Tag Archives: butterless wheat cake

Eggless Whole Wheat Date and Walnut Cake

Merry Christmas to one and all!!

Next on the list is an eggless date and walnut cake. This was requested by one of my readers quite some time back. I know this is a very late response, my heartfelt regrets on that… yet better late than never!

This can also be an excellent substitute to a fruity Christmas Cake. There is no need for the caramel syrup in the Christmas Cake, this cake has the true goodness and color of dates. With no empty calories, it is surely a healthy snack or dessert for kids and adults alike.
100% Whole Wheat Eggless (No Butter) Dates and Walnut Cake

Ingredients

heaped cup of flour

dates and walnuts

whole wheat flour – 1 heaped cup – 175 gms
brown cane sugar – packed 1/2 cup – 90 gms
refined oil – little more than 1/2 cup – 90 ml
yoghurt – 4 tsp
baking soda – 1 1/2 tsp
chopped dates – 1 cup – 175 gms
chopped walnuts – 1/2 cup – 50 gms
boiling hot water – 3/4 cup – 120 ml extra water – 1/2 cup (if needed to add in the end to make the batter thinner)

soaked dates in water

Method of Preparation

Preheat oven at 160 degrees C
Grease a baking tray and keep ready
In a wide bowl, place chopped dates, sugar and hot water; Close and let it soften for 10 minutes
In another bowl, add baking soda and chopped walnuts to the whole wheat flour
After 10 minutes, the dates would have become soft; add refined oil to the date, water, sugar mixture
To this liquid mixture, add flour – walnut mixture little by little
Now, the batter would be a thick one, add 4 tsp yoghurt and mix well
Use the reserved 1/2 cup water if the cake batter is very thick or use as little water as possible to bring the batter to spoonable consistency
Bake for 50 mins to an hour till a tooth pick comes out clean
Cool and serve the cake.

Eggless Whole Wheat (No Butter) Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

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Carrot Cake is something special for various reasons- it is a healthy one as it has carrots and has a distinct spicy flavor with cinnamon and nutmeg. I remember baking carrot cake once or twice when I was young, when I didn’t know it was a winter cake. I also firmly believe climate and craving can be diagonally opposite to each other.

Now, how can I bring in winter/snow to Chennai to bake my carrot cake… then I would never have tried this wonderful cake. Remember, I come from Tamilnadu,a state where thaathas (grandpas) and aachis (grandmas) use their mufflers and pull overs for their early morning walks or temple walks, only in Maargazhi Maatham (the tamil month of Maargazhi) – mid December to mid January, when the early morning temp. would be just below 20 degrees.

This report a couple of years might summarise the actual climatic condition of Chennai, Tamilnadu –

A report recently released by the Regional Meteorological Centre, Chennai, said the actual minimum temperatures fall below 20 degrees Celsius during January and February. At times, the actual minimum temperatures varies 2 to 4 degrees Celsius below normal values. Records of the past 25 years show there is a gradual rise in minimum temperatures over Chennai ranging between 17 and 20 degrees Celsius.

The Met office recorded the lowest temperature in the last 28 years on January 27, 1982 (15.6 degrees Celsius), followed by 16.2 degrees Celsius on February 3, 1982. In 2010, the minimum temperature range went up to 17.5-23.4 degrees Celsius, with a monthly mean temperature of 21.2 degrees Celsius. http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-01-19/chennai/28356276_1_lowest-temperature-degrees-celsius

This is what winter means to us the Tamils! For more on our seasons – see dosaikal.com/thai-pongal-the-harvest-festival/.

Now, with global warming there is a decrease in temperature levels – where aachi has to stay with her sweater for the whole night. Now, Phnom Penh –
‘Citizens Warned to Wrap Up Against Cold Snap’

read the headlines of Cambodia Daily.

While the ministry’s website put temperatures in Phnom Penh at 21 degrees last night, Oum Ryna, director of the ministry’s meteorology department, said in some areas of the country temperatures could drop as low as 14. degrees. http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/citizens-warned-to-wrap-up-against-cold-snap-48739/

So, Carrot Cake justified!!
The FLOP STORY and The JOY OF SUCCESS

too watery… not good

When I tried as usual to make this cake a 100% whole wheat, eggless, butterless cake, it was a heart breaking flop consecutively 4 times. My desperation has no words to express that I even tried baking twice a day the same cake (of-course wasting nearly 200 gms of flour and other things twice in the same day . Thanks to my better half who never mentioned a word on wastage!). And that I tried converting the flop carrot cake into carrot cookies is another story.

The cake looked great from the outside – but was pudding like in the inside. Tried with crushed pineapple and once without the pineapple. One thing became sure – the cake was becoming too moist with yoghurt as substitute to eggs. Mixing all the wet ingredients – oil and yoghurt to sugar as first stage was making the mix more watery. So, adding pineapple created more problems.

Then I came across a few recipes – some vegan, some with all purpose flour and a few egg-less but with butter. A very few had a difference – where the dry ingredients were taken first and then the wet ingredients were added one by one to be immediately spooned into the cake tray and baked in the oven. By this the batter remained intact and didn’t let sugar and yoghurt and oil to become watery. I decided to give this a last try. Hurray!! This method worked well and my long awaited Carrot Cake was delivered in great shape!

Because of the continuous flops, I went in for a smaller cup size.
100% Whole Wheat Egg-less (No Butter) Carrot Cake

Ingredients

dry ingredients

whole wheat flour – 1 heaped cup – 125 gms
brown cane sugar – 3/4 cup – 100gms
salt – a pinch
cinnamon powder – 3/4 tsp
nutmeg powder – 1/2 tsp
baking powder – 1 tsp – 4 gms
baking soda – 1 tsp – 4 gms
chopped walnuts – 1/4 – 1/2 cup

wet ingredients

grated carrots – 1 cup – 125 gms
refined oil – 1/2 cup – 75 ml
thick curds – 1/2 cup – 100 gms
grated ginger – 1/2 tsp
vanilla essence – 1 tsp

Method of Preparation

Preheat oven at 175 degrees Celsius
Grease a baking tray or place greased baking sheet, ready for the batter to be spooned in
In a large bowl, take all the dry ingredients – flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon powder, nutmeg powder, baking powder and baking soda one by one except chopped walnuts
Start adding the wet ingredients one by one – carrots and ginger first
Next, add oil and last thick curds/yoghurt and mix well
Incorporate well as the baking powder and baking soda with the flour should dissolve completely, yet make it quick as the yoghurt and sugar doesn’t make the batter watery
Fold in the chopped walnuts
Spoon the batter into the baking tray
Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or till a tooth pick comes out clean.

Carrot Cakes look great with Cream Cheese Frosting – as a family we would prefer a plain carrot cake and avoid the sweet frosting. Still for the great experience of making a frosting and my latest culinary interest – please do bear with me.. my dear friends!
Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients (Less quantity for the above small cake – I had some left over frosting too)

cream cheese (I used Philadelphia cream cheese) – 115 gms
unsalted butter – 60 gms
icing sugar or confectioners sugar – 110 gms
vanilla essence – 3/4 tsp
chopped almonds for topping

Method of Preparation

Keep the cream cheese and butter out of refrigerator and bring to room temperature
Mix cream cheese and butter until smooth
Add vanilla essence
Spoon in sugar and mix well till a spreadable texture is achieved
Amount of sugar can be altered to individual preference – (this was a bit too sweet for us)
Spread on the cake with a blunt knife or spatula
Arrange chopped almonds or any other nuts of your choice or decorate as you wish.

Egg-less Whole Wheat Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting is ready!

Whole Wheat-Oatmeal Chocochip Cupcake

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I truly loved this cake. Raised well and fluffy and very light too, might be because of oatmeal! As a cup cake, this was also easier to pack as a break time snack for my daughter. The most delightful thing about the cake – my little princess made it herself. Most of the cakes posted in dosaikal are child-friendly in making- tested and trialled at home with my 6 year old. I give her the ingredients one after the other, while I preheat the oven; She never allows me to grease the cake tray too! So, I can bet on this, this is the best way to engage those little minds of constant energy.

I made this in a small cup measurement. Reason – with the cake series to keep going – baking a cake once a week, is too much for a small family and surely I do not want to put on those extra calories. As a kid’s snack, my kid loves to bake than to have her share.

Whole Wheat-Oatmeal Chocochip Cupcake (makes 6 cupcakes)

Ingredients

whole wheat flour – 1 cup – 75 gms
oatmeal – 1/2 cup – 30-40 gms
brown cane sugar – 1 cup – 100 gms
oil (used refined sunflower oil)- 1/2 cup – 50 gms
egg – 1 no.
baking powder – 3/4 tsp
baking soda – 3/4 tsp
hot milk – 1/4 cup (more or less as per consistency of cake)
vanilla essence – 1 tsp
chocochip – 1 handful
chopped walnuts (optional) – 1/4 cup

*substitute 1/2 cup yoghurt in place of egg
*if yoghurt is used, quantity of milk needed might be less – adjust accordingly
*double the quantity of ingredients for more cupcakes

Method of Preparation

Preheat oven at 175 degrees C
cupcake tray or moulds
Mix/Sift whole wheat flour and baking powder and keep aside
Measure the oatmeal and mix with wheat and baking powder and keep ready
In a wide bowl, beat the egg and mix sugar and oil
Add vanilla essence
To this mixture, add the dry ingredients (wheat flour, oatmeal and baking powder) in batches
Heat milk and add to baking soda and it would turn foamy
Pour into the cake batter immediately
If consistency of the batter is too thick, add little more milk; the batter is good if it is spoon-able and need not be pourable
Mix in the chocochips
If adding walnuts, mix in little flour and then add to the batter; this would avoid walnuts settling in the bottom of the cake
Spoon the batter into moulds
Bake for 20-30 minutes or till tooth pick/skewer comes out clean

Remember the Chocolate Ganache that I had kept in fridge? That made a good topping on the cupcake! Slightly microwaved the thickened ganache and poured over the cupcakes and decorated as per my daughter’s wish!!

Enjoy.

(100% Whole Wheat, Condensed Milk) Eggless Choco Walnut Cake with (trial attempted) Dark Chocolate Ganache

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I have already posted a basic eggless chocolate cake previously with yoghurt (dosaikal.com/eggless-chocolate-cake/). This one is also 100% whole wheat, no butter and no eggs – but with condensed milk for a richer, more moist texture. I wouldn’t term it as a very healthy cake – this time I give it up for a little indulgence. Of course, helps my daughter not to be tempted to the best bakery in town for white flour buttery chocolate cake.

Except for a few alien souls on this earth, most of us would relish chocolate cakes or even more chocolate frosted/iced cakes and pastries. With home made vanilla, banana, carrot or chocolate cakes – such cakes from the baker have not been really a hit at home these days – thanks to my little one’s magnanimity accepting my version of cakes! Now, what next when you go to a coffee shop for a break for Ice Chocolade, the choice is from donuts, croissants or choco frosted cakes or pastries. Donuts are a big NO and Croissants are once in a while alright – but with Choco Frosted Cakes – I am lost myself!! Then, the little one has the best company of the mother and we indulge together – then the guilt is only mine. The little one’s inbuilt innocent mechanism digests it so well!

That’s what happened last week – A break with Ice Chocolade and Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Ganache! Then, I promised her I shall try at home. I strongly believe icing is for those ‘yogic souls’ with great concentration. Icing is not my cup of tea or my piece of cake – though the piece of whole wheat cake is mine. But melting chocolate blocks and pouring on top of a cake is easier, the only problem being the finishing touch of perfection. I have tried more than a couple of times with melted chocolate topping on my cakes – tasted wonderful but not good with its looks.

Well, to achieve something you need to sacrifice something is a common phrase in Indian films and soaps since decades and no doubt that can be one of the heaviest truths of life too! So, I chose to achieve the goodness of chocolate icing not bothering about the looks of the finished product. I have also vowed to learn frosting swirls for my cup cakes. The warning signal has already been passed over to the ‘Tasting Duo of my Home’ – Father and Daughter Combo!

First the Cake.
EGGLESS CHOCO WALNUT CAKE (100% whole wheat, no butter) WITH CONDENSED MILK

Thanks to these websites from which I could get an idea of the quantity of condensed milk – but I have altered the ingredients to make the cake with whole wheat – butterless and less sweeter too-

http://www.thatslife.com.au/Article/Food/Reader-Recipes/Condensed-Milk-Chocolate-Cake

http://www.love2cook-malaysia.com/2012/03/eggless-condensed-milk-chocolate-cake.html

Ingredients

whole wheat flour – 1 cup – 150 gms
cocoa powder – 3 heaped tbsp – 50 gms
baking powder – 1 tsp – 4gms
baking soda – 1 tsp – 4 gms
hot milk (diluted if full cream) – 1/4 cup – 50 ml
refined oil (sunflower oil) – 1/2 cup – 75 – 80gms
condensed milk – 1/2 cup – 150 gms
chopped walnuts – 1/4 cup – 30 gms
vanilla essence – 1 tsp
extra warm milk – 1/4 cup – 50 ml (only to be used if batter is too thick)

the dry ingredients

Method of Preparation

Preheat oven at 175 degrees C and grease a round baking tray or place greased parchment paper in the dish as you wish
Mix the chopped walnuts in very little flour so that the nuts do not settle in the bottom of the cake; Keep aside
Combine whole wheat flour, baking powder and cocoa powder and keep aside
Combine condensed milk, oil and vanilla essence in a wide bowl
Mix baking soda and hot milk and it would become frothy, add this to the wet contents
Fold in the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder into the wet batter
If the batter is too thick, add the extra milk that is kept; the batter need not be pourable consistency – it is right if it is a spoonable consistency
Mix the floured walnuts to the cake batter
Spoon the batter into the cake tray/dish
Bake for 30-40 minutes (mine took even more) depending upon the oven, till a tooth pick comes out clean

For the Ganache –

Now, what I learnt about Ganache –

Ganache is a French term referring to a smooth and velvety mixture of chocolate and cream. Its origin is a little unclear, but it is believed to have been invented around 1850. Some say it originated in Switzerland where it was used as a base for truffles. Others say it was invented in Paris at the Patisserie Siravdin.

To make Ganache, hot cream (cream with a 35-40% butterfat content) is poured over chopped semi sweet or bittersweet chocolate, and the mixture is stirred until smooth. The proportions of chocolate to cream can vary depending on its use, but the basic form is equal weights of chocolate and cream. Dark, milk, or white chocolate can be used to make ganache and different flavorings can be added such as liqueurs and extracts. Butter, oil, or corn syrup can also be added when a dark shiny glaze is desired. http://www.joyofbaking.com/ganache.html

I went in search for the basic dark chocolate ganache recipe with butter and framed these two..

http://savorysweetlife.com/2009/08/simply-glorious-chocolate-ganache-recipe-3-ways/ and

http://www.chow.com/recipes/28649-basic-chocolate-ganache

and chose to stick to the second but learnt from the pictures of the first!

I took the 1:1 ratio for chocolate and cream and added butter for the extra shine and glaze of the icing.
CHOCOLATE GANACHE

Ingredients

Chocolate Bar (used 52% cocoa which is not bitter) – 200 gms
whipping cream – 200 gms (mine was 30% milk fat)
unsalted butter – 100 gms

Method of Preparation

If your chocolate bar is in the freezer as mine, place it outside and bring it to normal temperature or atleast less cold to cut into small pieces and keep in a heat proof dish
Bring the butter to room temperature
Heat the cream in medium stove position and bring to boil
Pour the cream over the chocolate pieces and let it melt – this might take 5 minutes
Stir well so that the pieces are completely melted
Mix the butter to choco-cream mixture
Chocolate Ganache is ready to be poured and spread on the cake.

cut chocolate and pour hot cream into it

add butter and the ganache is ready to be poured

NOTE:

This quantity of ingredients for ganache gives about 3 to 4 cups of pourable consistency.
It took less than half for the above chocolate cake.
The rest that I have stored – can be stored for months.
I plan to make choco-swirl icing or choco truffles too! I might try the swirls on a choco-chip vanilla cup cake!!

thickened ganache in fridge

Now, I forgot to take a picture when the ganache was ready on the cake. Then, I started thinking of ways to decorate it – which as I said earlier – not my cup of tea still. I decided on chocolate curls and tried but turned out to be grated chocolate!

So, I spread the grated chocolate on top of the ganache… not really pleasing- but truly tasted good.

Then I thought again of any other means of making my daughter happy –

I had already kept the ganache in the fridge and it was set well. I took it out and spread it on the cake pieces and ended it like this!!

with sprinkles

Believe me, the taste of Ganache was truly awesome.. just like the ones in those glass doored -wi-fied pastry shops!!

100% Whole Wheat Banana Cake (Butterless, Eggless)

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100% whole wheat cake

A long line of festivities and longer line of sweets and snacks have been in display at homes. Why not start a CAKE SERIES… while Santa is on his way!

I have always wanted to increase the list of cakes in dosaikal. The main reason is not simply a passion to bake – but to bake HEALTHY as much as possible. So, how about having a favorite snack without the guilt of adding more empty calories?!

And especially for those little ones who are always tempted towards donuts, pastries, french fries and many more in the same category of junk with white flour – why not let them have their share with fewer restrictions – with these cakes made of 100% whole wheat, without butter and mostly without eggs too!

And for adults too – these butterless delicacies can certainly help reduce those extra calories! So, don’t control your cravings.. just indulge!!

The recipes have reached this stage after a series of trial and error experimentation and I have also tried to follow a few recipes from fellow bloggers and converted the butter, egg and flour into oil, yoghurt and wheat as the previous cake recipes.

Let’s start with Whole Wheat Banana Cake, adapted from the recipe of one of my friends. The cake she had made was made to ‘Bakery Perfection’, with the flavor and aroma of banana. For me, after a few flops, this combination of ingredients turned out to be good and almost perfect for an experimentation.
100% Whole Wheat Banana Cake (Butterless and Eggless)

Due to continuous flops, I preferred to experiment with a very small cup measurement. The cup I chose was a small bowl which measures 75gms of wheat flour, equivalent to a small tea-cup. The proportions of flour, sugar and oil can be done with any cup measurement, but calculating the quantity of baking powder and baking soda might be difficult with cup measurements. Hence, the weight in grams is also given for perfect ratios.
Ingredients

whole wheat flour/gothumai maavu/atta – 2 cups/150 gms
brown cane sugar – 1 cup/100 gms
refined oil (I always use sunflower oil) – 3/4 cup/75 gms
yoghurt – 1 cup levelled – appr. 80-90 gms
well ripen bananas – 4 no.s small – 1 cup/125 gms when mashed
baking powder – 1 tsp/4 gms
baking soda – 1 tsp/4 gms
hot milk – 1/2 cup
banana essence – 1 tsp (can also use vanilla essence)

had a lovely brown colour in the bottom – thanks to the gas oven

Method of Preparation
Keeping things ready

Preheat oven at 170 degrees C or if gas oven keep the knob at 4
Grease the required cake tin
Sift wheat flour and baking powder and keep aside
Mash the bananas with spoon (original recipe); I blended in a blender

Preparing the Batter

In a wide bowl, mix oil, sugar and yoghurt
Then, add banana essence and mashed bananas and mix well
Dissolve baking soda in hot milk – this will form into a foamy white mixture and add this to the above batter
Fold in the sieved flour-baking powder
Spoon the batter in the cake tin. Smooth top with a spatula
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, depending upon the oven – till skewer comes out clean. A bigger cake would need more time.

and the upper crust soft and lighter in colour

Eggless Chocolate Cake

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Here comes a Chocolate Cake – Eggless! I prefer using eggs in my cakes… it’s just that I like the texture of the cake when eggs are used. But, I try to bake eggless cakes for my friends who do not include eggs in their diet.

As usual, butter is substituted with oil and all-purpose flour with wheat flour. Eggless cakes are also baked using condensed milk – here yoghurt is used instead. Of course, another healthier option – brown cane sugar is used in place of white sugar.

Eggless Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

wheat flour – 1 small cup – 100 gms
brown cane sugar – 3/4 cup – 75 gms
cocoa powder – 1/4 cup – 25 gms
cooking oil (I used sunflower oil) – 1/2 cup – 50 ml
yoghurt/curds – 1 1/2 cups – 150 ml
baking powder – 1/2 tsp
baking soda – 1/2 tsp
milk – a little (if needed)
salt – a pinch
vanilla extract – 1/2 tsp

Method of Preparation

Sieve wheat flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda and keep aside
In a wide bowl, mix oil, sugar, yoghurt and vanilla extract till sugar melts
Add the sieved dry ingredients little by little
If batter is thick, add milk as needed to make a batter of pourable consistency and lump-free too
Pour in a greased tray
Bake in a preheated oven at 200 degrees centigrade for 20 minutes
Check with a tooth pick
Cake is ready when tooth pick comes out clean
Cool and serve.

forgot to take a snap before i started cutting…

Note:

If one needs more sugar, can be added
Quantity of yoghurt can be reduced or diluted with very little water
Nuts, especially walnuts can give the cake a nutty taste
This cake gives nearly 20 small pieces – quantity can be altered for bigger or smaller cakes – checking at the right time is important!

Christmas Fruit Cake

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Any place of worship – be it a temple, church, mosque or any other religious place – being worshipped for number of years, especially centuries has a special aura. Prayer, Meditation, Chanting, Devotion, Peace and many more things occupying the worship area – make it a special place. I experience Peace and Tranquility in a temple – one of the reasons being the religious stories that I have been fed with, since childhood. When I grew up, I was pulled towards the ancient past of the 1000 to 1500 year old temples of Tamilnadu and the history and literature of the Tamils behind those walls and the stone inscriptions of the historic past on the walls of the temples.

I experience the same unexplainable respect for the ancient past and people of the past when I enter a Church which depicts valuable stories of history. The architectural beauty of Cathedrals amazes me and I tend to travel to another world!

Though this post comes a couple of days after Christmas, I thought I could share a few photographs of some of the most beautiful and powerful religious monuments that we’ve visited in Europe. Capturing those magnificent architectural marvels in a camera everyone would agree, can never be satisfying.

In Germany…

pictures of koln cathedral

frankfurt dom or cathedral

In Switzerland…

bern cathedral

cathedral de loussanne

In France…

notre-dame, paris

st.denis bascilica, st.denis

In Scotland…

St. Giles’ Cathedral, Edinburgh

glasgow church

A few other christmas clicks that we relish…

christmas eve in brussels

santa at kaufhof shop, dusseldorf

Now, some culinary business for Christmas!

The best Fruit Cake or Plum cake I have ever tasted is the Thoothukudi Bakery Plum Cake. Thoothukudi, the original tamil name of the place, the Britishers changed to Tuticorin for their safe pronunciation. This is a port city in down south Tamilnadu. It holds a special place to me because of several reasons – 1. it is the place from where my mother comes from; 2. the place I started my schooling as a child; 3. After we shifted to Chennai, it was my only favourite holiday destination to spend the school annual vacations at grandparents’ place!

It is famous for Pearls – it is also called muthunagar or the pearl city and Salt Fields. Thoothukudi also holds a special place in Indian Freedom Struggle as the First Swadeshi Ship was launched here in British India in 1906 by V.O. Chidambaram Pillai.

Now, Thoothukudi is also famous for its Bakery Foods. Thoothukudi Macaroons are very famous- a little change – macaroons are famous – but not many people would know it comes from Thoothukudi/Tuticorin. I have enjoyed kilograms and kilograms of macaroons while young and even now, thaatha used to bring us from the bakery and additionally send for our friends in chennai to enjoy the true flavour of Thoothukudi. Beyond Macaroons, the most enjoyed bakery product used to be the Plum cake. So, when I wanted to bake a Christmas cake at least a bit similar to thoothukudi plum-cake, I searched the net. I found http://elitefoods.blogspot.com/2008/12/christmas-plum-cake.html where Viki, the author of the blog had additionally mentioned, the cake was similar to the plum-cake of thoothukudi. I tried it with some minor changes, keeping the basic structure intact. It was certainly a good fruit cake, but not as good as thoothukudi plum-cake as I had made those changes. Thanks Viki for the recipe!

As usual, I replaced all-purpose flour with wheat flour/gothumai maavu/atta. I used cooking oil instead of butter. I used fresh orange juice to soak candied fruits instead of rum or brandy. Since dates, raisins, candied fruits and caramelised sugar has been used, the quantity of sugar is reduced. As I had candied cherries and apples, I used them – candied plums, pears, prunes and apricots make the cake more ‘fruitful’.

the christmas cake

Christmas Fruit Cake

Ingredients (gives 2 medium size cakes)

wheat flour – 1 1/2 cups
sugar – 3/4 cup
eggs – 3 no.s
oil – 3/4 cup
baking powder – 1 tsp
baking soda – 1/4 tsp
salt – 1/2 tsp
vanilla extract – 1 tsp
caramel syrup – 1/2 cup

to soak in 1 cup orange juice

candied cherries -1/4 cup
candied apples – 1/4 cup
dates – 1/2 cup
raisins – 1/2 cup

finely chopped dry fruits – 1 cup

cashew nuts
almonds
walnuts

spice mix

cloves – 3 no.s
cinnamon twigs – 1/2 inch twig
nutmeg powder – 1/4 tsp
dry ginger powder – 1/4 tsp

Caramel Syrup

Take 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tbsp water in a utensil and let it boil in medium heat
After a while, the syrup would start becoming brown in colour
When it becomes darker, add 1/2 cup warm water and mix well
Be careful while adding water to the very hot caramelised sugar, it might sprinkle and cause burns
Caramel syrup is ready

soaked fruits into the batter

ready to be baked

Method of Preparation

Soak candied fruits, raisins and chopped dates in orange juice for minimum 12 hours
Finely chop dried nuts and keep aside
Make fine powder of spices
Take a wide bowl or a cake blender in a processor can be used
Beat eggs, sugar and oil
Add caramel syrup, spice mix and soaked fruits without the juice into the blender
Add wheat flour, baking powder and baking soda and blend well
Add salt and vanilla extract and mix well
Add the left over orange juice if needed
Mix the chopped nuts in 1 tsp flour so that nuts do not settle in the bottom of the mixture
Preheat oven at 175 degree celsius
Grease a baking tray and sprinkle some flour
Pour the cake mixture into the tray and sprinkle chopped nuts
Bake for 40 to 50 minutes and check with a tooth pick to see if done
After nuts were sprinkled, I did not mix it. That is why, nuts remained on top and formed a nutty covering. If mixed a bit, nuts would have mixed well in the cake for a better nutty flavour throughout.

Cake done!

the last pieces left for the click..

Wishing you all Merry Christmas!!

Baking Cakes Healthy! – Oats and Apple Cake

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Passion for traditional food has always been there within me. But, when I was young and started trying my hands in cooking, I would attempt only exotic recipes from cookery books. Biriyanis, Pulavs, North Indian Specialities, and especially Cakes and other baked items used to be favourites. There was always amma and aachi to make the Tamilnadu specialities.

One such item which was always on my list of exotic recipes was cake. Cakes are hugely popular among young and old ones – irrespective of age. The soft, fluffy, sugary, sometimes nutty – vanilla, strawberry, pineapple, caramel and the king of all flavours if I can say – chocolate – cakes and their flavours steal the show in many places.

I remember amma baking cakes on stove – in a cake making vessel with sand as the base inside. First, sand used to be filled in the cake making vessel and preheated on the burner. The cake baking vessel looked like an idli kopparai or traditional idly steaming utensil. The cake batter would be prepared, poured in the metal baking tray, which would be placed on top of preheated sand and the vessel would be closed with lid. After an hour or so, cake would be ready. In the meantime, the exotic smell of cake being baked on top of sand would spread in the house… kids waiting for the minute to open and have the king and queen’s share!

Now, with oven in every household, cookery books, blogs and cookery classes – baking cakes have become a household affair – everything made easy. Though, baking cakes of different varieties has become easier now, I have always not been a great fan of the self-raising flour/all-purpose flour or maida as it is called locally. Maida, a refined product, too fine and sticky is considered as empty calories and quite often a waste material to the system. The usage of maida in my cooking is near to nil. So, I try baking a bit healthier cakes. Sugar is another empty calory intake – I try substituting sugar with other healthier options. Not compromising on the fluffy texture and basic nature of cakes, I have tried some cake varieties. At least, the guilt feeling of having an empty calorie sweet is reduced and the cake is also made fibrous and more nutritious for kids!

I always told my daughter sugar was bad. I substitute jaggery for sweetness in her porridges. Till today, she is not interested in the various sweets made at home or outside. She always says ‘sugar is bad amma’! So, when I started baking cakes with whole wheat flour, she immediately asked me – can we bake cakes without sugar? I seriously took that in mind and tried it. Next time she said – ‘butter is also bad amma’ – so I started baking cakes with whole wheat flour, any natural sugar substitute like raisins or dates with very little unrefined cane sugar and oil instead of butter.

When I plan to bake a cake,I would take out all ingredients and arrange them and just call my daughter to mix. She is the true mixer at home. My work is to give her all the ingredients and after she blends them well, keep the baking tray inside the oven. (I lend a helping hand to bring it to proper consistency). Though she loves to beat the eggs and roll the batter, she doesn’t try tasting any of them. She only bakes for others. Just that the sweet tooth forgot to appear till today!

Oats and Apple Cake

hands of my little one beating the cake batter

arrange apple pieces

Ingredients

whole wheat flour – 50 gms
Oats – 50 gms
cane sugar – 75 gms
eggs – 2 nos
refined oil – 50 gms
milk – ¼ cup
apple – 1 small
baking powder – ¼ tsp
baking soda – ¼ tsp
Vanilla extract – 1 tsp

Method of Preparation

Take sugar and oil in a wide bowl and mix well
Beat eggs well
Mix eggs with the sugar – oil mixture
Sieve whole wheat flour, baking powder and baking soda twice
Add oats to the wheat flour and mix well
Slowly fold in the flour with the egg-sugar-oil mixture little by little
Add the vanilla extract for flavour
To bring the batter to better pouring consistency, add milk
Cut apple into long slices
Grease a baking tray and arrange apple slices
Pour the cake batter on top of slices
Preheat oven at 200°C
Place the cake batter in and bake for 30 minutes
Check after 20 minutes with a knife if the cake is done
If the knife comes out without batter sticking to it, cake is done. If batter sticks, take it out at 30 minutes.

baked well

Note:

This is a small cake and might give about 12 small pieces.
If one needs a bigger cake, just double the quantity of all ingredients
Sugar content might be less in this cake – if one feels to add more, sugar quantity can be slightly increased.

Dosaikal

…..Peeping into grandma's kitchen and more…

Tag Archives: butterless wheat cake

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