Apple Pie

On a day when I had lot of time on hand, I set myself up for a herculean task - making a Pie from scratch. An Apple Pie is an American favorite and makes an appearance on special occasions everywhere in US. The crust of the Pie baked perfectly, the stuffing was delicious and it was certainly a dessert suited for the kings. I am incredibly proud of this giant stuffed-to-seams pastry! :)

I used Granny Smith Apples, the light green hued apples are apt for Pie cooking, have a good crunch and bite, and can withstand higher temperatures of baking without losing their shape and form. I played around with the stuffing and added powdered Oats for a crumbly texture. A slice of Pie and a scoop of Vanilla ice-cream is a delicious marriage. I put good 2-3 hours aside from my schedule when I was preparing the Pie. This Pie is a cool way to enjoy cooked fruits with pastry and is a relished labor of love!

~ Apple Pie ~
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 60 minutes + 10 minutes
Recipe adapted from Joy of Baking with few changes
Yield: 9" Pie

Ingredients:

Basic Pie Crust -
All Purpose Flour - 2 and 1/2 cups
White Sugar (powdered) - 2 tablespoon
Butter (unsalted) - 1 cup, chilled and cut into tiny cubes
Salt - 1 tsp
Ice water - 1/4 to 1/2 cup

Apple Filling -
Apples (Granny Smith variety - Peeled, cored and sliced) - 4
Oats (Old fashioned Oats, coarsely ground) - 1/2 cup
White Sugar (powdered) - 1/4 cup
Light Brown Sugar (powdered) - 1/4 cup
Golden Rum - 2 tbsp
Cinnamon (ground) - 1 tsp
Nutmeg - 1/5 tsp
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Cornstarch - 1 tbsp
Lime juice - 1 tsp
Butter (unsalted) - 1 tbsp

Contraption:
Pastry Blender
Pie Dish - 9" wide

Method:
Pie Crust - In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt. With the help of pastry blender, cut the cold butter into tiny chunks and blend in the dough. Slowly, add ice water part by part and bring the dough together. Do not overwork the dough, just mix in to form a ball, wrap in a plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Apple Filling - Mix the apples, lime juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, rum and sugar and leave aside for 30-45 minutes. Strain the juice oozing out and boil it on low to medium flame with unsalted butter till it reduces to 1/3 of the original proportion. The resultant syrup will be sticky, caramelized and concentrated. Mix the drained apples with cornstarch. Add the cooked syrup and ground Oats now and give a gentle toss. Stuffing is now ready.

Baking the Apple Pie - Preheat the oven at 425 degrees F. Remove the dough from the fridge and divide into 2 equal portions. Roll out 1 portion to fit into a 9" pie dish. Add the stuffing into the pie dish and roll out the second portion and cover the Pie. Crimp the edges to seal the pastry, make four 2" slits from the center of the Pie (as shown in the picture) and refrigerate for about 5 minutes. Bake at 425 degrees F, cover the edges of the Pie with foil to prevent burning. Bake till the toothpick runs out smoothly from the slit after 55-60 minutes and the juices bubble away through the slits. Transfer to a cooling rack and leave undisturbed for 4-5 hours. Serve with a scoop of Vanilla ice-cream warm or cold. Finish within 3-4 days and refrigerate after day 1 of baking.

Oatmeal Jam Filled Cookies

I adore Jam filled Cookies. They are reminiscent of Jim-Jam Tea Biscuits Ma would get for us from a nearby city bakery. Since they were not easily available, we would eagerly await for Ma to travel for her social visits and engagements. The biscuits were oval shaped much like cream biscuit with two biscuits sandwiched together with a jam filled exposed center sprinkled with crystal sugar. These biscuits along with Vegetable Curry Puffs were my all time favorites as a tiny tot.

Merry Christmas All!

The good things about this recipe is it makes use of Oats, Honey and Maple Syrup instead of Sugar, which was a great discovery in terms of flavor. They also double up as munch food and health food while at work, school or play. The cookie batter is easy to put and quick to bake. I really wish I could send these goodies to my family in India.

~ Oatmeal Jam Filled Cookies ~
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Baking time: 10-12 minutes
Yield: 24-30 Cookies

Ingredients:
Oats (uncooked old fashioned whole grain) - 2 and 1/2 cup
Wheat Flour - 1 and 1/2 cup
Honey - 3/4 cup
Maple Syrup - 1/4 cup
Unsalted Butter - 3/4 cup
Egg - 1
Vanilla extract - 1 tsp
Cinnamon powder - 1 tsp
Ginger powder - 1/2 tsp
Baking Soda - 1/2 tsp
Walnut (toasted and chopped) - 1/4 cup
Almond (toasted and chopped) - 1/4 cup
Turkish Apricot (chopped) - 1/4 cup
Prune (chopped) - 1/4 cup
Strawberry Jam - 1/4 cup

Contraption:
Sheet Pan - 1
Ice-cream scoop (medium) - 1

Method:
1. Cookie Batter - Lightly toast the nuts and allow to cool. Combine the dry items - wheat flour, cinnamon powder, baking soda and ginger powder. Keep it aside. In a mixing bowl, whisk honey, butter and vanilla extract. Add egg, one by one, if making a bigger batch. Add the dry ingredients now, slowly and blend with whisker. Fold in the oats, nuts and dry fruits. The batter is now ready.
2. Baking - Line two sheet pans with aluminum foil and lightly grease them with butter stick. Pre-heat the oven to 350 F. Pour a tablespoon of cookie mixture, use an ice-cream scoop for accurate measurement. Lightly pat the mixture to flatten them. Take care to space the cookies as they expand further upon baking. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
While they are still warm, take a measuring spoon with round bottom and gently apply light pressure in the center of the cookie to create an indentation. Fill 1/4 tsp of Strawberry Jam. After 20 minutes, transfer to a cooling rack and leave aside for an hour till cool completely. Store in a cookie jar or an air tight food container.

Note - Do not disturb the cookies while they are warm.

Rum Balls - A Popular Indian Christmas Sweet

Rum Balls are a very popular Christmas sweet made during the festive eve. Some of the sweets I remember eating during Christmas are - Rose Cookies, Plum Cake, Marzipans, Jujubes, Bebinca, Bolinha, Coconut Barfi, Angels Ribs, Snowball (Naan Katai), Kulkuls, Nevri and Guava Cheese. Guava Cheese & Plum cakes are my favorite treats amongst all.

Rum Balls being a sweet, sinfully rich treat is prominently made amongst Anglo-Catholic communities in India during the festive eve of Christmas. These are also available in local patisserie & confectionery shops during the season. Use aged Rum for good results. I found the recipe here and was a good discovery! I've adapted it to befit our taste and improve the texture of the dish. I gave the goodies a generous coat of Cocoa powder and Coconut powder. Both were decadent and very flavourful. This is a no cook recipe and can be made very quickly. If making these for festival platters, prepare couple of days ahead thereby providing some sitting time for the flavours to mingle and mix.

~ Rum Balls ~

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Processing time: 10 minutes

Recipe: Adapted from Joy Of Baking

Yield: 15-18 Rum Balls

Ingredients:

Walnut/ Pecan/ Almonds/ Pistachio - 1 and 1/2 cup

Cocoa powder - 3 tablespoons

Light Corn Syrup or Glucose Syrup - 2 tablespoons

Crushed wafers (Vanilla/ Chocolate) - 1 and 1/2 cup

Powdered Sugar - 1/2 cup

Aged Rum - 1/4 cup

Topping/ Coating - Cocoa powder/ Dry coconut powder/ Chopped nuts

Method:

Follow the basic process of mixing as observed in baking - dry and wet ingredients separately. First toast the nuts (I used Walnut) lightly till warm. Allow to cool completely. Remove the skin if desired and crush to a coarse powder but not a pasty one. Else, chop them into small pieces and keep aside. Crush the wafers to a fine powder. Preferably match the flavour of your wafers with the flavour of Cocoa powder.

In a mixing bowl, mix the chopped nuts with Cocoa powder. Add the crushed wafers and mix thoroughly. Add the Rum now and slowly mix in Sugar and the Corn Syrup now. Add more Rum now if desired. The dough will be a sticky dark collective one. Set in the fridge for 1/2 hour. Remove and make balls of 1" in diameter. Coat them with a topping of your choice - Cocoa powder or Coconut powder or powdered nuts. Store in the fridge in an air tight container and consume within 1-2 weeks. Thaw and bring to room temperature before serving.

Simple Butter Cookies (Naan Katai/ Narayan Katar)

The first cookie I ever had in my life - Naan Katai or Narayan Katar. The name sounds funny and used to tickle the funny bone in me as a kid. Simple, delicious melt-in-mouth cookie with irresistible flavour and simplicity personified! These are made during Christmas and are also known as Snowballs.

I have quoted the exact proportion so that its easier for anyone to follow this recipe. This is a recipe demanding lot of ghee so don't get petrified with the amount of ghee being added. This recipe takes me back to childhood days. My mom made these when we were tiny tots. Those days cool, sleek Ovens cosily adoring one corner of your kitchen were unheard of, forget about owning one; she slogged in the kitchen for hours, made a huge mammoth batch and carried them all in a large aluminum tin to the local bakers. The whole bakery would have the redolent aroma of clarified butter (ghee) wafting all around. I still remember rushing to the baker with a sense of glee and excitement just to collect our cute looking cookies. Fast forward, decades later, I find myself baking these goodies on a crisp, cosy autumn evening in my humble kitchen in US. There is a brimming sense of nostalgia and I happily reminisce the joys of an exuberant childhood that was full of memories, mommy's love and good food. I only wish my Mom and Dad could sample my cookies and I could be with them to celebrate the festivities. I certainly miss home today and vow to enjoy the festivities with my family and friends out here.

Happy Diwali To Everyone!!

Ingredients:

All Purpose Flour - Maida - 1 and 1/2 cup

Melted Clarified Butter (Ghee) - 1/2 to 3/4 cup

Powdered Sugar - 3/4 cup

Cardamom powder (optional) - 1/2 teaspoon

Baking powder - 1/2 teaspoon

For Garnish - Almonds, Pistachio, Tutti-frutti bits.

Method:

Melt the ghee and allow to cool. Mix the sugar with ghee. Sieve the flour along with baking powder. Mix well and slowly add the flour-baking powder mix spoon by spoon. This will form a dough which is malleable. The dough is not stiff but not loose either. Add ghee spoon by spoon to form a ball. Leave in a cool place for 3-6 hours. Make cookies which are 2" in diameter. Flatten them and spread them on a baking tray lined with a baking sheet. Plonk a tutti-fruitti, almond or pistachio bits. Pre-heat the oven for 10 minutes. Bake them at 350 F for 15 minutes. Bake till the crust is done and light cracks are formed. Transfer to a cooling rack and store in air tight containers. They remain good and fresh for a week and little beyond.

Note - Do not tamper with cookies once baking is done. Transfer to a cooling rack in a cool place, let them cool down and the cookies come together to form a perfect tasting one. Do not compromise on Ghee, as its the chief binding agent for the flour and other ingredients. Use good quality Ghee for best results.

Banana Walnut Muffins

Have you had a fetish for a particular food type as a kid? Well, I had one and big time for Cupcakes. The simple, soft, ones with tutty-fruity in them which pull you to the Bakery especially when you are wandering around and your Mom holds you tight clasping her hands lest you run away helter and skelter. I was a Numero Uno naughty child. No prizes for guessing that one!

The nice Bakeries dotting the roadside were my favorites. I distinctly remember few which I visit even today - Menezes Bakery and Cafe Central - Goa for the most moist and delicious Cupcakes I have ever eaten, Kayani Bakery - Pune for their Shrewsberry Biscuit and Naankatai, Iyengar Bakery in Bangalore for their Sweet Buns and Tea cakes, Karachi Biscuit from Karachi bakery - Abids, Hyderabad.

This recipe has been on my mind for quite some time. As I have mentioned many a times in my blog before that I got inspired into baking by the Muffin Queen - Raaga of The Singing Chef fame. I baked my first home made cake looking at the delicious recipes which she had lined up. My first try was pretty good and I have gobbled up half the Muffins, needless to say. For cakes and bakes, Raaga's blog has been my go-to place. I made the Muffins based on her Banana-Walnut Recipe for Muffins. Thanks Raaga as always!

Now, what is the difference between a Muffin and a Cupcake? I researched and was surprised to know that indeed there is a difference.

Muffins are the daily plain-jane simple cupcake, quite heavier and more dense. Cupcakes are the ones which are lighter, smaller with a frosting, ganache or a decor done up for special occasions.

Recipe Source: Raaga - The Singing Chef

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Yield: 6 ~ 2 1/2 " Muffins

Ingredients:

All Purpose Flour - 3/4th cup

Overripe peeled Banana (mashed) - 2

Walnut (toasted and chopped) - 1/4th cup

Brown Sugar or Confectioners Sugar - Almost 1/2 a cup

Oil - 1/4 cup

Egg - 1

Salt - 1/2 teaspoon

Baking powder - 1 teaspoon

Baking soda - Just a pinch

2 1/2 " Cupcake liners - 6

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees for 7-8 minutes. Line the Muffin pan with Muffin liners (6 liners ~ 2 1/2 " each)

Mix the dry ingredients together first. Add the powdery ones first and mix well. Blend the wet ingredients - Banana, Egg, Oil together with blender. Add and slowly add into the dry ingredients. Fold in the walnut bits and mix well.

Pour the micture into each of the Muffin liners. Do not fill it to the brim. The cake would anyways expand once done. Leave room for atleast 4-5 mm space while filling the batter.

Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from oven after 20 minutes and check for doneness with the help of a toothpick. If it comes out clean, its done and ready for a chow. Allow them to cool and then eat them or you could eat them warm. I prefer to keep them for the whole night and eat them the next day around. The Muffins taste good the next day around.

Plating: While plating the Muffin, plate them in party Muffin liners, pop in a Raisin/Walnut bit and sprinkle some sugar for that extra dazzle.

Angel White Cake with Walnuts: My 100th Post

I had lot of Egg Whites which I had to get rid of plus we were running out of Munch food as well. Thought of making Angel White Cake with Walnuts based on the recipe I found on the net. I was wee bit cautious as this was the first time I was making cakes out of Egg Whites.

This cake is made during special occasions like Easter, Celebration et al. They serve as best base cakes for frosting and icing treatments. Owing to its simplicity, its a family adored cake. I did some research and realised that cakes are not the same without a whole egg. The yolk adds to the density and strength of the cake which otherwise cannot be achieved with egg white alone. Angel White cake is a popular cake in US. I stashed in some walnuts as well since we wanted a crunchy biteful flavour. I goofed up a little with the Butter, I had less than 1/4 cup of butter in pantry, was wee bit dry as compared to rest of my cakes. Quantity and proportion wise, its a hit!

Another reason for me baking this cake was a mini celebration: this is my 100th post. Congratulations to Konkani Foodie for coming this long!! (Drum rolls and claps!!). Special thanks to all my blogger friends and numerous bloggers across the world who inspire me to try my best while cooking! Few key highlights due to Konkani Foodie on a personal note:

# I learnt HTML, XML and Javascript. This was long forgottten in college.
# Got a know-how of blog technology and coding fundamentals.
# Learnt Baking and I am just loving it..!

# Became more receptive and open to different cuisines which I was not before.
# Has made me little more disciplined, responsible in Kitchen.
# Helped me connect and be friends with some of the finest chefs across the globe.
# Made me more conscious of eco-friendly shopping, waste mgmt & kitchen economics.
# Sampled and learnt about different cuisines viz. Middle-East, Mexican, Ancient lost dishes, Persian, Malaysian and even Ethiopian if you can believe.

# Learnt about Photography, Lens, Apperture, Light, Exposure; Planning on DSLR in near future.
# Best of all - Made a better person out of me!

Thanks to all my blogger friends. This would not be without you guys!

Recipe adapted from Pachakam
Serves ~ 8 to 15 individuals

Ingredients:
Allpurpose flour (Maida) - 1 and 1/2 cups
Baking powder - 1/2 tablespoon

Walnuts (Toasted and Chopped) - Just a handful
Salt - 1/4 teaspoon
Powdered white sugar/ Confectionary sugar - 3/4 cup
Butter - 1/4 cup
Egg whites - 3
Vanilla essence - 1/2 teaspoon
Milk - 1/2 cup

Method:

Grease a cake pan (I used a 7 and 3/4 X 7 and 3/4 inch pan). Line the bottom with a parchment paper cut according to the size, this prevents any cake sticking to the pan bottom. Grease the sides with non-salted butter stick, dust with All Purpose flour and leave aside.

Pre-heat oven on 375 F. Sift the dry ingredients first. Mix the Flour, Baking powder and sugar and whisk well and use a blender for the same. Add salt and beat well. Then slowly blend in the wet ingredients one by one and keep whisking the ingredients. Once all done, finally fold in the walnuts.

Place in the top rack of oven for 40 minutes on 375 F. Check for doneness, with a knife or a toothpick. No cake should stick to the surface area. Remove from Oven after done completely. Allow to cool by flipping over for around 30 minutes.

Consume the cake next day around. Slice with a serrated knife, cuts and slices well for cakes and bakes. It certainly tastes better and the butter and flour blend well by then to create a wonderful after-taste in your mouth.

Egg and Vegetable Pattice/ Puff

I have been a big fan of Puff or Pattice as some call address it. Finally one sunny bright day I motivated myself to try these though I must confess I am an amateur when it comes to Baking. The Chip n Dip Crystalware was a gift to Konkani Foodie by a dear one, V. Thanks V for the kind gesture. Konkani Foodie thanks you for this and you can rejoice seeing the Puffs adored and nestled in the crystal ware.

The Veg Puffs were layers and layers of refined flour baked to perfection with green peas, chopped beans and onions in spices. The only difference being Egg Puff's had half a egg neatly sandwiched with the masala. Even to this date when I visit Goa, I make it a point to go to Babaji's and sample the long forgotten taste of this crispy baked Puffs. In Goa & Bombay, they are known as Pattice. Some of the bakers and confectioners in Goa sell their finest Pao (Bread), Pattice (Puffs), Cookies and Cakes.

The flavours were nice and well mingled. I recommend anyone using Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry sheets for good puffs. The puffs are crispy, nicely browned and tasty.

Cooking time ~ 30-40 minutes

Preparation time ~ 10 minutes
Serves ~ 2 individuals

Ingredients:
Puff Pastry sheets - 1 (makes 6 Puffs) ~ Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry sheets
Water - for sealing the sheets

For stuffing:
Onion (finely chopped) - 1/2 cup
Green Beans - 1/4 cup
Green Peas (optional) - 1/4 cup
Beet Root (fine boiled pieces) - 1/4 cup
Cumin powder - 1/5 teaspoon
Coriander powder - 1/5 teaspoon
Pepper powder - Just a sprinkle
Salt - as per taste
Oil - For frying

Miscelleneous Contraptions/ Things/ Kitchen Equipments: Paper Tissues, Parchment Paper (For Baking), Baking Tray and a Rolling Pin

Method:
Heat oil in saucepan, add onion and beans, once they begin wilting add the spice powders, vegetables and stir well. The onions need to cook much more than usual. There should be no water content in the stuffing mix. Keep aside.
Thaw the Pastry sheet from the freezer for atleast 2 hours. You could thaw in microwave for 15 seconds but not more than that as they have a tendency to get cooked. Spread one sheet on a work surface. Wipe with a wet tissue and roll with a rolling pin, gently. This extrapolates the pastry region available for Puff making.

Cut them into slices which represent a rectangle. Stuff one side of the rectangle with the stuffing. Cover over the side of the rectangle to form a Pattice and seal over the sides with water. One sheet makes 6 Pattice. I made a batch of 4 Egg Puffs and 2 Vegetable Puffs. Once ready, line a baking tray (non-stick) with a parchment paper. Place the puffs over them with enough surface area to puff up and spread. Pre-heat the Oven to 375 F. Place the tray in the oven for 20 minutes on one side. Turn them over after 20 minutes on other side with a serving fork. Bake for another 20 minutes. In total, 45 minutes for baking. Remove from Oven after 45 minutes, they will turn golden brown with fluffy crispiness on both sides. Serve after cooling them for 1/2 hour, with mustard sauce or tomato ketchup sauce.

Suggestion: 1) You could also store them in air tight container and eat them within 2-3 days time. 2) For extra shine, one could beat an egg + 1 tablespoon water and glaze the exposed surface area of the Puff with the kitchen brush. This renders good shine and glaze to the final look and appeal (Thanks S from Goa for this tip)

Walnut Cake

I have always had a baking phobia due to one of my past disasters where my cake turned into a brick out of my horrors. Suddenly one day I came across Raaga's blog and I thought she was kidding! She had a bunch of beautiful recipes which motivated me to try baking on my own. I wanted to seek her nod before I use her recipe. She readily offered a YES and I was set! Yesterday I baked a Walnut Cake and the results were amazing! Thanks Raaga! I owe you big for this learning! Now, I love baking and look forward to baking many more cakes, cookies and pies.

Recipe Source: Raaga - The Singing Chef

Serves: 2 individual

Ingredients:

All Purpose Flour - 1 cup
Sugar - 1/2 cup

Milk - 1/2 cup

Vanilla essence - 1/2 teaspoon

Egg - 1 (beaten)

Oil - 1/4 cup

Baking powder - 1 teaspoon

Baking soda - 1/4 teaspoon

Walnuts (chopped) - 1/2 cup

Butter stick (unsalted) - 1/2 stick

Method:

Pre-heat oven to 400 F. On the side grease a 8" cake pan with butter (unsalted) and dust with flour.

Mix the wet ingredients first - Egg, Oil, Milk. Beat well. Add the dry ingredients now and fold in Walnuts. Beat well. I gave around 100-200 beats with a whisker since the blender was already on use for another dish. Pour the mix in the cake pan and bake for around 30-35 minutes. The house will be full of cake-bake aroma. Put a tootpick/knife, check if it passes out evenly without any cake mix sticking to the surface.

Allow to cool and transfer to a serving dish.

Decadent Walnut Chocolate Fudge Brownie

This is a simple recipe of a Betty Crocker Chocolate Fudge which I'd baked along with my brother, P when he was around. It was great pleasure baking a fudge brownie knowing that I am a completely bake novice. I followed the instructions on the Fudge mix and the taste was too divine!

We finished all the Brownie's in 2 days flat! My picture has not come that good, however the taste was amazing, guess that should satiate my cookery instincts :(

Recipe adapted from Betty Crocker's Walnut Fudge Brownie Mix

Ingredients:

Eggs - 3

Vegetable oil - 3/4 of a cup

Water - 1 cup

Walnut Fudge Brownie Mix pack - 1

Method:

Whisk all the ingredients together, one by one. Provide ample beats as given on the instructions; I gave hand beats clocked to around 150-200. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Pour the mixture in a bake tray which is greased with butter or layered with baking sheet. Dust it with flour if greased with butter. Pour the mix and settle the bake tray in the oven. We baked ours for 12-15 minutes.

Allow to cool. Slice into Brownie sized bites and store in air tight containers. While serving, drizzle some Chocolate sauce and serve with evening tea.

Simple Yellow Cake

I always dreamt of Baking and felt that it was enormous task in itself. Much to surprise, I am wrong. Baking reqires precision, timing and good quality ingredients. I realised that unlike the daily kitchen cooking adventures where you can afford to play the ocassional guess work with your ingredients, baking takes the term "precision" and "timing" to a whole new level.

IF you have all of these in place, no one can mess your cake. I tried my hand at Baking for the first time and the results were much pleasing. The motivation for me was my 8 year old nephew bakes cookies and pies. I can do it too was my response. The quality of your blending, the cake batter, how well it beaten and how much it should be beaten also bears lot of weight.

All it needs is 3 eggs, 1/3 vegetable oil and 1 1/3 water. I found it easy when I read the instructions and thought should give it a honest try. My brother, P is in town, he promptly offered to give a helping hand. Knowing that someone would be there should it be disaster, I thought today I AM GOING TO BAKE A CAKE!!

Verdict: The cake was super delicious, soft and tasty. You are welcome to come and take a delicious bite!!

Recipe Source: Shoprite Yellow Cake Mix Recipe

Serves: 25 servings ~ 1 pound and a 1/4 more

Ingredients:

Eggs - 3

Vegetable oil - 1/3 Cup

Water - 1 and 1/3 Cup

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Generously grease pans and dust with flour. My baking tray is 13" x 9"

Blend in a large mixing bowl at low speed and until moistened. Add the ingredients in cake mix and beat the mixture in a clockwise direction with 450 strokes. Pour batter into pans.

Bake at 350 until done. Cake is done if toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Do not test for doneness by touching your finger. I baked the cake for 35 minutes and had set a timer for it just in case by grey matter fails to remind me.

Cool the cake for around 30 minutes on a cooling rack. Remove from pan and cool upside down. P and I were totally impressed with our creation. I marvelled at the way the cake had fluffed up! The cake cutting formally happened and we gorged on the pieces and have saved some for Summer Party today! I love Summer and I am no longer shy of baking!! :)

Chocolate Cake (Eggless)

I prepared my first ever chocolate cake over the weekend. Needless to say was pretty pleased with the results. My brave effort finally culminated in a sinful chocolate mass which I devoured completely with family and friends.
The recipe was as suggested by Shilpa (www.aayisrecipes.com). Thanks Shilpa. It turned out into a quite a yummie delight.

Serves: 2-3 individuals
Equipment: Microwave with an OTG (Oven-Toaster-Griller) option

Ingrdients:
Maida - 1 and 3/4th C
Cocoa powder - 2 t
Vegetable oil - 1/4 C
Sugar (powdered) - 1/2 C
Vanilla essence - 1/2 t
Baking powder - 1/2 t
Milk - 1/2 C
Ghee - 1/2 t

Method:
1. Mix the dry ingrdients separately except sugar. Mix to form an even wholesome mixture.
2. Parallely, mix together the dry ingredients and add the dry ingredients to the wet ones slowly.
3. Be careful to avoid any lumps while stirring. Once the batter is ready, check for one thread consistency. If you get that, your batter is perfect and ready for baking purpose. Grease the deep dish baking container with ghee. Once can also cover the deep dish with butter paper and then pour the batter. This prevents the cake mixtured from sticking against the walls of the container.I preferred ghee to oil for the simple reason that I did not want a oily flavour on the surface.
4. Preheat the oven for atleast 5 minutes. Pour the batter in the container. Place the deep dish container in the oven and cook for 5 minutes on 100% of the oven power.
5. Once done, check with a toothpick by inserting it in the cake. If the tootpick comes out evenly the cake is done.
6. Once done, the cake needs to be refrigerated and then consumed for better results. I decided to volate the rules and tuck into the sumptuous mass waiting for me!!
Enjoy your sinful fare!!!