My second innings in baking

No matter how awesome breads I may bake in the future, this bread will always be the closest to my heart! Because with this bread, I resumed baking after 14 long years. Curious? 

Well, let me kill the curiosity..

I am a Hotel Management graduate. Obviously, as part of the curriculum, I learnt to bake so many cakes, breads and cookies. However, it was total "egg" cooking. Those days we were so much obsessed with having a good career that we just focussed on the destination, not the journey. As a result baking was a very procedural thing to get the right grades. Of course, those who wanted to be professional chefs did have a different approach towards the classes. But since those days I was more keen on pursuing MBA after college and wanted to make a career in marketing and communication, baking was a mere task for me which I had to complete perfectly just to get good grades. How foolish of me na! Yes, after 14 years even I think so. But there is a saying that experience is like a comb that life gives when you go bald! So no point hind sighting.

So, what is it that has suddenly transformed me into a crazy baker? 

Well, motherhood is the answer. I once wrote a post on the things motherhood taught me that nothing else did and today I proudly add baking to that list. I wanted to introduce breads to my toddler son. However, I was skeptical about the ingredients used in the commercially available bread. Finally, my chef apron and the baking journals came to my rescue! The Microwave is all smiles as it is finally getting the attention it has deserved all these years. 

Since I have long stopped eating eggs, this second innings in baking is going to be completely eggless! Therefore, I feel like a First year student again, as I research on the ways to get the best results without using eggs.

Sometimes, small initiatives give us so much joy that even money can't buy! The joy of seeing my little one cherish the breads/cakes baked by me is something words cannot explain. 

Such is the magic of motherhood!

Easy Instant Dhokla

I have a childhood connection with Dhokla. In Delhi, whenever we had unannounced army of guests (I say army because kids those days accompanied their parents, unlike these days when kids prefer gadgets to get togethers) usually chai would be prepared at home and snacks ordered from the local market. Most often, the snacks ordered would be piping hot Samosas, Jalebis and Dhokla! 

I remember there was a sweet shop (Aggarwal Sweets) in Munirka, Delhi and whenever Papa and I would pass by, we would get at least half a kilo Dhokla packed and then enjoy at home with Chai! Our taste buds were so used to the Dhokla from our favourite shops that while in Delhi, we never ever felt the need to prepare Dhokla at home!

However, after I moved to Mumbai, like most other foods, I found a difference in the Dhokla served here. Blame it on the numerous places where I tried the Dhokla, but I found the Mumbai walla Dhokla a bit dry and less spongy than its Delhi counterpart. As a popular Hindi saying goes, "Marta Kya na karta", my MIL got into crazy Dhokla experiments and we almost got used to being the guinea pigs of her experiments.

Finally, my dream of having Dhokla of my choice came true when I purchased an Aluminium Cake tin recently. So desperate were we to have Dhokla that we inaugurated the tin with Dhokla instead of a cake! How funny is that! Using an Aluminium tin gave us the desired results as the tin heats faster. 

Here's how we got our instant spongy Dhokla!

Ingredients

Besan/Gramflour - 1 Cup

Semolina/Suji - 2tbsp

Curd/Dahi (Preferably sour) - 3/4 Cup

Turmeric Powder/Haldi - 1 tsp

Salt/Namak - to taste

Vegetable Oil - 2 tbsp

Lemon Juice - juice of 2 lemons

Eno/fruit salt - 1 sachet

Mustard Seeds/Sarson - 1 tsp

Curry leaves/Kadi Patta - 8-10

Green Chillies/Hari Mirch - 2-3, chopped

Green Coriander - 2tbsp, chopped, for garnish

Sugar - 2-3tsp

Water - 1 Cup

Method - 

1. In a mixing bowl, take curd.

2. Add the gramflour, semolina, salt and turmeric powder.

3. Mix well to form a smooth batter. If the batter is thick, some lukewarm water can be added to adjust the consistency.

4. Add 1 tbsp vegetable oil and juice of 1 lemon. Mix well and rest for 20-30 minutes. 

6. Boil water in a steamer (I used pressure cooker cooker and kept a stand inside). Add 1 sachet Eno to the batter and just slightly fold in one direction. Pour the batter immediately in a greased Aluminium cake tin and steam for 15 minutes on high flame or till the knife poked in the Dhokla comes out clean. 

7. For the tempering, heat 1 tbsp oil. Add mustard seeds, green chillies and chopped curry leaves. 

8. Once they splutter, add 1 cup water. Mix well and bring to a boil. 

9. Add 2-3 tsp sugar (or to taste) and juice of 1 lemon. 

10. Cut the cooled Dhokla into pieces and pour the tadka on it. Garnish with chopped coriander (I haven't as my son doesn't like coriander). 

Easy Eggless Mango Cake

Sometimes, husband's care can scare! 

Yes, you heard me right! But before you begin to judge me as an insensitive wife, let me tell you the story...

Few days ago, when Mr. Hubby returned from a trip, he surprised us with the souvenir. Not one, not two but 12 Kg Mangoes! In the great Gabbar Singh's style, I said, "Aadmi 3.5 aur aam 12kg!" Haha! Well, MIL and I immediately got into the Mango mode. The refrigerator's vegetable basket was vacated for these guests, while the veggies made faces as they were given "Desh Nikala" and had to spend the night out in the warmth. 

Such was the Mango pressure that till late night, all MIL and I discussed was how to use these Mangoes. From Aam Panna to Mango ice cream, all options were explored. Next day being a Sunday, the baker in me came alive, as I had babysitter support (Mr. Hubby). "Let's bake a Mango Cake!" I suggested and my partner in crime, my MIL was too happy to help.

Ingredients

Mango - 1 large

Grain Sugar - 1/4 Cup

Refined Flour (Maida) - 1 1/2 Cup

Baking Powder - 1 tsp

Baking Soda - 1/2 tsp

Melted Butter (we used Amul Salted butter) - 1/2 Cup

Condensed Milk - 3/4 Cup

Vanilla/Mango Essence - 1/4 tsp

Warm milk with cream - 3-4 tbsp

Method 

1. Take out the pulp from Mango and blend to a smooth puree along with the sugar. (The whitish thing in the pic is malai that accidentally dropped in the mixing bowl.

2. In a mixing bowl, take the Mango puree. Add the melted butter, condensed milk, Vanilla/Mango essence and mix well. (I didn't use the essence as Mr. Hubby wanted original flavour of Mangoes. However, the next time I prepare the cake, I will definitely add the essence as the cake tastes better with it.)

3. Sieve together the refined flour, baking powder and baking soda.

4. Add the sieved flour to the mango mixture and fold gently into a smooth batter. The batter should neither be too thin nor thick, just smooth flowing batter like the Pakoda/fritter batter. While the batter should be mixed well to avoid lumps, avoid over mixing as the cake won't rise then.

5. Grease an aluminium cake tin and dust some refined flour on the base as well as on sides.

6. Pour the batter into the cake tin and level the batter with a spoon/by tapping the tin.

7. We had preheated the oven (convection mode in microwave) to 200 degrees since I have observed the temperature falls by 10-20 degrees while I place the tin inside the oven and set the temperature and time for baking. By the time I did so, the temperature had already fallen to 180 degrees which was the required temperature. 

Bake the cake at 180 degrees for 25 minutes.

8. Remove the cake and check by inserting a knife. If the knife comes clean, then the cake is done. As you can see in the pic, I have stabbed the cake (as Mr. Hubby described it) right in the centre.

9. Cool for 20-25 minutes and enjoy with tea or with frosting of your choice. 

See for yourself how soft and fluffy the cake is!

Easy wholewheat flour & ghee biscuits (eggless)

Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine myself baking biscuits! But, as someone wise once said, "necessity is the mother of invention." Well, I can't really call this an invention. But necessity is what turned me into a good cook and now I am experimenting with baking.

The culprit...err...the credit for this transformation goes to the overprotective father in my house - Mr. Hubby. Ever since he became a dad, he surprises me with his awareness levels regarding food safety and health. One of the first things toddlers begin to snack on is biscuits. But, when I enthusiastically bought packets of various Glucose and milk biscuits Mr. Hubby said little S won't be given all this. As I grumbled in frustration, Mr. Hubby asked me to have a look at the ingredients. I couldn't argue with him on this one as I did notice the amount of vegetable oil and maida. "If you are so keen on feeding him biscuits, why don't you bake at home?"

This awakened the Mother India inside me. So, last weekend I did debut on the biscuit front. I did keep it simple though, for I didn't want little S to outrightly reject my labour of love. When little S did savour them with pleasure, the Mother India was elated, for the biscuits had the goodness of wholewheat flour and desi ghee! This is how I made these yummy biscuits.

Ingredients

Wholewheat flour (Atta) - 1 cup

Vanilla Custard Powder - 2 tbsp

Clarified Butter (Desi Ghee) - 1/2 cup

Powdered Sugar - 1/2 cup

Salt - a pinch

Milk - 1/4 cup 

Baking Powder - 1 tsp

Cardamom Powder - 1 tsp

Method

1. In a mixing bowl, take wholewheat flour and desi ghee and mix well to form a crumble. 

2. Add the powdered sugar, cardamom powder and mix well.

3. Add the custard powder and mix well.

4. Slowly add milk and bind the mixture together to form a soft dough. 

Note : Do not over knead the mixture else the biscuits will come out hard. Use only as much milk as the dough requires. There is no compulsion to use all the milk. 

5. Roll the dough into a thick roti. Using a cookie cutter (I used the lid of my baking powder!) cut discs in shape of your choice.

6. Line the discs in a greased baking tray. Keep some distance between the discs.

7. Preheat the oven at 180 degrees. Bake the biscuits for 20-22 minutes at 180 degrees at convection mode. Remove once the biscuits become golden brown and let them cool on cooling rack for 15-20 minutes. If you press the biscuits, they will appear tender. However, don't be tempted to over bake. Once the biscuits cool down, the texture will be just fine. 

Next on my wish list is Good Day biscuits. Let's see when that happens...

Wholewheat flour eggless pancakes - healthy recipe

When we were newly married, my hubby used to make impromptu demands for something sweet post dinner. Let me tell you, he isn't the types who you can please with cakes and mithai stored in fridge. He is very picky about food, which has been a blessing in disguise for me. For, had it not been his tantrums, I wouldn't have focussed so much on getting my dishes right.

Well, coming to pancakes. Pancakes in my life reinforce the saying "practice makes a man woman perfect!"I love pancakes so much that I can prepare them anytime of the day. These wholewheat pancakes in particular are my hubby's favourite. Each time he would demand for them post dinner, my MIL and I would give him dirty looks but eventually, he would have his way!

Now my son too loves them. I am posting the basic recipe here. You can add mashed banana, nuts etc as per your choice.

The saunf and jaggery are very good for digestion and wholewheat flour too is easy on the tummy!

Ingredients (Makes 3-4 pancakes)

Wholewheat flour - 2tbsp

Jaggery - 1 1/2 tbsp or to taste

Water - 1 Cup or as required

Fennel Seeds/Saunf - 2tsp

Oil - 1tbsp

Method

1. Dissolve jaggery in water. 

2. In a bowl, take flour. 

3. Slowly add the jaggery water and mix well to form a slightly thick batter. The batter is slightly thicker than the pancake batter else the pancakes will stick on the tawa.

4. Add the saunf and mix well. 

5. Heat a tawa and grease well with oil.

6. Pour the batter in circular motion. 

7. Pour oil from sides. Flip only when one side is cooked well and cook from the other side as well.

8. Serve hot. You can sprinkle some castor sugar or honey or syrup on top but I didn't as my son loves these pancakes just like that. 

Few Tips and tricks

1. I am used to preparing this on an iron tawa however, if you are a beginner, I suggest play safe with non stick pan.

2. Many a times my pancake used to stubbornly stick to the tawa despite the temperature being right. I then discovered that excess sugar led to this. So, ensure the sugar quantity is not too much.

3. The key to a good pancake on iron tawa is the right temperature. Too much or too less can lead to a broken pancake. Heat the tawa adequately before pouring the batter and then reduce the flame to medium. Then once one side is done, flip and cook on medium to low flame. 

4. You can add mashed banana, nuts, cardamom powder and many other variations as per your choice.