Upside Down Mango Cake

We are a mango loving crazy family, and that includes my mango eating dog who loves to chew on the seed!  End of the mango season coincides with my husband's birthday. So what better way to end the season than make a mango cake? However, mango is one fruit that I normally do not tamper with. That is cook/bake the fruit. At best, I use cubed pieces in trifles or with ice-cream. But this time, I decided to give it a shot and bake a mango dessert!

This is a simple and easy to bake cake. As you can see from the pictures, the result was a moist, super soft and gooey cake with caramel dripping off the top, and off course the heavenly mango pieces baked and soaked in caramel. Husband, family, friends and my dog loved it. Proof of the pudding! :D

You will need:

250 gms flour

200 gms brown sugar

250 gms cooking butter

4 eggs

1tsp vanilla essence

2 cups firm cubed mangos (I used Alphonso mangos)

1/2 cup caramel

For the cake : Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat the eggs separately and add in one at a time, continuously beating along with the vanilla. Fold in the flour little at a time till a smooth consistency is formed.

For the caramel : In a heavy bottom pan, place 3/4 cup of white (refined) sugar with 4 tbs of water. Cook on low flame without stirring till the sugar and water are well incorporated. Heat the mixture further till the colour changes to brown. Turn off the gas and let it cool.

Pre heat the oven at 180 degrees centigrade. Grease and line a baking tray with parchment paper. Evenly distribute/arrange the mango cubes on the tray. Pour the caramel over the mango ensuring that every bit of the tray base is covered with mango and caramel. On top of this, pour the cake batter and bake at 200 degrees centigrade for 25 minutes or till a knife inserted comes out clean without gooey batter sticking to it. Allow to cool completely before flipping the cake on a flat surface.

Chocolate Banana Cake with Chocolate Ganache

Got some over ripe bananas that need using up, but want a change from the usual banana bread?

Try this really yummy recipe and I assure you you'll love it. More so if you like banana type cakes and are chocoholic.

I couldn't image combining banana and chocolate together until I baked this cake. Quick and easy to put together, and a hit with family and friends.

You will need:

2 cups (400 grams) granulated white sugar

1 3/4 cups (245 grams) all-purpose flour

3/4 cup (75 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder 

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

2 cups mashed ripe bananas

1/2 cup warm milk

1 cup water

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees centigrade. In a large bowl whisk together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In another large bowl, whisk together the eggs, mashed bananas, water, milk, oil, and vanilla extract. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir, or whisk, until combined.

Pour the batter into prepared tins and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

For the Ganache:

Melt the chopped chocolate in a microwave proof bowl for about 3 minutes and set aside. Next, heat the cream and butter in another bowl for just about 1 minute. Pour the cream-butter mixture over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir until smooth. After cooling completely, spread over the cake evenly.

Adapted from Joy Of Baking

Tamatar Shorba (Tomato Soup)

Cold winter evenings in Bangalore call for a pot of steaming soup. I love the desi tamatar shorba. It can be made in a thick or thin consistency with whole Indian spices. 

You will need:

4-5 ripe firm tomatoes

1 Onion

2-3 pods of garlic

1 green chilli

Half tbs whole pepper

Bay leaf

A pinch of garam masala powder

Fresh coriander

In a pan, fry the spices with a little oil. Add the green chili, garlic and onions and fry lightly. Toss in cubed tomato chunks, garam masala powder and fry further. Add water and bring to a boil.. Once it has cooled completely, blend in a mixer. Let the puree simmer for a bit, add salt and a pinch of sugar. Garnish with lots of coriander.

Cinnamon Rolls

Fluffy, chewy & soft, bursting with buttery sugar-cinnamon filling - Cinnamon rolls for Sunday evening; My house smelled heavenly with the baking aromas of fresh bread and cinnamon. I was keeping my fingers crossed, hoping they'd taste as good. Well, my family has polished of most of it, so I guess its decent! 

This is how I made it.

For the dough:
Maida/All purpose flour - 3 1/2 cups
Vanilla Essence - few drops
Milk -1/4 cup
Sugar -5 tsp
Salt -1 tsp
Butter -5 tsp(softened)
Active dry yeast - 1 tbs
Olive Oil - 1 tbs

For the filling:
Cinnamon Powder
Melted butter 
Granulated Sugar 

For the frosting:
4 tbs melted butter
5 tbs icing sugar
1/2 cup warm milk

Ready the yeast mixture by dissolving the dry yeast in lukewarm water until dissolved and frothy. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the milk, sugar, salt vanilla essence and yeast mixture. Add the flour little at a time and knead to form a pliable dough. Add the olive oil and knead further (knead for about 20 minutes). Cover the dough with a damp cloth and set aside for a few hours or until the dough doubles in size.

Preheat the oven.

On a floured and dusted surface, roll out the dough into a rectangular shape with a rolling pin.  Coat the dough with butter and spread the cinnamon and sugar generously. Tightly roll up the spread dough and cut into even pieces. Place in a greased baking tin and bake for about 30 minutes or till golden brown.

For the frosting, whisk together all the ingredients to form a smooth syrup. Drizzle over the rolls before serving.

Akki Rotti

Akki rotti (rice flour pancakes) is a traditional South Indian snack. It is largely made as breakfast or an evening snack. In Karnataka, there are many varieties of akki rottis specific to the region/district. The one below is what I have grown up on at home. It is hand patted, crisp on the outside, and soft inside. The best part of these rottis is that they can be made absolutely thin and crisp or soft and fluffy - it all depends on how it is patted and spread on the tawa/girdle.

Ingredients:
Rice Flour: 2 cups
Finely chopped onions: 2
Cumin/jeera seeds: 1/4 cup
Chopped green chilies: 8 or as per taste
Chopped fresh coriander: 1/2 cup
Grated fresh coconut: 1/4 cup
Fresh curds/yogurt: 1/4 cup
Water: 1/4 cup
Salt to taste

Oil/Ghee for frying

In a mixing bowl, combine the above ingredients except oil/ghee to form a soft pliable dough. The consistency should be firm, soft and should be able to form a ball. Make sure the dough is not hard/dry as that can make brittle rottis. Keep aside for 10 minutes.

Grease a tawa generously with oil using your fingers. (Note: do not pre-heat the tawa as it is essential to grease the tawa with hand and also to hand-pat the dough)

With your greased palm, take a small ball of the dough and pat onto the greased the tawa to form a rotti/roti of desired thickness. With your index finger, make a small hole in the center of the rotti and fill it with oil. Cook on medium flame till golden brown. Flip the rotti to lightly cook the underside.

To quickly make the next rotti, flip and hold the underside/bottom of the hot tawa with the help of tongs/kitchen gloves under running water in the kitchen sink ( it will cool down the tawa immediately) and you can proceed with patting the next rotti.

Serve hot with chutney, tokku or pickle. You can also drizzle some ghee/butter for added flavor.

Note: You can store the dough and use it for up to two days by refrigerating.

Tambuli

If you have been following my previous posts, you will realize I have been eating out like crazy. I needed to give my stomach a much needed break and detox my system. At such times, the South Indian in me takes over and I turn to comfort food like good old curd rice or anything curd based.

Tambuli is a simple curd/yogurt based curry, best had with steamed rice. There is hardly any cooking involved and is quick to make. Tambuli is very popular in the Malnad belt and South Canara region of Karnataka. It has a very soothing effect on the digestive system and works wonders for acidity.

A typical tambuli is made by mixing a chutney made of greens such as doddapatre (the thick velvety leaves) known as Coleus aromaticus in English, palak and even arrive soppu.  Or you can substitute the greens with just pods of garlic, pumpkin, cucumber, capsicum or any other vegetable with heavy water content.

My favorite is the garlic tambuli.

You need:

6-7 pods of chopped garlic
2-3 green chilies (avoid green chilies if you have acidity)
Half a cup of fresh grated coconut
2-3 sprigs of fresh coriander
4-5 dry red chilies
Curry leaves
Hing/Asafoetida
Mustard seeds
2 tbs oil

Grind the coconut, green chilies and fresh coriander.  Dilute the curds if it is very thick by beating it with a little water – the consistency should be a little thicker than that of buttermilk. Add the ground paste to the curds and add salt per taste. Prepare a tadka/tempering of mustard seeds, hing/asafoetida, curry leaves, chopped garlic and dry red chilies and add it to the curds. Mix well and serve with room temperature rice.

Note: If you are using a vegetable, saute the vegetables with the tadka until cooked. 

Choco-Biscuit Fudge Cake

A week night chocolate craving brought about this choco-biscuit fudge cake. I vaguely remember a friend's mom used to make something called 'fridge cake' back in my school days - chocolate, biscuit bits and refrigeration is all that was required. This is something on those lines. Quick, super easy and instantly satiates the sweet craving, plus the family loved it.

You need:
2 packets Marie biscuits or any digestive biscuits
2 tbs cooking butter
250 grams cooking chocolate

Crush the biscuits to form a coarse powder in a mixer or simply break and crush with your fingers and set aside. In a microwave safe bowl, melt the cooking chocolate and butter  together until a smooth and creamy consistency is formed. Let it cool. Add the biscuit crumbs, mix and pour into a greased dish. Refrigerate for about 2 hours and then cut into squares.

So is this a fudge or cake? I am unable to decide....try making it and why don't you tell me?

Strawberry Cheesecake

Yay! Finally got on with my post for January 2013! 

Hope the new year has started on a good note folks :)

December is typically such a crazy, hectic month of celebration, eating out and entertaining....for me, this spirit has carried on to January 2013.

A weekend dinner party I hosted for a dear friend gave me the opportunity to try my hand at a 'proper' cheesecake. And mind you, it was a gelatin free egg less one at that.

With strawberries aplenty these days, and before the season is through, I decided to make a strawberry dessert.

Ingredients:

2 packets digestive biscuits (I used Marie)

2 cups grated cottage cheese (paneer)

1 cup cream cheese (I used Britannia Cream Cheese)

1/2 cup condensed milk

2 table spoons cooking butter

6 to 8 fresh hulled strawberries for blending

20 strawberries sliced for decoration

strawberry syrup for topping

For the biscuit base:

Crush the biscuits in the mixer until it forms a coarse powder. Melt the butter and mix it with the biscuit powder. Grease a spring-form pan or a baking tray and press down the crumbs firmly to form a 1 inch base. Refrigerate.

For the filling:

Combine the grated cottage cheese, cream cheese and condensed milk in a blender and pulse for a few seconds. Add the hulled strawberries and pulse again until it forms a smooth and creamy mixture.

Pour this strawberry cheese mixture on to the biscuit base and bake at 180 degrees centigrade for about 30 minutes. Baking temperature may vary depending on the oven, however you know the cheesecake is done when the strawberry cream bubbles up. Allow to cool completely. Decorate with fresh cut strawberries and refrigerate for about 4 hours. Serve with a dollop of strawberry sauce. 

Christmas Fruit/Plum Cake

Tis the season to be jolly, tra la la la, la la la la....

My favorite time of the year is here yet again. As always, once the tree goes up at home, baking the plum cake follows suite. This time, I followed Maria's Christmas fruit cake recipe from Mariasmenu 

The cake turned out moist, soft and fluffy. A little boozy and rich too.

Merry Christmas everyone, and a very Happy New Year.

Double Chocolate Brownies

I became an aunt for the first time to my brother and sister-in-law's cute baby boy. In my super excited mood, I baked a Double Chocolate Brownie for the little one's homecoming party! It was a big hit and all the pieces vanished before I could say 'brownie'!

This is a superb recipe I found on the Joyofbaking food blog. One cannot go wrong - very easy and quick. Plus, the use of microwave for melting only makes the entire process easier.

Ingredients
Butter – ½ 1 cup cut into pieces
Dark Chocolate – 150 gms
Instant Coffee powder – 1 tsp
Cocoa Powder – 2 tbsp
Caster sugar – 1 cup
Eggs – 3, room temperature
Vanilla extract – 1 tsp
Flour – ¾ 1 cup
Salt – ¼ tsp
Chocolate chips – ½ 1 cup
Chopped walnuts – ¼ 1 cup

Grease and line a square baking tin. Preheat oven to 190C. In a microwave safe bowl, add butter and chocolate and microwave on high for 1 minute. Stir till the chocolate is melted. Add the instant coffee powder,cocoa powder and caster sugar and beat. Break in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each
addition. Stir in the vanilla. Add flour, salt and beat well. Fold in the chocolate chips and walnuts and mix.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and bake for 30-35 minutes or till a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow it to cool completely and cut into squares.

Sweets for Diwali : Microwave Doodh (Milk) Peda

Diwali is just a day away, I am working on Sunday and through Diwali. With very little time on hand and determination to make sweets at home, I decided on a couple of quick fixes as suggested by dear Anasuya aunty.

I saw lots of variations of this quick and easy sweet recipe all over the internet and finally came up with this version. Never enjoyed microwave cooking as much as making instant Doodh Peda this morning. All you need is three ingredients and three minutes of microwave cooking time. Yes, that's right - just three minutes (or a little more in some microwaves) to make this delicious peda.

Ingredients:
1 tin sweetened condensed milk
4 cups milk powder
50gms butter

Melt the butter for 10 seconds in a microwave safe dish. Combine the melted butter, condensed milk and milk powder and mix thoroughly. Microwave on high for three minutes, stirring every one minute. The cooking time actually varies for each microwave. The mixture will get to a crumble consistency - that is when you know it is done. Remove from microwave and allow to cool. Grease palms and form small round pedas. Decorate with dry fruits.

Apple Crumble with Warm Vanilla Custard

What do you do when lots of apples get accumulated and you can’t eat them all up? Make an apple crumble – quick and easy! And then, some vanilla custard.

You would need 6 ripe apples, cored and diced, 5tbs sugar, 3 small sticks of cinnamon or to taste, 6 slices bread and 4tbs cooking butter

Preheat the oven. Meanwhile, peel, core and dice the apples (I got my husband to do it as I hate peeling and chopping). In a thick bottom pan, cook the apples along with 3tbs of sugar on medium flame. Throw in 2 sticks on cinnamon so the apples catch the cinnamon flavour. Cook covered and stir a bit to ensure that the apples don’t burn. This will take about 10mins. Once the apples are cooked and slightly soggy with a little syrup, turn off the gas. Run the bread slices, 1 cinnamon stick and 2tbs of sugar in a food processor or blender until coarse bread crumbs are formed. Mix the butter and bread crumbs mixture well. In a greased baking dish, spread the cooked apples evenly. Top the apple spread with a thick layer of bread crumbs taking care not to leave any gaps. Press the bread crumbs layer lightly. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit for about 20 minutes, or, depending on your oven, until the bread crumbs layer is crisp.

While the apple crumble baked, I made some vanilla custard with custard powder that I happened to have. I served the crumble warm with custard. You could also add a scoop of vanilla ice-cream.

Star Fruit Salad & Cocktail

I had completely written off the exotic star fruit from my list of favorites. I always thought it was either too sour, sweet or something in between. But that was until I read Chinmayie Bhat's blog on the star fruit salad. It looked so delicious I just had to try it. 

Few days after I read Chinmayie's post, I saw a fruit vendor selling star fruits. I was immediately reminded of the salad and decided to buy some and try making it with my own twist.

Typically, star fruits are in season from July through September in India. Guess I was lucky to find them in the middle of October. 

This salad is pretty easy. I basically tossed in whatever fruits and veggies I had at hand. And the best part is that everyone at home loved it!

Ingredients:
2 star fruits sliced
1 avocado diced
A bunch of Indian black grapes
2 tomatoes sliced
Chopped coriander
Chilli powder to taste
Some white til/sesame seeds
Salt to taste

Dressing:
2 tbs olive oil
Juice of I lime
1 tbs honey

Method
Arrange the cut fruits on a platter. Combine the dressing ingredients in a separate bowl and whisk. Drizzle the dressing over the fruits. Sprinkle salt, chilli powder and sesame seeds.

Star fruit cocktail

I used the leftover star fruit slices in a cocktail. Was pretty good even if I say so myself !

Combine 30ml vodka, 30ml white wine, 60ml  orange juice, some sprite, lots of ice and  2-3 slices of star fruit. Tangy and refreshing!

No Bake Nutella Cheesecake

A Sunday afternoon lunch at a friend's place called for some dessert! As I was feeling very lazy ( remember it was a Sunday), I wanted to make something in a jiffy with ingredients I had at hand. Thanks to my 9 year old daughter (who is addicted to nutella) I had an unopened jar and some cream cheese!

This cheesecake turned out to be a big hit! Sinfully yummy and very easy to make. Best part is that it is a no-bake cheese cake!

Ingredients:

• Pack of 4 Marie Biscuits
• 100gms cooking butter
• Half cup milk
• Half tsp Vanilla essence
• One big jar Nutella
• 200gms Britannia Creamcheese
• 3tbs Drinking chocolate powder for dusting
• A dash of Hersheys chocolate syrup for decoration

Coarsely crush the Marie biscuits (in a mixer). Add softened butter and milk and mix thoroughly. Press into a spring form pan or a flat pudding dish to form a base of about 1 inch. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.

In a food processor/hand blender mix the nutella, cream cheese and vanilla essence until well incorporated. Pour this mixture over the biscuit base and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight. Before serving, dust a little drinking chocolate powder and add a dash of Hersheys chocolate sauce.

Birthday Cakes by Reva Garde

All the world is birthday cake, so take a piece, but not too much.

George Harrison

But how can you resist and not take too much when someone painstakingly bakes two yummy birthday cakes with a lot of love and care? And if that someone happens to be my dear friend, super cook and master baker Reva Garde, then God help those who try and resist!

It was her husband Vish's birthday last weekend and some of us friends trooped in to their place for a party. And like always, Reva had made some very delicious dinner. But the highlight of the party (apart from being Vish's birthday of course) were the two cakes she baked. A moist chocolate cake with yummy butter cream icing for the kids, and a heavenly brandy soaked Tiramisu cake for the adults.

The kiddy cake had an awesome texture - soft, moist and coarse topped off with swirls of vanilla butter cream icing. Dont miss the tourquise swirl....quite a beauty of a cake! The kids could just not resist digging-in and licking off their fingers.

The tiramisu cake - now where do I begin? A gourmet, sweet and creamy indulgence. Lightly washed with coffee, layered with mascorpone cheese and soaked in brandy. A dusting of cocoa used cleverly for decoration. Just one word to describe it - DELICIOUS

Reva shares the tiramisu cake recipe:

For the cake layers:

2 cups cake flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 sticks (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

3 large eggs

1 large egg yolk

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup buttermilk

For the espresso extract:

2 tablespoons instant espresso powder

2 tablespoons boiling water

For the espresso syrup:

1/2 cup water

1/3 cup sugar

1 tablespoon amaretto, Kahlua, or brandy (I used brandy)

For the filling and frosting:

1 8-ounce container mascarpone

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 tablespoon amaretto, Kahlua, or brandy ( I used brandy)

1 cup cold heavy cream

2 1/2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped, or about 1/2 cup store-bought mini chocolate chips

Chocolate-covered espresso beans, for decoration (optional)

Cocoa powder, for dusting

Getting ready:

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 9×2 inch round cake pans, dust the insides with flour, tap out the excess, and line the bottoms of the pans with parchment or wax paper. Put the pans on a baking sheet.

To make the cake:

Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy. Add the sugar and beat for another 3 minutes. Add the eggs one by one, and then the yolk, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla; don’t be concerned if the mixture looks curdled. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, adding the dry ingredients in 3 additions and the milk in 2 (begin and end with the dry ingredients); scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed and mix only until the ingredients disappear into the batter. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.

Bake for 28 to 30 minutes, rotating the pans at the midway point. When fully baked, the cakes will be golden and springy to the touch and a thin knife inserted into the centers will

come out clean. Transfer the cakes to a rack and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, unmold them, and peel off the paper liners. Invert and cool to room temperature right-side up.

To make the extract:

Stir the espresso powder and boiling water together in a small cup until blended. Set aside.

To make the syrup:

Stir the water and sugar together in a small saucepan and bring just to a boil. Pour the syrup into a small heatproof bowl and stir in 1 tablespoon of the espresso extract and the

liqueur or brandy; set aside.

To make the filling and frosting:

Put the mascarpone, sugar, vanilla, and liqueur in a large bowl and whisk just until blended and smooth.

Working with the stand mixer with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer, whip the heavy cream until it holds firm peaks. Switch to a rubber spatula and stir about one quarter of the whipped cream into the mascarpone. Fold in the rest of the whipped cream with a light touch.

To assemble the cake:

If the tops of the cake layers have crowned, use a long serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion to even them. Place one layer right-side up on a cardboard round or a cake plate protected with strips of wax or parchment paper. Using a pastry brush or a small spoon, soak the layer with about one third of the espresso syrup. Smooth some of the mascarpone cream over the layer – user about 1 1/4 cups – and gently press the chopped chocolate into the filling. Put the second cake layer on the counter and soak the top of it with half the remaining espresso syrup, then turn the layer over and position it, soaked side down, over the filling. Soak the top of the cake with the remaining syrup.

For the frosting, whisk 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of the remaining espresso extract into the remaining mascarpone filling. Taste the frosting as you go to decide how much extract you want to add. If the frosting looks as if it might be a little too soft to spread over the cake, press a piece of plastic wrap against its surface and refrigerate it for 15 minutes or so.

Refrigerate the cake too.

With a long metal icing spatula, smooth the frosting around the sides of the cake and over the top. If you want to decorate the cake with chocolate-covered espresso beans, press them into the filling, making concentric circles of beans or just putting some beans in the center of the cake.

Refrigerate the cake for at least 3 hours (or for up to 1 day) before serving – the elements need time to meld.

Just before serving, dust the top of the cake with cocoa.

Thanks Reva, for the lovely party, dinner and the cakes :)

Rich Christmas Plum Cake

The spirit of Xmas is incomplete without the traditional yummy Christmas plum cake. Once our Christmas tree was, up my 8 year old daughter - who loves baking, was after me to start preparing to bake the plum cake.

I have been trying different plum cake recipes every Christmas for the last few years. This year, I am greatly inspired by fellow food blogger Aliena Varghese 's recipes on her blog, and have tried to follow her plum cake recipe, with a little variation in some ingredients. Thanks for this Ally.

My daughter and I baked this plum cake together last evening. Here is how we did it.

Ingredients:

Butter - 250 gms

Brown Sugar - 200 gms

Eggs - 4

Plain flour - 350 gms

Rum/Brandy - 3tbsp

Salt - 1/2tsp

Mixed Spice (powdered nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves) - 1tsp

Vanilla Essence - 1tsp

Molasses - 5tbsp

Apricot Preserve - 1/4cup

Orange Marmalade - 1/4cup

Fruits:

Orange and Almond Essence - few drops

Baking soda - 1/2tsp

Almonds/ Cashew nuts - 200gms

Cherries - 125gms

Raisins - 100gms

Sultanas and Currants - 250gms

Tutty Fruity - 250 gms

Dates - 200gms

Mixed peel - 125gms

Preparation:

Chop and soak all the fruits in dark rum or brandy one week in advance. Stir everyday.

Method

Pre-heat the oven at 140 degrees centigrade. Sift the flour, salt and baking soda and keep aside. In a separate bowl cream the butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Whip the eggs separately and add them little at a time, making sure the mixture does not curdle. Add in the essences and keep beating. Fold in the flour and continue stirring till batter is fluffy. Add the fruits, peel, spices, apricot preserve and orange marmalade and mix thoroughly till well combined. Pour the batter into a greased baking tin. Bake at 140 degrees centigrade for 45 - 55 mins (depending on the oven) until the top turns a dark brown and when a skewer inserted into the cake comes out with dry crumbs.

Notes:

You can use caramel instead of molasses and regular sugar instead of brown sugar.

The quantity and type of fruits/nuts is entirely your choice, however I'd recommend to use orange rind if you can because it enhances the flavour a lot. You could also throw in some

dry sugar coated ginger.

If you plan to ice the cake, reduce sugar by 1/3 cup. This cake is sweet enough on it's own.

You can soak up the cake after it has cooled completely with a little dark rum.

Baking time will vary as per the oven, but typically, keep checking after 40 mins.

Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year.

Banana Bread (egg-less)

Been craving for some home-made dessert for a while now. So decided to snap out of my lazy stupor and bake something. There were a few over ripe bananas sitting in the fruit basket - ideal for baking banana bread (egg less).

This is the first bread I learnt to bake few years back (after having tasted the banana walnut bread at ICRISAT Hyderabad). Moist, delicious and wholesome. And folks at home love it.

Ingredients

1 cup sugar ( Indian granulated white sugar or brown sugar)

3 bananas (ripe)

4 tbsp melted unsalted butter

2 tbsp curds/dahi

1 and 1/2 cup all purpose flour (maida)

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla essence or extract

1/4 cup milk

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1tsp cinnamon powder

Method

Pre Heat oven to 350 degree fahrenheit / 180 degree centigrade. Blend the bananas, add sugar, curds and mix. Add butter, salt, and flour till incorporated. Mix the baking soda with the milk and add it to the above mix along with the vanilla essence. Mix in the walnuts and cinnamon

powder and stir till everything is well blended. Pour this batter into a greased bread tin and bake for about 50-60 minutes or till a tooth pick inserted comes out dry.