Zebra cake for fun

Off late,weather in Bangalore has been extraordinarily warm and the contrasting cold temperatures in the night have taken a toll on everyone's immunity.A lot of people around have been experiencing bouts of fever and respiratory problems.I learnt over phone today that a neighbour's three year old son had just come back the previous day after spending a night in the hospital because of breathing issues.His mother told me that though he was well now,he was cranky and refusing to eat anything.
I decided to bake a fun Zebra cake to cheer him up.I clearly knew the magic of the Zebra cake worked as I saw him sipping his orange juice along with a slice of cake on his own without any coaxing or cajoling!:)

This one is for little Augastaya...Hope to see you cycling on your blue tricycle in the evening..

Zebra cake ,although is a simple chocolate and vanilla combo cake,its a very visually appealing cake,specially for little children.Also its a lot of fun making it...

Ingredients-

Sugar-2/3cup
Flour-11/4cup
Egg-1
Salt-1/4 tsp
Baking soda-1/4tsp
Baking powder-1tsp
Oil-1/2 cup
Curd-4tsp
Vanilla essence-1 tsp
Cocoa Powder-3 tsp

Sieve together Flour+Salt+Baking soda+Baking powder and keep aside.
Whisk egg+ sugar+Oil+curd + vanilla essence together.
Gradually add the dry mix to liquid mix and whisk.
Now Divide the combined mixture in two vessels.
To one vessel add the cocoa powder and mix.

Take an eight inch baking mould and grease it.(I have used two 4 inch moulds here)
The trick is to bring layer effect by alternately spooning the two mixtures.
Put one spoon of the vanilla mix in the middle of the mould and let it spread out on its own.
The consistency of the mixture should be such that it should spread on its own without shaking or stirring the pan.Then spoon the cocoa mix over it in the middle followed by vanilla again.Continue spooning the two mixtures alternately till the end.

Bake in a preheated oven at 180 centigrade for forty minutes or till done.
Check by inserting a fork in the middle,if it comes out clean,the cake is done.

 

Simplest Banana bread ever

Today, we woke up to a dark and gloomy morning and found on the news channel that the morning sun had been driven away by the Thane cyclone …More rain, super speed winds and a chilly temperature have been prophesised to keep us indoors well till the new year arrives.

What a bummer…I am thinking as I see my plans for a long drive to the sunlit countryside crumble in the rain. Husband is refusing to come out of the cosy comforter and my heart is sinking for a trip that never took off and a dark dreary day that will have to be spent indoors staring the rain from the window sill.

Leaving my husband to be better lazy goose than I am, I pop into action and head straight to the kitchen from the bed. On a day like this nothing lifts the spirits better than a warm banana bread and a steaming cup of coffee served straight on the bed.

From the corner of my eye I can see two old bananas in the fruit basket, blackened, crying to be consumed or waiting to be trashed. As it happens these overripe bananas which appear to be beyond the state of consumption are going to be the star ingredients of my breakfast.

Here goes my tribute to CycloneThane(with prayers that it does not cause loss of life or any damage)

This is a no fuss recipe and I love it for its simplicity and the fact that bananas which have lost the visual appeal are put to best use allowing their wonderful fruity flavour to shine out.

Ingredients

1/2cup sugar-unlike other cake recipes you don’t have to powder it…less work!

½ cup mashed bananas-I prefer to use the bananas which appear to be goners and beyond use. However please don’t use the ones where fungus is visible on the fruit after peeling also. Two small bananas or one big one should suffice. Just peel the banana and mash it with the back of a fork. I like to leave chunks and not make it creamy .You can do it whichever way you prefer.

1 egg

½ cup oil-feel free to use healthy oils like canola or olive oil instead of the regular vegetable one

2/3 cup flour-again feel free to use whole wheat flour (regular atta)instead of the usual refined flour

1/3 cup curd-lends a nice moistness to the cake

1tsp vanilla essence

1tsp baking powder

¼ tsp baking soda

1/4tsp salt

1/4cup Chopped nuts, raisins

Here we go

1. Take a big bowl and whisk sugar into the mashed banana

2. Add the egg and whisk

3. Add curd and vanilla essence and whisk again

4. Sieve in the dry ingredients (flour+baking powder+soda+salt) together into the banana mix.

5. Fold in the dry mix with gentle upward moves and Do not vigorously mix with round movements. Do not worry about the small lumps as they give a fluffy texture to the cake on baking.

Note: If the mixture appears too fluidic, add one or two spoonfuls of flours as appropriate.

6. Add the nuts

7. Pour the mixture in a greased 4X8 baking dish

8. Bake in the preheated oven at 180 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until done. Cake is considered done when a fork inserted in the centre comes out clean.

The rain has paused already as I am admiring the gently rising light brown cake in the oven and brewing the coffee. The heavenly warm smells whiffing from the oven to the bedroom have already made my husband sit up in anticipation..

*Here in the pic I have added some grated dark choclate on top of the batter just before baking..It lends a wonderful choclaty twist to the banana cake!

No fuss cocconut cookies

With my gestational diabetes scare gone with a negative test result,I decided to treat myself today with something special and sweet:).The nightmares of insulin shots had been haunting me for days and I am so glad that its over.I still have to be careful with my carb and sugar intake but what the heck..I am in a mood to celebrate today.I had been yearning for something coconut and sweet..so coconut cookies it is!

I have never been fond of egg and my pregnancy has raised the degree of detesting to plain abhorrence.The egg smell just freaks me out nowadays so it is an eggless recipe for sure.
Here we go..
Ingredients-

 Coconut grated-1 cup
All purpose flour-200 gm
Sugar-125gm
Butter-100gm
Baking powder-1tsp
Milk-2tsp
Optional-vanilla essence OR green cardmom powder(elaichi)-1tsp
              Handful of raisins for topping

Soften the butter in microwave for 20 seconds and whisk in the sugar.
If you are using very big sugar granules,it will make sense to powder the sugar before using it.
If using vanilla essence or cardmom powder,add it now.
Sieve in the flour and baking powder together and mix.
Add in the coconut powder and knead the dough.
Use milk if the mixture is too dry to handle.
Make small balls,top it with a raisin and flatten it .
Place it on a greased baking tray and bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes at 180 centigrade.

These cookies will expand on baking so make sure there is ample space between the cookies when placing.The cookies are done if the bottom edge appears brown.Cool them for 15 minutes after baking for the trapped heat to cook the tops and make it crunchy.

This yields roughly 36-40 mid sized cookies