.
A quiche, according to me is a complete meal. It has the pastry shell which is carbohydrates, fats and fiber. The filling and custard which is full of proteins, vitamins, minerals, roughage and all the other nutrients our body needs. But that is only when it is made wisely and with care. A few changes here and there and with a little help from a recipe I had set aside from Femina and I had a delicious quiche baking in my oven in ½ hours time.
I am sending this recipe as part of the
challenge, Bookmarked Recipes that
has been restarted by Jacqueline of Tinned Tomatoes with the blessing of Ruth of Ruth’s Kitchen Experiment’s, the founder of the challenge. This challenge has helped me kill two birds
with the same stone. I looked through the numerous recipes that I have
collected over the years and found one for a quiche that is halve the fat, double the taste as is beautiful
described in the article – Your Lifestyle, page 342, Femina, June 30, 2010 and I
got myself a great dish for the challenge.
Tomato
and Bell Pepper Quiche :-
Notes :
- I will use olive oil in the pastry shell base next time. You can try it now and tell me how it comes out.
- The filling can be played with. Add whatever vegetables or meat that are available and suit your taste buds. Mushrooms, zucchini, cauliflowers, carrots, spinach, corn, chicken, fish are a few of the many options that can be used.
- The original recipe called for low fat cream and grated cheese in the custard mix. I substituted them with low fat milk and cottage cheese. You can always use the original ingredients.
- I did think about adding a few more flavours like oregano, paprika and basil in place of plain black pepper. Let you imagination take flight.
- I did not grease the tin. I will recommend that you do. My pastry shell got stuck at some places.
- It is not important to have a pie dish for this purpose. Use your baking dish. Cut parchment paper pieces longer than the diameter of the dish and place them so that they overhang. They can be used as handle for removing the pie after baking. Grease and line the dish with parchment paper. Then follow as directed. If you want a smooth edge just cut of the extra at a height of 2” with a knife or pizza cutter or you can leave rough edges for the homemade effect.
- This quiche can be served hot or cold. I liked cold better.
Pastry Shell:
All purpose flour 150 grams
Whole Wheat/Multi-grain Flour 100grams
Low fat Butter (cold) 100grams
Salt 1 tsp
Cold water ¼ cup
Filling:
Olive oil 1 tbsp
Onions, thinly sliced 2 (medium)
Tomatoes, thinly sliced 3 (large)
Red bell pepper, thinly sliced ½
Yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced ½
Green bell pepper, thinly sliced 1
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Custard:
Eggs 2
Toned Milk ½ - ¾ cup
Cottage Cheese (homemade) ½ cup
- To make the pastry shell simply put both the flours in a bowl and whisk a few time to mix them well. Now add in the chopped butter and mix with your hand till it is a course sandy texture.
- Now slowly add in the water to form dough. Do not add extra water. This water should be sufficient to get dough that comes together. Don’t over knead.
- Wrap in a cling wrap or aluminum foil and put in the refrigerator for 15 – 20 minutes.
- While the dough is resting in the refrigerator slick up all the vegetables. Now in a deep pan add olive oil and add in all the vegetables and saute for 5 minutes on medium heat. Add in the salt and pepper to taste. By now the vegetables will start releasing water. Turn to high and cook for another 2 – 5 minutes.
- To make the custard just mix the eggs and milk and whisk well. Crumble the cottage cheese and add to the mix and let soak.
- Take out the pastry dough and roll into a circle about ½” thick.
- Take a tart mould and grease with some butter. Place the rolled dough and press to fit. Remove the extra dough that over hangs.
- With a fork prick holes all over the dough. This helps to release any trapped air in the dough and bake better.
- Preheat the oven at 180C for 10 minutes. Now place the tart dish in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
- Take out the tart dish. Add in the cooked vegetables and top up with the custard and cottage cheese.
- Now return to the oven and bake for 35 minutes or till the top begins to brown.
- Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
- Cut to pieces and serve warm or cold.
Makes : 1 8” pie and 2 small ones.
Serves : 10
Enjoy ! ! !
Chocolate Olive Oil Cake with Chocolate Buttermilk Frosting
The very
mention of a chocolate cake makes me go weak on my knees. Once I start seeing
recipes and the delicious photographs my mouth starts watering. But, then I control
myself. I am trying to lose some weight and get into a healthy lifestyle, how
am I supposed to do that if I start drooling over every recipe I see. And there
are millions of such recipes available at the click of the mouse. So I drool
and scold myself and move on.
Robin Sharma says, “The golden thread of a highly successful and meaningful life is self-discipline.” He calls the habit of self-discipline “tough love” because getting tough with your-self is a very loving gesture.
Then as I was practicing tough love I saw Chocolate Olive Oil Cake. This recipe is actually healthy to a certain extent. It has olive oil in it. The cake started appealing to my inner self, the one I am still trying to control and there went “tough love” out the window. I started reasoning, it was my niece’s first birthday, so what if she was hundreds of kilometers away, I had to celebrate. This is a healthy recipe; it has olive oil in it.
Then I saw the chocolate buttermilk frosting. It uses buttermilk and not cream and a 1st Birthday Cake without icing, how can that be.
Then I was in 7th heaven. Sifting, pouring, mixing, churning, lining and then the aroma of the baking cake filled the air with the smell of sweet chocolate. Then again began sifting, churning and icing, the cake was transformed into a beauty. The ultimate result was a brilliant cake, soft, dense and delicious. The frosting was just sweet enough for me and the whole impact was a marvelous creation.
I couldn’t stop at the first piece; I had two, guilty as charged. Now I am in the self-controlled tough love zone again. I am sending all the guilty love your way …
Chocolate Olive Oil Cake with Chocolate Buttermilk Frosting :-
Notes:
- The original recipe can be found at the link below. The original recipe uses whipped cream filling and a different icing. The original recipe is also thrice the quantity than what I have made.
- If you want to omit the frosting just add in ¼ cup sugar and reduce cocoa by 1 tbsp spoon or add ½ cup sugar and let the cocoa remain as it is. The choice is yours.
Adapted from: Diethood
All purpose flour 1 cup
Sugar ¾ cup
Cocoa 3 tbsp
Baking soda 1 tsp
Salt 1 tsp
Extra Virgin Olive oil ¼ cup
White vinegar ½ tbsp
Vanilla essence ½ tbsp
Cold water ¾ cup
- Preheat the oven at 180 C for 10 minutes. Grease and line a 7” diameter or 6”X6” baking dish.
- Mix flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder and salt in a bowl.
- Mix olive oil, white vinegar, vanilla essence and cold water in another bowl.
- Now mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix till they are well incorporated.
- Pour into prepared dish and bake for 25 – 30 minutes or till toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Let cool in baking dish for ½ hour and then invert and remove lining.
Chocolate Buttermilk
Frosting
Adapted from : Evilshenanigans
Notes:
- Use icing sugar for the frosting. I usually use home grinded sugar. If using home grinded sugar sieve the sugar through a very fine mesh 3 – 4 times to eliminate any traces of solid sugar. If this is not done the frosting will taste grainy and that does look or feel very good.
Chocolate 50 grams
Butter 4 tbsp
Vanilla essence ½ tsp
Cocoa 1/8 cup
Sugar ¾ - 1 cup
Buttermilk 1/8 cup
- Mix the chocolate and butter in a microwave safe container and reheat for 30 seconds.
- Take out and mix till well incorporated. Add in all the remaining ingredients except buttermilk and form a smooth paste.
- Add in butter milk little at a time to the required consistence.
- Cut the cake from the centre horizontally and set the upper half aside. Mix ½ tsp sugar in 2 tbsp of water and mix to dissolve. Sprinkle this mix on the lower base. This help to keep the cake moist.
- Spread some amount of the frosting and spread well. Put the upper half on the frosting and press lightly.
- Now top the upper half and sides with the remaining frosting and spread evenly. If you want to make any designs do that immediately. Once set the frosting won’t be playable.
- Fill the remaining frosting in a frosting bag and decorate according to your choice.
- Put in refrigerator to cool till ready to serve.
- When serving take out and leave outside for 5 minutes before cutting and serving. This gives the frosting time to come to room temperature and have a glossy and creamy texture.
- Enjoy with a cup of tea or as dessert after dinner or lunch.
Enjoy ! ! !
Iyengar Bakery Khara Biscuit - Indian Cooking Challenge - May 2011
The little bundle of Joy is 1 year old.
Kuhu and Koel.
Today is a special day. It is my niece Koel’s 1st birthday. It is further made special by the fact that from last year onwards 15th June has become a day of double celebrations. My brother & niece share their birthday. For the rest of their lives daddy and baby will celebrate this special day together. How adorable is that.
The 15th of every month is also the day of the ICC reveal. The ICC (Indian Cooking Challenge) is hosted by Srivalli of Spicing Your Life. This month’s challenge got me all excited because we were baking biscuits/cookies this month. My experiments began very early. The first batch I made was the exact recipe that Champa of Versatile Vegetarian Kitchen had given. My cookies in the first trial came out crisp and tasty. In the second round I substituted half of the all purpose flour with whole wheat flour and used oregano and paprika for the spices and honey as the sweetener. These cookies I rolled out a little thicker and they were soft and delicious. In the third round I used ¼ all purpose flour and ¾ whole wheat flour, used oregano and paprika and rolled the cookies really thin, cut them into long strips, sprinkled salt over them and baked them for just 5 minutes.
I am happiest with the third result. My first thought on tasting these cookies was how perfect they would be as starters with a salsa or chutney. Further I wanted to make healthy enough for daily consumption. The whole wheat flour complements the flavours perfectly and the curd is the magic ingredient in this recipe.
Overall, this was a great challenge and now I have a recipe that I will be using regularly. A huge thanks to Champa for introducing us to these delicious cookies and to Srivalli for all her efforts in making this challenge diverse and a learning experience every time.
Iyengar Bakery Khara Biscuit :
The Original Recipe -
All purpose flour 250 grams
Butter 5 tbsp
Sugar 4 tsp
Salt 1 tsp Green chilies 3 (chopped finely)
Corrinader/Cilantro 3 tbsp (chopped finely)
Yogurt 4 tbsp(start with 2 TBSP)
My Version -
All purpose flour 100 grams
Multi-grain flour 150 grams (I used Ashirwaad multi-grain flour)
Butter 5 tbsp (softened)
Sugar/Honey 4 tsp (powdered)
Salt 1 tsp
Oregano 2 tbsp
Paprika 1 tbsp
Salt for sprinkling (it would be better to use kosher salt but I used the normal variety)
Yogurt 4 tbsp (start with 2 tbsp)
- Preheat the oven at 160C for 10 minutes. Grease and line your baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a bowl whisk together all purpose flour, multi-grain flour, oregano, paprika and salt and set aside.
- In another bowl, beat the butter and sugar till creamy. This is best done with a whisk. Add 2 tbsp yogurt and continue to beat. The final texture will be nice and creamy. This mix can also be used as bread spread. It tastes quite yummy at this point so try not to lick it all up.
- Add in the dry ingredients in 4 parts mixing well before every addition. By the end of the 3rd addition the mix will be soft and the last addition will have to be done by hand. At this stage you can also add in 1 tbsp of curd. This will help form a soft dough.
- The dough at this point may be a little crumbly. I further added 1 tbsp of curd to make it soft and give it dough like consistency.
- Now roll the dough really thin and cut into whatever shape you like. Make small cuts on the cookies with the knife, this will help release trapped air while baking. You can also roll these a little thick if you want.
- If rolled thin just bake for 5 minutes. This gave me a few crisp and brown and a few soft and white cookies so adjust the timing according to your oven. If you roll the cookies thick just bake for 10 – 15 minutes. 10 minutes of baking gave me soft cookies and 15 minutes made them crisp. So do whatever you like.
- Enjoy these with a cup of hot tea or coffee or serve them with a salsa or chutney as a starter. Both ways these are really addictive and no one will be able to stop at one, so bake a huge batch and enjoy.
Enjoy ! ! !
Yellow Cake
I am all fresh and bright after a long vacation to Singapore and Kuala Lumpur with my family. The 10 day break was a good time to unwind, explore, shop and spend quality time with my parents and sister. We had the most amazing 4 days each in Singapore and KL and a detailed account of that soon follows. As I got back home, the Mumbai humidity got the better of me, but the urge to bake pushed me into the kitchen and out came a master piece. A simple yellow cake fetish reigns supreme.
Yes, I have a fetish for this yellow cake. The meaning of fetish as applicable here is “any idea (the recipe) that has, eliciting unquestioning reverence, respect, or devotion.” I feel a kind of devotion and respect towards this simple and yet very delicious recipe.
Found, hidden within the pages of a beautiful cookbook meant for a newbride who is setting up home, Better Homes and Gardens – New Cookbook – Bridal Edition, has it all. From descriptions of appliances and there use to helping understand different wines and the types of glasses needed for serving them. This book is any woman’s dream book. The recipes are delightful and the mains are all made for two. How romantic is that. To be cooking in a new kitchen, with all new utensils and gadgets for your sweetheart. This book has been in print for almost 75 years now and has been recently updated to include all the new recipes that are made today and with some easy to make dinner for a working couple. The introduction talks about something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue. The cover used to be a combination of red and blue initially but the present white looks more sophisticated and is also the bridal colour.
Enough, about the book. Now, about the cake. The recipe is simple and the cake comes out light and flavourful. It can be used as a base to a lemon, pineapple, vanilla or orange cake but is perfect on its own. Dress it up a little and it can be the queen of any party and will definitely make you some new friends and fans. Just give it a slight drizzle of powdered sugar and cut a piece with a cup of tea and enjoy the flavour melting on your palate.
Yellow Cake :
(From Better Homes & Gardens – New Cookbook – Bridal Edition)
Butter ¾ cup (softened)
Eggs 3
Flour 2 ½ cups
Baking powder 2 ½ tsp
Salt ½ tsp
Sugar 1 ¾ cup
Vanilla essence 1 ½ tsp
Milk 1 ¼ cup
- Preheat oven at 180°C for 10 minutes. Grease and line a 9” baking pan.
- Cream the butter and sugar till nice and fluffy.
- Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a container.
- Add in the eggs one at a time and beat in well.
- Now add the flour mix and milk alternately mixing well.
- Add in the flour in three portions and milk in two portions starting and ending with the flour.
- Add in the vanilla essence.
- Now bake for about 20 – 25 minutes or till a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Serve warm with tea or coffee or just snack on it when hunger strikes.
Enjoy ! ! !
Cornmeal Strawberry Muffins : Arusuvai Friendship Chain : Sesaon – II
The Arusuvai Friendship Chain was started on the 31st of October 2007 by Mrs. Latha Narasimhan of The ‘Yum’ Blog.
The word Arusuvai means six tastes (aru=six, suvai=taste) in Tamil and is used to refer to a tasty preparation with six tastes – inippu/ thithippu (sweet), orappu/ karam (hot), kassappu (bitter) , pulippu (sour), uppu(salt), tuvarpu (tastes that one gets in raw leaves).
The original post started with passing a secret ingredient to Bharathy of Spicy Chilly and Renuka of Fusion and the whole chain continued to rope in as many as 50 bloggers in the first round. Bharathy’s post describes in detail the number of participants that took up the friendship chain and the success stories they all created.
Then, started Season – II. With a green signal Sayantani of A Homemaker’s Diary again started this friendship chain. She first received a surprise ingredient from Bharathy and then passed it on. A surprise ingredient has now reached my kitchen.
I had been eager to join the chain but had been too late for the first round. Then as season – II came to its peak I could resist no longer. A few e-mails later I was welcome into the chain by Sayantani and was told that Jaysree of Experiments in Kailas Kitchen will soon be sending me a surprise ingredient. Then the next day I received an e-mail from Jaysree stating that the package was on its way. Excitement and suspense, it almost does kill. Then it arrived.
The secret ingredient for me was makka ke atta/cornmeal. Along with the ingredient came a hand written letter and a book of South Indian Recipes by Neeta Mehta. Jaysree had read about my pondy connection. I couldn’t have recieved a better gift.
It was rather coincidental that, that very same day I had see the recipe of Cornmeal Strawberry Muffins on Geni’s beautiful blog Sweet & Crumbly. The combination of strawberry with cornmeal was unique and different and had my hands itching. So in some time I was in the kitchen whisking up these beauties. The taste was amazing and as Geni correctly stated, a dab of honey butter makes it perfect.
Cornmeal
Strawberry Muffins:- From : Sweet
& Crumbly Muffin: Flour 1 cup
Cornmeal 1 cup (preferably stone-ground)
Sugar 1/3 cup
Baking powder 2 ½ tsp
Salt ½ tsp
Butter 6 tbsp, margarine or shortening, softened (cut to cubes)
Egg 1 (beaten)
Buttermilk 1 cup
Chopped strawberries 1 ½ cup (fresh or frozen)
Honey Butter:
Butter ¼ cup Honey 1 tbsp
Preheat
the oven at 180 C for 10 minutes. - Grease and line the muffin pan with muffin liners.
- In mixing bowl whisk together flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt. Gently rub the butter into the cornmeal mixture with your hands until it resembles coarse sand.
- Add
in the buttermilk and egg and mix until just incorporated.
- Dust
1 T. of flour over the chopped fruits and toss to coat in the flour.
- Add the chopped fruits into the batter and fold in carefully in with a rubber spatula.
- Now pour spoonfuls of batter into the muffin cups to about 2/3 full.
- Bake for about15-20 minutes or until the center springs back when pressed gently with your fingers.
- For the honey butter, soften the butter in the microwave for 10 seconds, add in the honey and mix to a smooth paste. Pat on the muffin and enjoy.
Makes : 12 -14 muffins.
Enjoy ! ! ! Right now there is no one
else in the chain. If you are interested then please go on to Sayantani’s Blog
and leave a comment. She will get back to you as soon as possible.
Fresh Fig Muffins
As the days start to get warmer, the markets are now flooded with new and very different varieties of fruits and vegetables. Spring has given way to summer quickly and an abundance of watermelons, musk melons, sapodillas, peaches and mangoes have taken over the market racks even so swiftly. In all this abundance of watery and juicy and fresh fruits a new and different fruit caught my attention this year. The small dark maroon exteriors were not very appealing but looked very similar to a dry fruit and that had me asking the vendor what it was? Prompt came the reply. Fresh Figs i.e. anjeer as many of us know it.
I have known anjeer as a dry fruit all my life and I must admit have never really liked the taste. Over all the frenzy of anjeer barfi’s and anjeer filled sweets, being usually treated as royalty I have stirred clear of these. “Thank you very much, can I get a rosogolla instead please?” spoken like a true bong, but whatever. They are way too sweet, are very heavy on the stomach and I don’t even want to start on the calories (the anjeer barfi’s have). Dry figs are a whooping 250 Kcal per 100 grams while fresh figs are 70 Kcal per 100 grams. Fresh figs rule.
Figs are a powerhouse of energy. They are filled with potassium, calcium, Vitamin A, C, E and dietary fibers. Fig leaves have been researched as having properties that reduce the risk of heart diseases and diabetes. Figs also help reduce the chances of breast cancer. Figs soaked in warm milk or water when consumed can help in treating insomnia and anxiety. Fresh figs mashed and applied to the skin help in cleansing and reduction of acne and pimples. This is a wonder fruit.
Figs are available in there dry form all year round but fresh figs are available for a very short period as the summer sets in. This is the very first time in my life that I have seen fresh figs.
Now, don’t mistake fresh figs to be anywhere close to the dried version we all are more used to.
A little vary and after a lot of insistence on the fruit vendor’s end I bought myself a bunch of fresh figs. Once home, a good wash to clean it well, I started peeling the first fig. Then I realised that these don’t need to be peeled. The skin is very thin and very soft and smooth. It feels like part of the fruit. I dug my teeth into the first one. There was an explosion in my mouth. The flavour was sweet, the feel was like biting into a ripe sapodilla and it had the crunch of a strawberry. The taste is unique. In a few minutes I was down 2 more figs. Each, sweeter and more flavourful than the last.
The next two or three bunches bought disappeared quickly. Then I wanted to do more. The first thing I could think of was muffins. The sweet fruit would be perfect in a bunch of breakfast muffins. A little exploring of my treasure trove aka World Wide Web gave me Fresh Fig Muffins made by Linda of A Tender Crumb. The muffins came out perfect and disappeared as quickly as the fresh fruit itself.
Fresh Fig Muffins
Flour 1 cup
Cinnamon powder ½ tsp
Baking soda ½ tsp
Salt ¼ tsp (if using unsalted butter)
Buttermilk ½ cup
Egg 1 large
Vanilla extract ½ tsp
Dark brown sugar ¾ cup
Unsalted butter 4 tbsp (room temperature)
Fresh figs 1 cup (chopped)
- Preheat the oven at 180 degree centigrade and oil and line a muffin tray.
- Mix the flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt in a bowl.
- In a second small bowl, mix buttermilk, egg, and vanilla.
- Using an electric mixer beat the butter and brown sugar until well combined.
- Now with the mixer on low speed, adding the dry and liquid ingredients alternately. Add in the dry ingredients in 3 portions and the wet ingredients in 2 portions starting with the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined.
- Now gently fold in the figs.
- Fill the muffin cups 3/4 full.
- Bake until the muffins are done about 25-30 minutes or when a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
- Let the muffins cool in the pan for 10 minutes before taking them out.
- Serve warm with tea or coffee or as a side snack for breakfast.
Makes : 12 muffins
Enjoy ! ! !
I am sending this recipe to Breakfast Mela that is being celebrated by Srivalli on her blog Cooking4allseasons as part of her blogs anniversary celebration. Wishing her a Happy Blog Anniversary and many more to come.
Mets la main à la pâté – Filled Meringue Coffee Cake – Daring Bakers Challenge March 2011
My first daring Bakers Challenge was hosted by Jamie of Life’s a Feast and Ria of Ria’s Collection. They have challenged all bakers to make the most exquisite Filled Meringue Coffee Cake. Light and fluffy with just a hint of a sweet filling these are perfect to be served with a hot cup of coffee.
I was excited and a bit hesitant when I saw what my challenge was, a yeasty coffee cake. I love coffee cakes but what really had me nervous was the use of yeast. Yeast and I do not share a very happy and healthy relationship. I almost always end up killing my yeast and obviously someone who know that I am a murderer of their family and friends wouldn’t like me either.
So a little scared and very excited I started with my first batch for the challenge. I killed my yeast. The dough was nowhere close to soft, smooth, sexy and elastic as Jamie and Ria had said it should be. It was all tight and broke off in pieces. With a heavy heart I set it to rise and as expected it was still the same after an hour. I rolled it out, filled it and baked it. The bread baked beautifully and even had a hollow sound when tapped but it was heavy and dense.
With more determination to set things right I started the next day on a fresh batch of dough. This time the mixing was done correctly and I was jumping with joy when I had a bundle of soft, smooth, sexy and elastic dough in my hand. My dough took twice the time to rise as against what was in the recipe but it did rise and baked like a dream.
This is a cake that I will make often. A perfect coffee cake.
Filled Meringue Coffee Cake : -
This recipe can easily be halved to make just one coffee cake.
Notes :
• The recipe originally said that the dough would double in 45 - 60 minutes. My dough was still the same at the end of the first hour and only doubled in the next 45 minutes. So the time of rising will vary. If you have smooth, soft, sexy and elastic dough, don’t lose heart and give a little more time.
• The meringue filling is very soft and you should place half of the unused filling in the refrigerator if you are in a warm climate. It rolls better when a little cold. Also fill and roll quickly otherwise it spills out.
• I also slit the strawberry cake after folding and in the 45 minute rising time the meringue and water from the strawberry spilled out. I would suggest that you raise the cake and make the slits right before putting it in the oven. This worked with the second cake and the difference is noticeable.
• If you are using fresh strawberries do add more sugar to make the strawberries taste better.
• This recipe takes a long time to make, so if you intend to have a slice with your evening tea or coffee I would suggest you start it in the morning.
For the yeast coffee cake dough:
Flour 4 cups
Sugar ¼ cup
Salt ¾ tsp (don’t use the salt if the your using salted butter)
Active dried yeast 2 ¼ tsp
Whole milk ¾ cup
Water ¼ cup
Unsalted butter ½ cup (room temperature)
Eggs 2 large (room temperature)
For the meringue:
3 large egg whites at room temperature
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ cup (110 g / 4 oz.) sugar
For the filling:
Chopped pecans or walnuts 1 cup
Granulated sugar 2 tbsp
Ground cinnamon ¼ tsp
Semisweet chocolate chips or coarsely chopped chocolate ½ cup
Peanut Butter 2-3 tbsp
Fresh strawberries 15 – 20(thinly sliced) or strawberry jam
Egg wash:
Egg 1(beaten)
Decoration:
Cocoa powder and/or confectioner’s sugar for dusting cakes (optional)
• In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 ½ cups of the flour, the sugar, salt and yeast.
• In a saucepan, combine the milk, water and butter and heat over medium heat until warm and the butter is just melted. Let it sit for 5 minutes.
• With an electric mixer on low speed, gradually add the warm liquid to the flour/yeast mixture, beating each time until well blended.
• Increase mixer speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes. Add the eggs and 1 cup flour slowly in 4 parts while beating. Now beat for 2 more minutes.
• Using a wooden spoon, stir in enough of the remaining flour to make dough that holds together.
• Turn out onto a floured surface and knead the dough using the remaining 1 ½ cups of flour for 8 to 10 minutes. It is not important to add in all the flour. I was left with almost half a cup.
• Knead the dough till it is soft, smooth, sexy and elastic, keeping the work surface floured and adding extra flour as needed.
• Place the dough in a lightly greased (vegetable oil) bowl, turning to coat all sides. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel and let rise until double in bulk, 45 minutes to 2 ½ hours. The rising time will depend on the type of yeast you use. My dough started rising after 1 hour and double in the next 45 minutes.
• For the filling combine the cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl. The chopped nuts, chocolate chips, strawberries, strawberry jam and peanut butter can be sprinkled on top.
• Once the dough has doubled, make the meringue filling. In a clean mixing bowl – in a plastic or metal bowl, so the egg whites adhere to the side (they slip on glass) beat the egg whites with the salt, first on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high and continue beating until foamy and opaque. Add the vanilla then start adding the ½ cup sugar, 1 tbsp at a time as you beat, until very stiff, glossy peaks form.
Assemble the Coffee Cakes:
• Line 2 baking/cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• Punch down the dough and divide in half. On a lightly floured surface, working one piece of the dough at a time (keep the other half of the dough wrapped in plastic), roll out the dough into a 20” x 10” rectangle. Spread half of the meringue evenly over the rectangle up to about 1/2-inch from the edges you intend to roll from and about 2” away from the side it will roll to. it is important to do this as when you start rolling the meringue and filling shift and cover the open portion.
• Sprinkle the filling of your choice evenly over the meringue
• Now, roll up the dough jellyroll style, from the long side. Pinch the seam closed to seal.
• Very carefully transfer the filled log to one of the lined cookie sheets, seam side down. Bring the ends of the log around and seal the ends together.
• Repeat the same with the second half.
• Cover the 2 coffee cakes with plastic wrap and allow them to rise again for 45 to 60 minutes.
• Using kitchen scissors or a sharp knife, make cuts along the outside edge at 1-inch intervals. Make them as shallow or as deep as desired.
• Preheat the oven to 180°C.
• Brush the tops of the coffee cakes with the egg wash.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes until risen and golden brown. The dough should sound hollow when tapped.
Makes : 2 coffee cakes.
Enjoy ! ! !
Celebrating Women's Day with Microwave Chocolate Butter Cookies
This International Women’s Day I was in no mood of jubilation and celebration. I had spent the weekend in a scowl and the Monday was no better. So as Tuesday dawned on me equally gray it made me think what I wanted to really celebrate. Woman empowerment? Independence? A right to make my own decisions? A good education that could help me to be financially independent? Have these really helped me in any way? Had I taken the advantage of all the so-called facilities that the world had provided? These are questions that are still unanswered…..
I wanted to celebrate the knowledge that I could survive this world even on the worst of days. I wanted to celebrate the people because of whom I have the confidence to say the sentence above. I want to celebrate the fortune of having supportive and encouraging parents, a sister who understands with me telling, a friend who even thought is thousands of miles away can still understand my pain. I don’t want to celebrate the boons of globalisation and cultural development. I want to celebrate the people who make me a better person. I want to celebrate people who accept me with my faults and short coming and love me with all their heart. I want to celebrate all those people who have been in my life and have given me great life lessons.
I go for Yoga classes; there we meditate for a while. When the mediation is on its last leg our instructor asks us to repeat certain words in our mind while she says them loudly. I want to repeat those words today of all days, “Today is a great day. I can achieve more than I think I can. I love myself. I love everyone around me. I am a good person. I am a confident person and no one can make me believe otherwise.”
With all these thoughts and many more I decide to make myself some goodies. Baking has always had a therapeutic effect on me. It helps me relax and shift my focus. The process of making the batter given me the feeling of creation and innovation and when the aroma of the food fill the home with it sweet presence it gives me a feeling of completion and closure.
Microwave Chocolate Butter Cookies :-
Notes :
• You can increase or decrease the quantity of cocoa according to preference. 4 tbsp will give a chocolaty flavour but 6 tbsp will become a bit bitter. I sometimes like it that way.
• This recipe does not require baking powder or baking soda.
Flour 2 cups
Sugar 1 ½ cups
Cocoa 4-6 tbsp
Butter ¾ cup
Oil ¼ cup
Vanilla essence
Coffee Powder 2 tsp
Milk 4 tbsp
Choco chips for decoration
• Preheat the microwave on convection made at 180 degree centigrade for 10 minutes.
• Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
• Mix all the wet ingredients except milk and pour them into the dry ingredients.
• After mixing a bit you will have it mix it by hand. The mix at this point will be crumbly.
• Now add 2 tbsp of milk and mix. The mix should come together to form a soft ball. If required add more milk.
• Now make small balls and press them with your hands. Make a small depression on the center and place a chocochip or any other decoration.
• Place the cookies on the turntable leaving a gap of 2” between cookies. Bake for 10-15 minutes.
• At 10 minutes the cookies will be chewy and at 15 minutes they will be crunchy with a chewy center.
These are very addictive. My batch did not last more than 3 days.
Makes : 35-40 cookies.
Enjoy ! ! !
Thai Coffee Cupcakes
Cupcakes are an all-time favorite for me. They come in fixed portions so you have no choice of cutting the slice thicker than it should be and then tell yourself that it’s just one slice (I do that more often than I care to acknowledge), they give you a correct count of the number of people you will be able to serve and the best part is that there is almost always some extra batter left for an extra cupcake or two.:-)
Very often you here a certain recipe being called a cupcake and others being called muffins. Now I, was wondering what the difference between these two are? Let’s start with the really funny one’s that I got of my treasure trove aka internet.
• If you threw a cupcake against the wall, you would hear something of a "poof!" If you threw a muffin, you would hear a "thud!"(Someone please try this and let me know!)
• A muffin does not look good in jeans but cupcakes do! (I am not good at understanding second meaning, please explain)
Well couldn’t really find any more of the funny ones. So here is what I think sets them apart.
• A muffin is usually made as an accompaniment with breakfast or coffee, so it is not very sweet. A cupcake on the other hand is a small cake; it is sweet and not essentially served as part of breakfast.
• A muffin is larger than a cupcake. In almost all recipes you will be asked to fill a cupcake half way full but a muffin can be filled to ¾ the muffin dish.
• A muffin can incorporate fruits, nuts, sausages etc, it doesn’t usually have a frosting. A cupcake usually focuses more on the flavour, like a lemon cupcake which will have lemon juice and zest and a frosting.
• A muffin can incorporate different flours, whole wheat, oats, wheat bran etc. A cupcake usually uses all purpose flour or cake flour.
• A cupcake has a lighter texture but a muffin is usually denser.
• Making a muffin is usually simpler and you can just throw in all the ingredients and just beat it up. A cupcake asks for a particular procedure to be followed and usually also demands a frosting.
Well those are the differences that I find. That said I usually don’t frost my cupcakes, reduce the quantity of the sugar as I don’t like them too sweet and sometimes do thrown in everything in a bowl and mix it up. So it is really not that different if you’re not that particular. I’m not, that’s probably why I use the name interchangeably and I still have to frost my first cupcake. I usually prefer spreading so choco-chips, sprinkles or silver balls to make them look pretty. Isn’t that why they have a better status than a poor muffin? They look more appealing.
Well here is a cupcake decorated pretty with some silver balls and they taste amazing so I personally don’t think they need any frosting. But if your very keen to frost them a cream cheese frosting will be perfect for this pretty cupcake.
Thai Coffee Cupcakes:-
Taken from : Cup Cake Bakeshop by Chockylit
Cheryl’s website will give you a complete high if you’re a cupcake addict. if you’re a fan you’ll love it to. So go and explore her wonderful world of cupcakes.
Notes:
• A cup here means any cup. Just choose one and measure all other ingredients that ask for a cup in this recipe. This is a general rule that can be applied anywhere. It is the proportion of the ingredients that need to be maintained.
• If you are using butter that is salted, omit the salt.
• If you don’t have Thai coffee my next recommendation would be strong south Indian filter coffee and if not that strong instant coffee. The taste of the cupcakes will change according to the coffee used. As you can see I have substituted Vietnamese coffee with Thai.
Butter (room temperature) 1 cup
Sugar 2 cups
Eggs (room temperature) 4 large
Flour 2 ¾ cups
Baking powder 1 ½ tsp
Salt a pinch
Thai coffee, strong brew ¾ cup
Milk ¼ cup
Coffee powder 1 tsp
Silver balls to decorate
• Preheat the oven at 180 degrees centigrade for 10 minutes. Line the cupcake dish with liner or oil it well.
• Beat the butter until soft and fluffy about 30 seconds – 1 minute.
• Add in the sugar and beat for about 3 minutes.
• Add the eggs one at a time and beat in well.
• Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl. Also mix the thai coffee and milk.
• Now mix in the flour and coffee mix alternatively and incorporate well.
• Add in the coffee powder and mix well.
• Scoop in the mix to about ¾ full. This is done as the cupcakes will shrink a bit after cooling. Sprinkle with silver balls if not frosting.
• Bake for about 20-25 minutes or till a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Makes : 24-30 cupcakes.
Enjoy ! ! !
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