Date Cookies

I got a big batch of dates recently and the first thing that I wanted to try was a cookie that can be sweetened with dates alone😀
So I have come up with this recipe..the results  might vary depending on the dates used. Anyway my cookies came out firm but not crisp. I added a tablespoon of quick cooking oats too.

Ingredients
130g pitted dates
120g unsalted butter room temperature
A pinch of salt
1/4  teaspoon cinnamon powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour

Make the dates into a paste.(I used soft dates blitzed in a processor so did not need to soak or cook.) Add the butter and beat well. Add the salt and vanilla. Mix well. Fold in one cup of flour first..followed by another half cup..try to bring the dough together without kneading.  It shouldn't be sticky but soft. The entire 2 cups may not be used. Cover with a cling film and allow to rest for 30 mins.
Preheat the oven to 175deg C with both rods on.
Roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thick sheet and cut out the cookies with a cutter.
Lift them with a flat utensil as they might break . I used a spatula. Arrange on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for **20 mins. Flip the cookies after 10 mins. They are a bit soft when out of the oven.
Cool them down..and enjoy.

Notes:
* I added a tablespoon of quick cooking oats to the first cup of flour. Not necessary if you don't like.
* I also added about 6 almonds when I made the date paste. It is also optional.
** PLEASE don't follow baking time in any recipe blindly. You need to know your oven, because what works in my oven may not work for you.
If you already use certain settings for cookies follow that. Keep an eye on the result when you are following a new recipe. The cookies get a toasted look..a bit darker than the unbaked one.
If you don't know your oven settings, try as I have mentioned and keep an eye on it after 10 minutes.
Happy Baking 😀

Condensed Milk Chocolate Cake

I had half a tin of ordinary sweetened condensed milk leftover from a dessert and wanted to try a cake with it.. This recipe from Nestle desserts is indeed a keeper for those times when you want something light..fast..and easy. This recipe has no eggs..and no creaming.. just mix all the ingredients in a bowl..and you are ready to bake.

This is the crumb of this cake..firm but very soft. Not too sweet..there is no added sugar apart from the condensed milk.
Made half of the original recipe in a loaf tin.
http://www.nestle-family.com/recipes/english/light-chocolate-cake_43166.aspx

Ingredients

• 1 tin sweetened condensed milk or 405 g
• 100 g butter, melted
• 150 ml water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence or 5 g
• 200 g plain flour
• ½ cup cocoa powder or 50 g
• 2 teaspoons baking powder or 10 g
• 1 teaspoon baking soda or 5 g

Combine the Sweetened Condensed Milk, melted butter, water and vanilla essence in a large bowl. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda. Stir the dry ingredients into the condensed milk mixture until just combined.
Pour the mixture into a lined 23cm spring form cake tin. Bake in a preheated 150°C oven for 45 minutes or until a cake skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes then remove from tin and cool completely.

Pinwheel cookies again

 Made these cookies again.. completely with all purpose flour. They do take a bit of time..rolling..freezing and slicing..:) but pretty enough to make it worthy of a festive bake. This time I have made a video of how I sliced and shaped it up..

Recipe is same as the earlier one..but with APF...

 

Slicing the log

                                                      
                                                            Arrange it on a baking sheet..

                                                                   Bake until done.

 

Almond Cardamom Cookies

 Remembering the flavour and texture of the soft biscuits which were immensely enjoyed during my childhood days, I tried to mix up ..substitute..and finally tailor the nankhatai recipe to this one..
I have almost managed, I believe, to recapture the essence of those lovely bakery cookies.. :)
Don't think they might have added the gram flour.. but I feel it gives a nice nutty warmth to the cookie.  

Ingredients
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
2 tblsp cornflour
2 tblsp gram flour
a pinch of Salt
1/4 cup whole almonds
1/2 cup ghee
1/2 cup powdered sugar,
6 cardamom pods powdered


Powder the almonds with a tblsp of cornflour. Mix all the dry ingredients except sugar in a bowl.
Take ghee and powdered sugar in another bowl and beat well.

                                                              Add dry ingredients.

                                    Mix well and bring the dough together using your hand.
                                                                       Do not knead.
                                       Rest the dough in a cling film wrap for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven (both heating rods ) to 350 degree Fahrenheit (180 degree Centigrade) for at least 10 minutes. Divide dough into 15-18 equal portions and make round shaped balls from it. Line a baking paper over the baking tray. Take each ball and press a little between your palms to flatten and place it over baking tray. Keep enough space between each cookie because it will expand in size during baking.
Bake for about 20 mins.. or till light golden.. keep an eye on it after 15 mins.
Remove the tray from the oven and cool on a wire rack and enjoy...:)
(Cookies will be soft at this stage but they will harden as they cool down.)

Pinwheel Cookies

There is something cute in an alternating spiral of chocolate and vanilla that draws us to these festive, self decorated biscuits... Pinwheel cookies... the goodness of chocolate and vanilla in one bite...:)

Ingredients

For cocoa paste
3 tblsp cocoa
a tablespoon of sugar
3 tblsp hot milk
a dab of butter

For dough
160g butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp of vanilla extract
2.5 cups of APF(maida)
1/4 tsp salt.

Make a COCOA paste* of 3 tblsp cocoa, a tablespoon of sugar, 3 tblsp hot milk and a dab of butter .Keep aside covered.

For the cookie dough ......Beat 160g butter with 3/4cup granulated sugar till light and add an egg and a tsp of vanilla extract and beat again.

Mix 2.5 cups of APF(maida) and 1/4tsp salt... (I used 2 cups of atta and rest APF) then add to the butter mix to combine and form a dough. Halve the dough equally and add one half to the COCOA paste* and mix well.

Roll them out in between 2 sheets of baking paper

 Refrigerate or freeze till firm.. and place the cocoa dough on the vanilla one.

Trim the sides and allow it to soften a bit. .lift one end of the sheet and bend over a little

Press firmly.Continue rolling by lifting the paper gently. . You might need to run your palm over as you roll to warm the dough and smoothen.

Freeze the log till firm.

Preheat oven to 175°C . Take the log out and cut into 1/4inch thick rounds..Arrange on a baking tray lined with baking paper. . Allow to come to room temp. And bake for about 10-12 mins

The base will be a bit brown.. leave them on the tray to cool completely. .

                                                                           Enjoy!!! :)

Falafel recipe

Here is the recipe for those patties I posted last week...
I have added a teaspoon of chilli flakes to make it spicy. My friend had said.. spice and salt according to taste.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dried chickpeas
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 green chilli chopped
• 1 teaspoon red chilli flakes 
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon coriander leaves/ cilantro, chopped
• 1 tablespoon grated carrot (if you like)
• 2 tablespoons flour or more if needed
• a pinch of baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt or more
• oil for frying

Rinse chickpeas in a bowl and allow to soak overnight.
Drain the chickpeas and set aside.
In a pan, over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons oil and saute onion and green chilli for 2 to 3 minutes then add garlic and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes.
In a food processor, pulse together chick peas, red chili flakes and ground cumin and coriander to form a coarse consistency. Add water only if necessary, as little as possible. Then add flour, salt, and cilantro. Pulse until mixture starts pulling from the sides of the food processor.
Remove mixture to a large bowl and mix in the onion mixture and grated carrot. Chill falafel mix until ready to cook.
Before forming the mix into balls, check and add more salt or pepper if needed. Now mix in the baking powder as evenly as possible.
Heat the oil needed for frying.
Roll the dough into balls, slightly flatten them and deep fry until browned, turning as needed.
Drain on paper towels and serve hot with yoghurt dip or use it as a filling in pita bread.
snack, starter ,easy

Coffee Cake

That is my coffee flavoured cake made with custard powder..as I said I would be trying... a variation of the plain Custard powder Cake. I added an egg after creaming the butter and sugar and what I got is a super-moist cake...which was delicious. The only snag is that I used only the original quantity of sugar mentioned in the earlier recipe and so it was less sweet than usual but nevertheless delicious. I think it would be wonderful to layer it with vanilla buttercream after soaking it with some orange juice and finally topping with chocolate ganache... :) A perfect dessert...try it.

Coffee Cake

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup vanilla flavoured custard powder
• 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1-2 tsp cocoa powder 
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar ( you can add 1-2 tablespoons more if you want to)
• 1  tsp vanilla extract
• 150 gm butter, at room temperature
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup strong coffee

This recipe makes one 9” cake or 8 to 10 servings.

• Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F). Grease a 9" cake tin with butter and line the base with wax paper.

• Put the dry ingredients except sugar in a bowl. Use a wooden spoon and mix well.

• Beat the butter until light in a large bowl and then add the sugar and beat well until fluffy.Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat again. 

• Now combine the milk with coffee. 

• Add the dry ingredients to the butter mix (in 3 batches) alternating with the coffee-milk mixture(in two batches).

• Pour the batter into the cake tin and bake at 180C (350F) for about 45 minutes to an hour or till the cake is done and a skewer poked into the cake comes out clean. Sometimes, depending upon your cake tin and the oven, this cake might take about an hour to cook especially in the middle.
• Cool on a rack and serve.

snack

Falafel

Yesterday, a Sudanese friend of mine gave me this mix...and she told to add salt and pepper to my taste, a pinch of baking powder and deep fry it after making into small flattened balls.... and here is what I got... the famous Middle eastern dish, Falafel.
I haven't eaten Falafel before and on tasting it I thought of likening it to an Arab version of the South Indian Dal Vada. They are very nutritious and can be used as a starter or snack or as a filling in sandwich wrap.  

Anyway.........these deep fried patties were delicious (thanks to her for introducing me to this new dish) and I intend to learn how to make the mix. I know it is made with chick peas, onion, etc... but.. I'll post the recipe after I get it from her.. :)

Chocolate Wafer Cookies

My 5-year old is a chocolate fan....(and so am I).. So he asks me (every time I say I'm going to cook something special) ..Is it chocolate **** or chocolate ****.????.. :) it is always something that starts with chocolate. What can you do..:) when your own heart is singing the same song......but to yield to the whims of a young chocolate lover. This time I made him some chocolate cookies, the recipe from joyofbaking.com, which was very easy. I got a lovely chocolate flavoured biscuit,  after eating which I decided to say goodbye to my favorite Bourbon biscuits... It is a 'must try' for all the chocolate freaks who would like to try their hand at baking a cookie...(it is very easy) So here it is....

                   Chocolate Wafer Cookies

•  1 cup (130 grams) all purpose flour

• 1/2 cup (50 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder (regular or Dutch-processed) *I used just 1/4 cup cocoa and added additional 1/4 cup of flour*
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
•  6 tablespoons (90 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2/3 cup (140 grams) packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup (100 grams) white granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 large (30 grams) egg white

In a bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter until light. Add the sugars and vanilla extract and beat on high speed for about one minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat in the egg white. Add the flour mixture and beat just until incorporated.

Place the dough on your counter and, using your hands, evenly form the dough into a log shape that is about 9 inches (23 cm) long. Carefully wrap the dough in parchment paper or wax paper and fold or twist the ends. Try not to flatten the log. Refrigerate until firm. This will take several hours or you can even chill it overnight.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place the oven rack in the center of the oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Using a sharp knife, slice the log into about 1/4 inch (6 mm) thick wafers. Place the wafers on the baking sheet spacing, about 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart. Bake for approximately 10 - 12 minutes or until the the cookies puff and the tops of the cookies have cracks (ripples). Remove from oven and let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Can be stored in an airtight container, at room temperature, for about 10 days. They can also be frozen.

My cookies were cut using different cutters at my son's insistence.... :) 

In the picture below are some cookies I made by adding some crushed cashew nuts to a little dough. They are not crisp but chewy as the contain nuts. 

The cookies with nuts

snack

Custard Powder Cake

What would you do if a very dear friend gets transferred...... to some place miles and miles away... and you miss them so badly....
:) I usually have a habit of baking something to push away the gloom..(believing that the process of creating something takes my mind off the subject...:) Anyway...I decided to bake a cake (with some custard powder she had given me) and after searching the net for a recipe, I came across this one ..(and several others which were almost similar)... All recipes were eggless ones, very easy to make as you just mix all the ingredients together..no creaming, folding, etc...
The cake came out pretty well..not too sweet, rose well considering the fact that it contains no eggs..you can call it an eggless yellow cake. It can be layered with jam or some preserves and frosted with buttercream and made into a special dessert.
I think I'll try variations of this..maybe with an egg or some coffee flavour and let you know. Now I am posting this recipe which I picked from https://www.mydiversekitchen.com/recipe/egg-free-custard-powder-snack-cake-recipe  ...

 

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup vanilla flavoured custard powder
• 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1  tsp vanilla extract
• 150 gm butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup milk

This recipe makes one 8” cake or 8 to 10 servings.

1. Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F). Grease an 8" cake tin with butter and line the base with wax paper.
   Put all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Use a wooden spoon and mix well.
2. Add the milk and the butter and beat with the spoon until you get a smooth batter.
3. Pour the batter into the cake tin and bake at 180C (350F) for about 45 minutes to an hour or till the cake is done and a skewer poked into the cake comes out clean. Sometimes, depending upon your cake tin and the oven, this cake might take about an hour to cook especially in the middle.
4. Cool on a rack and serve.snack