Tag: baking

Vanilla Buttermilk Eggless Sponge Cake

Vanilla Buttermilk Eggless Sponge-2

After the last post of SugarPlum Cinnamon Buttermilk Cake, many people wanted an eggless sponge cake. I knew I had to bake one immediately… hence this post.

This recipe is from my initial baking days… very simple and easy to make even for beginners… so naturally it never got posted on the blog. Not bragging but I thought it to be too simple to be posted here. But trust me, it is every bit delicious! This is my go-to recipe while baking for non egg-eaters and it has turned out perfect every single time so it is tried, tested and tasted recipe in a true sense!

Use this as your basic cake recipe and add any other ingredients you like to it. Cinnamon, chocolate, lemon… anything! Sky is truly a limit. Use any other fruit you like or even better, make it tropical (pineapple and coconut, anyone?) style! Getting ideas?! ?

This eggless sponge is moist, has tight crumb and relatively flat top which makes it perfect for a multi-layer cake for birthdays or for any other occasion. In past, I have successfully doubled and tripled this eggless sponge recipe to make a 2 or 3-layer celebratory cake. For frosting ideas and recipes, read the recipe notes at the end of this post.

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Previously I have always used fresh strawberries for this eggless sponge as seen in the picture above. This time I had Kiwi fruit on hand so I decided it was time for a change. I am not a fan of baked Kiwi fruit so I refrained from adding fruit pieces to the batter which I sometimes do with strawberries but if you have no such qualms then go ahead.

It is perfect for eating any time of the day!

Yup, even for breakfast!

It has yogurt and fruit! Totally acceptable, right?! 😉

Kiwi Buttermilk Cake - Eggless1

 

Recipe adapted from here

Print Recipe
Vanilla Buttermilk Sponge Cake ~ Eggless
Cuisine American
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings
slices
Ingredients
Topping
Cuisine American
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings
slices
Ingredients
Topping
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Spray a 6 or 8-inch baking dish with vegetable oil and line the bottom with parchment paper.
  2. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl.
  3. In a separate bowl, cream together butter, oil and sugar with electric mixer or hand whisk. Whisk in vanilla extract.
  4. Using rubber spatula, gently stir in dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in 2-parts alternating with yogurt/buttermilk, ending with dry ingredients. Do not over-mix the batter.
  5. Spoon the batter in a baking dish and smooth out the surface with the back of spoon. Top with Kiwi/strawberry slices and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 25-30 minutes or till the toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Recipe Notes

*Stays fresh for 3-4 days if refrigerated in an airtight container.
*Want to add fruit within the cake batter instead on top? Mix together about 1/2 generous cup of chopped fruit and 1 Tbsp flour, fold into the cake batter.
*You may double/triple/quadruple the recipe to make layers for a multi-layered cake. Use vanilla bean buttercream, fresh strawberry cream cheese frosting, lemon cream cheese frosting or coconut buttercream frosting recipe to decorate.

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Skinny Carrot Sticks

Skinny Carrot Sticks2

Healthy snacking… It should be a way of life. Little indulgences are okay during breakfast or lunch time. But not acceptable during evening bites. This topic is written and read and discussed over and over again.. But who follows all that anyway?!

I have my weaknesses… I know them… So let’s go over the culprits. I love french fries.. I adore potato wedges.. & oh.. forgot potato chips.. So the common thread is potato! Yup.. I love my potato ~ deep fried! Nothing beats that. But after trying the baked versions of all these potato treats, I’m sold! They taste every bit as delicious and not one bit skinny! So they have become party favorites at our house.. I still indulge in these fried treats when it is junk food day which does not happen regularly so it’s fine.

Skinny Carrot Sticks3

So on a lazy Sunday afternoon, instead of my favorite baked potatoes, I made these carrot sticks. Really crispy, low-fat and dee-lish! Carrot sticks covered with dry thyme, salt, black pepper & onion powder and thankfully not smothered in too much oil! Just a bit… Yaay!! 😀

And yeah, going along the skinny way I served them with light mayonnaise.

Feel free to use potatoes or sweet potatoes instead of carrots.

Skinny Carrot Sticks1

Skinny Carrot Sticks

Serves: 2 or 1 😉

Ingredients:

  • 300 gm carrots, peeled and cut into 1-cm thick fries (about 4 medium sized)
  • 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 Tbsp dry thyme
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • freshly cracked black pepper, a pinch
  • salt, to taste
  • 2 Tbsp light mayonnaise (I used American Garden’s)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 200 C/400 F. Toss all the ingredients together in a large bowl. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for 20-25 minutes, tossing and turning halfway.

Serve them hot with mayonnaise.

*For even crispier sticks, throw in 1/2 Tbsp bread crumbs also to the mix.
*Feel free to add whatever you like to your mayonnaise.
*Feel free to use potatoes or sweet potatoes instead of carrots.

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SugarPlum Cinnamon Buttermilk Cake

SugarPlum Cinnamon Buttermilk Cake1

Happy Half New Year Everyone!!

You must be thinking who remembers or celebrates that! Neither do I! But got reminded of it on through WhattsApp messenger. Guys, we are in the middle of the year, we have finished 183 days of the year already! Another 182 days to go! Today is 184th day.. I know I am a day late in wishing you all but if none of you even remembered it then it doesn’t count, right? 😉

I can’t believe how half the year has already passed by and time has engulfed us in its speed that we can barely keep up! I have not even started ticking my to-do list of this year. So I really need to brace myself as soon it will be Christmas even before we know it!

And its finally raining in Bangalore!! Not as much as I would like but hey I am not complaining. Bangalore marked half of the year by gracing us with rain yesterday evening. I was so happy that I had to do a little dance, listen to my fave songs and bake! With cinnamon!!! I love how the aroma of cinnamon fills the house and this smell mixed with the smell of rain is almost heavenly!

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I had bought almost 2 kg of sugarplums from my regular supermarket as it was on sale! Half of them were super-ripe and sweet so it goes without saying that we enjoyed them just like that. Rest of them were quite sour and tart for which hubby & I both have got pretty low tolerance so I decided to use them in a cake.. A topping for a simple cinnamon buttermilk cake! They look like red jewels… So adorable it makes my heart sing! Plus, all the tartness is masked by the sweetness of the cake.

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As it was raining, there was music and I was in a mood to dance while I bake, I decided to whip the batter with hand. It was so therapeutic!!! No mixer is required for this cake and only 2 dirty bowls! Complete win-win.. 🙂

The plums I had were quite firm so slicing slivers from them was not so messy and quite pleasing experience. Be sure to use a sharp knife for this. Each plum will give around 8 slices.

Perfect as a coffee/tea time cake & perfect as a dessert served with vanilla custard or sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice-cream!

Oh, did I mention it is healthy?? 😉

Enjoy!

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SugarPlum Cinnamon Buttermilk Cake

Adapted from Super Natural Every Day – Heidi Swanson

Prep Time: 25 min | Baking time: 30 min | Serves: 12

Ingredients:

  • 2 and 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 Tbsp baking powder
  • 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup caster sugar
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 and 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
  • zest of 1 very large lemon
  • 6-8 sugarplums, thinly slivered (ripe yet firm)
  • 3 Tbsp granulated white sugar

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 200 C/400 F. Grease an 11″ tart pan or quiche dish.
  2. Sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, sugar and salt in a bowl. In a separate large bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, melted butter and lemon zest.
  3. Add dry ingredients into wet ingredients and mix until all the flour pockets disappear and the batter is just combined.
  4. Spoon batter into greased pan, tapping the pan over the working station. Smooth the batter with back of your spoon, spreading it out towards the edges. Arrange plums in a circular pattern or just scatter them around. Top with granulated white sugar evenly.
  5. Bake for 30 minutes or till the toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve warm with a dusting of icing sugar or vanilla custard or sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice-cream.
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Skinny Devil’s Food Cake Mix Cookies – Funfetti Friday!

Skinny Devil Food Cake Mix cookies2

Hey fellas, I have been ranting singing about my birthday from the beginning of this week but today is the real deal!

Happy 28th Birthday to Me! 🙂

And Happy Funfetti Friday to you all!

I didn’t want to bake a cake for my own birthday so instead I baked these cookies a day before to commemorate the celebration! I was feeling super lazy yet wanted a chocolate cookie and sprinkle on my birthday eve so decided to settle for these!

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I kept them skinny by omitting butter with fat free yogurt. They were not crunchy but instead soft and moist but that is how I like my cookies so no complains! They almost tasted like fudgy brownies so bake them as brownies if you like and adjust the baking time accordingly.

It is a one-bowl treat so less dishes! The dough requires quite a bit of elbow grease to whip up so use sturdy spoon for mixing, preferably wooden spoon. The dough is quite sticky so put it in refrigerator for half an hour if you’re making cookies.

Use ice-cream scoop to form cookie balls and top them with sprinkles or M&Ms or candied cherries.. I used all 3 of them and loved how candied cherry tasted almost sinful with rich chocolate!

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Dough chilled in refrigerator for half an hour & then scooped on to cookie sheet

You must be able to palpate the haste in my writing as you are reading down the post but that is exactly how this was typed. In a hurry!

So let’s not waste more time and get to the recipe!

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Skinny Devil’s food Cake Mix Cookies

Yields: Around 12 large cookies

Ingredients:

  • 1 box (500 gm) chocolate cake mix (I used Betty Crocker Devil’s Food Cake Mix)
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/3 cup fat free vanilla yogurt
  • sprinkles, M&Ms or candies cherries for topping

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 F/170 C. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Mix all the ingredients in one large bowl and chill in refrigerator for half an hour.
  3. Using ice-cream scoop, drop cookie balls on parchment paper. Decorate them with the topping of your choice.
  4. Bake for 11-12 minutes or till sides have firmed up. the center will still be gooey but will firm up once cookies cool down. Do not over-bake. Let rest on cookie sheet for 3-4 minutes before transferring on a wire rack to cool completely.

*If using plain yogurt then add 1 tsp vanilla extract to the dough.

Enjoy!!

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Spinach, Corn & Egg Strata

Spinach,corn & egg Strata2

Today, I bring you a no-hassle, breakfast recipe.. Great for a weekday when everything is so crazy that breakfast is the last thing on your mind and even greater for your laid-back weekend as it takes pretty much zero-effort to whip it up!

Treat your dad on Father’s day morning with this and I am sure he would be really pleased!

You just throw all the ingredients together the night before but to be honest, I love how undemanding yet flavorful this dish is! The recipe makes two hefty portions and let me warn you, we were full after eating only half! So truly a great brunch option! 😉

Spinach,corn & egg Strata1

Spinach, Corn & Egg Strata

Prep time: 10 mins | Bake time: 45 mins | Total time: 55 mins

Ingredients:

  • 4 pieces bread
  • 2 handfuls of spinach
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup corn kernels
  • 2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • 1 tsp oregano powder
  • salt and pepper as per taste
  • 1/3 cup mozzarella cheese

Directions:

  1. The night before, tear up bread into small pieces and slice up the spinach. Place in 2-4″ ramekins. Top with corn kernels. Whisk together eggs, milk, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, salt and pepper. Pour over bread and spinach. Top with cheese and cover with cling film. Place in refrigerator overnight.
  2. In the morning, preheat oven to 375 F/180 C. Remove cling film and cover each ramekin with aluminium foil. Place on a baking tray and bake for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes remove aluminium foil and continue to bake uncovered for another 20-25 minutes or until egg mixture has set and strata has puffed. Serve warm.

Recipe adapted from Naturally Ella

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