Baker’sDelight – Page 3 – The Secret Ingredient

Baking

Pumpkin Buns | Pumpkin Puree Bread Buns | Spiced Pumpkin Buns

By anshu December 14, 2015

PumpkinBuns_Featured1

It wasn’t until Mexico happened that I discovered that pumpkin can be used in making sweets and desserts apart from the traditional Indian style savoury curries. It was then I started making Pumpkin Puree at home which is available in abundance specially around halloween, thanksgiving and christmas. I find it an amazing ingredient to make nutritious pancakes for my kiddo. You can also make Pumpkin Soup, Pumpkin Pie and what not. My first stint with Pumpkin puree was when I made Pumpkin Cake Rolls. Ohh man! They were outrageously delicious.

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Now that I am into bread baking, I came across this post from Aparna’s Blog My Diverse Kitchen where she made these gorgeous looking baby pumpkins. I decided then and there I will do this soon. And here I am with these little cute looking pumpkins. I showed them to my mother in law who loves tiny pumpkins and she took them for real pumpkins 🙂 When I told her these were buns she was amazed. They not only look cute but taste great with ground spices. You must try them soon.

Directions:
1. In a container take some lukewarm milk. Add instant yeast and also add sugar. Let the yeast sit for 5-7 minutes to bloom and become frothy. You can know more about ways and means to tame yeast.

2. In the meanwhile take All purpose flour in a bowl and add to it salt and cinnamon powder.

3. Also add ginger powder and ground cloves, along with more sugar, if you like them to be more sweet*. Give dry ingredients a mix.

4. Once you see the yeast milk has frothed up, you can add it to the flour mix.

5. Add Pumpkin Puree. You can use canned or you can easily make at home like this. Add to this egg and melted butter.

6. Using your hands bring the mixture together to form a dough. Dust your counter with flour and knead it well for good 10 minutes. Until it becomes paliable.

7. Make a ball of it and place in a greased bowl. Cover the bowl with a cling wrap and let it rest for an hour or until it doubles up. The time may vary depending on the weather conditions.

8. Once it has doubled in size deflate it and knead it on your flour dusted counter. Divide the dough into 8 equal size balls.

9. Press them a little from top to make them appear like discs. Cut them around with a sharp knife making it look like a flower. Ensure you just make incisions around the centre, not all the way. Let picture below be your guide.

10. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. In this case I am using a silicon mat. Do keep a good gap between each bun for they will expand on second proof and further on baking. Using a clean Pencil make a small hole in the center of the flower. Cover the tray with a lint free towel and let it rise again for another 45 minutes or so.

11. That is how they should look after second rise. Give them a generous egg wash or you can use milk and water mixture. Bake them in a preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes on 180 degree celsius (Learn more about Oven temperature and Conversions)

12. As they come out of the oven you can give them honey mixed with water glaze, for that sheen. In the cavity we made before you can place a pine nut or walnut piece sliced vertically like the tiny stem of pumpkin.

Other festive recipes you can try are: Gingerbread Man Cookies, Melomakarona: Greek Christmas Cookies, Pumpkin Cake Rolls, Persimmon Rum Cake, Pumpkin Pie Spice.

PumpkinBuns_Featured5 [whohit]PumpkinBuns[/whohit]

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Baking

Gingerbread Man Cookies | Festive Gingerbread Man Cookies with Molasses

By anshu December 11, 2015

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Few days from now and it will be Christmas!! And I will be home with my parents. I may have been raised Hindu but having studied in a Christian School makes me yearn for Christmas and fun & frolic associated with it. I remember as a little kid I would decorate a potted plant in my house 😛 Now that I am a mommy, the spirit of Christmas hasn’t died in me, rather it is coming out in the form of baking and cooking delicious food which makes the festivity more joyous.

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A little while back I had posted Melomakarona : Greek Christmas Cookies and since then the vicious circle of baking is on. The next on my list if to bake my Rum Cake for Christmas. I smell the rum soaked dry fruits everyday and greedily imagine when the cake will be baked. Well looks like I will do that in a day or two, cant wait beyond this 😛 Nevertheless here are my authentic ginger bread man cookies which are made with molasses syrup. It has a distinct spiced flavour to it which makes you warm and feel good about the weather around. Not to mention, its so much fun to decorate them using royal icing. You need a little practice and patience to decorate them perfectly. Clearly I lack both 😉 My kiddo had fun baking these cookies with me. He ate the entire first batch by dunking them in his glass of milk. Definitely, he is mumma’s boy <3

Directions:
1. In a bowl add All Purpose Flour.

2. Add to it ginger powder, ground cinnamon and cloves powder.

3. Add baking soda and salt. Mix all the dry ingredients well and set aside.

5. In another bowl add butter at room temperature and add brown sugar to it. I used light brown sugar as it was the only thing I had on hand. Add molasses and give everything a good whip until creamy and soft. I used my electric whisk but you can always do it manually.

6. Add an egg to it whisk again. Now its time to add your dry ingredients little by little till everything comes together in the form of a dough.

7. Divide the dough into two or four balls and wrap them in a cling wrap and refrigerate for an hour or until the dough is set.

8. Preheat the oven to 180 degree Celcius (Learn more about Oven temperature and Conversion).Take one ball of dough and let it sit on counter till it is workable. Dust your counter well with dry flour and roll it into a 1/8 inch circle. Cut it into gingerbread man shape using a cutter. If you think your cutter gets sticky you can dip it into flour and continue to cut the shapes. You can buy gingerbread man cookie cutter from our online store The Gourmet Shop

9. Place them on a baking sheet lined with Oddy Uniwrap Parchment paper. Bake them for 10 minutes in a center rack until they turn a little brown.

10. Cool them completely and decorate them with Royal Icing and candies. Learn to make Royal Icing easily at home.

11. You can dunk them in milk or enjoy them as it is. Its a treat for kids and you can even gift it to your loved ones to melt their heart this season.

Other Cookies you can try here are:Melomakarona : Greek Traditional Christmas Cookies, Ragi & Whole Wheat Biscuits, White Chocolate Chip Cookies, Italian Almond Biscotti, Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate Chips, Coconut Chocolate Cookies.

gingerbreadmancookies_featured3

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Baking

μελομακάρονα | Melomakarona | Greek Traditional Christmas Cookies

By anshu November 28, 2015

Its November end and Thanksgiving is over. I can feel the chill in the air and my nose turns red when I take my daily walk in the hills. I have soaked the dry fruits in Rum for the Christmas Cake, which officially means that Christmas has begun. Hurray!! now who can stop me from baking delicious cakes and cookies.

Incidentally, this months Spatula Force Theme Challenge was Greek Cuisine hosted by my Friend and Food Blogger Bhawna Pandey from Salt and Pepper . This motivated me to try the Greek Traditional Christmas Cookies Melomakarona. They are delicious, melt in mouth, egg shaped cookies with goodness of Olive Oil and Honey. They are Spiced with Cloves, Cinnamon and Orange Zest. Doesn’t that sound very festive and christmasy?

The baked cookies are dipped in Sugar Honey Spiced Syrup and finally glazed with Honey and chopped Walnuts. Ohh!! The taste is absolutely mindblowing and scintillating. You must try these to believe me 🙂 I loved to photograph these cookies and creating a little Christmas like ambience. Thanks to my friend Lily for the beautiful platter she gifted me on her visit. Doesn’t that look amazing!

Directions:

1. Wash and dry a firm Orange and take out its zest, only the orange part using a microplane or zester.

2. In a saucepan add some water and add to it lemon zest and orange juice.

3. Add sugar to the saucepan along with cinnamon and Cloves.

4. Bring the syrup to a boil and then simmer for two minutes. Turn the heat off and add honey and mix well till it is dissolved. Keep aside.

5. In a mixing bowl add Vegetable Oil, Olive oil and Orange juice.

6. Add to bowl baking soda and whisk together with the juice and oils. Let the soda react with the juice.

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7. Add ground Cloves and Cinnamon and combine

8. Add caster sugar or icing sugar to the oil juice mixture and mix well along with orange zest. Add semolina and combine using a whisk.

9. Now add All purpose flour little by little and combine to make a smooth dough. Do not over work the dough.

10. Divide the dough into walnut size elliptical or oval shape balls and press them against a grater to get the pattern. Other wise you can use a fork to make pattern of your choice.

11. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or silicon mat, with amble space between each cookie* and bake for 25-30 minutes on 200 degree Celsius in middle rack. Keep an eye after 25 minutes, for it shouldn’t get over baked.

12. Immediately as they come out of the oven dip them in the syrup we prepared before for 20 seconds. You can use slotted spoon to take them out.

13. Let them drain and rest on a wire wrack. When they cool down drizzle them with Honey and sprinkle on top some coarsely ground walnuts.

14. You are ready to dig into them and make this Christmas more special and Joyous.

Other Cookies you can try on The Secret Ingredient are: White Chocolate Chip Cookies , Ragi & Whole Wheat Biscuits, Coconut Chocolate Cookies, Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate Chips and Italian Almond Biscotti.

If you are looking for Delicious Cakes and Sweet Breads: Apple Raisins Streusel Bread , Chocolate Vanilla Marble Cake, Eggless Almond Vanilla Cake, Eggless Orange Cake with Candied Orange Peel Filling, Lemon Cake with Lemon Glaze, Persimmon Rum Cake, Pumpkin Cake Rolls , Vegan Chocolate Banana Cake, Wacky Vegan Chocolate Cake , Whole Wheat Vegan Banana Bread with Melon Seeds.

Other Greek Cuisines from my fellow Bloggers participating in this challenge are: Spanakopita Triangles or Greek Spinach Pie by Binjal Pandya from Binjal’s Veg Kitchen, Baklava by Pooja Khanna from 2Bliss Of Baking.

[whohit]Melomakarona[/whohit]

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Baking

Stuffed Mushroom Cheesy Crack Bread | Cheesy Mushroom Pull Apart Bread

By anshu November 6, 2015

I needn’t say more about my obsession with mushrooms and breads. Clearly it is getting out of control. At least twice a week I want something mushroomy something bready in my meals. After doing the Mushroom Spinach Stuffed Braided Bread I bring you this Cheesy Mushroom pull apart bread. This was not planned but on my search I found this recipe which was like Love at First Sight. I happily baked a bread in the evening and stuffed it with Mushrooms and Cheese. Ohh man! It was pure indulgence. I served the bread with my mommy special Tomato Soup. I happily skipped my dinner for the sheer love of this bread.

This is more like a idea than a recipe to make something incredible with bread specially for Super Ball or Cricket Matches or may be catching up a flick late night on recliners with comfy cushions. I am just saying! Or be like me. You don’t need a reason to eat Mushrooms and bread..do you?

Directions:

1. Take a loaf of french bread or any bread other than sandwich loaf. I have used the same recipe as White Sandwich bread for this but simply placed it on a baking tray without using a pan for second proof and baked it. You can also use Sourdough bread for this. Using a bread knife cut the bread lengthwise and widthwise without cutting through all the way. You will notice cavity between the bread pieces. Place it on a Baking sheet lined with Aluminium foil. Set aside. Preheat the oven for 10 minutes on 180 degree Celcius.

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2. In a pan melt some butter.

3. Add finely chopped mushrooms and saute them them till they release their water. Let the water evaporate.

4. Add Thyme, I used dried. Add salt and combine. Set aside.

5. Finely chop some onions and add them to a microwavable bowl. Add butter to the onions. Microwave for 2 minutes or until the butter melts. Set aside.

6. Cut strips of cheese. I have used Mozzarella because that is what is easily available here. You can use Provolone if you lay your hands on it. Insert Cheese sticks or strips inside the cuts or cavity both horizontally and vertically.

7. Top up the cheese laden cavity with sauteed mushrooms.

8. Drizzle the bread with the onion butter all over. Sprinkle the top with some poppy seeds and garnish with fresh Coriander leaves.

9. Now cover the bread with the aluminium foil and bake it in the preheated oven on 180 degree Celsius (Learn more about Oven temperatures and Conversions) for 15 minutes and uncovered for another 10 minutes or until you see the cheese melting.

10. Serve hot and relish each bite.

Other recipes with bread you can try are: Cheesy Garlic Bread, Stuffed Mushroom and Spinach Braided Bread.

More Bread recipes you can try on The Secret Ingredient: White Sandwich Bread, Russian Bublici, Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread, Chinese Black Sesame Steamed Buns, Cherry Focaccia Bread with Rosemary and Sea Salt, Rosemary Garlic Focaccia Bread, Cinnamon Raisin Bread, Beetroot Bread with Garlic and Thyme, Honey Oats Bread, Domino’s Garlic Breadsticks, No Knead Light Wheat Bread.

[whohit]MushroomCrackBread[/whohit]

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Baking

Ragi & Whole Wheat Biscuits | Maduwa Atta Biscuits | Nachni Aur Gehun Atta Biscuits | Sweet Finger Millet Biscuits

By anshu September 29, 2015

I live in the hills where Ragi or Manduwa is very popular. Kumaoni food has a special place for Mandua ki Roti or Ragi Flour Flat bread. Its considered very nutritional, specially in winters as it has the ability to keep body warm against fierce winters in this belt. I tried making crisp Instant Ragi Dosas with the flour and my family loved it. It has found a permanent place in my household.

Recently, I opened my small bakery by the name The Secret Oven, for homemade breads and other baked items. A local shopkeeper asked me to supply sample for Ragi biscuits. I had never made them before but then it seemed an an appropriate opportunity to give it a try. I made these crisp delicious discs strictly following Padhu’s recipe from her blog Padhu’s Kitchen.

The recipe was foolproof and the biscuits came out so beautiful. Fortunately, my sample was liked and i got a 10 kg Ragi biscuit order 🙂 This would not have been possible without this perfect recipe. The biscuits are healthy and team up very well with a glass of cold milk. My boys (my son and husband) gorge on these. It is difficult to stop them from stealing biscuits from my order.

Directions:

1. Roast Manduwa or Ragi Flour in a pan on a medium low flame. Keep tossing for a few minutes until the aroma of roasted flour fills the air.

2. In a bowl add sifted Whole Wheat Flour and Roasted Ragi Flour.

3. Also add sifted Baking Powder to the flour and give it a gently mix.

4. Refrigerate butter for 20 minutes and cut it into cubes. Add these butter cubes to the flour mix.

5. Mix the flour with the butter with your finger tips till you get a coarse mixture.

6. Add powdered sugar and mix.

7. Add milk 1 tablespoon at a time and bring the mixture together like a dough. If you add too much liquid or too less liquid it will not hold the shape and will crumble.

8. Cover it with a cling wrap and refrigerate for 15-20 minutes.

9. Roll the dough on a flat counter using a roller pin. You may dust a little with wheat flour to prevent it from sticking. The rolled dough should not be very thin nor very thick, just right 🙂

10. Cut it into desired shapes. I am using a circular biscuit cutter, you can use cookie cutters or even lids.

11. Place the biscuits on a greased baking sheet. You can use a sharp knife or spatula to lift it up. You can line the baking sheet with parchment paper. I am using a silicon mat to prevent sticking to the bottom.

12. You can make striped design with a fork and bake it in a preheated oven on 180 degree C (Learn more about Oven temperatures and Conversions) for 15-18 minutes in the middle rack until they acquire a slight brown colour.

13. The biscuits will still me soft as you remove them from the oven. Let the cool down on a wire rack until they become crisp and delicious! You can enjoy them anytime with or without a glass of cold milk or a fresh cup of hot chai.

Other cookies and biscuits you can try are: Italian Almond Biscotti, Choco Coconut Cookies, White Chocolate Chip Cookies, Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies.

[whohit]RagiBiscuits[/whohit]

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Apples

Vegan Yellow Zucchini Chocolate Brownies | No Oil No Butter No Added Sugar Chocolate Brownies

By anshu September 11, 2015

Its been a month me and my husband have been clean. No No its not what you are thinking 😉 We are not on DRUGS!!! We are eating healthy and exercising to burn those extra kilos we have gathered as a result of food blogging 😛 We are trying hard to keep our meals simple, clean and avoiding sugar as much as we can. I know its a painstaking task. But you see every Christ has to carry one’s own cross 😉

This gave me an opportunity to look into healthier and nutritious dishes. I recently made Couscous Chickpea Salad, Mexican Black Bean Mango Salad. But nevertheless the craving for sweet things gets in more too often. I tried to indulge in a dessert which is gultfree. I know Dessert and Guiltree are like the North and the South Pole. But trust me these Chocolate brownies are without any eggs, oil or butter and no extra sugar is added to it. Its sweetened with apple sauce, chocolate and maple syrup and above all it has goodness of Yellow Zucchini. Another fabulous idea to hide in Zucchini in your kiddos food without letting them know 😉

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degree Celsius for ten minutes. Wash, peel and core apple. Cut into small pieces and make a smooth puree in a blender. Set aside.

2. Wash, peel and grate a zucchini. You can use yellow or green. Both will serve the purpose.

3. Place the grated Zucchini in a cheese cloth and squeeze out all the water. Set aside. You can use this water to make roti dough.

4. In a small bowl add Flax Seed meal or Flax seed powder (Learn how to make Flax seed Powder at home) and add some water. Let it rest for ten minutes and become gelatinous.

5. In a mixing bowl add apple sauce and soya milk.*

6. Also add Maple syrup and Vanilla extract.

7. Add the gelatinous flax meal mixture to the bowl and give everything a good stir.

8. In another bowl swift and add cocoa powder and whole wheat flour.

9. Also sift and add in baking powder and combine with the dry ingredients. The purpose of sieving is to eliminate all lumps.

10. Gently fold the wet ingredients in the dry ingredients.

11. Add grated and squeezed zucchini and combine using a spatula.

12. Chop some chocolate and add to the batter. Save a little for the top garnish. You can even use chocolate chips instead.

13. Line a 8×8 baking tray with some parchment paper and grease it with little oil so that nothing sticks. Pour the batter in the greased tray.

14. Top it with reserved chopped chocolate and keep it for baking in a preheated oven for 25 – 30 minutes.

15. Remove it from the oven and let it cool down completely before you cut it into squares. You can store them up in fridge in air tight containers for a few days .

Other desserts you can try here are: Blueberry Jam Bars, Pumpkin Cake Rolls, Mascarpone Cherry Compote Cheesecake Glasses,

[whohit]ZucchiniBrownies[/whohit]

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Baking

Italian Almond Biscotti | Twice Baked Almond Cookies

By anshu September 7, 2015

I remember first time I baked them I was in Mexico and we were making a trip to the State of Michoacan to the Butterfly Sanctuary to witness a spectacular Event. There are millions of Monarch Butterflies. You can see them flying around and almost obscuring the sky. You will hear the fascinating sound of their wings flapping. Its indeed the 8th wonder on Earth. Every fall, huge numbers of Monarch Butterflies gather in southern Canada to migrate. Some Monarch Butterflies travel over 3,100 kilometers to Mexico to reproduce and and then die.

The trip was a beautiful comfortable journey. These cookies kept our spirits high and energy boosted. Whenever I bake these I remember this memorable trip. Coming back to cookies, they are crunchy and so very almondy. The roasted almonds gives it an incredible texture and taste. You can dunk them in your coffee or chai and take a short trip to heaven. 🙂

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven for 10 minutes on 180 degree Celsius (Learn more about Oven temperatures and Conversion). In a baking tray spread the almonds in a single layer and toast them for 10 minutes. They will give out a golden colour and will crunch up.

2. Let them cool down a bit and roughly chop them using a sharp knife.

3. In a bowl combine All purpose flour, salt and baking powder. Set aside.

4. In a different bowl whisk Sugar and butter (Learn how to bring eggs and butter at room temperature) until it turns creamy.

5. Add in eggs and Vanilla Extract. Continue to whisk until its very creamy. Also add Almond Extract.

6. Add in the flour and mix thoroughly. It should resemble a sticky dough. Do not over mix, just till the flour is moistened.

7. Add in chopped toasted almonds and simply fold in using a spatula.

8. Sprinkle some flour on the counter slab and put the sticky dough on it.

9. Divide and shape the dough into four logs about 6 inches Long and 2 inches wide. Flatten the logs with your finger tips. You will need a lot of extra flour to do this. Place them on a baking sheet lined with aluminium foil or parchment paper. Ensure there is 4 inch space between each logs as they will expand on baking. I baked two logs at a time.

10. Bake it in a peheated oven for 35-40 minutes on 190 degree C until they acquire a slight golden colour.

11. Let them cool down a bit, cool enough to handle. Place it on a chopping board. Slice it diagonally using a serrated knife and further cut them into 3/4 inch pieces.

12. Arrange these pieces on a lined baking sheet and return them to the oven. Bake them for 7 minutes on one side and then flip the side. Bake the other side also for 7 minutes.

13. Let them cool down for 5 minutes on the baking tray and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool down completely. The cookies will crisp up only after coming at room temperature. Dunk them in your coffee and enjoy these delicious twice baked Italian Biscotti.

Other Cookies you can try here : White Chocolate Chip Cookies, Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, Coconut Chocolate Cookies

[whohit]Almond Biscotti[/whohit]

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Baking

Stuffed Mushroom and Spinach Braided Bread | Mushroom Spinach Stromboli

By anshu August 30, 2015

Ever since I have perfected the art of baking a simple sandwich bread I like to experiment with my bread dough. I love to braid it, stuff it and do all sorts of crazy things with it. It is not just fun but the experience is both pleasing and delicious . I had been eyeing this braided bread – Stromboli for a long time but the last time I had mushroom and spinach on hand I simply went ahead and baked this beauty.

As I said you can do anything with your bread so you can choose any stuffing of your choice. You can braid it or shape it like a Bread Loaf with inside layering, just as I did it with Cinnamon Raisins Bread. Its your Bread you are the master. Simply give it a pinch of love and loads of patience and you will have a beautiful bread making experience.

For this recipe I have used the bread dough for White Sandwich Bread. Its extremely light and has a beautiful texture. If you like you can substitute Half all purpose flour with whole wheat flour to make it more healthy.

Directions:

1. For the dough, take some lukewarm water in a vessel. It should neither be hot nor cold, just hot enough to comfortably put your finger into it . The right temperature of the water is very important for yeast to activate. Put yeast into it.

2. Along with yeast add some sugar.

3. Give it a gentle stir with a fork and let the mixture sit and activate for 10 minutes or until you see some bubbles on top and mixture has become frothy and milky.

4. Take all purpose flour in a bowl and add salt and olive oil.

5. Add the proofed yeast to the flour little by little and mix till it comes together.

6. Bring the dough to a flat counter or your kitchen platform and knead for good 10 minutes till it becomes soft and supple. Read more about Bread baking techniques in “Basic Steps to Bake a Perfect Bread“

7. Transfer the dough to a greased bowl. And cover with a kitchen towel or cling wrap. Let it sit for an hour or so to double up in size.

8. Punch it down and deflate the dough. Knead for another 5-7 minutes.

9. Chop some spring onions along with their greens and Garlic and set aside.

10. In a pan heat some butter and olive oil.

11. Add garlic and onions and saute them till they are soft and translucent.

12. Add Red chili Flakes and saute.

13. Add sliced Mushrooms and chopped spinach. Saute the mushrooms till it releases its water and cooks.

14. Season it will salt, freshly ground black pepper and dried oregano.

15. Add whisked cream cheese to the mushroom spinach mixture and combine. Turn the flame off and let the mixture come on room temperature.

16. Divide the dough into two equal parts. Work on each dough one by one.

17. Roll the dough with a roller pin into a rectangular circle. Place the rolled dough in a baking tray lined with aluminium paper or parchment paper. I did it after braiding and it was difficult to transfer at that stage. Don’t commit the mistake I did 🙂

18. Place half of the mushroom cheese filling in the centre. Leave out place to braid the bread. Take a sharp knife and make inclined cuts about 1 inch wide on either sides of the filling. Ensure there are equal number of cuts on both sides.

19. In order to braid the bread, take one strip and cross it over the filling and press it on the other side. Alternatively take the adjacent strip and cross it over the previous one and press on the other side. Keep doing this until your full bread is braided. Cover the bread with a lint free towel and let it rest for 20 minutes or so on room temperature. It will rise the bread.

20. Brush the braided bread with Egg wash or Milk. Sprinkle the top with poppy seeds or sesame seeds or you can completely leave it out.

21. Bake it in a preheated oven on 180 degree Celcius for 25 minutes or until the crust is golden. Let the bread cool down completely on a wire rack and then slice and serve.

Other Bread recipe you can try on The Secret Ingredient: White Sandwich Bread, Russian Bublici, Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread, Chinese Black Sesame Steamed Buns, Cherry Focaccia Bread with Rosemary and Sea Salt, Rosemary Garlic Focaccia Bread, Cinnamon Raisin Bread, Beetroot Bread with Garlic and Thyme, Honey Oats Bread, Domino’s Garlic Breadsticks, No Knead Light Wheat Bread.

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Baking

Vegan Chocolate Banana Cake | Eggless Chocolate Banana Cake with Flax Seeds

By anshu August 20, 2015

Who doesn’t like chocolate. And when this incredible flavour is infused with banana it becomes a divine combination. It doesn’t just end here..what if this combination is guilt free and vegan? Here’s new newest recipe of Chocolate Banana Cake which is eggless, butterless and also dairy free. I have used Flax seeds to make it rise and become fluffy. I had done another Eggless Whole Wheat Banana Bread with Melon Seeds earlier. But this recipe takes this bread to a new level of craziness.

Vegan Chocolate Banana Cake

The most enticing part of this bread was its texture. It was soft and gooey and almost melted in my mouth in its very first bite. The ripe unforgotten bananas were put to right use. My little one who is a picky eater devoured this greedily and barely allowed me to take photographs 🙂

Directions:

1. Soak Flax seed Powder in water and set aside (Learn here how to make Flax seed powder). The mixture should become like a gel in some time.

2. Grease a baking pan and set aside. I am using a medium size bundt pan for this. Preheat the oven on 180 degree Celcius for 10 minutes.

3. In another bowl sift All Purpose Flour, Baking Powder and Baking Soda. Do you see the lumps in the baking powder? That is why we are sifting everything for a lump free airy flour.

4. This is how it looks after sieving.

5. Also sieve and add cocoa powder to the flour and gently combine. Set aside.

6. Mash overripe bananas with a fork and place in a mixing bowl. Add vegetable oil and combine.

7. Add the flax powder gel to the bananas.

8. Add brown sugar or jaggery powder and vanilla extract. Give everything a good mix.

9. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently mix with the spatula. Do not over mix simple moisten the flour.

10. Pour this in the greased pan and bake on a preheated oven for 20-25 minutes on 180 degree celcius (Learn more about Oven temperatures and Conversions). The test of doneness is that the toothpick inserted will come out clean.

11. Let the cake cool down a little before taking it out of the pan. Invert the pan on a serving plate and gently tap to remove the cake. Slice and serve with your favourite cup of coffee or tea.

Other cake and bread recipes you can try here : Apple Raisin Streusel Bread, Persimmon Rum Cake, Surprise Heart Inside Cake, Pumpkin Cake Rolls, Lemon Cake with Lemon Glaze, Eggless Orange cake with candied Orange Peel Filling, Wacky Vegan Chocolate Cake, Eggless Almond Vanilla Cake, Chocolate Vanilla Marble Cakecak.

Vegan Chocolate Banana Cake

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Baking

Lemon Cake with Lemon Glaze

By anshu July 29, 2015

The story of this Lemon Cake with Lemon Glaze begins here. My parents in law brought for us lemons from our lemon tree back in Faridabad. The tree is a special variety which bears seedless lemons and the fragrance of fresh lemons is to die for. They were in abundance and then the search began to put them to right use. Easy way would have been to make lemon pickle out of it. However, I had a lot pickle lying in the house sent by my mom earlier this year. I never wanted to hoard pickle while no one eats it. So I decided to this amazing cake which was on my to-do list for a very long time.

The Cake has an interesting lemony flavour (what else you expect!! Silly me :p). If you have a hang of lemon cakes and have tasted lemon tarts and muffins then decide to do this cake. This could be a little overpowering for those who are expecting this to be an ordinary cake with a spec of lemon here and there.. umm no! It has a distinct tartness which I love!!

Directions:

1. Wash your lemons and pat them dry. Now remove the green skin from the lemons known as zest. You can use a zester or simply grater for lemons. Do not use the yellow skin inside for that is known as rind and can be bitter in taste. Do not throw the zested lemons away.

2. Cut the lemons into half and squeeze out its juice.

3. Grease or Butter, or spray with a non stick cooking spray, a 9 inch (23 cm) spring form pan and then line the bottom of the pan with parchment or wax paper.

4. In a bowl add butter, at room temperature and add castor sugar. Cream them together till sugar and butter become creamy.

5. Add Vanilla extract and crack in some eggs* (for eggless see tip below in notes). Whisk them together using a strong hand or electric whisk until it become frothy.

6. Add the lemon zest and combine. Set aside.

7. In a separate bowl add the All purpose Flour, salt and Baking powder.

8. Give them all a gentle mix and add little by little to the wet ingredients and mix.

9. Add lemon juice and combine. Do not over mix, just enough to moisten the dry ingredients.

10. Pour the batter in the greased baking pan and slightly flatten the top surface with a spatula.

11. Bake it in a preheated oven for 40-50 minute on 180 degree celsius or until the toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let it cool down for 15 minutes on a wire rack then remove it from the pan.

12. In the meanwhile sieve icing sugar or confectioner’s sugar in a bowl.

12. Add lemon juice to it until it has reached pourable consistency.

13. Let the cake cool down completely Pour the frosting over the top of the cake, allowing it to drip down the sides.

14. Let the frosting dry before covering and storing. This cake will keep for several days in an airtight container.

You can try other cakes Wacky Vegan Chocolate Cake, Persimmon Rum Cake. Apple Raisin Streusel Bread, Pumpkin Cake Rolls, Surprise Heart Inside Cake, Chocolate Vanilla Marble Cake.

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