Chocolate Chiffon Cake!!!

One of my master piece!! I usually take orders for cakes and most of the request I get is for this cake. They are very soft, delicate, fluffy and delicious too... This recipe can be used to make cupcakes as well. This same recipe you can use for Vanilla Chiffon Cake, you will just need to delete the portion of adding cocoa powder and coffee... Instead of coffee you may add water.. It can be altered for Chocolate chiffon as well... Since I am a coffee lover, I prefer to add coffee in most of my chocolate cakes.... You might feel the recipe as a lil too long.. But once you start making it u'll find this as the easiest cake recipe and will turn your favorite for sure :) You can always half the recipe if you need a small cake and can double the recipe if you need a cake around 2.5 kg+..

So now on to the recipe... For the frosting, I have made a Chocolate glaze and whipped cream for swirls and filling... U can use butter cream Icing or whipped cream completely or you could even have it as it is as a tea cake....

 Ingredients:

For Cake:

Flour                                                             2 cups

Eggs                                                              7 (separated)

Baking powder                                             2 tsp

Baking Soda                                                 1 tsp

Cocoa Powder                                              1/4 cup

Sugar                                                            2 cups

Oil                                                                1/2 cup

Coffee / Water                                             1 cup

Vanilla Essence                                           1 tsp

Salt                                                              1/4 tsp

For Glaze:

Cooking Chocolate                                      180 gm

Butter                                                           50 gm

Light Corn Syrup                                         2 tbsp

Vanilla Essence                                           1 tsp (optional)

For Filling:

Whipping powder                                        2 sachets

Cold Milk                                                    1/4 cup

Cocoa Powder                                             2 tbsp

Coffee Powder                                            1 tsp

Sugar                                                           1/4 cup(if required)

Vanilla Essence                                           1 tsp

 Method:

Cake:

1. Preheat your oven at 165C for 10 mins. 
2. Separate the egg white and yolks in separate bowls and keep this on the kitchen counter for 30 mins. We will need 7 egg whites and 6 yolks.
3. In a large bowl, sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, 1 cup sugar, salt and cocoa powder. Mix this well and keep aside.

4. Now in another bowl, slightly beat the egg yolks with a wire whisk using your hand. Now add oil, coffee and vanilla essence into this and mix well. Keep this aside.
5. In an electric stand mixer with whisk attachment or with a hand mixer beat the egg whites until foamy.
6. Once they r foamy, add rest 1 cup of sugar into this and beat until stiff peaks form.
7. Now into the dry ingredients, make a well in the center of the bowl and add thee egg yolk mixture and mix well.
8. After that add the egg whites in 3 steps few at a time and slowly incorporate this. PLEASE DONOT OVER MIX. We dont want the eggs to get deflated. So carefully mix this from the bottom to the upper portion just until incorporated.
9. Grease the pan and layer the baking sheet into it and pour the batter into it for about 3/4 of the pan. Tap the pan on the surface to avoid air bubbles.
10. Bake this for about 40 - 45 mins. The time will differ for each type of oven. So after 30 mins you can keep checking the cake. 11. Remove the cake from the oven when its completely done ie; a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let this cool for about 1 hour.

Filling:
1. In an electric stand mixer with whisk attachment, beat the whipping cream until smooth and fluffy, add sugar if required.
2. Add cocoa powder, coffee powder, vanilla essence and beat until stiff peaks form. 
3. Refrigerate this for 30 mins
Glaze:
1. Over a saucepan of simmering water, place a steel bowl and add chocolate, butter and corn syrup.
2.Double boil this until everything is melted. Let it cool slightly.

Assembling:
1. Once the cake has cooled, you may slice it into any thinner slices as desired. Soak each layer in sugar syrup and spread the filling above them until the top most layer.
2. On the top most layer pour the glaze and let it drop to the sides and cover the cake completely.
3. Keep this refrigerated for 1 hour. Once it has cooled, you may do some designs as I have done in the picture with the left over filling. Keep this refrigerated for another 2 hours.
4. Serve cold with a cup of coffee.... Hmmmm yummy yummy Chocolate chiffon cake is ready!!!! :):)

Mughlai Chicken....!!!

Hey all...!! I have always been thinking to keep posting daily but what to do each day I get busy with something or the other.... October was a month of Birthdays and cake orders and so had no time to sit down and write up recipes... And its a lil lazy task to find time to type ;) But since I love blogging and I am a person who purely depends on blogs for new recipes which I have never tried, I feel updating my blog is necessary... & I have a quite a list of friends who depends on my blog & keep on waiting for new recipes to be added up.... 

So now.... regarding Mughlai chicken.... Mughlai cuisine refers to a cuisine consisting of dishes developed in Medieval India by the people of the Mughal Empire. It represents the cooking styles used in North India especially Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Hyderabad. The cuisine is strongly influenced by Central Asian Cuisine, the region where the Turco-Mongol Mughal rulers originally hailed from and it has turn strongly influenced the regional cuisines of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. 

The taste of Mughlai cuisine vary from extremely mild to spicy and are often associated with a distinctive aroma and taste of ground and whole spices. This Mughlai Chicken is a variety of such a cuisine which has a blend of ground and whole spices and the chicken is cooked in a thick gravy of onions tomatoes and spices....

 Ingredients:

Chicken                                                                          1 kg

Onions                                                                           3

Ginger (chopped)                                                           1 tsp

Garlic (chopped)                                                            1 tsp

Tomato                                                                          1

Turmeric Powder                                                           1/2 tsp

Coriander Powder                                                          1 tsp

Kashmiri Red Chilly Powder                                         2 tsp

Kasoori Methi                                                                1/2 tsp

Garam Masala                                                                1/2 tsp

Cashew Nuts                                                                  1/2 cup

Jeera Powder                                                                  1/2 tsp

Oil                                                                                   2 tbsp

Butter                                                                              1 tbsp

Salt

Method:

1. Soak the cashews in water for 15 mins. Heat oil in a pan and add chopped onions and saute.
2. Once this is translucent, ass chopped ginger and garlic and saute well.
3. Add turmeric, coriander, and red chilly powder and saute until the raw smell goes off.
4. Now add the chopped tomatoes and saute until they are soft.
5. Off the flame and let it cool. Meanwhile blend the cashews into a smooth paste.
6. When the masala has cooled down, blend it into a paste.
7. Now heat a pan and mix the chicken with the masala and add 1/2 - 1 cup of water and cook well.
8. Once the chicken has been cooked, add the cashew paste into this and mix.
9. After the cashew paste has been added do not boil it.
10. Off the flame. Now in another pan heat butter.
11. Add jeera powder, garam masala and kasoori methi into this and saute a little.
12. Now pour this over the curry. Enjoy the yummy yummy mughlai chicken :)

Pancakes.....!!!

Pancakes are the easiest breakfast item to prepare... They are sweet and filling as well... You can prepare the batter a day before preparing the pancakes and store in the ref or even you can cook the pancakes, cover and store. Reheat and use the nest day. Any how I like to prepare both batter and pancakes the time I serve it. The recipe of pancake syrup has also been added to this post.

 Ingredients:
Pancake:
Flour                                                   1 cup
Egg                                                     1
Baking powder                                   1 1/2 tsp
Butter(melted)                                    2 tbsp
Milk                                                    1 cup
Sugar                                                   1 tsp
Salt                                                      1/4 tsp

For Syrup:
Brown sugar                                        1 cup
White sugar                                         1 cup
Corn syrup                                           1/2 cup
Water                                                   1 cup
Vanilla Essence                                   1 tsp

   

Method:
Pancakes:
1. In a bowl combine all dry ingredients, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
2. In another bowl slightly beat the egg. Add milk and melted butter into this.
3. Now combine both dry and wet ingredients and mix to get a smooth batter.
4. Grease a small pan and pour about 2-3 tbsp of batter.
5. Cook one side until you see bubbles on the upper side and when they starts to break, flip and cook the other side.
6. Cook all the pancakes until the whole batter has finished.

Syrup:
1. In a small saucepan, combine brown sugar, white sugar, water, corn syrup and vanilla essence.
2. Keep this on medium heat until boil.
3. Let it cool. You can transfer this into a bottle and store in the ref for as many days as required.
4. Pour the syrup over the hot pancakes and enjoy :) :)

Coffee Macarons....!!!

Macarons have always been the trickiest to make.. But dont know thistime i felt it easy maybe thats why it came out well :) Its all about the proportion, the way you mix it up. But there is always a way out to bring it well. If you find your batter a bit loose you can add enough almond powder to stabilize the consistency....! So now on to the recipe... For a detailed recipe you can check my french macarons post.. This is just the recipe to bake the coffee macarons!

 Ingredients:

Almond powder	100 gm
Eggs aged	100 gm
Powdered sugar	180 gm
Coffee Powder	6 gm
Granulated Sugar	35 gm
For filling:
Cooking cream	¼ cup
Cooking chocolate	150 gm
Coffee powder	4 gms

Method:

1. Separate the egg whites and keep in the kitchen counter for 24 hours to age it.

2. Beat the egg whites on a stand mixer until foamy.

3. Once its foamy, start adding the granulated sugar slowly.

4. Beat this until stiff and shiny peaks are formed.

5. Now keep this aside and grind the almond powder, coffee powder and icing sugar in a grinder and sift to avoid large chunks.

6. Now slowly fold the almond misture into the egg whites. THIS IS WHERE YOU HAVE TO BE CAREFUL. It may take a maximum of 35-40 strokes to get it done. DONOT OVER DO! We dont want a loose batter.

7. Now layer a plain baking tray with baking sheet. Pipe the batter on to the sheet with a plain piping tip. 

8. Rest this for 15 - 20 mins until a shell forms over its top.

9. Preheat the oven to 140 C for 20 mins.

10. Bake the macarons for about 15 mins on until the feet starts to form and a little brown appears on the feet.

11. Cool this down and slowly and carefully lift from the baking sheet.

Filling:

1. In a pan bring the cooking cream to boil.

2. Add the chopped cooking chocolate and coffee powder and mix well until the chocolate is well melted.

3. Cool this down and keep refrigerated before filling the macaron shells.

4. Once its cooled well, fill the macaron shells with the filling and sandwich them.

5. Keep the macarons refrigerated. Enjoy your coffee macs!!!! :) :)

Vanilla Panna Cotta....!!!

 Here is another dessert recipe... Easy and can be made really quick!! Just need time to get it set... I have the recipe for coffee flavor as well... Will be uploading soon after this.... I have given the topping as blueberry... But if u like to have it as it is u can... Or if you like to add some fresh fruits, that could also be a great combination!!

Ingredients:

Heavy Cream/ Thick Cream/ Whipping cream	2 1/4 cup
Sugar	2 tbsp
Condensed milk	1/4 cup
Cold Milk	1/4 cup
Vanilla essence	1/2 tsp
Unflavored Gelatin	10 gm
Blueberry topping/ fresh fruits (optional)

Method: 

              

1. Soak gelatin in 1/4 cup of cold milk for 5 - 10 mins.

2. In a saucepan, mix cream and sugar and bring to just boil. 

3. Add sugar and condensed milk into this and stir well.

4. Once the cream is really hot, remove from heat and add the gelatin mixture into this.

5. Stir very well until the gelatin is completely dissolved.

6. Pour the cream on to small bowls as per your wish.

7. Refrigerate this for minimum 4 hours or overnight.

8. Serve colg with blue berry topping or fresh fruits.... :)

Mocha Muffins....!!

Hey all!! I know this has been a really long gap since I din't update my blog. But what to do got really really busy with family, work, friends, occasions and so on.... N now am back with baking again ;) I am a big coffee lover and anything that taste coffee would be my favorite :D so here is recipe of Mocha Muffins....

Ingredients:

Eggs	2
Milk	1/2 cup
Oil	1/2 cup
Black coffee	1/4 cup(at room temp)
Vanilla essence	1 tsp
All purpose flour	3/4 cup
Cocoa powder	1/4 cup
Brown sugar	1 cup
Baking Soda	1 tsp
Sale	1/4 tsp
Nuts (optional)
Cappuccino or semisweet milk	1 cup

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 190 C.

2. In a large bowl whisk together eggs, milk, oil, coffee and vanilla essence.

3. In another bowl, whisk flour, cocoa powder, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

4. Add the nuts to this.

5. Now add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until incorporated.

6. Fill the muffin cups with batter using table spoon or ice cream scoop.

7. Bake for 18 - 25 mins or until a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

8. Mocha muffins are ready... Serve with hot coffee :) :)

Avocado Lime Ice Cream....!!!

A very easy home made ice cream.... One day my hubby shared a post on my wall and when checked it was a video that contained the recipe of this... So i decided the same day I would make it but as I dint have avocados in stock I had to wait another day too ;) finally next day I made it and he loved it :) Its too simple and easy with just 4 ingredients....

Preparation Time : 10 mins
Freezing Time : 4 hrs
Serves : 4

Ingredients :

Ripe Avocado	2
Lime	3
Condensed milk	¾ tin
Milk	½ cup

Method:

1. Scoop out the avocados and drop to a mixer jar.
2. Add the zest of 2 lime and the juice of whole 3 lime into this.
3. Now add the condensed milk and milk into this and process until smooth.
4. Now layer this in an even surface pudding dish.
5. Freeze for 4 hrs and serve chilled with honey if required.... :) :)

Mango Pickle.....!!!!

This is my mom's special pickle! This can be made as an instant pickle and it tastes soooo yummy!!! 

Preparation Time : 45 mins

Cooking Time : 15 mins

Makes : 750 gms

Ingredients:

Green Mango	5
Asafoetida/Hing powder(Kaayam)	1 tsp
Fenugreek seed powdered (Uluva podi)	1 tsp
Red Chilly Powder	3 tbsp(as your taste)
Mustard seeds	1 tsp
Salt
Vinegar
Sesame Oil

Method:

1. Wash the mangoes thoroughly and clean them.

2. Chop this into small pieces.

3. In a clean bowl add the chopped mangoes and salt as per taste and mix and set aside for 10 mins

4. Now heat oil in a pan and sputter the mustard seeds.

5. Off the flame and add fenugreek powder and asafoetida.

6. Once it has cooled down add the red chilly powder and chopped mangoes.

7. Heat a little vinegar and pour above this and mix all together.

8. Store this in a water free container. You dont have to refrigerate it for the first 2 days. Later you can refrigerate. Enjoy with hot rice or chapatti :) 

Strawberry Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting!!!!

Here is the recipe of a yummy fruit cake!! This was my first order from my friend :) Sorry since it was an order i couldn't take a sliced pic..This is an easy cake to make.... I made the cake as a whole and then cut into equal halves... You can bake it as 2 different cakes as well.... The filling is the same frosting plus some fresh sliced strawberries.... Try to use fresh strawberries for this cake coz it gives way lot better taste than frozen ones.... As its season here i could find some good ones :)

Preparation Time : 15 mins

Baking Time ; 35 - 40 mins

Serves : 12 - 14

Ingredients:

For Cake:
All purpose flour	3 cups
Powdered Sugar	2 cups
Butter (room temperature)	1 cup
Oil	½ cup
Eggs	4
Baking Powder	1 ½ tsp
Fresh Strawberry Puree	1 cup
Vanilla essence	1 tsp
Strawberry essence	1 ½ tsp
For Icing:
Whipping cream	4 sachets
Cold Milk	1 cup
Cream Cheese	250 gms
Vanilla Essence	1 tsp
Strawberry essence	1 tsp
Sugar balls ( Optional)
Color Red ( Optional)

Method:

Cake:

1. Preheat the oven at 200 C for 10 mins

2. Sift the flour and baking powder and keep aside. 

2. Now in a bowl beat together butter, oil and sugar until creamy.

3. Now add eggs one at a time and beat well.

4. Add vanilla and strawberry essence and mix well.

6. Add the flour mixture into this and fold in.

7. Now add the fresh strawberry puree into this and mix until incorporated.

8. Pour the batter into a single greased pan or 2 similar pans.

9. Bake the cake at 165 C for 35 - 40 mins or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

10. Once done cool the cake completely before frosting it.

Icing:

1. Beat the whipping cream with cold milk until fluffy and stiff.

2. Add the cream cheese into this and beat.

3. Add in the essences.

4. Refrigerate this for sometime.

5. Now if you have a big cake cut it into equal halves.

6. Above the bottom layer brush in some sugar syrup to give the cake a nice moist texture.

7. Now spread some frosting over it.

8. Arrange the freshly sliced strawberries over it.

9. Now place the second layer over this.

10. Apply the sugar syrup and frosting and design as per ur wish....!!

11. Enjoy the yummy yummy strawberry cake :) :)

Chicken Momos / Chicken Dumplings....!!!

Chicken momos is one of famous nepali dish.... This is considered as an appetizer or can even be had for a light dinner ;) Its soo yummy and it tastes awesome with the red chilly chutney which is its authentic combination...!! 

Preparation Time : 20 mins

Cooking Time : 40 mins (including chutney)

Serves : 4

Ingredients:
For Filling:
Chicken mince	250 gm
Onion	1
Cabbage	¼ cup
Carrot	1
Ginger	1 pc
Garlic	4 cloves
Coriander leaves	1 bunch
Garam masala	1 tsp
Vinegar	1 tsp
Pepper powder	1 tsp
Soy sauce	1 tbsp
Butter	2 tbsp
Egg	1
Salt
For Dough:
All-purpose flour	350 gm
Water
Salt
For Chutney:
Tomato	2
Red chillies	6
Sugar	1 tsp
Water	1 cup
Salt

Method:

Momos:

1. Prepare the dough first by mixing flour, water and salt.

2. Cover it with a wet cloth for 10 mins.

3. Chop nicely spring onions,onion,cabbage,carrot,coriander leaves,garlic and ginger.

4. In a bowl mix all the ingredients for the filling and keep aside.

5. Now take out very small balls from the dough and roll out like for puri but even small than that and very thin as well.

6. Now keep 1 tbsp filling in it and close the way you like.

7. Finish the whole filling this way.

8. Steam this for about 15 - 20 mins or until done.

Chutney:

1. Put tomatoes and red chilies in a pan and add water.

2. Cover and cook and bring to boil.

3. Remove the cover and boil for another 10 mins.

4. Red chilies must be soft and tomatoes must be easy to peel.

5. Once done drain off the water and let it cool.

6. Peel the tomatoes. Now transfer the tomatoes and red chilies in to a grinder. Grind it to a paste along with salt and sugar.

7. Enjoy your momos with spicy chutney :) :)