Mad About Cooking

Lohri 2022 Special | These Popcorn Recipes Will Set The Mood For This Joyous Occasion | 3 Flavors Popcorn | Pressure Cooker Method

The festival of Lohri has a lot to offer – great food, a taste of tradition, dance and dhol. Lohri, the harvest festival celebrated in northern India, especially Punjab and Haryana is looked forward to because of several reasons. A time for a refreshing get-together, an excuse to hum traditional songs like Sunder Mundriye Ho and shake a leg to their tunes, and the joy of digging into the delectable traditional thali – Lohri signifies joy and new beginnings.

Popcorns are a staple when it comes to Lohri but instead of the basic ones why not give your popcorns a twist? These special Lohri recipes of popcorn are what you need to set the mood of your Lohri party in 2022 a year we all hope gets better. These three delicious and easy to make flavored popcorn recipes. From spicy to sweet, one of these flavors will be your next favorite.

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Ingredients:

Salted popcorn :
Corn kernels – 1/3 cup
Ghee – 2 tbsp
Himalayan pink salt to taste

Masala popcorn :
Corn kernels – 1/3 cup
Red chilli powder – 1/2 tsp
Turmeric – 1/4 tsp
Chaat masala – 1 tsp
Ghee – 2 tbsp
Himalayan pink salt to taste

Jaggery popcorn :
Salted popcorn – 2 cups
Grated jaggery – 1 cup
Fennel seeds – 1 tbsp
Ghee – 3 tbsp

Method :

Salted Popcorn

In a pressure cooker, heat ghee. Then add corn kernels and roast on low flame.
Roast until the popcorn starts to puff a little.
Immediately close the lid and keep the flame on low.
Wait until all the popcorn starts to pop up and it’s done.

Masala popcorn :

In a pressure cooker, heat ghee. Then add corn kernels and roast on low flame.
Roast until the popcorn starts to puff a little. When corn about to pop add all masalas (mentioned above in masala popcorn ingredients). Mix it well.
Immediately close the lid and keep the flame on low.
Wait until all the popcorn starts to pop up and it’s done.

Jaggery popcorn :

Heat ghee in pan and add jaggery. Cook till jaggery melts.
Switch off the flame. Add salted popcorn and mix it well.
Take out jaggery coated popcorn in a separate plate or a bowl.
Allow them to cool down completely and then separate them.

Lohri Special | Quinoa Gajak or Chikki | No Sugar Recipe

Lohri is just around the corner, so I thought to make these homemade sweet treats to elevate the festivities. Gur and gajaks are some of the main things that are served during this Punjabi festival. There are many varieties of chikkis available like dry fruit chikki, sesame seeds chikki, etc. Today, I made gajak or chikki but with a little twist. In this recipe, I replaced sesame seeds and peanuts with Quinoa puffs.

Quinoa is one of few plant foods that provides a complete protein source with all nine essential amino acids. This makes puffed quinoa an excellent post-workout snack when served alongside fruit or as a topping for Greek yogurt. Quinoa puffs are also a good source of fiber, providing three grams per serving. The fiber found in quinoa is beneficial for digestive health. Quinoa puffs contain nearly twice as much fiber as nearly all other grains.

Whereas jaggery is packed with calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium and phosphorus and even has trace amounts of zinc, copper, thiamin, riboflavin and niacin. Studies suggest that jaggery has B vitamins, some amounts of plant proteins and loads of phytochemicals and antioxidants. No wonder then that eating jaggery, especially during the winter season, has many potential benefits.

Quinoa chikki are very tasty, sugar-free and gluten-free, and great for a healthy life. In the festive season make and serve some healthy sweets to your guest.

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Ingredients :

Grated jaggery – 2 cups
Quinoa puffs – 1 & 1/2 cups
Ghee – 4 tbsp

Method :

Grease butter paper with oil or ghee.
Cook jaggery (heavy bottom non stick pan) till a thick syrup is formed. To test that the syrup is ready put a drop in cold water. If it forms a firm ball the syrup is ready.
Now add quinoa puffs and mix it well (Flame off).
Immediately spread prepared chikki mixturer on the greased plate.
Now level up mixture with rolling pin and gently spread mixture.
Let it cool slightly before cutting into desired shapes.

Lohri Special | Peanut Sesame Seeds Laddu with Jaggery

When it comes to Snack boxes, packing is always difficult as we want a quick fix and a healthy one every day. Always fruits make a good choice for morning snacks and some healthy crunchy snacks would be great for midmorning office snacks or kids’ evening hunger.

Peanut Sesame Seeds Laddu with Jaggery is nutritious, healthy, and easy to prepare. You need three main ingredients for making this laddu. I love snacking on these guilt-free laddus. As these laddus contain peanuts, jaggery, and sesame seeds, they are rich in protein and iron. These guilt-free laddus can be had as a snack can be given to children as after-school snacks or can be packed in their snack boxes.

I often make and stock these kinds of healthy ladoos at home to snack in between meals. What I loved is the addition of fennel seeds. Dried fennel seeds are a storehouse of various nutrients, with low calories and high in different micro and macronutrients.

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Ingredients :

Sesame seeds – 1 cup

Salted & roasted peanuts – 1 cup ( Readymade)

Grated jaggery – 1 & 1/2 cups

Fennel seeds – 1 tbsp

Homemade ghee – 3 tbsp

Method :

Heat a pan and add sesame seeds. Roast till crispy on low heat. Transfer them into separate bowl and allow it to cool down completely.
Then in a grinder add roasted sesame seeds with salted, roasted peanuts and fennel seeds into coarse mixture.
Add ghee in a same pan and add jaggery. Allow jaggery to melt completely.
Then add prepared coarse mixture and mix it well.
Transfer mixture in a separate thali or in bowl. Allow it cool down a bit.
Grease your hands with little ghee. Make small/medium laddus.
Store them in an airtight container. Serve as needed.

Quinoa Puff Coated with Jaggery | Healthy Snack | Gur Wale Quinoa

Quinoa Puff coated with jaggery is a quick and healthy snack that can answer your cravings for something sweet. Easy to make and it tastes delicious. Quinoa jaggery puffs are free of refined sugar, gluten-free, packed with protein and a healthier treat.

Quinoa puff gives you all the benefits of quinoa in a crispy snack. Just add milk and enjoy; no cooking needed. Puffed quinoa also makes a crunchy addition to yogurt, oatmeal and granola bars. The best part? It’s packed with high-quality protein, fiber and iron so it not only tastes great but is also great for you. Quinoa is one of few plant foods that provides a complete protein source with all nine essential amino acids. This makes puffed quinoa an excellent post-workout snack when served alongside fruit or as a topping for Greek yogurt.

Jaggery is made from the juice of sugarcane, which is heated to produce thick crystals. It contains sugar in sucrose form and is used in many food products as a sweetening agent. It is considered healthier than refined sugar as certain plant phytochemicals and minerals are preserved in it. Many people avoid jaggery as its raw appearance is not very appealing. However, it may be time to start making this food a regular part of your diet as it provides many essential nutrients and is an effective remedy for many ailments. By adding jaggery to your diet, you gain a wide range of health benefits that you may not have thought that this food could provide.

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Ingredients :

Quinoa puff – 1 cup
Grated jaggery – 1 cup
Himalayan pink salt to taste
Ghee – 1 tbsp

Method:

Now add ghee in a pan and add grated jaggery.
Now mix well and let the jaggery melt. Once completely melted, let it cook until the mixture attains a thick and syrupy consistency on low heat.
Now add quinoa puff and mix well.
Mix well to ensure quinoa puff is coated well in the jaggery mixture.
Take gur quinoa on a butter paper and mix well.
Let the gur quinoa puff cool down completely and then separate them.
Store in an airtight jar or serve as a snack.
Do try this recipe and share it.

Lohri Special | Quinoa Sesame Chocolate Cake | Baking with Whole Wheat Flour | Wok Baking

You might ask why quinoa is in a cake? Because it’s so moist, delicious chocolate cake ever. You won’t believe me until you try it. Quinoa is the “hero” for this delicious chocolate cake. And this ingredient is just magical. It’s packed with protein and gives the cake a rich, nutty texture that I love.

First, we need cooked quinoa to start with. I am using my Instant pot to cook my quinoa. It should usually be rinsed before use to remove its bitter coating, so check packet instructions. Roast for 5 minutes and add 1 & 1/4 cups water to one cup of grain, cover, simmer and cook for approximately 15 minutes or until the germ separates from the seed. It is done.

Another secret ingredient in this cake recipe is Greek Yogurt. If you’re thinking “it’s all Greek to me,” then it’s time to explore how Greek yogurt adds a secret weapon of deliciousness and delight to your healthy baking repertoire. Greek yogurt is a style of yogurt that’s been thoroughly strained of its whey, resulting in a far thicker consistency than regular yogurt. This style has long been favored in parts of Europe and the Middle East; referring to it as “Greek” or “Greek-style” yogurt is simply a nod to this fact. Like unstrained yogurt, it comes in a variety of different flavors or can be purchased plain.

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Ingredients :

Whole Wheat Flour – 1 & 1/2 cups

Greek yogurt – 1 cup

Brown sugar – 1/2 or 3/4 cup

Cooked Quinoa – 3/4 cup

Cocoa powder – 1/4 cup

Toasted sesame seeds – 1/8 cup

Baking Soda – 1/2 tsp

Baking powder – 1 tsp

Refined Oil – 1/4 cup

A pinch of Himalayan pink salt

Toasted sesame seeds ( 2 tbsp ), quinoa puffs (4 tbsp) for topping

Method :

Dry mixture: Shift whole wheat flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda with salt. Mix salt and keep it aside.
Wet mixture: In a grinder add brown sugar, curd, oil and mix until smooth.
Mix sesame seeds with cooked quinoa with dry ingredients. Then add wet mixture and mix it well.
Put prepared batter into a greased pan. Tab the pan on a countertop to release any large air bubbles.
Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds, quinoa puffs over prepared cake batter and with help of spatula press gently.
Put the pan into the preheated wok and bake it for 1 hour 10 minutes.
When cake is done, allow to cool for 10 minutes. Remove cake from the pan and set them on a rack set over a tray or sheet pan.
Allow cake to cool completely before slicing.

Tips:

Baking time may vary.
If cake batter looks dry, add 2- 4 tbsp of water or milk.
If baking in Oven: Bake in the preheated oven at 180 deg Celsius or around 360 Fahrenheit for about 1 hour 30 minutes. The baking time may vary. So keep checking the cake after 40 to 45 minutes.

HOW TO BAKE THE CAKE IN KADAI (WOK)

In a heavy bottom, kadai add a cup of salt or sand. Place a steel stand in a wok. Cover and preheat the kadai on high heat for about 8 minutes. (Adding salt at the bottom ensures that the kadai doesn’t burn. Heavy bottom kadai acts as oven and ensures even cooking from all sides). I never used salt in my baking because I use a heavy bottom kadai (Prestige Brand) and I am baking for the past 2 years in the same kadai. It works perfectly fine. But, it depends on the brand, quality of the kadai.

After 8 minutes, lower the heat and put the baking tin in a kadai (wok). Cover a lid and bake bread for 60 minutes. After 60 minutes check the cake with a knife, if the mixture does not stick, it means the bread is done. If batter still sticks to the knife then again bread for another 10 minutes.

Lohri Special | Winter Energy Balls | Dry Fruits & Seeds Ladoo | No Sugar No Jaggery

Whether you call them healthy laddu, energy bites or protein bites these little balls are full of protein and a perfect treat to enjoy for your evening hunger pangs. This dry fruit, seeds, and nuts laddu are super versatile and you can add or substitute any ingredients available in your pantry. This is a no sugar or jaggery recipe. These dry fruit, seeds, and nuts ladoo are super healthy. They are so easy to make and are sweetened naturally with dates and raisins.

When you need toasted nuts for a recipe generally do – Skillet toasting. Skillet toasting is great for producing small batches of toasted nuts, but the results are uneven and you can burn them if you get distracted. But you can toast nuts and seeds – Microwave Method. It’s so easy and only takes a few minutes. Just spread nuts and seeds on a microwave-safe plate and in an even layer. The trick also works for coconut powder, sesame seeds, or other seeds of your choice. Then cooks the nuts on full power for three minutes. Every minute pauses the process to mix up the nuts so that they toast evenly.

Packed with nutrients, good fats, and fiber, these energy balls are made with dates, raisins, and various nuts. There is no exact recipe to make dry fruits laddu or these energy balls. The proportions of the nuts and dry fruits can vary according to your choice. Just make sure the dates and raisins are a little extra. Since the dates, raisins have cohesive and sticky properties that help in binding the laddu. There is no need to add any sugar to the recipe. The sweetness of the dates and raisins makes make the laddu sweet – a little extra sweet.

Use pitted dates. If the dates have seeds, then remove the seeds and chop them. These ladoos can also be gift wrapped and sent to your family or friends during any festival or Lohri.

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Ingredients:
Dry Fruits
Almond slices – 1/2 cup
Walnuts – 1/4 cup
Pistachios – 1/4 cup
Cashews – 1/4 cup
Seeds
Sesame seeds – 1/2 cup
Pumpkin seeds – 1/4 cup
Melon seeds – 1/4 cup
Flax Seeds – 1/8 cup

Dessicated coconut – 1/2 cup
Rava – 1/2 cup
Roasted peanuts – 1/2 cup (store bought)
Chopped Dates – 15
Raisins – 1/2 cup
Dried apricot – 1/2 cup
Fennel seeds – 1/8 cup
Homemade ghee – 1 tbsp
Himalayan pink salt – 1/4 tsp

Method :

Heat a pan and add dessicated coconut. Roast till crispy on low heat. Transfer them into separate bowl.
Add 1 tsp of ghee in a same pan and roast all dry fruits (mentioned above) on low heat.
Add 1 tsp of ghee in a same pan add flax seeds, pumpkin seeds and melon seeds. Roast them on low heat for 2-3 minutes. Keep it aside.
Then roast sesame seeds for 3-5 minutes so low heat and keep it separate from other roasted nuts and seeds.
Add chopped dates with raisins and cook for 3-4 minutes till they starts caramelised. Keep it aside.
Now roast fennel seeds for few seconds and mix with roasted sesame seeds.
At last roast rava till golden brown and mix with all roasted nuts and seeds. Now add dried apricot with little himalayan pink salt.
Then transfer all roasted dates, raisins, nuts, seeds with roasted rava (excluded roasted sesame seeds & fennel seeds ) into a food processor. Grind them into a coarse mixture.
Now mix roasted sesame seeds & fennel seeds into coarse mixture. Mix all ingredients well.
Grease your hands with little ghee. Make small/medium laddus.
Store them in an airtight container. Serve as needed.

Gajar Ka Halwa | Gajrela | Indian Carrot Pudding | Easy & Quick Method

Gajar ka Halwa also known as Gajrela is an Indian Carrot Pudding that’s prepared with ghee, carrots, milk, sugar, cardamom, and nuts. This is a Punjabi dessert that is widely popular in North India, especially during the winter months and Diwali season. This nutritious Gajrela can be enjoyed both or cold, I personally love my Gajrela hot (without nuts).

Just with a few ingredients you can make this perfect sweet dish – Gajar Ka Halwa. Traditionally, it is made with fresh red carrot, ghee, mava and lots of dry fruits. There are many different ways of preparing Gajar ka Halwa, some make it with evaporated milk while others use condensed milk. In this recipe, I used homemade khoya, made with milk powder and it’s taste delicious.

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Ingredients :
Grated Carrot – 2 cups
Ghee – 1/4 cup
Sugar – 1/2 cup
Khoya or mawa – 1/2 cup
Chopped Dry fruits – 1/2 cup (Almonds, Cashews, Raisins, Pistachios)
Green Cardamom powder – 1 tsp
A Pinch of Himalayan salt

Method :

Wash, peel carrot and make coarse by using food processor. It yields up to 2 cups of coarse carrots.
Heat ghee in a deep pan and add coarse carrots. Saute on medium heat for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, sugar with salt and cardamom powder. Simmer until it thickens. It takes about 10 minutes.
Now add khoya and mix well. Cook for 3-4 minutes on low heat.
Garnish with dry fruits and serve hot.

Christmas Beverage | Cinnamon Spiced Apple Tea

The Cinnamon Spiced Apple Tea recipe is rich in all the classic flavors. The sweet apples with the cinnamon and cloves spices give you precisely what Christmas eve should taste like in a cup. To make this Apple cinnamon tea, I haven’t used any tea leaves while making tea, to avoid caffeine and reap the maximum benefits. With only four ingredients and in just 10 minutes this tea is ready. This tea comes way better than store-bought.

Homemade Cinnamon Spiced Apple Tea is a refreshing, soothing, and relaxing drink. Make this delicious tea in 10 minutes. Tea is a staple around and has been enjoyed for over a millennium. It is a versatile drink and can be made in many flavors. Apple tea is one of the greatest drinks to have originated in Turkey. This recipe will help you make the best refreshing apple tea at home, nothing more than a pantry staple and of course fresh apples.

Like Indians, people of Turkey love drinking tea at all times of the day. However, unlike in India, where tea is often boiled, the Turks have an infusion way of making the tea and use one teapot on top of the other. It is a modern take on the old samovar. The lower kettle is used for boiling the water and the upper one is used for making concentrated tea. The water is not boiled for too long and once the tea leaves are put in it, the heat is reduced to a minimum for the tea to steep well. The tea concentration from the upper pot is diluted with water from the lower one till the desired strength is reached.

Turkish apple tea is made with dried apples following a similar steeping method. It is now also available as instant tea in that part of the world and other places where it is exported. But instead of using instant tea, you can make your apple tea, using your fresh seasonal apples, adding other ingredients to make it even more delicious and refreshing.

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Ingredients :

Finely chopped apple – 1 (with skin)

One small cinnamon stick

Cloves – 3

Water – 2 cups

Honey or jaggery powder for sweetness – 1 tbsp (optional)

Method :

Combine water, chopped apple, cinnamon stick and cloves in a medium saucepan. Bring mixture to a simmer; reduce heat, cover and simmer 10 minutes.
Turn off heat, sieve and stir in honey or jaggery or sweetener of choice to taste.
Serve in mugs with a few thinly sliced apples in each and a cinnamon stick to stir.

Christmas Baking | Custard Cranberry Jam Cake | Cake with Cranberry Jam | Wok Baking

This Custard Cranberry Jam Cake is festive and luscious. Perfectly spiced, moist, and with a hint of sweetness, this spiced cranberry jam cake will quickly be a party favorite. Even better, it’s super easy to transport so that you can steal the show with this cake. You won’t have any leftovers :)It is spiced, moist, and perfect with a cup of coffee or tea for breakfast or afternoon snack.

The Cranberry is the star of this cake. This cake is packed with whole grains, fresh cranberry flavor, and spiced with cinnamon powder. In this cake recipe, I used fresh homemade spiced cranberry jam. Also, this cake is made with whole wheat flour. It’s best to start substituting whole wheat flour for all-purpose flour slowly to get used to the taste and texture. Whole wheat flour is high in fiber and cakes made with whole wheat flour are more filling and healthy.

Cranberries are small berries, round or oval. The color varies from red to dark red. Cranberry flesh is white and tastes bittersweet. When it comes to the holiday season, cranberries are king. Serve these cranberry recipes like tender bread, easy pie recipes, and savory stuffings.

Custard powder is mainly used to make dessert recipes like fruit custard. The most common recipe is fruit custard which is made with milk to form a thick sauce to top with fruits. I also make custard rice kheer with custard powder and it tastes delicious. I usually use custard powder in my cake recipes to give a nice yellow color. Some cake recipes with custard powder – Malai custard cake, Pumpkin cake and I always use custard powder in my most favorite cake – Orange cake.

Custard powder not only adds a good aroma in baking it also makes them more delicious, and it gives beautiful golden yellow color after baking. This delicious cake has a perfect golden color with a perfect texture that melts into your mouth and it’s eggless, butterless too.

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Ingredients :

Flour – 1 & 1/2 cups ( All purpose flour or maida (1 cup ) & whole wheat flour(1/2)) + 1 tbsp

Greek yogurt – 1 cup

Dried red cranberries – 1 cup

Sugar – 3/4 cup

Fresh cranberry jam – 1/2 cup

Vanilla custard powder – 1/4 cup

Refined Oil – 1/4 cup

Baking powder – 1 tsp

Baking Soda – 1/2 tsp

A pinch of Himalayan pink salt

Method :

Dry mixture: Shift all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda. Mix salt and keep it aside.
Wet mixture: In a grinder add sugar, curd, oil and custard powder. Grind until smooth.
Mix dry mixture into wet mixture with grated carrot.
Put 3 big scoop prepared batter into a greased pan. Then add 3 tbsp of cranberry jam and using a fork, make swirling pattern through the batters to get the beautiful marble design. Repeat this process with remaining batter.
Tab the pan on a countertop to release any large air bubbles.
Sprinkles some dried red cranberry and press gently with spoon.
Put the pan into the preheated wok and bake it for 1 hour 15 minutes.
When cake is done, allow to cool for 10 minutes. Remove cake from the pan and set them on a rack set over a tray or sheet pan.
Allow cake to cool completely and then cut. Serve with tea.

HOW TO BAKE THE CAKE IN KADAI (WOK)

A thoughtful Christmas Gift | Cranberry Jam

This Christmas Jam is a delicious, sweet-tart blend of cranberries, oranges, lemon juice and seasonal spice that are sure to please your palate. Perfect for canning up and giving away as a thoughtful Christmas gift this season. I love the flavors associated with the Christmas season. From sweet, delicious homemade cake and chocolates to the sweet-tart flavor of cranberries and spices. There’s nothing quite like it.

This jam is super easy. This recipe for spiced Christmas jam is perfect jar of homemade goodness to make and take along with you this holiday season to pass along to not only your neighbors, but the favorite people in your life.

Cranberries are not only delicious, they are also very healthy and considered superfood. Cranberries are full of vitamin C, fiber, antioxidants, and vitamin K. Cranberries outrank almost every fruit and vegetable when it comes to antioxidants. So for breakfast, substitute store-bought strawberry jam for this vitamin packed cranberry jam.

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Ingredients:
Fresh cranberries – 250 gms ( 1 cup)
Sugar – 3/4 cup
Fresh orange juice – 1/2 cup
Juice of half lemon
Cinnamon powder – 1/2 tsp

Method:

Place all ingredients in a medium saucepan, mix, and bring to a simmer over medium heat for 8 minutes (covered).
After 8 minutes mash mixture with a potato masher.
Once jam starts to thickens switch off the flame. Allow jam to cool down completely.
Then store in sterilized glass jar. Enjoy jam with warm toast.

Tips :

Pour a few drops of prepared jam on a plate if it spreads then it’s not ready if it stays firm without moving then the jam is ready.
Allow to cool and store in sterilized glass jar.
Keep jam in the refrigerator after every use. Use a clean and dry spoon. It last long for 4 months.

Christmas Baking | Whole Wheat Plum Sugarless Cake | Super Healthy Christmas Treat | No Oven Baking

It’s that day of the year again when the evenings and nights will be filled with celebrations of Christmas. The real essence of Christmas cannot be fulfilled without a delicious loaf of plum cake. Plum Cake is a type of fruit cake that is prepared and served extensively during the Christmas season. Most plum cakes during Christmas also have wine or rum as one of their ingredients.

This cake is the perfect Christmas-baked goodie to give out as an edible gift to friends and family. Make this delicious sugar-free plum fruit cake and I am sure you will be making it again next year. This cake is loaded with candied dried fruits & nuts. The dried fruits & nuts are soaked in orange juice for 20 minutes. Orange juice will make this cake refreshing. This cake will make us slip into the festive spirit.

Baking with whole wheat flour – I have been baking for the last eleven years & still, it gives me joy and the opportunity to try out something new and fresh. Baking is about mixing the right ingredients in the right amount and baking at the right temperature for the correct duration. And with experience, you understand how certain ingredients mix well with others and you can be creative with your baking.

Baking mainly includes ingredients like maida, eggs, and sugar which can hamper your toned waistline. Here is a solution. You can substitute for maida, whole milk, margarine, butter, sugar, whole eggs. Maida or all-purpose flour can be replaced with whole wheat flour. Since whole wheat flour is light, adds more nutrition, not to mention nutty and tasty flavor, to baked goods and other flour-based recipes.

Jaggery instead of sugar – Every year with the advent of winter, we see jaggery taking over the market. And why not? Jaggery has this magical property to keep your body warm from within. We all know that “Gur” is a nutritious and healthy alternative to sugar. Gur or jaggery gives it a unique flavor and is known to be super-healthy for your body. By adding jaggery this dessert becomes more nutritious and healthier. This natural sweetener is known to provide relief from the pollution and the side effects of toxic air. It cleanses the system from within and with its anti-allergic properties, gur or jaggery can provide relief from all types of respiratory diseases.

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Ingredients :

Whole Wheat Flour – 1 & 1/2 cups + 1 tbsp

Soaked dried fruit – 1 cup

Chopped nuts – 1/2 cup ( Cashews, Walnuts, Almonds, Pistachios )

Room temperature milk – 1 cup

Grated jaggery – 3/4 cup

Refined Oil – 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp

Chopped cherries -1/3 cup

Baking powder – 1 tsp

Baking Soda – 1/2 tsp

Cinnamon powder – 1/2 tsp

Method :

In a bowl mix 1 tbsp of flour chopped nuts. Mix them well. Then in a same bowl add dry ingredients.
Dry Ingredients – In a bowl, sift flour, baking powder and baking soda. Now mix them with coated nuts (step 1).
Wet Ingredients – Mix grated jaggery, oil and milk in a grinder until smooth.
Now mix dry and wet ingredients with soaked dried fruits & chopped cherries. Cake batter is ready to bake.
Pour batter into the pan and tab the cake pan on a countertop to release any large air bubbles.
Sprinkle some soaked dried fruits, nuts and few chopped cherries over prepared cake batter and with help of spatula press gently.
Put the pan into the preheated wok and bake it for 1 hour 10 minutes.
When cake is done, allow to cool for 10 minutes. Remove cake from the pan and set them on a rack set over a tray or sheet pan.
Allow cake to cool completely before slicing.

Tips :

Always room temperature milk when cooking jaggery. This is a foolproof way to prevent curdling of milk. If the milk is hot the chances of milk curdling are higher.
If cake batter looks dry, add 2- 4 tbsp of milk.
Baking time may vary.
You can add spices like nutmeg powder and fennel seeds powder as well.
If baking in Oven: Bake in the preheated oven at 180 deg Celsius or around 360 Fahrenheit for about 1 hour 10 minutes. The baking time may vary. So keep checking the cake after 40 to 45 minutes.

Pressure Cooker Method:
Grease the baking tin with oil and dust it by sprinkling whole wheat flour over greased surface evenly. Pour the mixture into the greased baking tin.

Important Notes:

Use the baking tin of 6 inches in diameter, so that it can easily get into the pressure cooker.
Use a 5-liter pressure cooker. It should be big enough to hold the baking pan.
Baking Tin should be made of Aluminium.
If baking tin comes into direct contact with the base of the pressure cooker, it can burn ( overbake ) the cake. So use pressure cooker container which has big holes in it or any aluminum small stand.
No gasket and whistle are needed. Remove them before baking.
Don’t add water to the pressure cooker.
Avoid baking without spreading salt at the bottom. Salt absorbs some heat from the extreme hot base and prevents overheating. I never used salt in my baking because I use a heavy bottom aluminum cooker and I am baking for the past 10 years in the same cooker. It works perfectly fine. But, it depends on the brand, quality of the pressure cooker. I use prestige 5 liters heavy bottom pressure cooker for baking.

How to Bake In A Pressure Cooker?

Heat the pressure cooker on high heat for 8 minutes. Use sea salt or sand as a layer inside a cooker. Put a steel stand on a layer of salt or sand.
Now put the cake tin containing the cake batter ( Do not put water inside the pressure cooker).
Close the pressure cooker lid and do not put the whistle on the lid. Remove the gasket (rubber ring) from the lid.
Lower the flame after 8 minutes. Let it bake for 50 -60 minutes on low flame. After 60 minutes check cake with a knife, if the mixture does not stick, it means the cake is done.
If batter still sticks to knife then again bake for another 10 minutes. Do not open the lid immediately.
Eggless Pressure Cooker Cake is ready.

Tuesday Tip | Quick way soak dried fruits for Christmas Fruit Cake ?

Christmas is just few weeks away and are you planning to make some fruit cake for Christmas? Then first preparation work is soaking the different dry fruits required for making the fruit cake. Soaking fruits for Christmas Cake is the first step to make the traditional rich Christmas Fruitcake. It is so easy and adds an amazing flavor, richness, and moisture to the fruitcake.

The core ingredients of this Christmas fruit cake are different dried fruits with nuts & raisins. Flour & other ingredients are only used to bind these fruits together. Select the best quality available, with a mix of fruit of different colours, textures and tastes. The process may look laborious but worth to taste this moist spice infused soaked rich fruit and nut Christmas Cake. The first step to making this yummiest Cake among all is soaking the fruits. Traditionally dry fruits are soaked in Rum. I usually soak in fresh fruit juice. You can use Orange Juice or Blueberry Juice.

Combination of dry fruits for soaking is individuals choice. Some prefer soaking nuts with Dry fruits but I prefer to add before baking to have the crunchy feeling.

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Ingredients :
Fresh orange juice – 3/4 cup
Water – 1/4 cup
Juice of half lemon
Dark raisins – 1/8 cup
Chopped prunes – 1/8 cup (3)
Chopped dates – 1/8 cup (3)
Dried red cranberries – 1/8 cup
Chopped dried apricots – 1/8 cup (3)
Golden raisins – 1/8 cup
Chopped figs – 1/8 cup (3)
A pinch of Himalayan pink salt

Method :

In a saucepan, take orange juice, lemon juice and water with salt.
Add all chopped dried fruits mentioned above and mix.
Boil for 2 minutes on high heat and then switch off the heat.
Transfer them into a bowl.
Cover and let it sit for 20 minutes. Till the dry fruits absorb all the juices.
After 20 minutes they are ready to use for baking.

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HOW TO BAKE THE CAKE IN KADAI (WOK)

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HOW TO BAKE THE CAKE IN KADAI (WOK)

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