Rich Fruit Cake/Plum Cake/Christmas Cake

I know its early but lets make a Christmas Cake today!!!!

Ingredients

All Purpose flour/Maida: 1 Cup + 3 Table Spoon
Soaked fruits & nuts: 1½  Cup (Refer Notes)
Sugar: 1 Cup + ½ Cup
Water: 1/4 Cup
Egg: 3
Butter: 3/4 Cup
Spice mix: 1 Clove+1 Cardamom + 1 Small Piece Cinnamon, Dry Ginger(Chukk) and Nutmeg + 1 Pinch  Shajeera (Sajeerakam)
Baking Powder: 1 Tea Spoon
Vanilla Essence: 1 Tea Spoon

Orange / Lime Peel : 1 Tea Spoon

Cooking Time: 55 minutes
Method

Preheat the oven at 170C
Prepare a 9 inch  cake tin by spreading a little butter all around the tin and then add little flour and spread it to all sides uniformly.  Knock off the excess flour
Grind together the spice mix adding little sugar and keep aside
To a pan add 1/2 cup of sugar and switch on the flame. Keep on medium flame and let the sugar caramelize.

Once done add 1/4 cup of water. Be very careful while doing this as the water might splash and burn your hands
You will notice the caramelized sugar will harden.

Keep it back on flame and let it boil until the hardened caramelized sugar dissolves completely.  Now you will get the caramel syrup

Let this cool well before adding to the cake batter
Combine 1 cup maida, baking powder and ground spice mix and keep aside

Drain off excess alcohol or orange juice from the soaked fruits and nuts

Add 3 table spoon of flour to the fruit mix and coat it well.

You can reserve 3 to 4 table spoon of the drained liquid to be used in the cake batter (Optional)
Beat butter and sugar until it becomes smooth
Add 1 egg at a time and beat until light and fluffy

Add vanilla essence, orange or lime peel and combine.
Fold in the flour mix in batches along with the caramel syrup and the reserved drained syrup (if using )and make the cake batter. Do not add too much of liquid as you need a thick cake batter.  

Fold in well without any lumps and make a smooth batter

Now add the fruit and nut mix and fold in well

Do not beat using a hand mixer at this stage.  Use a spoon or wooden spatula to fold in the batter

Pour the batter to a prepared cake tin and level it well using a spoon.

Sprinkle some soaked dry fruits and nuts on top (Optional) and bake at 170 C for 50 to 55 minutes

Start checking your cake at around 40 minutes

If you feel that the top of the cake is getting over browned, cover it loosely with aluminium foil and then bake the rest of the time

Insert a wooden skewer in the middle and check. If it comes out clean then the cake is ready
Take it out of the oven and let it cool for some time.

Once it cools a bit remove from cake tin and allow to cool well

You can serve the cake just plain or if you wish to can do some frosting or icing or dust it with some powdered sugar and serve

Note:
Baking time may vary depending on the oven, so adjust it accordingly
To know more about soaking dry fruits and nuts for cake Click here
You can increase or decrease the amount of soaked fruits and nuts as per your choice.

Soaking dry fruits and nuts for Christmas Cake

Getting ready to make a Rich fruit cake for Christmas...

Ingredients

Cashew nuts
Dried Apricots
Golden Raisins
Black Currants
Tutti fruity
Dates
Rum/Brandy: As Required to soak

Method

Chop all the dried fruits and nuts to bite size pieces
Combine everything well

Transfer it to a glass jar

Pour rum or brandy to the glass jar until the mixture is completely immersed in alcohol

Give a good stir and close the lid and keep in a cool dark place
Shake the jar once in a while and at any time you feel the mixture has become dry add some more rum/brandy.
Do this until you use the mixture to make cake.

Note:

I did not mention the quantity of nuts and dry fruits, but i soaked approx 2 cups everything combined
You can use any nuts like almonds, pistachios and any dry fruits or candied orange peel or ginger peel.
If you need an alcohol free version soak the fruits and nuts in orange juice before 1 day of baking

Dry Fruits & Nuts Soaked in Orange Juice(Alcohol Free Version)

This fruit mixture soaked in alcohol can be stored up to one year, but if the weather is hot and humid keep it in refrigerator
The glass jar you use should be clean and dry and have a tight fitting lid.

After 2 months of soaking in rum

Strained and ready to be added to cake batter

Toor Dal Soup

Hot Hot Healthy Soup for all of you!!!

Ingredients

Toor Dal: 1/2 Cup
Onion: 1 Small
Tomato: 1 medium size
Garlic: 5 Cloves
Lime Juice: 1 Table Spoon
Red Chilly Powder: 1/2 Tea Spoon
Dry Basil Leaves: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Dry Parsley: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Water: 4 Cups
Salt
Pepper

Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Method

To a cooker add washed toor dal, chopped onion, tomato, garlic, red chilly powder and 2 cups of water

Cook this well

Let the steam go completely then open the cooker and let the mixture cool.
Once cooled put the whole mixture to a mixer and grind it until smooth
Pour the mixture back to the cooker along with 2 more cups of water and let it boil
Once boiled add lime juice, required salt, basil leaves and parsley
Reduce the flame and let it simmer for 4 to 5 minutes
Serve hot adding required pepper powder.

Note:
Adjust water as per the thickness required
Increase the amount of lime juice if  required. 

Mixed Laddu

Gram Flour, Oats, Semolina, Desiccated coconut all combined to make Mixed Laddu!!!

 Ingredients

Gram Flour/Basen/Kadala Podi: 1 Cup

Powdered Oats: 1 Cup

Semolina/ Rava(Thin): 1/2 Cup

Desiccated Coconut: 1 Cup

Powdered Sugar: 2 Cup

Ghee: 1 Cup

Cardamom Powder: 1 Tea Spoon

Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Method

Dry roast gram flour, powdered oats and semolina separately for 8 to 10 minutes stirring continuously

Combine all the three and add melted ghee to it and roast it for another 5 minutes

Now add powdered sugar, desiccated coconut and cardamom powder and mix well

Switch off the flame and let the mixture cool for some time

Grease your hands with ghee and take small portions out of the mixture and roll it to small balls

Note:

This laddu is not too sweet.  so adjust the amount of sugar accordingly

Left over recipe - Vada

Yesterdays Idli today`s  Vada!!!

Ingredients

Idli: 5
Semolina/Rava: 4 - 5 Table Spoon
Green Chilly: 2
Pepper Corns: 1/2 Tea Spoon
Oil: For Deep frying
Curry Leaves: Few
Coriander Leaves: Few
Salt
Water

Cooking Time: 10 minutes
Method

Mash the idli and to it add semolina, finely chopped green chilly, curry leaves, coriander leaves and pepper corns

Sprinkle water as necessary and combine well to make a smooth dough
Check for salt, if required add salt and combine well
Preheat the oil well
Shape the vada and deep fry in oil until it changes to light brown in color

Serve hot with chutney or sambhar

Note:

You need to eat the vada when it is hot, because once it cools the crispness will be lost
You can make dahi vada or sambhar vada using this vada

Chicken Pops

Lets make an easy starter!!!

 Ingredients

Boneless chicken: 250 gms
Garlic Powder: 1/2 Tea Spoon
Pepper Powder: 1/2 Tea Spoon
Onion Powder: 1/2 Tea Spoon
Paprika: 1/2 Tea Spoon
Oregano & Thyme: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Corn flour: 2 Table Spoon
Bread Crumbs: 1 Cup
Egg: 1
Oil: For deep frying

Preparation Time: 15 Minutes
Cooking Time: 15 Minutes
Method

Clean and wash the chicken well and chop it to bite size pieces

To a bowl add garlic powder, pepper powder, onion powder, paprika, oregano, thyme and corn flour

Combine the spices well

To this add chicken and required salt

Rub the spice mix well on to the chicken

Now add half of the bread crumbs and toss the marinated chicken pieces in it

Keep it aside for 10 minutes
Whisk the egg and add it to the chicken and mix well

Now add the rest of the bread crumbs and give a good coating to the chicken pieces

Heat oil in a deep frying pan.  Let the oil heat well and then reduce the flame to medium and deep fry the chicken pieces until light brown in color
Serve hot with tomato sauce, garlic sauce or mayonnaise

Instant Jilebi

Wishing you all a very very Happy Diwali!!!
What else to make for Diwali......

Ingredients

All Purpose flour/Maida: 1/2 Cup
Corn flour: 1 Tea Spoon
Vinegar: 1/4 Tea Spoon
Yogurt: 1 Tea Spoon
Eno Fruit Salt: 1/2 Tea Spoon
Sugar: 3/4 Cup
Water: 1/3 Cup
Salt: A Small Pinch
Lime Juice: 1/2 Table Spoon
Permitted Food Color: 1 Pinch
Oil / Ghee: For Deep Frying

Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Method

Combine together maida, corn flour, salt and  yogurt
To this add vinegar, food color and little water and make a batter. The batter should have a  flowing consistency but it should be thick as well.

Add sugar and water to a pan and let it boil.  Once it boils add lime juice.  Remove any dirt that floats on the sugar syrup and let it boil until it reaches one thread consistency
To know more about one thread consistency refer notes.

To the jilebi batter add fruit salt and mix well

Pour this batter to a squeeze bottle or piping bag
Pour oil/ghee to a pan and heat it well, Once the oil is heated well reduce the flame to medium
Now make jilebi by piping the batter to the oil in round spiral shape

Fry it for a minute or two on each side until it becomes crisp and then drain off the excess oil and put it to the sugar syrup.
Keep it in the sugar syrup for a minute and then take it out of the syrup
Enjoy your home made jilebi...

Note:
The oil should be hot, but it should never fume.
The batter consistency is important.
Recipe courtesy You Tube.
How to check one thread consistency of sugar syrup
When the sugar syrup is boiling dip a wooden spatula in the syrup and then remove it
Wait for a few seconds and then touch the sugar syrup on the spatula with your forefinger and then slowly touch the forefinger with your thumb and then pull apart gently
If you see a single thread is formed without breaking then the sugar syrup has achieved the correct texture