The Best Vanilla Cake

I do want to have "The Best" in my repertoire - the best chocolate cake, the best chocolate chip cookie, the best vanilla cake... you know, get the basics right with some foolproof recipes (and 2 kinds at that - With and without egg, because quite some of my immediate family do not eat egg). And with cakes, I am looking for cakes that use oil versus those that have butter. While there is no match for the flavor and texture butter brings in, it means that that you can't put it together just whenever you would like to what with the time required to soften it etc.

So coming to the cake, this is the best vanilla cake with eggs and with oil that I have baked/ had yet. I have been on the search for one for a while now. Among homemade cakes, I have a very special corner for Vanilla cakes a favor them even more than the chocolate ones. Some years back when Nestle was running small cafes in Delhi, there was a chocolate chip muffin they used to retail which I absolutely loved, so much so I even traced its origin to the Standard Coffee shop in Connaught Place. This cake, was very close to that, here it is.

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.
2. In a bowl, whisk together all purpose flour, corn flour, salt, baking powder till evenly mixed.
3. WIn another bowl, whisk the eggs for 15 seconds with an electric mixer. Add the sugar and whisk for 30 seconds more. Add the vanilla and oil, whisk a little more.
4. Add half the flour mix to the wet mix and blend it slowly, add half the buttermilk followed by rest of the flour and rest of the buttermilk. Scrape down the sides and blend it in.
5. Bake for 35 minutes, browning the crust a little.

Ingredients
1 cup All purpose flour (maida)
1/4 cup Cornflour
1/2 tsp Salt
2 tsp Baking powder
3/4 cup powdered Sugar
1/2 cup vegetable Oil
2 Eggs
1.5 tsp Vanilla extract
1/2 cup buttermilk (If you dont have this on hand - Just add 1 tsp vinegar to 1/2 cup milk and allow to stand it for 5 minutes. Shake and use it.)

Homemade Waffles

Spring cleaning has its benefit.. Well, cleaning anytime has its benefit, a big one being finding things you thought you had lost. I had been looking for my never used waffle plates that came along with my Grill till I found it in a chance (and long over due) cleaning of my bed stashed between the drawers underneath.

Searched for a waffle recipe and this one with the "Best" in it, it had me curious. Whipped them up the next morning and they turned out great. Did increase the sugar to get nice, fluffy waffles!

Served with whipped cream and a slather of Nutella, they were perfect!

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Whisk together the wet ingredients and add to the dry ones. Stir and mix until moistened. Let the mix stand for some time. Pour into the heated plate and till browned and done.

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cup All purpose Flour

4 tbsp Sugar

1 tbsp Baking powder

2 Eggs

1 3/4 cup Milk

1/2 cup Oil

1 tsp Vanilla Essence

Cinnamon Roll Cake

Husband's cousin's birthday last Saturday and he requested the Apple Pie.. Yes, a pie for his birthday. I had been eyeing a Chocolate fudge cake for the day but he requested something cinnamon-y. Pulled out this recipe which I had bookmarked long back. Turned out great, very flavorful.

It is actually a giant Cinnamon roll, with its texture, flavor and the glaze. Easy to make and just right for a cinnamon fix.

Preheat the oven at 180 degrees C. Whip the egg and mix everything except the butter. Stir in the butter slowly. Pour into a greased 8 or 9 inch round cake pan. For the topping, mix all the ingredients until well combined. Drop on the cake batter slowly and swirl it in with a knife. Bake at 180 degrees until the center when tested comes out baked, my oven took 35 minutes.

For the glaze, mix everything together and pour over the cake when it is still warm, you may want to wait for 10-15 minutes after the cake is out of the oven.

Ingredients

Cake:
1 1/2 cup flour
1/8 tsp.salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 cup milk
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup butter, melted

Topping:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp. flour
1/2 Tbsp. cinnamon

Glaze:
2 c. powdered sugar
5 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Lemon Cake with Lemon Glaze

Nothing spells summers like lemons (and of course mangoes!). I remember when my Mom would bottle sugar-lemon syrup and store it for quick shikanjis during summers. This has been on my "to-bake" list for a very long time. A simple easy recipe which promised a flavorful cake and did it live up! It had the tang and the crunch - from the glaze and had a very light texture. I made a small batch in a 6 inch bundt pan, cutting the original recipe into 1/3rd.

Pre-bake the oven to 180 degrees C and grease a 6 inch bundt pan. Beat the butter, sugar and salt till light and fluffy, do this well - I think it added a lot to the lightness of the cake. Add the egg and beat well. Add the baking powder. Add milk and flour, a small portion at a time and mix till you get a smooth mixture. Stir in the lemon extract. Pour the batter into the cake pan and bake for 40-45 minutes till a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. The baking time would have to increase as you bake a bigger batch.

Stir together the sugar and lemon juice for the glaze as the cake is baking. Remove the cake from the oven when done and let it cool for 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and have the right side up. Pierce the top with a fork and give the glaze a stir. Start brushing the glaze onto the still warm cake. Brush on more till all of it is used up.

Let the cake cool completely before slicing. The cake turned out lovely! I did up the quantity of the lemon extract. The only change I would make for the next time would be to use the lemon rind for a more natural flavor.

Ingredients:
Cake

1/3 cup unsalted butter

2/3 cups sugar

1/3 teaspoon salt

1 large egg

2/3 teaspoons baking powder

1 cup maida/ all purpose flour

1/3 cup milk

finely grated rind of 1 lemon OR 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

Glaze

1/6 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/4 cup sugar

Apple Pie

I am a chocolate person. That is how I divide desserts in my head - Chocolate & Fruit. I would most usually pick up the chocolate ones given a choice except for this one which is very special to me. I can't resist this apple-y cinnamon-y flavor, in fact I am finding a new love in all things cinnamon-y...

So, I thought high time I got to baking this. Almost all experiences of making one spoke about their intimidation by the crust - so here i sat intimidated by a thing i had not even started to start. Further, all recipes I read spoke about store bought pastry crusts which are not available here. Next up, search for making the crust from scratch and all of them required a food processor to make the dough - I don't own that either! Searching next for a handmade homemade crust got me to this which included a great tip for those attempting it by hand. I figured the food processor was necessary to not have the butter melt when handling it by hand. This lenghtened the process but in the end the crust shone no less than the filling.

For the apple stuffing I decided to go by this recipe which spoke about macerating the apples in sugar which causes the apples to release their juices. While most recipes took an easier route just adding the sugar and spices to apples and piling them in the crust, this one explained that doing so would leave a gap between the top crust and the apples when baked as they would tend to shrink. And I can vouch it worked, the filling had a delicious caramely taste with apples that were tender and juicy to taste.

I used Fuji apples, 4 of them for an 8" loose bottomed pie/ tart pan that was 1" high.

For the crust

Freeze the butter for at least 30 minutes.In a bowl whisk together the flour and salt.

Grate the butter into the flour and using a rubber spatula, form roll it into the flour so that it is evenly coated.

Sprinkle some water over it and continue to mix with a spatula/ fork till the dough starts to stick together adding water as required. Roll it into a disc on a clean surface, wrap in a plastic cling wrap and refrigerate for atleast an hour. Remove dough from refrigerator. If stiff and very cold, let stand until dough is cool but malleable. Roll one dough disk on a lightly floured surface into a 12-inch circle. Transfer the dough to a 9-inch pie pan and gently press dough into sides of pan leaving portion that overhangs lip of pie plate (this would be later used to seal the edges) in place. Refrigerate while preparing fruit. Prepare the top crust similarly and refrigerate when not in use.

For the filing

In a large bowl combine the sliced apples with the sugars, lemon juice, ground cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes or up to three hours. Next, drain the apples  for about 15-30 minutes or until you have about 1/4 cup of juice. Pour the juices in a heatproof big enough bowl and add the 2 tablespoons (28 grams) of unsalted butter. Place in the microwave and boil the liquid, on high, about 5 minutes or until the liquid has reduced to about 1/6 cup and is syrupy and lightly caramelized.

Putting it together

The crust was buttery and flaky, though I felt i could have rolled it thinner. The filling and the crust made for a great pie and one happy confident me.  

Remove the top pastry crust from the refrigerator and let it sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes so it has time to soften. Do not wait for it to get totallly soft but just so long as it takes to yield under your rolling pin. Transfer the drained apples slices to a large bowl and toss them with the corn flour. Pour the reduced syrup over the apples and toss to combine. Pour the apples into the chilled pie crust. Moisten the edges of the pie shell with a little water and then place the top crust over the apples. Tuck any excess pastry under the bottom crust and then crimp the edges using your fingers or a fork. Using a sharp knife, make a few 2-inch (5 cm) slits from the center of the pie out towards the edge of the pie to allow the steam to escape. Cover the pie with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to chill the pastry while you preheat the oven.

Preheat the oven to 220 degrees C. Cover the floor of the oven with an aluminium to catch any overflowing juices. Place the lower rack in the oven and the pie tin over it. Bake for 30 minutes. Place a foil ring over the edges and continue to bake at 160 degrees C for 20 more minutes till the crust is golden in color and the apples are tender (not mushy) when tested through the slits. Transfer the pie to the wire rack and let it cool till it reaches room temperature. I left it overnight in the face of consistent advice to not dig into fruit pies immediately.

Served it at room temperature with whipped cream!

Ingredients

Pie Crust

21/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter
6-8 tablespoons ice water, plus more if needed

Apple Filling:

4 apples (around 500 grams) peeled, cored, and sliced 1/4 inch thick

25 grams granulated white sugar

28 grams light brown sugar

1/2 tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoons unsalted butter

3/4 tablespoons corn flour

Rainbow "Gems" cookies

Little ones loves "Gems" - the bright, multi-colored sugar enrobed chocolate discs (what's there not to love!). Came across these cookies with M&Ms in them and decided to give them a desi shot with more readily available Cadbury's Gems.

I halved the recipe to begin with and increased the baking time to not have soft centres (Don't get me wrong - I love the soft, chewy types, in fact more than the crispy one). These cookies came out very well, rich, solid flavor and a nice texture and would definitely form a good base to any kind of additives - raisins, chocolate chips, dried fruits etc.

To start with, put your child to sleep or away from the kitchen else you wouldn't have any Gems left to make cookies with. Weigh and get your ingredients ready. Take your time to admire these bright happy faced Gems.

Now, go close the door of the room where your child is as the mixer may disturb her (remember, she is sleeping!). Pre-heat the oven at 160 degrees C. Whisk together the eggs, brown and white sugars with an electric mixer till light colored and creamy (picture on the left). Whisk together the flour and baking soda and keep aside. Gradually, add the flour mix and stir to form a dough. Fold in the Gems.

Plop tablespoonfuls on a greased baking sheet covered tray or use the method to shape the cookies mentioned here (stacking two ripped-apart halves of cookie dough balls one on top of the other).

Bake for 10-12 mins till the sides turn golden and the centres puffy. Let cool completely on the wire rack and Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 cups + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) of salted butter, melted and cooled
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup Gems (around 20 small - 23grams packets)

Chocolate Banana Cake

Came home one day, last week from work to a very generous slice of a decadent looking cake slice sitting on my table. On inquiring about its whereabouts, got to know it had been sent over by my neighbor who when saw her own daughter enjoying the cake so much, sent some for my baby girl and her Mommy. It was heavenly, one of the best chocolate cakes I have had... quite flavorful and moist without being overly rich or soggy - a fine line to tread that. I had to have the recipe. The next morning saw me at her doorstep.

I would call this the secretly healthy cake because the healthy stuff remains a secret behind all the good tasting stuff. I cheated a bit too on the recipe to up its health quotient a notch. I switched half the all-purpose flour for whole wheat flour. It did not alter the taste much but did make it a little more fudgier but the cake still retained its spring. It gets its moisture from the bananas, the milk and water, uses vegetable oil instead of butter so stays much longer.

Pre-heat the oven at 180 degrees C. In a big bowl, whisk together the flours, cocoa, sugar, baking powder, salt and sugar till well combined.

In a smaller bowl, whisk the egg. Add the mashed bananas (I gave them a whirl in the blender), milk, warm water and oil. Next, add the vanilla extract. Pour the wet mixture into the dry one and fold till well combined. Here is my little one lending Mommy a hand.

Pour it into a greased 8 inch round cake tin and bake for 40 mins till a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Let cool in the pan for 15 mins and then take it out. Enjoy!

Psst... By the next couple of days, the bananas work their magic and it appears the cake has rum added to it ;)

Ingredients (for an 8 inch round cake tin)

200 grams Sugar

65 grams All purpose flour

60 grams Whole wheat flour

40 grams Cocoa powder

1 tsp Baking powder

1/2 tsp Salt

1 Egg

2 mashed Bananas

120 ml warm Water

60 ml Milk

60 ml Vegetable Oil

1 tsp Vanilla Extract