High Tea

It's not worth writing down a recipe when all you've done is stuffed pastry sheets with cheese.

But yeah, we had "High Tea" yesterday - Cheese puffs, hummus sandwiches & masala chai.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

This is a Betty Crocker Recipe

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter or margarine
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
9 slices pineapple in juice (from 14-oz can), drained
9 cherries without stems, if desired
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup shortening
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
1 egg

Method:

1. Heat oven to 350°F. In 9-inch square pan, melt butter in oven. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over melted butter. Arrange pineapple slices over brown sugar. Place cherry in center of each pineapple slice.

2. In medium bowl, beat remaining ingredients with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly. Beat on high speed 3 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour batter over pineapple and cherries.

3. Bake 50 to 55 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Immediately place heatproof serving plate upside down over pan; turn plate and pan over. Leave pan over cake a few minutes so brown sugar mixture can drizzle over cake; remove pan. Serve warm. Store cake loosely covered.

Happy Birthday SK

Today is my darling SK's 30th birthday. I baked him a simple Devil's Chocolate Cake. While I would have much rather baked him something more flamboyant, I must confess that I'm no pastry chef. So a two tiered chocolate cake, straight out of a box, in a heart shaped mould it is. I did use some chocolate frosting and for a amateur like me, the outcome was pretty good.

Happy Birthday, my sweet boy.

Henri's Bakery

I am very proud of my latest food find - Henri's Bakery and Cafe on Roswell Road. It sits right beside the Trader Joes and every time I'm there, I notice it, but concern for my weight and wallet prevent me from stepping in. Two days ago, I walked in. It turned out to be just as expected, home to the most yummalicious looking confectioneries. They seemed to have every possible tartlet, crepe and pie on display. With a mouth that was really watering and a stomach that was blatantly growling I chose a Belgian Spice Cookie and a Chocolate Ruglah. I didn't know what either was and had to ask for a description. The cookie was like a biscotti and the Ruglah, I learnt is a Russian pastry. Both were great and I can't wait to go back, maybe in three months.

Alongside, is the delectable Chocolate Ruglah.

Cup Cakes

Chocolate cup cakes on a Sunday afternoon, reminiscent of the good old days back home. I made them from a box though, not from scratch .... almost as good as Mom's, ALMOST!

Banana Loaf

Here's a recipe I randomly found on the Internet for a simple Banana Loaf.

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
3 eggs
3 bananas
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla essence
Nuts (optional)

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a baking tray. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition, stir in the mashed bananas. Overipe bananas are just perfect. In another large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt. Blend the banana mixture into the flour mixture.

Bake in preheated oven for 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean.

You can also add in pecans or walnuts. It turned out pretty good, a little more butter would have made it perfectly moist. I wish it were good enough to kick away the Sunday evening blues!

Date & Carrot Cake

My mum loves to bake. Of all her varied confections, my favorite is her date and carrot cake. Among the many things that she gave me when I left home was the recipe for this cake. Over the last five years, her keenness to have me bake hasn’t dwindled and she continues to enthusiastically mail me recipes every now and then. I even have something about a banana loaf somewhere in my inbox. I know for a fact that she fervently hopes that at least one of her daughters develops an interest in baking. I being older, the onus is on me. I don’t know if I will ever be able to make the perfect date and carrot cake from scratch but I know that I’m sure as heck going to try………someday soon!


Date and Carrot Cake:
INGREDIENTS
2 cups maida
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon allspice
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla essence
1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
2 cups grated carrots
1 cup chopped dates


DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside. In a separate larger bowl, mix together the eggs, sugar and vanilla by hand. Stir in the oil; the mixture should resemble pudding. Gradually stir in the dry ingredients, and then fold in the carrots and dates. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and spread evenly.
Bake for 55 to 60 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a small knife inserted into the cake comes out clean.


Serve warm with alotta love!