Rasmalai Cake - Saffron Milk Cake

Sometimes modern twists on traditional dishes don't quite turn out as good as the original, but this sweet treat certainly does!! 

Rasmalai - soft spongy cottage cheese dumplings soaked in sweet saffron milk, a sweet dish loved all over the Indian subcontinent. Thanks to Bake with Shivesh, I was inspired to try RASMALAI CAKE. 

With the same flavours of delicious sweet Saffron Milk, the soft juicy cake makes it a wonderful twist on the traditional dish! 

So here it is, my version of RASMALAI CAKE:

Ingredients: 

For cake - make a simple eggless Vanilla cake anyway you prefer. I used plain flour, baking soda, condensed milk, vanilla essence, yogurt and light olive oil. 

For Saffron Milk - 1 cup warmed full cream milk, 1/2 cup thick cream, 1/2 cup condensed milk, 8-10 strands saffron soaked in a bit of milk, sugar if needed.

Make: 

1. Bake the vanilla cake in your own method then let it cool just a little.

2. While the cake is baking, make the Saffron Milk by mixing in warm milk, thick cream, condensed milk and saffron strands. Add sugar only if more sweetness is desired. 

3. While the cake is still warm and still in baking dish, poke holes in with a fork and pour some of the saffron milk mixture. Put in the fridge for atleast 1 hour.

Serve chilled by cutting a slice of saffron milk soaked cake, top with fresh whipped cream and nuts, in lots of saffron milk. 

Enjoy the delicious Rasmalai Cake!

Beetroot Red Velvet Cake

Who doesn't love some cake! Even more if it's healthy. Red Velvet Cake is traditionally known as a fancy dessert cake with the red colour derived from natural cocoa. Some quick recipes often use food colour but I found that using Beetroot not only gives a beautiful natural red crimson colour but adds moisture especially for an eggless cake.

Here it is, my eggless Beetroot Red Velvet Cake:

Ingredients: 2 cups self raising flour (or if using plain flour, add 1 tsp baking soda), 1 cup brown sugar, 2 tbsp cocoa powder, 3 tbsp light olive oil or similar, 1 tbsp melted butter, 1 tspn vanilla essence, 1 Beetroot boiled and pureed smooth, milk only if needed.

Make:

1. Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl. In another bowl mix all the wet ingredients so it is combined well. 

2. Combine the dry and wet ingredients together and using a spatula mix into a smooth cake batter. Add milk as needed to adjust the consistency. 

3. Pour batter into a greased and lined baking tray and bake in a pre-heated oven at 170deg for about 30 to 40 minutes. 

4. Once baked, cool completely and decorate with cream cheese frosting or buttercream icing. 

Enjoy the delicious, soft and moist Red Velvet cake which surprisingly has little or no flavours of Beetroot at all, but all the health benefits! 

Mango Cake - Eggless & Dairy free

The onset of sweet Summer means it's time to bask in the sweetness of the king of fruits, Mangoes! It's no surprise that there aren't many folks out there whose eye don't light up when they see any Mango dish or simply the fruit itself. 

So when life gives you Mangoes, make everything with them :) I tried creating a healthy sweet treat using fresh Mangoes and it definitely will become a regular.  With no added sugar or colour and completely dairy free, here is my MANGO CAKE!

Ingredients: Pulp from 2 fresh ripe mangoes, 1 cup wholemeal self raising flour (can also use plain flour with baking soda), 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla essence.

Make: Take the fresh mango pulp and grind into a smooth puree. Mix the flour, oil and mango puree well until you have a smooth batter. Add vanilla essence and mix. If the batter is too thick you can add a spoon of water as required. If the mangoes are ripe and sweet, you will not need any extra sugar for sweetness. 

Pour the cake batter into a greased and lined baking tray and bake in a fan forced oven at 160 deg for about 25 minutes. 

Once cooled, your soft, dense Mango cake will be ready to serve along with a cup of tea.

Enjoy!

Carrot Cake

Carrots in sweet treats are one of the best combinations to add that bit of healthy touch to sweets. The good old Carrot Cake is one that is best enjoyed with a hot cuppa! Best part is that kids will love it without even knowing all the goodness of carrots hidden inside.

Given my love for eggless baking, including carrots in my recipe makes it even easier to achieve a soft, juicy cake without the use of eggs. 

Here it is, my version of Carrot Cake:

Ingredients: 1 carrot grated, 1 cup self raising flour, half cup brown sugar, half cup full cream milk, 1 tablespoon melted butter, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla essence, dry fruits if desired. For topping, 1 tablespoon icing sugar, 1 tablespoon milk, dry coconut shreds.

Make: In a bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, butter, olive oil. Mix well and add milk. Once the consistency is smooth, add in the grated carrot, dried fruits and combine well. Pour the batter into a bread baking tray (greased with baking paper is recommended) and bake in a pre-heated fan forced oven 160 degrees for 30 minutes. You will know it is baked if it bounces back when touched slightly in the middle. 

Let the cake cool. Prepare the topping by mixing the icing sugar and milk and pour over the cake. Sprinkle the coconut shreds on top immediately so it sticks.

Enjoy with your favourite cuppa! 

Choc Banana Muffins (eggless)

When your little one is huge fan of bananas in baked treats, how can you not combine the two yummiest ingredients into one yummy treat! 

Presenting my egg-less vegetarian version of CHOCOLATE BANANA MUFFINS. With loads of sweet mashed banana it's fluffy, soft and simply delicious :)

Here it is :)

Ingredients: One very ripe banana, 1 cup self raising flour, quarter cup brown sugar, half cup milk, 1 tablespoons melted butter, 3 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla essence, 1 tablespoon cocoa powder, handful of choc chips. 

Make: In a bowl mash the banana well with a spoon, should be well mashed but not a smooth paste. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, butter, oil, cocoa powder, choc chips and vanilla essence. Mix well with a fork (to ensure the cake will be light and fluffy not thick and heavy). Add the mashed banana and mix lightly. Pour into your lined muffin tray and bake in a preheated fan forced oven at 160 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes, when baked, it will bounce back when lightly pressed in the middle. Dust icing sugar on top if desired.

Enjoy your freshly baked CHOC BANANA MUFFINS :)

Honey Cake Eggless

Do you have foods that are associated with a favourite feeling or memory which adds to the fondness of that particular food? They do say food is much more than just for hunger and taste...it's a feeling, which us human beings love to hold on to. One such feeling of fondness for me is that of walking into the local Iyengar Bakery in Bangalore with scents of fresh baked goodies and laying eyes on that beautiful, juicy, honey drenched, soft piece of cake - Honey Cake!

Given all the love we have for it, I thought of giving it a shot at home and we were very happy with the results.

Here it is, my version of HONEY CAKE, eggless Indian style :)

Ingredients: 1 cup self raising flour, 2/3 cup caster sugar, 1/4 cup plain yogurt, 1/4 olive oil, 1/4 cup orange juice, 1 teaspoon vanilla essence, milk as needed. For the honey syrup, 1/4 cup water, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 large tablespoon honey. For jam topping, 1 tablespoon jam, desiccated coconut. 

Make: In a large bowl, mix the yogurt, caster sugar and oil until smooth. Add the flour, vanilla essence, orange juice and mix well until you have a flowy firm cake mixture. Add milk only if needed. Pour into a baking pan and bake at 160 degrees in a fan forced oven. Cake should be baked in about 25 to 30 minutes. 

While it is baking, prepare the honey syrup by bringing to boil, the water and sugar. Warm it enough to melt the sugar. Cool to room temperature then add the honey and mix well. 

Once the cake is ready, poke holes all around the top of the cake using a toothpick. Pour the honey syrup all over the cake and allow it to soak for about 10 minutes. 

For the jam topping, heat the tablespoon of jam until it is flowy, then spread over the cake. Immediately sprinkle desiccated coconut all over. Let it cool and serve :)

When you cut into it, you will see the cake will have soaked up the honey syrup giving it a juicy texture. Yum!!