Pound Cake

Pound cakes are my favorite for a quick breakfast. Slice them up, spread a jam of your choice, or enjoy them as it is, and you are good to go until lunch. I usually bake a pound cake every month. I also savor them along with a cup of warm tea in the evenings. Heres the recipe that I follow -

Source: Cakes – 1,001 recipes from around the world

Yellow Pound Cake

Ingredients:

All-Purpose Flour – 2 cups
Baking powder – 3/4 tsp
Salt – 1/4 tsp
Butter – 1 1/2 cups
Granulated Sugar – 2 cups
Vanilla extract – 1 tsp
Eggs – large, 5, seperated
Milk – 1/3 cup

Sliced Pound Cake

Method:

-Pre-heat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour a 9 inch Bundt pan.
-Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl.
-Beat the butter, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl using an electric mixer at medium speed, or in a food processor, until creamy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, until just blended after each addition.
-With the mixer at low speed, gradually beat in the dry ingredients alternating with the milk.
-With mixer at high speed, beat the egg whites in a seperate large bowl until stiff peaks form. Use a rubber spatula to fold them into the batter.
-Spoon the batter into the prepared pan.
-Bake for 55-65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Run a knife around the edges of the pan to loosen the cake. Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes. Invert the cake onto a platter and let cool completely.

Cheers,
Mona

BlueBerry Muffins

There’s colour everywhere finally after a long peroid of snow when you only get to see endless sheets of white everywhere. That is a beauty in itself too. I love the seasons in Canada. Each has its own splendour and gorgeousness. Its spring here, with frequent showers of rain and colorful blooms on almost every tree. The markets are also full of fresh produce and lots and lots of fruits and vegetables. I happened to find some Blueberries a few days back and thought of preparing some muffins. 

Blue Berry Muffins and a mup of Warm Coffee

Any kind of blueberry-frozen or unfrozen, is good for you. The fruit is filled with immune-boosting Vitamin C and antioxidants said to improve brain function. Research shows that blueberries can help to increase the number of cells in the area of the brain responsible for memory.

Blue Berry muffins are my favorite breakfast for a change. These muffins were soft and delicious. I had them along with a mup of warm coffee. And as the author of New Baking Book from which I have adapted this recipe says:

There’s nothing better than a fresh-baked blueberry muffin with your favorite cup of coffee or tea.

I totally agree!

Ingredients:

• All-Purpose Flour – 2 cups
• Granulated Sugar – 1 cup
• Baking Powder – 2 1/2 tsp
• Salt – 1/2 tsp
• Eggs – 2, beaten
• Milk – 3/4 cup
• Melted Unsalated Butter or Cooking Oil – 1/2 cup
• Orange Zest – 1 tbsp
• Fresh or Frozen blueberries – 1 cup, thawad
• Coarse Sugar (optional)

Method:

• Grease twelve 2 1/2-inch muffin cups for medium size muffins or you can grease six 3 1/2 inch muffin cups for giant size muffins. Set aside.
• In a medium mixing bowl combine flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the centre of the dry mixture; set aside.
• In an another medium mixing bowl combine eggs, milk, butter or oil, orange zest. Add egg mixture all at once to the dry mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter should be lunpy). Fold in buleberries.
• Spoon batter into the prepared muffins cups, filling each almost full. If desired sprinkle tops with coarse sugar. Bake in 350 oven for about 35 minutes or until golden. Cool muffin cups; serve warm.

Suggested Accompaniments: Along with a cup of warm Tea or Coffee for a filling breakfast.

I am sending this as an entry to Mansi who is hosting the Monthly Mingle:Appetizers & Hors’Doeuvres as she requested me to,. So here it is Mansi, all the way to you!

Also, I had been awarded the Yummy Blog Award by Meeso recently and I am delighted to recieve it.

“Yummy Blog Award is the award given to a blog with the most yummy recipes/photos”

And now according to the rules of this Award, I have to quote here my favorite dessert which I have prepared/eaten. My favorite desserts would be:

1. Qubani Ka Meetha with Vanilla Icre-Cream
2. Black Forest Cake
3. Créme Caramel
4. Trifle Pudding
5. Ande Ka Meetha
6. Cheesecakes

I now pass on this award to:

• Indira of Mahanandi
• Sunita of Sunita’s world
• Priya of 365 Days of Pure Vegetarian
• Kajal of Applemint 

Luv,
Mona

Idli

Idli is the most favorite breakfast item in India. They are steamed cakes of Lentils and Cream of Rice or Wheat. These soft and fluffy cakes which are rich in proteins and carbohydrates are prepared in many hotels, and restaurants almost every day for the morning breakfasts. It is a healthy and nutritious probiotic Indian breakfast. 

Idlis in a plate with Sambar poured over them and served along with Coconut Chutney 

The Idli Rawa, which is the Cream of Rice or Wheat are available in any Indian Store. The Idli mould are also easily available in most of the Indian Stores, and are sold in almost every stainless steel utensils shop in India. The Idli plates in a Idli mould have depressions  to pour the batter in those. These depressions vary in sizes in different stores. I have a medium size Idli Mould which is perfect for my family.

To prepare Idli, i usually start its preperation from a day ahead. Like for example if i plan to prepare it on Sunday for breakfast or brunch, i start from Saturday morning. On the Saturday morning, i wash and soak the Urad Dal and before i go to sleep in the night i drain away the water and grind the dal well, then mix it with the washed Idli Rawa in a bowl and keep the bowl in a warm and dark place. I use equal amounts of Idli Rawa and Dal.

Idlis – Steamed Rice-Lentil Cakes

Makes : approx 40 Idlis 

Ingredients:

• Urad Dal/Black Lentils (Split White) – 1 1/2 cups
• Cream of Rice (Idli Rawa) – 1 1/2 cups
• Baking powder – 1/2 tsp
• Salt -  1 tablespoon
• Canola Oil – to grease the Idli Plates

  

Idli batter in the Idli Mould & Cooked Served Idlis 

Method:

(Note: Read the above instrictions before you proceed to prepare the Idli)

• Wash and soak the Urad Dal and in surplus water for about 6-8 hours. Wash the Idli rawa and keep aside.
• In a wet grinder, or a food processor, blend the Urad dal adding a few drops of water to aid in the blending to a very fine paste.
• Add this to the washed idli rawa in a large mixing bowl and mix them both completely. Add water to it to make a batter of a slightly thick consistency, it should not be too watery or too thick. Keep aside in a warm and dark place for it to ferment for about 8 hours or overnight.
• Later, when you see the bowl, the batter should have fermented well and the volume almost doubled. Add Salt and mix it well.
• Grease the Idli stand with a few drops of oil and pour about 1-2 tablespoon of batter in each depression in the Idli stand.
• In a large pressure cooker, pour water and put the stand inside, making sure the water does not touch the lowest idli plate in the stand. The water level in the pressure cooker should be well below it.
• Close the lid of the cooker and do not put the weight on it, pressure cook them for about 10 minutes.
• Once done, scoop the Idlies out with a tablespoon in a big serving bowl.
• Repeat this process adding water to the cooker as necessary until the batter is all used up.

Suggested Accompaniments: Serve them hot with Sambar, Coconut chutney, Hara Dhaniya aur Pudina Ki Chutney. ( I love to have Idlis with Padma’s Udipi Sambar)

Tips:

1.  If you live in a cold place, you can add about half tsp of Baking powder to the batter before you keep it to ferment, and set the oven to 350°F. Keep the bowl inside. Later after 10 minutes, Off the oven keeping the bowl still inside till fermented well. This aids in the fermentation. If the batter has not fermented and doubled in size by next day, do not use it for Idli. Instead make Dosa out of it.
2. If you do not find Cream of Rice, you can even use Cream of Wheat as the Idli Rawa.
3. This is the basic recipe for the prepartion of Idli. You can alter it by adding a few chopped french beans, carrits, coriander leaves ..
4. Adding a dollop of butter to the idli while having them hot along with sambar makes it more delectable.
5. These Idli moulds are the traditional methods to prepare Idli at home. If you are somehow not able to find the Idli Mould, you can use little metal bowls which can be kept in a steamer or an egg poacher. I have however never used these. I only use the Idli Mould each time i prepare these. 

Luv,
Mona