Fruity Nutty Cake

Merry Christmas and happy new year.Blogging has drastically came down this year did only 56 post.Not getting much time on the net, busy with the kids and other things.Hope i will be regular in the coming year.Coming to today post i made this cake for Christmas.Usually i bake my cake in microwave convention mode.When my batter was ready to be kept in the microwave,my microwave stopped working.Then i gave my batter to my neighborhood baker.Though he was busy with christmas he baked the cake for me and it came out very well.I got the recipe from Hindu newspaper.Here goes the recipe:-

Ingredients:-

Maida/All purpose flour 200gms

Eggs 4

Sugar 100 gms

Caramelised sugar 100gms

Butter 200gms

Baking powder 1 ½ tsp

Vanilla essence 1 tsp

Almond essence 1tsp

Lemon essence 1 tsp

Coffee 1 tsp (dissolved in half cup of water)

Dry fruits (Kismis,dates,apricots,tutti-frutti and nuts) ¼ kg chopped

Red wine 2 tsp

Mixed fruit jam 2 tbsp

Garam masala powder 1 tsp

Nutmeg powder ½ tsp

Fennel powder ½ tsp

Salt ½ tsp

Method:-

Caramalise 100gms sugar (Take sugar in a thick bottom pan.Heat it until the sugar melts and colour changes to brown colour.Add 4-5 tbsp of water and switch off the fire)Let it rest until use.

Chop all the nuts and sprinkle dry powder on them.This make the nuts not to sink to the bottom of the cake pan.

Beat sugar and butter together.Add egg and beat until fluffy.

Mix maida and baking powder and gradually add the flour to the egg batter.Then add all the caramelized sugar,essence,coffee powder,red wine,garam masala powder,jam,nutmeg powder,fennel powder and salt.

Bend well and then fold in the dry fruits.

Line the baking tray and pour the batter.Bake at 110 degrees celusis for 2 hours.

Let the cake cool for 3-4 hours.Prick the cake with a toothpick and sprinkle ¼ cup of wine.

Bombay Chutney with a twist

This chutney i learnt it from my m-inlaw who does this chuntey for poori or rotis when there are no veggies at home.My sister too does this but to eat it with idlies and she twisted the recipe by adding boiled potatoes to it.I blogged about this recipe before here and this is just addition of potatoes to this chutney and i am sure potatoes lovers will love this combination of besan and potatoes.

Ingredients:-

Onion 1 sliced
Green chillies 2 silted
Boiled potatoes chopped into big pieces 10 pcs
Ginger 1/2" pc
Besan/Chanaga pindi 5 tbsp
Lemon juice 2 tbsp

Seasoning:-
Rai 1/2 tsp
Red chillies 2
Curry leaves few

Method:-

Mix besan with little water and keep aside.
Head kadai,add all the seasoning and when curry leaves are fried add ginger,onions and green chillies.Fry for just 2 minutes (don't fry it completely).
Add boiled potatoes and fry just about done,be careful not to fry completely.Add 2 cups of water.
Bring into boil.Add besan into the boiling water and stir simultaneously.Cook for 3-4 minutes until semi liquid.
Just before serving add lemon juice and serve it with rotis.

Oriental style Paratha

I am a big fan of sanjeev kapoor in particular his indian recipes.Even if the recipe is tough,he shows it in a simple way and his measurement if taken properly will never go wrong.I am yet to see his new cooking channel but heard about it a lot in FB.This recipe is from Sanjeev Kapoor website Sanjeevkapoor.com.I replaced maida with wheat flour as i don't use maida much at home other than using for baking cakes and muffins.Here goes Sanjeev kapoor recipe:-

Ingredients:-


Wheat flour 2 cups
Salt as per taste
Oil  3tbsp


For filling:-
Cabbage shredded finely 1 cup
Carrot grated 1 cup
Soy sauce 1/4 tsp
Beans chopped finely 1/2 cup
Pepper 1 tsp
Sugar


Method:-


Make a soft dough with wheat flour and salt.Set aside until use.


In a pan take oil,add cabbage,carrot and beans.Stir fry on high till the veggies change colour.Add soya sauce,pepper,sugar and salt.Mix well and fry until the veggies are dry and cooked.


Roll out a thick roti.Place 2tbsp of the stuffing and close the edges.


Flatten it and dust it with more flour and roll out until the stuffing is not seen


Fry both sides with oil.Serve hot with curd and chat masala.