Tahini Cookies with Hazelnut & Chocolate

This is the 2nd recipe I've tried from The Big Book of Treats by Bombay's most well known pastry chef Pooja Dhingra.  I made one small change - I used hazelnuts instead of almonds because I didn't have any, and I added chocolate chips.

It doesn't get cold in Bombay, but I imagine this would be great for places that do get cold. It would go perfectly with a cup of hot chocolate.

You'll need:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cup castor sugar
2 2/3 cup flour (I used gluten free brown rice flour)
180 gm Tahini* 
2 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup milk
100 gm hazelnuts (I used them whole but you could chop them up)
1/4 cup chocolate chips (another 1/2 cup if you plan to dip the cookies in chocolate)

*I had a store-bought bottle of it but if you can't find one, lightly roast white sesame seeds on a pan and once it's cool, blend it with 2 tbsp olive oil and 2 tbsp warm water till you get a smooth paste

Wash your hands before starting because you won't get this done with a spoon.

In a mixing bowl, mix the flour, butter, and sugar till the mixture is crumbly and looks like breadcrumbs.

Add the tahini and lemon juice and again mix well.

Add the milk and mix again till you get a pliable dough.

Finally, put in the hazelnuts and chocolate chips.

Roll the batter into golf-sized balls and then flatten it out about1/4 inch thick.

Place them on a greased baking tray and bake at 165 deg C for 15 minutes.

*For Convection Microwave - I baked at 170 deg C for 20 min on the convection setting

As soon as I took it out of the oven, I found the cookies to be very crumbly (could be because of the gluten free flour), but I gently lifted them onto a wire rack to cool and it set well as it cooled.

Usually I find that cookie recipes turn out to be too sweet for our liking so I reduce the sugar amount. So with this I used just 1 cup but found that I should've added the entire amount required because it wasn't sweet enough. So I dipped the bottom of the cookie in melted chocolate (melted in the microwave in 30 sec bursts) and kept it chocolate-side up till it set to add some sweetness to it. It worked!

Makes: 20 cookies

Peanut Butter and Banana Pancakes

This was such a wholesome and delicious breakfast that it almost made me wish I woke up earlier in the mornings to make it more often. Almost.

You'll need:
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 cup buttermilk*
1/3 cup peanut butter* 
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
Butter to cook
1 Banana
Chocolate chips (optional)
Maple syrup

For the buttermilk, instead of using the milk method, I just used half and half of thick yoghurt and water.
For the peanut butter, I used the crunchy variety, but I assume the creamy version would blend better.

Thinly slice the banana and keep aside.

In a bowl mix the peanut butter,  buttermilk, egg and vanilla till they're blended.

Sieve in the flour, baking powder, and salt.

Fold gently till the flour is mixed in well but don't over-mix - the batter should be a little lumpy.

Heat a small pan on medium flame, put in some butter to coat the bottom. Pour in a ladle of batter and gently spread it out.

While the bottom layer is cooking, top the pancake with some banana slices. You can choose to add the chocolate chips now or just top it up while serving.

Turn the pancake and cook for another minute.

Remove from heat and serve with syrup.

Makes: 4-5 pancakes

Eggless Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting

I wanted to send some cupcakes for my husband's team at his office after a successful project, but didn't have any eggs at home. A quick search led me to this recipe which I altered a little. It was easy to make and very tasty.

For the cupcakes:
1 cup flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp cornstarch
*1/2 cup sugar 
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup yogurt (don't use the whey)
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup milk

*(It's low on sugar because the frosting is very sweet - if making only cupcakes, add 1/4 cup more sugar)

Cream the butter and sugar well - just over a minute, then add the vanilla and mix some more.
Sift all the dry ingredients into a separate bowl.
In another bowl, mix the yogurt and milk.

Add the dry and wet ingredients into the creamed butter alternately, starting and ending with the dry ingredients.

Once all ingredients are incorporated, put into cupcake moulds and bake in a pre-heated oven at 180 deg Celsius for about 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and let it cool completely before topping it with the frosting.

It gave me 12 medium cupcakes.

Frosting:
200 gm unsalted butter at room temperature
200 icing sugar (sifted properly)
Food colouring (optional)

Cream the butter and sugar well. Make sure there are no sugar lumps as it will interfere when you pipe the frosting. I used a piping bag, but you could also lather it on with a spoon, or improvise and use a ziplock bag with a tiny cut in the corner.

Add sprinkles for joy!

Red Velvet Cake with Fondant Icing

It was husband's birthday in March; he's a big Superman fan and his name starts with an S too, so this was the obvious choice of icing.

For the cake:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• Pinch salt
• 1/4 cup butter
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (1/2 cup milk with 1 tsp lemon juice or vinegar - set aside  for 5 min to curdle)
• red food colour according to instructions (1tbsp if using liquid colour, a few dabs with a toothpick if using gel)
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• 1 tsp baking soda

In a bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and cocoa powder. Keep aside.
In another bowl, whisk together the butter and sugar till creamy. Add the vanilla and the eggs, and whisk some more.

In the buttermilk, add the food colouring and mix well.

Alternate adding the flour mix and the buttermilk into the creamy batter in 3 stages starting and ending with the flour (flour-buttermilk-flour-buttermilk-flour). Whisk lightly, incorporating all ingredients.

In a separate bowl, add the baking soda to the vinegar - it should fizz. Add this immediately to the cake batter, and mix well. Put the batter in a 9 inch lined/greased cake tin and put in a pre-heated oven at 180 deg C. Try to minimise the time between the fizzing and shoving in the oven so that the soda doesn't fizzle out.
Bake for 35-40 min. Cool on a wire rack, then remove from cake tin and put it in the fridge.

For the icing:
Fondant icing sugar
Food colouring
1/2 cup ice water
1/2 cup cornflour

If using different colours as icing, divide the sugar into as many parts.
Sift the sugar (it is usually rock hard so I need to put it in a blender to reduce the lumps, then sift). Start by adding a few drops of water and knead well. Adding too much water will make it runny and it won't roll out. It should become pliable like pastry dough. Add the food colour of your choice.

The rolling is the difficult part. Sprinkle some cornflour on the counter, and coat your rolling pin and hands with some too. This will prevent the dough from sticking.start rolling carefully but don't roll it too thin else it'll break when you roll it over the cake: But too think and the cake topping will be too hard and sugary. Should be approximately 2-3 mm thick.

If cutting a design, use a sharp knife and lots of cornflour to pry the design out without breaking it. You could try rolling it out on baking paper if it helps.

Dab some water to make the fondant stick to fondant. Even if you have some tears or holes, just use a piece of same coloured fondant and some water to patch it up.

Banana Ice cream

I was very skeptical of this recipe at first - I mean, what's ice cream without the cream? But it tastes delicious, it's versatile, and guilt-free. Perfect accompaniment this summer!

You'll need:
3-4 ripe bananas
Optional add-ons:
50gms chocolate or chocolate spread
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 tsp coffee dissolved in 1 tbsp water
1 tbsp honey or maple syrup
Almond/walnut toppings

Peel and slice bananas and freeze for a few hours. Then blitz it in a blender. The creamy texture of the banana gives it a creamy consistency. Add the Add-ons (just one or a combination) while blending or as a topping. And Voila! The perfect refresher for the summer heat.

Banana facts:

• It's high in Potassium for good nerve and muscle function
• It's got Vitamin C for your immune system
• It's got Vitamin B-6 (mostly found in animal products) for cell rejuvenation
• It's a good source of fiber, manganese, and other nutrients like iron and calcium boosting your energy - a great pre and post workout snack.
• It's good for your stomach - helps reduce stomach acidity, is a good hangover cure, and promotes bowel health.

Chocolate Mousse

This is the simplest thing you can make which tastes SO good!

All you need is
500 gm cream (room temperature)
250 gm chocolate (any kind - I prefer dark chocolate)

Melt the chocolate in the microwave (make sure to not burn it). It takes about 40-50 seconds for a large slab.
Whisk it lightly with a hand beater just to make sure there are no lumps. Add the cream in parts, making sure to blend it all in with the chocolate. If the cream is cold, it will solidify the chocolate on contact, making it lumpy.

Once both ingredients are incorporated, put it in the fridge for an hour or two. And that is IT.

For added flavourings, here are some additions you can make, either individually or in combinations:

1 tbsp coffee powder dissolved in 2 tbsp water at room temperature (add it while mixing the chocolate with cream)
1 tsp orange/lemon zest (added while mixing)
1 tbsp Cocoa powder (sift it over the mousse while serving, or add it with the mix for stronger flavour)
1/4 cup of grated chocolate (as garnish)
1 tsp mint essence (added while mixing)

Chocolate-Chip Cookies

I have nothing against eggs, but sometimes I just don't have them at home when I want to make something. Moreover, many people I know don't eat eggs or are averse to the smell - even in baked goods. So here's the eggless version of the evergreen favourite.

You'll need:
3 tsps flax seed powder soaked for 5 min in 3/4 cup of warm water (OR 3 eggs)
1 cup melted butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 and 1/2 cup flour (I use regular wholewheat)
1 tsp baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 cup chocolate chips (I use 2 chopped chocolate bars)

Optional stuff:
2 tbsp cocoa powder 
Handful of chopped walnuts

Mix the butter, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl till smooth. Add the flax seed mixture and stir till well blended. Then sieve in the flour, Cocoa (if using), salt and baking soda and mix well. Add the chocolate and walnuts.

Keep this dough in the fridge for an hour or 2 before baking.
Put spoonful of dough on a greased sheet 2 inches apart then bake it for 15 minutes at 180 deg C.

Cool on a wire rack before devouring.

Makes approximately 25 cookies.

Chocolate Brownies

Felt like having some brownies so this is what I came up with.

Take 1/4 cup of melter butter and add in 6 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder and mix.

To this, add
2 eggs
3/4 cup of muscavado sugar
1/3 cup flour
Few drops of vanilla essence
Pinch of salt
3 tbsp chocolate sauce/syrup
Handful of chopped walnuts

Mix well and place it in a greased baking tray.
Preheat oven to 175 dec C and bake for 30 min approximately.

Egg less Chocolate Brownies

Recently I played hostess to a 'pure' vegetarian and hence the need for egg less brownies. It came out nice and gooey and needless to say was a hit!

Here's what went into it:
100gms butter mixed well with about 150gms caster sugar. 
Then add the following to the mix:
1/2 cup yogurt
3 tsp coffee dissolved in some water

1 bar or about 50gms dark chocolate (depending on how chocolaty you want it)
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup flour (I use multi grain to keep it healthy!)
1tsp baking powder
A few drops of vanilla essence
Some orange/lemon zest if you like the flavor
A bit of ground cinnamon & nutmeg
Some chopped walnuts if you like

The batter will be quite thick and it won't rise like cake - don't worry...it's not supposed to.

Put the whole thing onto a greased baking tin and cook for about 40 minutes at 180 deg C.

Serve warm with ice cream or custard on the side, and top it up with chopped fruits for wholesome indulgence.