Eggless Date and Walnut Cake/Loaf ...Low Fat and Healthy!!!

Dear All,

The moment I think about dates (khajoor) the first thing that comes to my mind is Pani Puri and the second is this Date and Walnut Cake. This cake is not light but quite dense , not too sweet and perfect combination with some tea or coffee. This recipe is inspired from Eggless Date Cake which I had bookmarked ages ago from Shilpa's site, this cake has almost 100% success rates and by the popularity of this cake I had to try it soon. The adventure began when I saw a packet of seedless dates in my fridge. Being Anaemic I was advised to have black dates regularly due the high iron content in them. I have dates as a meal filler in between my meals, they are extremely rich and fulfilling, so next time you have craving to have something sweet go and buy yourself a packet of dates!  Lets stay healthy!

Original Recipe Source: Shilpa from Aayi's Recipes
Ingredients:
25-26 seedless dates
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar (You can increase/reduce depending upon the sweetness of your dates)
1 cup of all purpose flour
1/2 cup of whole wheat flour
3 tbsp oil
1 1/2 tsp of baking soda
1/4 cups of finely chopped walnuts
1/4 cup of finely chopped dates

Procedure:-

• Preheat the oven to 190 degrees C, grease and flour a loaf tin.
• Soak dates in warm milk for about half an hour until they become little soft and mushy to touch
• Add sugar and grind them into smooth paste along with the milk in which the dates were soaked.
• Add oil and mix. 
• Sieve the flour and baking soda together. 
• Add flour one tablespoon at a time and mix well after each addition.
• Add the finely chopped walnuts and dates and mix well.
• Grate few walnuts on top of the cake and bake it for 40 to 45 mins until a tooth pick inserted comes out clean.

Verdict? The cake is quite dense in nature due the dates puree used, the texture i got was quite fudgy in nature! The color of the cake highly depends upon the type of the dates you have used and varies accordingly. So if you cake is darker in color than donot worry , it does not mean the cake was burnt :)

For best result always use fresh dates and seedless ones which will speed up the process of baking as well. You can also use all whole wheat flour instead of all purpose flour to make it even more healthy! Hope you enjoyed this cake. Until next time, take care!

Chocolate Chip Almond Pound Cake for a new begining !!!

Dear All,

Change is always very painful especially if you are changing from your very first company to another. First company is like your first love which one really cannot forget! You all must be wondering what the hell I am talking about....well I recently switched from my previous and first company to another details of which I have already updated on my FB :-) Honestly there is lot of excitement as well as little sadness as I really miss my old company. The beautiful campus, my colleagues, my friends and each and every moment I have spent in my last 4 years here brings tears in my eyes. But I am happy that I am moving ahead in my career to take on new opportunities and challenges!

During my last week in my previous company, lots and i mean lots of people expressed that they will miss me a lot but more than me they will miss my bakes! Now that really is a compliment!! Yes and for all my colleagues and well wishers I prepared this cake which was till date on of my best cakes I have ever made! I was so impressed by the taste and texture of this cake that I have already made it twice in a week!

Chocolate Chip Almond Pound Cake
Ingredients:-
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups of brown sugar or white sugar
2 tbsp coco powder
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 medium eggs at room temperature
1 cup milk
90 ml vegetable oil
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup roasted almonds, chopped finely


Procedure:-

• Preheat the oven at 180 degrees C.
• Grease and flour a pound cake tin.
• Sieve together flour, coco powder, baking powder and baking soda in a vessel.
• In a measuring cup mix milk, oil and eggs. Mix with a spoon until well blended.
• Mix together flour mixture, sugar, almonds and 1/4 of chocolate chips.
• Add the liquid mixture and fold the batter together until well blended. DONOT use a beater, a wooden spoon or a spatula is perfect.
• Pour the batter in the baking tin and sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of chocolate chip on top.
• Bake the cake for 40 to 45 mins until tooth pick inserted comes out clean.
• Remove the cake from oven and let is cool completely atleast for 20 mins.
• Once completely cooled, cut into pieces and serve.
• Enjoy with a coffee or even with some vanilla ice cream!

Verdict? Trust me and go and make this cake right away!!! Its so easy to prepare and hardly require any extra preparations, just mix the dry and liquid ingredients and you are ready to go! Everybody in the office loved it and I too managed to gobble down 3 pieces all by my self..hehehe :)

So what are you waiting for, rush into your kitchen and make this special treat for your loved ones! In case of any queries pls feel free to email me anytime and I will try to answer them to the best of my knowledge!

Thank you and take care!

Anzac Bicsuits for my 100th post !!!

Dear Foodies,

Finally I have reached my 100th post. The journey till here has been quite a roll-a-coaster ride sometimes slow and sometimes with lots of bumps but I cant complain as this has been one of the most beautiful and enriching journey for me and my blog. I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and everyone of you who have supported and encouraged me, a very big heart felt thanks to all of my readers!

If you have been following my blog closely you would know I am not a big cookie person in fact the only cookies I love to munch are Chocolate Chip Cookies and very recently I have fallen in love with Anzac Biscuits. Anzac biscuits are very popular in Australia, made with oats, flour, sugar and golden syrup, it has been said that wives of soldiers used to make these biscuits during the WWI. These biscuits are extremely easy to prepare and taste extremely delicious, if you like your cookies eggless, mild in sweetness and chewy then these little drops are for you!

Recipe adapted from here
Recipe yields 24 cookies
Ingredients:-
1 cup (240 gms) all purpose flour
1 cup (90 gms) rolled oats, I used quacker
1 cup (85 gms) dessicated coconut, I used 100 gms
3/4 (155 gms) cup brown sugar
1/2 cup + 1tbsp (125 gms) unsalted butter
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp water

Procedure:-

• Preheat the oven to 160°C, line a baking tray with parchment paper.
• Sieve the flour in a bowl, add in oats, coconut and sugar, mix well.
• Put butter, honey and 2 tbsp water in a pan, stir over medium heat until butter is completely melted. Add in baking soda.
• Pour the butter mixture on the flour mixture and stir until well combined.
• Roll a tbsp of mixture into small balls and place on the baking tray 5cm apart from each other.
• Using a fork, flatten the top of the cookies lightly.
• Bake for 12 to 15 mins until lightly browned. If you like your cookies crunchier than bake them for 2 to 3 mins more than the specified time.
• Remove the cookies from oven once done, let them cool down for 5 mins and then transfer them to a cooking rack. After 20 mins store these in air tight containers.

Verdict? These cookies were fantastic in taste, not over sweet and just perfect for some tea time munching. I did not have golden syrup so i substituted honey and it worked like a charm! I love my cookies a little crunchier so I baked these for close to 17 to 20 mins or until the top was golden brown. I shared these cookies with my friends and colleagues and got great reviews, everybody loved these! 

These were so easy to prepare, no heavy beating or mixing required, just fold in all the ingredients and you are ready! I urge everyone to try these wonderful cookies once, do share your experiences with me and you can always email me if you have any questions or doubts and I will try to answer them to best of my knowledge! Until next time thank you an wish you all a wonderful week ahead!