Thursday, June 23, 2011

Eggless Vanilla Cake



Cakes have changed through times....Oh don't get me wrong i am not wee bit Philosophical...In those days say about 10 to 15 years ago i never had anything called Layered cake..Moreover never knew they existed ...I knew only those plain vanilla cakes covered with huge dollops of so called butter cream which i used to relish because i dint have a choice then...

But once i started having layered cakes with fresh cream ..I am unable to go back to those lovely plain cakes...Moreover i once had a plain cake which was smelling eggs ..Made me hate plain cakes ....So i thought if at all i bake it should be smell free( read egg smell free ) else i shall bake eggless

So when i was browsing through Divya's Blog...She has a lovely blog ..do check it out I came across recipe for eggless vanilla cake

As always i can never stick to the recipe i made some changes also halved the amount of ingredients...

Original recipe used refined oil but i replaced it with butter...I know i am still working on my waistline..:P

This was one of the best vanilla cakes i ever baked...yummy...My hubby loved this cake so much..he has asked me to bake this again...

Here it is :

Ingredients

Maida/ All purpose flour – 3/4 cup
curd – 1/2 cup
Sugar – 1/2 cup
Butter – 1/4 cup
Baking powder – 1/2 tsp
Baking soda – 1/4 tsp
Vanilla essence – 1/2 tsp
Cocoa Powder (Optional) - 1 Tbsp


How to ?

First Preheat the oven to 180C.

In a mixing bowl whisk curd and sugar till sugar dissolves

Add baking powder and baking soda , vanilla essence to curd mixture , mix well and leave it for 2 mins

Now slowly add in the flour and mix well without lumps to a smooth batter

Now grease a baking tin with butter and dust it with some flour

Pour in batter into the baking tin




If you want add Tbpn of Cocoa powder and swirl it to get a marbled effect


Bake it for 25 to 30 mins at 180C



Tada cake is ready ...yum yum..the aroma ...



Can you see the marble effect ?




Lessons Learnt:

Check the cake but inserting a toothpick/ knife in the center and if it comes out clean , your cake is ready.

Don't invert the baking tin immediately put it on a cooling rack for about 10- 15mins before removing cake from the baking dish else you will get a cake crumble just like mine...:p


Love,
Varshini

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Eggless Garlic Buns




As a kid i would wait for evenings to come...because in the evening my Dad would bring home yummy Bun Butter Jam ....or sometimes masala bun they would simply melt in my mouth....i still cherish those times....

Even after growing up still am fond of yummy jam buns, masala buns and pav buns...
So when i came across Eggless Garlic Buns in Rak's Kitchen i was simply transported back to those times...
I simply find reasons to bake...BAKING IS ADDICTION.....

Immediately baked them up and had them when they were still warm...as suggested by Raji :)

Since this was my first Bun baking attempt i dint wanna take risk so i just halved the amount of all the ingredients ....But then this bun baking has been my best experience ever ...right from the beginning....this a fool proof recipe....

For original recipe please visit Rak's Kitchen So here is the recipe...

Ingredients
maida 3/4 cup
Dried Yeast - little less than 1/2 tblsp
Water 1/4 cup
Salt 1/2 tsp
Sugar 1/2 tblsp
Olive oil 1 tblsp

For the garlic Spread:
Garlic chopped very fine 3-5 flakes
Butter softened 2 tblsps
Chopped coriander leaves 1 tblsp
Cheese grated - 1 tblp

Method

1.Add yeast , sugar and salt to warm water and dissolve the yeast well...let it stand for 5 - 10 mins...you will be able to see a frothy liquid ..this means the yeast is active

2.In a big bowl , add the flour make a dent in the centre and add the mixed yeast water.



3.Knead the dough with olive oil to smooth and pliable(add 1 or 2 tablespoons of water if water is needed,the dough should not be too stiff and dry,it should be soft,smooth and pliable)





4.Keep covered the bowl with either a clean wet towel or a cling wrap(wrap the bowl to cover it,not the dough). Here i used wet towel method and let it stay for 1 hour

5.Now the dough should have raised double in volume. knead it again a little

6.Now divide the dough into 2 equal balls and arrange it with enough gaps in a greased baking tray.

7. Mix Butter, cheese, garlic and coriander for the spread

8.Make a small slit on top using a knife to fill the garlic spread and spoon in the spread but not too deep



9.Keep it aside in warm place for 45 minutes so that the balls double in size.

10.Pre heat the oven for 180°C

11.Bake for 20-25 minutes or till you get a golden coloured buns.Just cook for needed,over baking makes it harder! - Herei baked my buns for 20mins








Yummy,fluffy,garlicky, cheesy buns are ready


Love,
Varshini

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Unique Clutches

Sorry girls...Couldnt post anything was busy with my personal work...nooo am not finding reasons...will be regular hereafter..plssssssssssss

So here is the come back post

I always loved to see what kind of clutches the Elite people carry on different occasions...
I found that even a dud dress can be a hit with a chic Clutch
So this post on some unique clutches I came across

Peacock Clutch




Egg Clutch


Flora Dustin Handbag


Dustin Handbag

Bottle Handbag/Clutch


Floral Egg Clutch


So how did u like this collection...personally i like the last one a lot :)

Love,
Varshini



Disclaimer:
Image Source : Google Images