Apple Cinnamon Loaf Cake

Soft and flavourful apple cake... 🍏

Recipe source : Yummy Tummy

INGREDIENTS:
For apple layer :
Apple - 1 (crunchy type)
Brown sugar - ¼ cup
Cinnamon powder - 1 tsp

For Cake:
Egg - 1
Sugar - ¾ cup
Vanilla essence - 1 tsp
Oil - ⅓ cup
Milk - ½ cup
Maida - 1½ cup
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Baking soda - ½ tsp
Salt - ¼ tsp

METHOD:

1. Peel and chop the apple into small pieces. In a bowl, mix the apple, brown sugar and cinnamon powder. Keep it aside. 

2. In another bowl, add egg, sugar, oil, milk and vanilla essence. Mix well. (beating not required) 

3. Seive maida, baking powder, baking soda and salt. 

4. Add the maida mixture to the liquid mixture and mix gently. 

5. Pour half of the cake batter into a lined baking loaf pan and level it. 

6. Then top it with a layer of entire apple mixture. 

7. Finally pour the remaining batter on top and level it. 

8. Bake it in a pre-heated oven at 180°c. 

Notes:

1. For this recipe, 1 cup = 240 ml  

Yolk cake

What to do with yolks left out from other recipes where only egg whites were used??? Go ahead n bake this cake 😋!

Recipe source: Callmepmc

INGREDIENTS:
Egg yolks - 2
Plain flour - 1/2 cup
Baking powder - 3/4th of 1/2 tsp
Salt - a pinch
Sugar - 1/3 cup (measured & powdered)
Vanilla extra - 1/4 tsp
Lemon/pineapple/any extract - 1/4 tsp
Water - 40 ml

(Yes .... A no butter/oil cake)

METHOD:

1. Sieve flour, baking powder, and salt together.

2. In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar until pale and fluffy. 

3. Beating at low speed, add the extracts and water.

4. Finally add the flour mixture little by little and beat only till well combined. 

5. Pour the batter into a greased and lined baking pan. 

6. Bake it at 180°c preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until done  

7. Cool the cake completely on wire rack. Slice n serve. 

NOTES:

1. For this recipe, my 1 cup = 240 ml. 

2. All the ingredients must be at room temperature.

Divinity Candy

Divinity - A very sweet, fluffy like cloud candy... Just melts in your mouth. It was too sweet for my taste buds .. But these are traditional Christmas candies.  So give it a try...

INGREDIENTS:

Sugar - 1 cup

Light corn syrup - 1/4 cup

Water - 1/4 cup

Egg whites - 1 (room temperature)

Salt - 1/8 tsp

Vanilla extract - 1/2 tsp

Warm nuts (toasted and chopped) - 1/2 cup (optional) 

METHOD :

1. Heat a saucepan in low heat and combine sugar, corn syrup, and water in it, stirring only until sugar dissolves.

2. In a separate bowl, add egg white and salt. 

3. As the temperature of the syrup reaches 250 degrees, beat the egg white till stiff peaks form.

4. Continue to cook the syrup to hardball stage (260 degrees).

5. Gradually pour the syrup (in thin stream)  to egg whites, beating at medium speed with electric mixer.

6. Add extract and beat until candy holds its shape, 4-5 minutes.

7. Finally, fold in the chopped warm nuts or cherries, if desired.

8. Spread it in a greased sheet pan. Let it cool. Cut it into squares.

NOTES:

1. For this recipe, my 1 cup = 240 ml. 

2. Add WARM nuts. 

3. Always check the humidity of your place before trying this recipe. For this particular confection to set well, the humidity should not be greater than 50-60 %. 

Puff pastry - no waiting method

Perfect flaky puffy puff pastry, with lots of layers and no refrigeration required... Yes... No waiting. Just fold and bake.... 👍

INGREDIENTS:
Plain flour - 100 gms
Puff margarine* - 25 gms
Room temperature Butter - 25 gms + 1/2 tsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Sugar - 1/2 tsp
Vinegar - 1/2 tsp
Ice cold water - as required

METHOD:
1. Mix flour, salt, sugar, vinegar, 1/2 tsp butter and ice cold water and knead to a soft dough.
2. Let it rest for 10 minutes.
3. In a separate bowl, mix the margarine and butter to a smooth paste and divide it into 3 equal portions.
4. Now roll the dough lengthwise to a long 1/2 cm thick rectangular slab. (30*10 cm)
5. Take one portion of the butter paste and smear all over the slab and sprinkle about 1/2 tsp of flour over it.
6. Fold the dough into 3 and rotate it to 90° degrees as shown in picture below.

7. Repeat steps 4 - 6 twice and twice again without step 5 (skip smearing butter).

8. Finally freeze it for 15 minutes before use.

How to use:

1. Remove the pastry from freezer and roll it again lengthwise to 1/2 cm thick rectangular slab. (30*10 cm)

2. Cut it to desired shapes. Use it with your favourite filling or just plain.  Brush whisked egg or milk on top. 

3. Bake it at 220°c preheated oven for about 15-18 minutes.

*Puff margarine:

To prepare puff margarine, just melt vanaspati. Do not overheat. Keep a bowl ready mixed with cold water and few ice cubes. Pour the melted vanaspati into the water. Using a fork, stir vigorously. The vanaspati will turn to white solid mass. Now remove the solid mass from water and squeeze it firmly to drain any water. Shape it to a block. Your puff margarine is ready.

Chocolate ganache - Using cocoa powder

A simple, economical yet a very yummy luscious silky smooth chocolaty frosting... Yum 😋 

Recipe source: 4 you recipes

INGREDIENTS:

Cocoa powder - 1/2 cup

Icing sugar - 1/2 cup

Melted Butter - 2 ½ tbsp

Milk - 1/4 cup

Honey - 1 tsp (optional) 

METHOD:

1. Sieve cocoa powder and icing sugar together in a bowl. 

2. Add melted butter and mix.

3. Finally add the honey and milk slowly and mix it well to a smooth paste.

4. It's done. Frost it on a cake / donut or just go ahead and indulge with a spoon. 

My notes:

1. For this recipe, my 1 cup measures 240 ml. 

2. Honey is purely optional. It adds a glaze to the frosting. 

3. You can add more sugar if you want it to be more sweeter. Instead of icing sugar, you can add finely powdered sugar. 

4. If you find any lumps at the final stage, just whip it in the mixer for few seconds. 

5. It can be refrigerated in an air tight container for later use. 

Simple Swiss Roll

Swiss roll with simple ingredients....

INGREDIENTS :
Flour - 40 gms
Baking powder - 1/2 tsp
Icing sugar - 40 gms
Egg - 1 (around 45 gms)
Salt - a pinch
Essence - 1/2 tsp
Extra Icing sugar for rolling

METHOD:
1. Sieve flour and baking powder together and keep it aside.
2. Beat egg, icing sugar, salt and essence together till pale and creamy. (ribbon stage)
3. Gently fold the flour into the egg-sugar mixture.
4. Pour it into a greased and lined baking tray (24*12cm) and level it.
5. Bake it in 200 C preheated oven for 5-7 minutes.
6. Lay out a clean cloth on the work surface. Lay a piece of parchment paper (slightly larger than the baking tray size) on top. Dust the paper with icing sugar.
7. Invert the baking tray and carefully remove the tray and peel the parchment paper stuck on the cake.
8. Carefully roll it while still hot. Let it cool completely.
9. Gently unroll the cake, then spread your favourite frosting all over and roll it again.
10. Classic n simple swiss roll is ready! 🍥 🍥 🍥 

Brownie Muffins

Brownie Muffins... Broffins... Brownie babies... You'll love it. ♥ 

A simple recipe. So chocolaty and chocolaty... 😋

Very Fudgy!!!

INGREDIENTS:

Yields 12 muffins

Salted Butter - 10 tbsp

Brown Sugar - 1/2 cup

White Sugar - 1/2 cup

Unsweetened cocoa powder - 3/4 cup

Instant coffee powder - 1/2 tsp

Vanilla extract - 2 tsp

Eggs - 2 

Flour - 1/2 cup

Walnuts - 1/2 cup (broken to small pieces) 

Chocolate chips - 1/2 cup (optional)

METHOD:

1. In a bowl, combine the butter, sugar, cocoa and coffee powder,  and melt in the microwave for 20 seconds. 

2. Let mixture cool a bit and then add in vanilla extract and eggs, one at a time. Mix well.

3. Next fold in the flour gently.

4. Finally add the chocolate chips and walnuts and mix well

5. Use an ice-cream scoop to divide batter into cupcake liners evenly. 

6. Bake it in 180 c preheated oven for 15-18 minutes, or until tops are cracked and a toothpick inserted comes out with lots of moist crumbs but no wet batter. 

Notes:
1. For this recipe, my 1 cup measures 240 ml.
2. We do not want a clean toothpick - the brownies should still be gooey in the center.
3. Brown sugar can be substituted with same amount of white sugar.

Mexican Chocoflan

Here I am with a recipe called Mexican Chocoflan. Also known as '''the impossible cake'. I'm not sure why it was named impossible cake. I think the 'impossible' was not for the cake's preparation. It might be for the exclamation after you see the end result...like " Wow!!! Impossible!!!" 😊

Anyways...lets call it Chocoflan 😁

Recipe source: My Spicy Kitchen

Ingredients:
Serves 2

For caramel:
Sugar - 3 tbsp

For flan and cake:
Egg - 1 (50 gms, whisked)
Use 2 tbsp from this for the flan and 1 tbsp for the cake

For flan:
Egg - 2 tbsp 
Milk - 3 tbsp (add 1 tbsp milk powder)
Sweetened Condensed Milk - 1/4 cup
Vanilla Extract - 1/4 tsp

For Cake:
Sugar - 2 tbsp
Plain Flour - 3 tbsp
Unsweetened Cocoa Powder - 1½ tbsp
Baking Soda - 1/8 tsp
Baking Powder - 1/ 8 tsp
Salt- a very small pinch
Egg - 1 tbsp
Yogurt - 2 tbsp
Vegetable Oil - 3/4 tbsp
Vanilla Extract - 1/4 tsp

Method:
Grease a baking pan. I used a pudding mould.

For the caramel:
1. Add the sugar in a pan, melt in low heat until sugar starts to caramelise to golden brown colour. Don't stir. Gently swirl the pan. Pour the caramel into the prepared baking pan and swirl it to spread well, the caramel will set solid in few seconds.

Preparing caramel

For the flan:
1. In a separate bowl mix all the ingredients thoroughly with a whisk gently.
2. Set it aside.

For the cake:
1. In a bowl, add all the dry ingredients and mix well.
2. In another bowl, add the egg and wet ingredients. Mix it well thoroughly.

Cake's wet & dry ingredients

3. Now Preheat the oven to 180°c.
4. Mix the above wet and dry ingredients well.

Assembling everything together:
1. Scoop the cake batter into the prepared baking pan and level it.

2. Next strain and gently pour the flan mixture on top.

3. Prepare a water bath -> take a little larger pan that would fit the baking pan. Place the baking pan into the large pan and gently pour hot water into the large pan till it reaches half way up.

4. Bake it for 45 - 60 minutes  (insert a tooth pick or a knife to test if the cake/flan is done) & allow it to cool completely. Cover with aluminium foil and refrigerate it for minimum 2 hours.

5. Remove the foil and run a knife along the edges of the pan to loosen the cake/flan.
6. Flip/invert it on to a plate gently.

Voila!!! Wow... Impossible!!!😊

The magic here is that the layers get swapped while baking! 😀 Enjoy the cool dessert 🍽 😋

Note:
1. For this recipe, my 1 cup = 240 ml.
2. From my experience, it's best to invert the flan/cake only when it cools completely (after refrigeration). The flan sets firmly.
3. After inverting, if some caramel gets stuck to the base of the baking pan, immerse the pan in a larger pan of boiling water and melt it. Drizzle over the flan.

Ghee Biscuits

A simple biscuit with the heavenly combination of ghee and cardamom.

INGREDIENTS:
Plain flour - 100 gms
Icing sugar - 50 gms
Baking soda - half of 1/4 tsp
Ghee (clarified butter) - 50-60 gms
Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp

METHOD:
1. Melt and cool the ghee. Add cardamom powder.
2. In a separate bowl, sift the flour, icing sugar and baking soda. Mix them together.

4. Add the ghee slowly to the flour mixture and make a soft dough. Don't overdo it.
5. On a flat surface, roll the dough gently to about 1 cm thick.
6. Use any cookie cutter to cut to your desired shape.

7. Place it all on a parchment lined baking tray and bake it in a 170°c preheated oven for 12-15 mins.

8. Cool completely and store them in an air tight container.

The biscuits can be served immediately but if served a day later they taste much better as the sugar and cardamom gets blended in the them nicely.

Braided Bread - Coconut Filling

My base Nigerian Agege bread dough is very versatile. Earlier I had made Choco Twist Bread with the same dough. 

Today tried it with the flavourful coconut filling. It turned out awesome. This dough never lets me down. I promise...it will never let you too. Now straight to the recipe...

INGREDIENTS:
Makes 4 breads (each about 20 cm long)
Agege Bread Dough  : 1 batch

Filling:
Dessicated coconut - 3 tbsp
Tutti frutti - 3 tbsp
Brown sugar - 1/2 tbsp
White sugar - 1/2 tbsp
Butter - 1/2 tbsp
Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
Cinnamon powder- 1/4 tsp

For brushing on top:
Egg - 1 / Melted Butter - 4 tbsp
Milk - 1 tbsp
Beat it together.

METHOD:
1. Mix all the filling ingredients and microwave for about 20 seconds.
2. Filling is ready.

3. Divide the Agege bread dough into 4 parts.
4. Roll each dough to an elongated oval shape to about 20 cm long (picture below).

5. Place the filling at the centre and snip the sides about 1cm width using a knife or scissors (picture below).

6. Braid the strips (criss-crossed) over the filling (picture below).

7. Carefully place it on a greased or parchment-lined baking tray. Cover with a kitchen towel and let it rest and rise for 15 minutes.

8. Brush the top with the egg wash and bake it in a preheated 200°c oven for about 12-15 minutes.

9. Right after taking out of the oven apply butter well on whole bread and let it rest covered with a cloth for 2-3 minutes to soften the bread completely.

My Tip:
For this recipe, my 1 cup = 240 ml