Oatmeal and Raisin Cookies

Huh, who said best things in life are free. I spent hours (okay may be few minutes) trolling thorugh the aisles of Nilgiri super market trying to figure out what is available and what is not for my recipe. I almost mowed down couple of sales team people out of sheer frustration at their absolutely archaic and messed up shelving system :(. And then i saw Mascarpone cheese and Ricotta cheese in the dairy section and viola i was all happy, why did that happen you say, well thats the story for other time. Right now its time for some baking!!!



Ingrediants:

Maida -> 100 gms
Baking Soda -> 1/2 tsp
Salt -> 1/2 tsp
Cinnamon Powder -> 1/2 tsp
Oats -> 260 gms

Butter -> 160 gms
Sugar -> 200gms
Water -> 4tbsp
Vanilla Essence -> 1 tsp
Raisins -> 50 gms

Method:

Sieve Maida, soda, salt, add cinnamon pwd and oats to it and mix well. Blend butter and sugar till light and fluffy. Add water and vanilla and combine.
Add dry mix to this and also the raisins. Mix well. Make small balls and faltten them on the lined baking tray.

Bake at 180 degree for chewy consistency and 15 min for crisp cookies

Choclate Chunk Cookies

Yeah! its the baking season for me. I am just bitten by this baking bug, and so i just have to bake. Cookies have been on my to do list for quiet some time. I just got derailed learning savoury and hors d ouvers :) anyways, today i baked Choco chip. My niece branded me mad coz i did my baking after returning from office and making dinnereee. What does she know, i am so not ready to hang up my boots and call it a day. SO ladies and girls here is the most amazing eggless choco chip cookie on this side of the atlantic ..so to say :D




Ingrediants:

Maida -> 200gms
Salt -> 1/4 tsp
Baking Soda -> 1/2 tsp
Butter -> 115gms
Powdered Sugar -> 100 gms
Vanilla Essence -> 1 tsp
Water -> 2 tbsp
Choco Chips -> As mush as you want or 1/2 cup

Method:
Sieve Maida, soda and salt. In another pan blend butter and sugar till light and fluffy, add water and vanilla and combine. Now add the flour mix to this. Add Choco Chips. Mix well using hands.
Chill untill firm, Roll into ball and then flatten them onto a lined baking tray.

Bake at 180 degree for 15 min or until light brown on the edges.


Method:

Eggless Banana and Walnut Cake:

Saturday ! the weekend began. Also mom is leaving for her hometown for about 2 weeks !!! so i decided to bake this cake and surprise her. This amazingly springy tasty and original cake is a recipe by arati. This recipe is so simple and easy the make that i kept wondering where the hell was i going so wrong with all my experiments earlier :S. Anyways, here is one amazingly simple and awesome recipe. With picture courtsey me!!



A beautifully baked cake

It actually sliced perfectly !! i am so proud of myself !


An amateur attempt at food presentation!

Note: Please follow the instructions closely, a small mistake also makes huge difference in the quality of cake.

Ingrediants:

Maida -> 185gms
Baking Soda -> 1/2 tsp (level)
Baking Powder -> 1/2 tsp (level)
Salt -> 1/4 tsp (level)
Oil -> 75 ml
Curds -> 75 ml
Flax Seed Powder -> 1 tbsp
Powdered Sugar -> 185 gm ( can be replaced with Jaggery :)
Walnuts -> 1/4 Cup (Grind it coarsly)
Vanilla Essence -> 3/4 tsp
Banana -> 3/4 Cup ( Pureed in Mixer without water)

Pre Preparation:
Mix Flax seeds powder in 3 tbsp water and whisk for 1 min

Line the 8" circular baking tray with butter paper ( greasing is optional)

Method:

Sieve Maida, Salt, Baking powder and Baking soda together

In a different pan mix oil, curd, sugar, Pureed banana, vanilla essence, flax seeds mixture and blend well.
Now add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and blend till it combines.

Note: Do not over blend, this results in a hard cake.

Stir in the walnuts.

Pour the mixture into the lined baking tray. Tap the tray lightly 2 times to get out the bubbles if any.

Bake for 30 min at 180 degree. or till light brown and springy on the top.

Note: Wait for the cake to cool down before trying to remove it from the Baking tray.

Note: This cake tastes best if left to sit for about 12 hours.

Asparagus With Ginger

Stir-fry asparagus is healthy and simple to prepare, yet very delicious. It is a beautiful dish to serve and makes a great appetizer or a side dish.

Recipe serves 4.

Ingredients:
1 bunch of asparagus, approx. 1 pound
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon cumin seed (jeera)
1 tablespoon minced ginger
2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Method:
Holding the stalk at both ends, bend gently until it breaks on its own. Discard the hard portion of the stalk.
Cut the remaining asparagus spears diagonally into 2 inch pieces.
Bring oil to medium heat in a large frying pan that can hold all the asparagus.
Add cumin seeds and wait till they crack. Then add asparagus, ginger, lemon juice, salt and black pepper.
Stir-fry for about 4 to 5 minutes until asparagus are tender but still crunch.
Serve hot or at room temperature.

Shingada (Singoda) Flour Ladoo.

English Name: Water Chestnut Flour

Usage: Used to make Fasting foo primarily. Also high in calcium.

Ingrediants:
1/4 Cup Ghee
1/2 Cup Shinghada Flour
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/2 tsp Cardamom Powder
1 tbsp karik (dry dates) powder
1 tbsp dry coconut powder (roasted)

Method:
In a Wok heat 1/4 cup ghee. Add Singhada flour and cook for 5 - 7 minuts at low flame. Add coconut powder and dry dates powder. Saute for 1-2 min and remove from heat.

Add sugar and cardamom powder while the flour is hot. Mix well and immediately mae 1 inch laddu out of the misture

Dulce de Leche

I was hunting through the net using my beloved Google :D for a to die for recipie of brownie and look what i found, another amazing recipie. This i made and shared and was totally loved by everyone. Kudos to divya for this awesome treat. :)

You just need a pressure cooker and a box of milkmaid or amul mithai mate.

Step 1 - Remove the plastic lid from the jar[If you are using Amul Mithai Mate,or else skip this step].

Step 2 - Fill a pressure cooker with water half way through.

Step 3 - Immerse the can into the pressure cooker and close the lid.Switch on the gas on high.Wait for steam to come and then put on the whistle.After the first whistle, simmer the flame and let it cook for 30-45 minutes[depending on how thick you want your dulce de leche to be].I cooked for 30 minutes and I got a thick texture.

Step 4-Switch off the gas and let it cool down to room temperature. (this is very important)

Once it is cool, open the can and dig in ... you are going to love it!!!!!!!

Refrigerate immediately if not using on spot :)

Cheesy Baked Potatoes

Ingrediants:

Potatoes - Boiled (4 medium) and sliced
White Sauce - 2 Cup
Cheedar Cheese - 1 Cup
Salt and Pepper

Ingrediants for the White Sauce:
Maida - 1 tablespoon
Butter - 1 tablespoon
Milk - 2 cup
Salt to taste
Cheese - 50 gm (this is optional and you can increase or reduce the quanity)

Method for making White Sauce:
Heat pan, add butter, wait for 2 min and add Maida. Stir maida for 20 sec and
turn off the gas. Add milk, salt and cheese and stir for 1 min till it mixes
properly. Turn on the gas and simmer at medium heat. When the sauce starts to
thicken, turn off the gas

P.S: You can add herbs (Oregano, Basil, Parsley etc) to this if
desired.

Method:

Taking a Baking dish, grease using butter/ghee/margarine, Line it with the sliced potatoes, sprinkle salt and pepper, Cheese and spoon the white sauce evenly. Repeat the layers till the potatoes and the white sauce are not over.

Finish with the layer of white sauce topped with cheese.
Pre heat the oven to 180 degree and put the dish and bake it for 40 min.
Serve Hot.

P.S: If you do not have a Oven, you can use the microwave at 100% for 20 min.