Hot Milk Sponge Cake 2

 

This is a very light and airy cake..most probably due to the eggs beaten to fluffy ribbons. It's a recipe from taste of home . But I have cut down on the sugar because I felt that it was too sweet the first time I made it.

Ingredients 

4 large eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract 

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour 

2 1/4 tsp baking powder 

1 1/4 cups full fat milk

140gm unsalted butter 

1/4 tsp salt

Prepare a 9inch cake tin by lining with parchment paper followed by greasing with butter. 

Heat the oven to 175 degree C.

Melt the butter in the milk. No need to boil, just hot.

Beat the eggs and sugar with vanilla on high speed until the mixture falls in ribbons from the beaters.

Sift the dry ingredients. Add to the egg mix in 3 parts mixing on low speed after each addition.  

Finally add the milk mix to it and mix well until smooth. The entire batter will be warm to touch. 

Pour in to pan and bake until done.. for me 1 hr and 10 mins.

Cool and serve. 

Coffee Ermine Buttercream / Cooked buttercream

    This is a coffee flavoured buttercream adapted from https://gfpatisserie.com/recipes/ermine-buttercream#/
      It is perfect for those who love coffee and a not too sweet buttercream. A cooked flour pudding is added to well beaten butter and again beaten to give a very smooth frosting.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons instant coffee
1 cup granulated sugar (can reduce up to 2 tablespoons if needed)
4 tablespoons all purpose flour
A pinch of salt
1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup unsalted butter

Combine the dry ingredients in a thick bottomed  pan. Slowly add the milk to bring the mix to a smooth consistency. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil stirring continuously to avoid it from sticking to the bottom. The pudding should thicken like the picture given below.

Take it off the heat and stir for some more time. Let the pudding cool completely (will become like thick glue) and mix in the vanilla.

Take the cold butter and cube it in the bowl of your mixer. Wait until it has softened a little..maybe 15 mins depending on the climate. You don't want it going all soft and spreading. It should be firm. Start beating the butter on medium speed till the colour has become very light. 

Add the cooled pudding a spoon at a time and beat well till it has combined into a smooth and fluffy cream.

 This can fill and coat a 3 layer 8 inch cake.

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 😀

Whole wheat Garlic rolls

These are made using the same recipe as the previous rolls...but the all purpose flour is substituted with whole wheat flour. They are best served when warm and fresh.

Ingredients

Dough:
3 1/2 to 4 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup  warm milk
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup soft butter
1 egg
2 teaspoons instant yeast
(some cheese if you want filling)

Garlic butter:
50 g butter
garlic cloves 2
1 tblsp chopped herbs..parsley
salt

Combine milk, sugar, and butter in a bowl. Sprinkle yeast and set aside.
Mix 2 cups of flour and salt in a large mixing bowl; add egg and stir well. Gradually add the warm liquid mixture, beating with your hand or an electric mixer at low speed for 2 to 3 minutes. Let the mix come together.
Add another cup of flour and work the dough at medium speed for 10 to 15 minutes. Gradually add, (in halves and quarter cups.)the rest of the flour if needed, to make a soft elastic dough.. you can test the dough by taking a small ball and pulling it and stretching till you get a translucent unbroken membrane. This dough will not stretch as much as the one made with APF.(do not add a lot of flour..only till the dough starts pulling from the sides and is not sticky to touch.)
Turn the dough inside out and with the seam side down, put the dough in a large bowl coated with oil. Coat the dough also with a little oil. Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap.Keep it in a warm place undisturbed and free from drafts.
Let the dough rise and double in size.(maybe 1 hour or more depending on the weather)
After it has doubled, punch down and divide into 16 equal balls and place them in a buttered tin. (this time I have added a bit of cheese as filling )
Cover loosely with a plastic wrap and let it rest for another 20 to 30 minutes until doubled.
Meanwhile preheat the oven..both heating rods on.. at 180 deg Celsius.
Prepare the garlic butter by grating one or two cloves of garlic and slightly warming the butter till melted. add a pinch of salt to taste with the chopped herbs.
Bake for about 20 minutes ..or until the top is slightly browned.
Remove from the oven and brush liberally with the butter and toast again until golden brown.
Serve hot.

Garlic Rolls

These garlic rolls are a variation of the cinnamon rolls I used to make...just reduced the sugar and butter. They are pillowy soft when they come out of the oven..and taste best when served hot and fresh.

Ingredients

Dough:
3 1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup  warm milk
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup soft butter
1 egg
2 teaspoons instant yeast

Garlic butter:
50 g butter
garlic cloves 2
salt


Combine milk, sugar, and butter in a bowl. Sprinkle yeast and set aside.
Mix 2 cups of flour and salt in a large mixing bowl; add egg and stir well. Gradually add the warm liquid mixture, beating with your hand or an electric mixer at low speed for 2 to 3 minutes. Let the mix come together. 

Add another cup of flour and work the dough at medium speed for 10 to 15 minutes. Gradually add, (in halves and quarter cups.)the rest of the all- purpose flour if needed, to make a soft elastic dough.. you can test the dough by taking a small ball and pulling it and stretching till you get a translucent unbroken membrane.(do not add a lot of flour..only till the dough starts pulling from the sides and is not sticky to touch.)

Turn the dough inside out and with the seam side down, put the dough in a large bowl coated with oil. Coat the dough also with a little oil. Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap.Keep it in a warm place undisturbed and free from drafts.
Let the dough rise and double in size.(maybe 1 hour or more depending on the weather)
After it has doubled, punch down and divide into 16 equal balls and place them in a buttered tin. Cover loosely with a plastic wrap and let it rest for another 20 to 30 minutes until doubled.
Meanwhile preheat the oven..both heating rods on.. at 180 deg Celsius.
Prepare the garlic butter by grating one or two cloves of garlic and slightly warming the butter till melted. add a pinch of salt to taste.
Bake for about 20 minutes ..until the top is slightly browned.
Remove from the oven and brush liberally with the butter and toast again until golden brown.
Serve hot.

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.)

Cream Cheese Pound Cake

A firm moist cake..tasted like a sponge cake... and a bit sweet with this recipe found all over the web under cream cheese pound cake.. :) I will lower the sugar by half cup next time*.
Edit
*By day 2 the sweetness has reduced and the cake has mellowed...perhaps owing to the cheese in it..
So I guess I will reduce only 1/4 cup of sugar next time.. :)

The following recipe is adapted from http://www.marthastewart.com/349993/cream-cheese-pound-cake

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour ( as some recipes called for cake flour, just to experiment, I have replaced 2 tablespoons per cup of flour with corn starch and sifted well)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon  salt
• 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1 package (8 ounces) Philadelphia brand cream cheese
• 3 cups sugar
• 6 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract                                                                                                   

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease two 7 inch pans with cooking spray/ butter.
2. In a medium bowl sieve/ whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
3. Combine butter and cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugar, increase the speed to high, and beat until light and airy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the vanilla. Gradually add flour mixture. Beat just until incorporated.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared pans. Bake until the cake is golden brown and a cake tester inserted in the cakes comes out clean, but with a few moist crumbs still attached, about 90 minutes in my oven...keep an eye on it after 50 minutes.
5. Place the pans on a cooling rack and cool for 20 minutes, then remove the cakes from the pans and let cool completely. Serve at room temperature.
   
   Notes:
    With the addition of corn starch, the cake is lighter than the one I had made with APF.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Chocolate Soufflé

Chocolate soufflé experiment with leftover ganache. . :D,, I did not coat the soufflé dish this time. . And it took 30 mins to bake!! .. :)
Anyway the end product was lovely. .airy. .and chocolatey. .

I had about 150 ml chocolate ganache left. . (Which was made initially with 200g dark chocolate, 100g milk chocolate and 250ml heavy cream, a tablespoon of butter and vanilla essence) Link to method of preparation here .
Stirred a yolk into this.
Whipped up 3 egg whites to soft peaks with 3 teaspoons of sugar and folded into the chocolate mix in 3 batches. .
Filled in 3 ramekins above half level.
Baked in a pre heated oven at 170 degree C, Bake until the center is not wet and the souffle has risen above the dish.
Took 30 minutes for me..

 

After 20 mins

 

 

Extremely Chocolatey Butter Cake

I had to give the title of 'extremely chocolatey' because that is exactly how it is..:) A very firm cake.. but soft crumbed.. It was like eating a blown up chocolate.. :).. and needless to say, well loved by kids. The recipe is an adapted one. The 3/4 cup cocoa is a lot.. and I'm thinking of reducing it to 1/2 cup next time... :)

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup APF
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt
3/4 cup cocoa
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
115 g unsalted butter
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk

Prepare a 9 inch baking tin. Preheat the oven to 170deg C.
Sift the dry ingredients except sugar in a bowl.
Cream the butter and sugar. Add the egg and vanilla and beat well.
Add the buttermilk alternating with the flour mix.. Do not overmix.
Scrape into the pan and bake for about 50 mins or until done. I took 80 mins because my tin was smaller..
Unmold the cake and allow it to cool and enjoy it the next day.. :)

Nankhatai / Indian Butter Cookies

My Nankhatai are done. . :)
Tastes like mysore pak cookies. .as I added besan.. After all there is no fun in making a plain butter cookie with ghee .. so the gram flour. :P.. Have given a close up of the crumb. . :) a nice crunchy texture. . Tried Vanilla flavoured.. next time will give it cardamom. .:)

Ingredients
1 cup Maida (all purpose flour)
1/4 cup gram flour
a pinch of Baking Soda
a pinch of Salt
1/2 cup ghee
1/2 cup Sugar, powdered
1 tsp vanilla extract

Sieve 1 cup maida in a bowl, add gram flour, baking soda and a pinch of salt.Mix them with a spoon.
Take ghee and powdered sugar in another bowl and beat them. Add vanilla.
Add sieved dry ingredients.Mix well and make a dough using hand. Do not knead much.
Rest the dough in a cling film wrap.
Preheat oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit (180 degree Centigrade) for at least 10 minutes. Divide dough into 12-15 equal portions and make round shaped balls from it. Line an aluminum foil over baking tray. Take each ball and press a little between your palms to flatten and place it over baking tray. If you want, you can make a criss-cross cut using a knife over top surface of each cookie. Top each one with a little bit of finely chopped pistachio or any nuts of your choice and press gently with your finger. 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 baking tray from oven. Cookies will be soft at this stage but they will turn crispy and hard as they cooldown. Cool on a wire rack and enjoy...:)

Egg Free Vanilla Cake with Bananas

Having lots of over ripe bananas at hand, the first thing that came to my mind was to try an egg substitution with banana. Decided on my plain vanilla cake recipe and here is the result.. A super moist and tender crumbed cake..which could be the perfect base for an eggless christmas fruit cake..some spices and nuts can change the whole story.. :D.. must try it sometime later.. :)

Ingredients:
     1 1/2 cups (195 g) all purpose flour
     2 tsp baking powder
     1/4 tsp salt
     1 cup  [granulated white sugar + brown sugar (can take half and half or use just one type) ]
     100 g unsalted butter at room temperature
     1 tsp vanilla extract
     3/4 cup banana puree/mashed
     1/2 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in the center of the oven. Butter (or spray with a non stick vegetable spray) a 9 inch (23 cm)  cake pan with three inch (7.5 cm) sides.

In a large bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter and then add sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then beat in the vanilla extract. Add the banana puree beating well after the addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the flour mixture (in three additions), alternately with the milk (in two additions), ending with the dry ingredients.
Pour the batter into the cake pan, smoothing the top. Bake in preheated oven for about 35-40 minutes (the time varies with different ovens) or until the top of the cake has browned and starts to pull away from the sides of the pan (a toothpick inserted into the cake will come out clean). Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edge of the pan and then ease the cake onto your serving plate.

Makes one - 9 inch (23 cm) cake. Serves 6 to 8.

Tiramisu

A delightful italian dessert... I have made it several times with eggs.. but not being a great lover of the yolk flavour.. decided to give it a go without the zabaglione. The pudding has set like a cake good enough to slice.. :)

Ingredients

36 ladys finger biscuits
100 g chocolate

Soaking mix:
300 ml boiling water
2 tblsp instant coffee granules
6 heaped teaspoons of sugar
1 tblsp vanilla extract
3 tblsp baileys Irish cream

Cheese filling:
2 cups heavy whipping cream
10-12 tsp sugar
500 g cream cheese
1 tblsp vanilla extract
3 tblsp baileys irish cream

Prepare the coffee soaking syrup by dissolving the coffee granules and sugar in boiling water. Cool and add vanilla and irish cream.

Beat the cream cheese with half the sugar and irish cream.

Whip the cream with sugar and vanilla till soft peaks form.

Fold 1/3rd of the cream into the cheese mix to lighten. Then the rest in two batches folding in gently each time.

Refrigerate until use.
Prepare a 10 inch springform pan lined with cling film. (it will help in the easy removal of the ring.)

Dip the biscuits in the coffee syrup one by one and arrange at the bottom.(just dip..  Do not drench)

Spread half the cheese mix over the biscuit layer.

Grate some chocolate over it.

Layer the biscuits dipped in the coffee syrup again.

Spread the cheese mix over it... decorate with more grated chocolate. Refrigerate for atleast 6 hours. Remove the ring and cling film gently.

Serve cold... and enjoy!!