Orange Cake with Blueberry Cream

After a very long time!

I made this eggless cake for a Dessert Making Competition. This is nutritious, fiber rich and absolutely scrumptious!

Orange Cake

You Need:

Self raising/all purpose flour – ¾ Cup

Whole Wheat flour – ¾ Cup

Butter – 30 gm (@ room temp)

Olive Oil - 70 ml 

Light Brown Sugar – ¾ cup

Warm Water – 120 ml

Ground Cinnamon – 1/2 tsp

Baking Powder - 1 tsp

Baking Soda - 1/2 tsp

Juice of Whole Sweet Orange - 1 (Big) 

What to do...

1. Pre heat the oven to 200 C for 10 minutes

2. Grease a round cake pan line base with Parchment paper

3. Beat the wet and dry ingredients separately

4. Then fold them gently together and mix them

5. Now, transfer the mixture to the prepared cake pan

6. Bake it for 10 minutes @ 200 C

7. Then reduce the temperature to 180 C and bake it for 5 - 10 more minutes (or till done)

8. Allow it to cool (I let it to cool for 3 hours).

Blueberry Cream

You Need:

Unsalted Butter Softened - 170 gm  

Sifted Icing Sugar - 3 cups 

Fresh Blueberry Puree - 1/4 Cup 

Blueberry Juice - 4 Tbsp 

Orange zest - 1/2 Tbsp 

Vanilla Extract - 1 tsp 

Kosher Salt - 1/8 tsp 

Whipping Cream - 4-6 tbsp 

What to do...

1. Puree blueberries and strain through a fine mesh sieve

2. Set aside berries and juice in separate small bowls

3. In an electric mixer, on medium speed, fold the cream, butter and salt until smooth

4. Now lower the mixer speed to medium-low and slowly add (in order) icing sugar, vanilla extract, blueberry puree, blueberry juice and orange zest

5. Now, adjust the mixer speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy

6. Finally, if needed, add 1 tbsp cream at a time until the frosting is in a spreadable consistency

Dress the cake, and enjoy!

Wheat Germ Muffins

One more healthy, nutritious edition to my Muffins Basket.

This tastes different and absolutely scrumptious!

Ingredients:

Self raising/all purpose flour – 1/2 Cup
Wheat Germ – 1 1/2 Cups
Light Brown Sugar – 1/4 Cup
Salt - 1/2 tsp
2 to 3 ripe, mashed bananas
Milk - 1/2 cup
Crushed wall nuts - little (or as you wish)
Baking Powder - 2 tsp
Baking Soda - 1/4 tsp
Melted Butter – 1/4 Cup
Almond or Vanilla Essence - 3/4 tsp
Egg - 1
Cream Cheese - 1 Cup

Method:

1. Pre heat the oven to 180 C for 10 minutes

2. Line the muffins tray with muffins paper (I made 6 large muffins)

3. Mixing - Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt, and set aside

4. Beat together mashed bananas and egg. Then add milk, butter, sugar, wheat germ, wall nuts and the essence

5. Now, add the the flour mixture and mix well

6. Filling the cups - Divide the mixture between the prepared muffin tray by placing one small amount of batter at the bottom of each muffin cup, followed by 1-2 teaspoon of cream cheese and topping each cup again with enough batter

7. Baking - Bake for 15-20 minutes at 180 C

8. Cool for few minutes, and enjoy!

Ragi-Choco Muffin

I know its been a long time since i last blogged!

A lot of Islamic-and-National holidays, along with mom-dad's visit to Muscat, the lovely rain, cold weather and some paintings...kept me busy and lazy all these days!

Now that Mom-Dad have left to India, and work also had resumed...iam back in tune with my daily chores and blogging as well.Day-before-yesterday when i was getting bored and had nothing interesting to do...just felt like baking something new!

The result was this nutritious, protien rich Muffin!

Ingredients:

Self raising/all purpose flour – 1 Cup
Ragi flour – 1/2 Cup
Light Brown Sugar – 3/4 cup
Ground Cinnamon – 1/4 tsp
Crushed wall nuts - 1/4 cup
Baking Powder - 1 tsp
Butter – 30 gms (@ room temp)
Vanilla Essence - 1 tsp
Veg Oil - 3-4 tsps (i used olive oil)
Milk (@ room temperature): 120 ml
Eggs - 2
Cooking chocolate - 4 pieces

Choco chips - as required for the topping

Method:

1. Pre heat the oven to 180 C for 10 minutes

2. Line the muffins tray with muffins paper

3. Beat the wet and dry ingredients separately

4. Then combine them gently together and mix them

5. Divide the mixture between the prepared muffin tray, and top them with choco chips (i used some white chocolate chips too)

6. Bake for 20 minutes at 180 C

7. cool for 20 minutes, and enjoy it simply or with butter.

Orange Cake (Eggless)

Today i will be travelling to UAE for a 3-days audit program,...so yesterday I made this orange treat for my akka who lives there. I actually wanted to bake something new (apart from the choco series i usualy make) and healthy as well, for her. This recipe is again a customised-newer version of the Eggless Orange Cake shown on FATAFEAT (one of my favs., Arabic Food Channel).

I absolutely have no patience, when it comes to baking. As i would always want to see the result even before it is fully done. But...somehow i managed to wait till the end and slurped a big piece then. Wow!...we (hubby & I) liked it. Eagerly looking forward to meet my sister & family, and hope they like it too!

Ingredients:

Self raising/all purpose flour – 1/2 Cup

Whole Wheat flour – 1 Cup

Butter – 20 gms (@ room temp)

Veg Oil - 3-4 tsps (i used olive oil)

Light Brown Sugar – 1/4 cup

Honey - 1/4 cup

Warm Water – 200 ml

Ground Cinnamon – 1/2 tsp

Baking Powder - 1 tsp

Baking Soda - 1/2 tsp

Whole Sweet Orange - 1 (Big)

Ripe Banana - 1

Crushed nuts (of your choice) - 1/4 cup

The orange:

Gently grate the rind of the orange and keep aside (can be added during the folding process)

Use only the juice, if your orange is full of seeds and skin. I used a seedless orange, so i cut the pulps into tiny pieces and whipped them with the wet ingredients.

Method:

1. Pre heat the oven to 200 C for 10 minutes

2. Grease a round cake pan line base with Parchment paper

3. Beat the wet and dry ingredients separately

4. Then fold them gently together and mix them

5. Now, transfer the mixture to the prepared cake pan

6. Bake it for 15 minutes @ 200 C

7. Then reduce the temperature to 180 C and bake it for 5 - 10 more minutes (or till done)

8. cool for 20 minutes, and enjoy it with butter.

Cinnamon-Banana Cake with Nuts

After the depletion of choco-fudge i baked for the guests last week, i was thinking to bake a simple yet rich one to give my new neighbors. A simple tea cake recipe (i once watched in the local arabic channel) with some of my own touches is the "Cinnamon-Banana Cake with Nuts". 

Ingredients:

Self raising/all purpose flour – 1 3/4 Cups
Butter – 100 gms (@ room temp)
Veg Oil - 3-4 tsps (i used olive oil)
Vanilla Essence – 1 tsp
Sugar – 1 cup
Eggs – 2
Milk – 120 ml
Ground Cinnamon – 1 tsp
Baking Powder - 1 tsp
Ripe Banana - 1
Broken nuts (of your choice) - 1/4 cup (i used almonds)

Method:

1. Pre heat the oven to 180C for 15 minutes

2. Grease a round cake pan line base with baking paper

3. Beat all the ingredients using hand or an electric mixer until light and fluffy (this would take some minutes)

4. Now, transfer the mixture to the prepared cake pan and sprinkle the nuts and some sugar over the cake top

5. Bake it for 30-45 minutes.



Indulge yourself with this fluffy cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or just a cup of hot tea!

(Note: i usually don't use my hand or an electric mixer, instead i put all the ingredients into a blender jar and whip them for 5-10 seconds...it comes out perfectly, without any physical strain!)

Easy Oat Cake

Want to bake your own cake...but scared that your baking would become a disaster? Don't worry! For even i had the same feel when i wanted to bake my first cake, and at then i didn't even have the conventional oven for doing it.

Now i know cake baking is no chemistry or magic. All you need to have is the right ingredients, proper meauring & mixing, good practise and the confidence to do it. With all these you can make it. Reason? even i can bake a proper cake!

(Small Trivia! Cake making began in ancient Egypt as round, flat, unleavened breads cooked on hot stone. Their evolution had travelled over many centuries, along with new ingredients, technology, innovation and creativity.)

Here I have given the recipe of Easy Oat Cake. The name itself would justify it is easy to make, and the taste and health facts are amazing...as you must be knowing the value of oats!

This oats cake does not require any skills, unusual ingredients or a conventional oven. This has a dead easy recipe that can made from the stuff already available in your kitchen.

You Need:

1/2 - 3/4 cup sugar (as per your taste)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 whole egg (if you like to add only egg white, then take 2 nos.)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup oats
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup milk
a pinch of cinnamon powder (to give a lovely aroma when baked)

Directions:

1. Coarse grind oats and keep aside

2. Add the rest of the ingredients (sugar, salt, butter, vegetable oil, egg, vanilla extract, baking powder, cinnamon powder and milk) in a mixer jar/food processor and whip for 3 - 4 seconds

3. Now mix this well with the grounded oats (dry nuts and other flavorings are optional, and can be added at this stage)

4. Grease in a baking tray with butter and pour the mixture

5. Microwave it for 5 minutes

6. Now switch on the oven to grill mode and cook it for 2 minutes (increase the time to 1 - 2 minutes if necessary, but never leave it unattended...as microwave would easily dehydrate and scorch your food)

7. Now you can indulge yourself with this heavenly soft oats cake

(Note: Cake is done when it springs back to the touch)