Orange and Chocolate cake.

The original recipe called for eggs ... but being an eggless freak I twisted the ingredients a bit to get this eggless version. Suits me....

Ingredients :
Kinnu / Malta Orange - 1
Atta - 150 gms
Oil - 100 ml
Sugar - 175 gms.
Yoghurt - 200 gms
Milk Powder - 125 gms
Baking powder - 1/2 tsp
Baking soda 1/2 tsp
Cocoa Powder - 3 tbsps.
Salt - a pinch

Method :
1. Steam the kinnu orange for 20 minutes till it becomes soft and pulpy.
2. Remove it, cool it and cut into pieces and juice it. Strain the juice. Add a bit of the strained rind.
3. In a bowl mix oil yoghurt and sugar and whisk well to combine.
4. Add milk powder and blend well.
5. Add orange juice mix well.
6. Pre heat the oven at 160 degrees
7. Add the sifted cocoa powder, atta, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
8. Mix well to get a smooth batter.
9. Pour in a greased cake tin and bake at 160 degrees for 40 minutes.
10. garnish with icing sugar.

OATS AND BUTTERMILK MUFFINS

One of my recent experiments for the health conscious.....

Ingredients
Butter -  75 gms
Oats  - 50 gms
Buttermilk - 150 ml(1/2 milk and 1/2 yougurt)
Flour /Atta - 200 gms
Raisins - 100 gms
Baking powder - 1/2 tsp
Baking soda - 1/2 tsp
sugar - 100 gms
Vanilla Essence - 1/2 tsp.

Method :
1. Mix the oats and butter milk for about 1/2 an hr.
2. Sift atta, baking powder and baking soda.
3. Cream butter and sugar till fluffy.
4. Add soaked oats and buttermilk to this mixture and add vanilla essence
5. Preheat the oven at 180 degrees
6. Fold the atta into the butter mixture.
7. Add the raisins, mix the mixture well.
8. Spoon the mixture into muffin tins and bake at 180 degrees for 25 minutes.
9. Garnish with truffle cream icing.

Truffle cream Icing :
Fresh Cream - 200 gms
Dark chocolate - 100 gms
Butter - 1 tsp.

Method :
Melt the chocolate by adding warm cream. Mix butter and whip the three together to make a smooth paste. Spread it over the muffins.

Microwave Paruppu Usli - Easy and Quick!

Paruppu Usli is a Tamil Dish which involves.. paruppu that is Dal... and any Vegetable (mainly used is Beans,Cabbage or Plantain Flower). This method of paruppu Usli is my Mother in laws', but I use the microwave for faster cooking...

Ingr .
Beans - 2 Cups
Red Chillis whole - 3-4
Tuar dal - 1 cup
Salt - Taste
Asafoetida - a pinch
Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp
Whole Urad Dal - 1/s tsp
Coconut grated - 1 tbsp
Curry Leaves - a few
Coriander Leaves - To garnish

Method:
Powder the tuar dal and red chillies in a mixie.
Boil 1 cup of water and pour it over the powdered tuar dal mixture and let it stand for 30 minutes
In the meanwhile, wash and cut the beans.
In a kadhai, temper mustard seeds and urad dal and add the cut beans.
while this is cooking, take a microwave bowl and put the tual dal mixture in it and microwave on high for 4-5 minutes. Remove and crush the cooked mixture into powder with your hands.
Add Asafoetida and salt to the beans and cook for a while.
When the beans are tender and cooked, add the crushed dal mixture.
Add coconut gratings and curry leaves to the paruppu usli.
Garnish with chopped coriander.

Usually served with Steamed rice and Buttermilk Stew.
PS: My Mother in law uses the traditional idli steamer to steam the tuar dal mixture and then crush them and add to the cooked vegetable, this process takes about 15 - 20 minutes, but with the microwave it finishes within 5 -6 minutes!

Cheedai.... Quick trick for Lord Krishna

We south Indians love festivals as much as the north Indians... the only difference being the kind of sweets which are made in each of these places.
Traditionally, we make Cheedais for Krishna Jayanti. Cheedais are small balls made of rice flour and deep fried. The savoury has pepper and Jeera as the flavoring agents, while the sweet ones are flavored by jaggery and elaichi powder.
One of my friends here in Chennai taught me this version of making salt cheedais.

Ing :
Rice Flour (lightly roasted) - 1 cup
Urad Dal (Roasted till light brown and powdered) - 3/4 Tbsps
Butter - 1 tbsp
grated coconut - 1 tbsp
pepper - 1/2 tsp
jeera - 1/2 tsp
Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp
salt - as per taste.

Method :
Powder the urad dal and sieve thrice to remove any unpowdered portion.
Roast the rice flour lightly and mix with the urad dal powder.
Grind pepper,Jeera and coconut well and add to the rice powder.
Add asafoetida and salt and mix well.
Add the butter and mix well into the flour.
Add water to the flour to make a firm but soft dough.
Make small balls (size of a small gooseberry) of this dough.
Heat oil well and add a few cheedai at a time to deep fry till golden brown.

This is eaten as a snack without any accompaniment.
When fried well the cheedai will make a hollow sound when dropped.

Wheat Chakli

This is a recipe I had read in one of the many cookery books but right now I fail to remember which one!! This is also my favourite savoury.

Ingr :
Atta - 200 Gms.
Ajwain - 2 tsps
Jeera - 2 tsps
Oil - 3 tbsps
Salt - 1 tsp or as per taste.
Red Chilli Powder - 2 tsps.

Method :
Sieve the atta and place it on a muslin cloth.
Bundle the cloth nicely and secure the atta with rubber bands.
Place this bundle in a bowl and put it in a pressure cooker.
Cook in the cooker for about 15 mins WITHOUT the whisle.(As with idlis )
Remove from the cooker and cool the bundle.
Break the atta and crush them till they become flour.
Add the rest of the ingr. and make a firm but soft dough with water.
Heat oil for deep frying.
Make chaklis with the chakli maker and place them on a dry cloth.
Remove one chakli at a time and deep fry. (You may deep fry 2 or more)
Cool and store in an airtight container.

Its a nice alternative to murukkus.... ! or simply delicious for a change!

Eggless - Butterless Cake - My most precious recipe!

Don't go by the name... Butterless doesnt mean fatless!!
Like all foodies.... I love to try experimenting. My love for cakes and my daughters love for cakes made me experiment with ingredients to get this lovely cake recipe.
This is surely a no fuss recipe and we have almost all the ingr at home at all times!

Ingr :
Wheat Flour (Atta) or Maida- 200 Gms
Baking Powder - 3/4 tsp
Baking Soda - 1/2 Tsp
Salt - a pinch
Drinking chocolate - 3 Tbsps
Milk - 250 Ml
Vegetable Oil - 100 ml
Sugar - 150 Gms

Nuts and Raisins (Optional)

Method :
Sieve Atta/Maida,Choc Powder,Baking Soda,Baking Powder and salt thrice and keep aside covered.
Pre heat oven at 160 degree C.
Grease a Round cake tin.
Add milk,oil and sugar in a bowl and whisk well till the sugar dissolves and milk and oil mixes with each other.
Add the sieved mixture to this batter little by little.
Make a smooth batter and pour it into the greased cake tin.
Ensure that the cake tin is 1/2 -3/4 full. Do not pour more than 3/4 of the tin.
Bake at 160 degree C for 45 mins or till the cake forms a golden brown crust and is done.
Remove and cool. Cut into pieces and can be served with vanilla ice cream or just pour chocolate sauce or Honey over it and enjoy it!

This cake is both nutritious and quite handy at home for all hunger pangs!

Chocolate Fudge - My Grandmom's master piece!

This chocolate burfi recipe is my favourite and grandmom's most delicious sweet...! I am not sure if she has learnt it from someone... but I have learnt it from her!!

Ing :
Milkmaid - 1 Tin
Drinking Chocolate - 3 Tbsps
Butter - 1 Cup
Instant Coffee - 2 Tsps
Nuts and raisins (Optional)
Oil for greasing.

Method :
Mix in a heavy bottom pan - Milkmaid,Butter,choc powder,instant coffee.
Put the pan over heat and let the butter melt and mix with the other ingr.
Keep stirring occasionally to make a smooth sauce like mixture.
Add the nuts and raisins at this stage if using them in the recipe.
When the mixture starts leaving oil from the sides and the mixture can be rolled into a ball, remove from fire and keep mixing well with a spoon till the mixture is smooth and of a dropping consistency.
Grease a tray and pour the mixture over the tray. Let it cool slightly and cut into small pieces. Let the mixture cool completely.
Break into small pieces and store in a airtight jar.

PS : I find this recipe sweet enough... however, my grandmom used to add 1/2 cup of sugar more to her recipe!.

This is one of the few sweets my savoury loving daughter enjoys a lot!