Honey's Engagement cake (Orange cake)

                                                               The making of
                                                       Honey's Engagement Cake
                                                 ( Orange Cake; the Sicilian way)

It is a very refreshing cake, with all the flavor and freshness of Oranges. I'd made this cake for my nephew Honey's Engagement party. I'd added some raisins and candied peel too but I've made it without these ingredients also and it is superb every time! Here is how I made it for the engagement party --


Ingredients:- 
(A) Cake:    1.  Flour- 500 gm.;    2.  Butter- A)-salted-300gm, B)-unsalted-200gm;    3.  Castor sugar-500gm;    4.  Eggs- 8, medium;    5.  Buttermilk or curds- 100gm;    6.  Baking powder- 5 tsp. (level);    
7.  Finely grated orange rind-3 1/2 tsp.( I'm fond of orange flavor so I used 4tsp.);    8.  Freshly squeezed orange juice- 140 ml.    9.  Orange peel, candied- 50gm.(chopped);    10.  Golden raisins, big, chopped in half- 100gm. 
(B) Icing:    1.  White butter, unsalted- 250gm.(preferably fresh and home-made);    2.  Icing sugar- 375gm.;    3.  Almond essence- 1/2 tsp.;     
 4.  Orange essence- 11/2 tsp.;    5.  Fresh orange juice- 2-3 Tbsp.(may be required if the icing seems too stiff).

(C) Decoration: Some fondant roses and leaves that can be prepared a few days in advance 
and, some white butter-icing, as is used for icing the cake.














Method:- 
(A) CAKE:-  1. Set oven temp. at 165 c and, prepare a 10 inch tube pan and a 7 inch pan by greasing and double lining.
2. Sieve flour and baking powder together 3-4 times to mix nicely and, keep aside. Mix orange juice and curds and keep aside till required.
3. Cream butter (at room temp.) and sugar  till light and fluffy, for about 6-8 min. Add eggs, one at a time and beat for at least 1 min. after adding each egg. If the mixture starts curdling, add 1T of flour along with each egg to counter this effect.








4. Once all the eggs have been mixed nicely, add grated orange rind and then sprinkle flour and mix gently, alternating with juice-curds mixture, in 4 installments,
ending with flour. Lastly, fold-in the raisins and peel. 
5. Pour in the prepared pans ( filling them slightly over half) and bake in the pre-heated oven, on the middle shelf, till done. The bigger cake will take will take more than 1 hr. but the smaller one should be done in about 45-50 minutes. But it is always best to check by inserting a clean and dry skewer in the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean, it is done but if there is wet batter sticking to it, leave it in the oven only and keep checking aftr every 10 min.

6. Once the cakes are baked, leave them in the pans only, to cool.  
        












(B) Icing:- 1.While the cakes are cooling, prepare butter icing. Beat together fresh white butter and icing sugar till they are pale and smooth. Add almond and orange essence and mix nicely. 
2. Once the cakes are cool, take them out of their pans and remove butter paper and start the process of icing. First of all prepare the cakes for icing by leveling their surfaces with the help of a large bread knife.
3. After leveling, invert the cakes as the undersides are smoother and give a better finish to the icing. Invert the bigger cake on the serving platter itself but the smaller one on another flat plate as they have to be crumb-coated and iced separately and then put together.
4. For crumb-coating, apply a thin layer of the prepared butter-icing all over the cake with the help of a long-bladed broad knife or spatula, starting with sides and doing the top last of all. If any crumbs stick to the knife, wipe it with a paper towel; don't scrape it on the side of the icing bowl as the crumbs may get mixed in your icing and spoil the finish later.
5. After applying the crumb-coat, cover and refrigerate the cakes for 1-2 hrs. This is done to seal the crumbs so that you get a smooth icing later.
6. After 1-2 hrs. take out the cakes from the fridge and apply butter icing, at room temp. You can use cream icing also. I used butter icing because the cake had to be transported from Jhansi to Lucknow, a more than 7hrs. journey by road and, the weather was not very cold so I needed an icing that would not spoil.
   Start applying the icing with a big spatula or knife. Apply on the sides first and then on the top. Scrape the knife lightly all-over, on the sides as well on the top, to smoothen. 

7. To do the final smoothing of icing dipa steel knife in warm water, wipe it and then run it all over the cake. When all the icing has been applied, put the cakes back in the fridge, covered, for another half hour to let the icing 'set'.














Decoration:-    Put the smaller cake on top of the bigger one. Smoothen the icing around its bottom edge if required and then,use the same butter icing and an icing gun to decorate as per your choice. After that arrange the flowers and leaves and the cake is ready! 

     I'd had to take the cake to Lucknow by road so, I packed the iced cakes in boxes and carried the butter icing, icing gun, flowers and leaves etc. along and did the re-touching to icing and decorated the cake after reaching Lko. in the evening.
    I'd made the flowers a few days in advance; baked the cake on 24 Nov. evening; crumb-coated and iced it on 25 Nov. as we had to start on the morning of 26th. The Engagement was on 26th evening.
    The cake was an instant success and, after I'd spent so much time making roses in white and different shades of pink, it was difficult to see it being demolished within 5 minutes! But the compliments I received were enough to make me forget all that!

   














If you are not extremely short of time, try making it to celebrate some occasion and see the joy on the faces of eaters! 




                                                                            


                                                                           Enjoy!
  

A delicious Pineapple Chiffon cake.

                                                         Pineapple Chiffon Cake

This is the cake I made for my husband's Birthday last month. It is a simple pineapple-chiffon cake, layered with chocolate ganache, covered with mascarpone + whipped cream icing and decorated with home-made

fondant roses and butter cream icing.

I knew this cake could not fail and, everybody who tasted it confirmed it! It did pose difficulties as, first of all the oven was not behaving! Not that there was anything wrong with it but, it's just that I've purchased a new OTG and haven't got the hang of it yet. This cake is  best baked in a round oven. But still, ultimately it was done!(though not to my satisfaction). The second problem came when I chose a combination of mascarpone and cream for icing instead of only cream. I am very fond of mascarpone and in my eagerness I mixed 2/3 parts mascarpone and 1/3 parts cream to do the icing, which proved to be a mistake!

Mascarpone becomes thick on beating but it never stiffens! The result was that the icing tended to slide down again and again and I had to keep returning it to the fridge. I should not have used more than 1/3 parts mascarpone. The ultimate result was a very uneven icing and I had to do a lot of hodge-podge decoration to cover it up! But it tasted 'Great'! So, 'all is well that ends well!'. So, here is how to go about it-

Ingredients:- 

(1)- For the cake-

    1.  Flour, sifted- 260 gm.;    2.  Sugar, ground- 280 gm.;    3. Baking powder- 3 tsp.level;    

 4.  Salt- 1tsp.;    5. Veg. Oil- 100ml.;    6. Egg yolks- of 6 eggs;    7. Egg whites-of 7 eggs;    8. Pineapple juice-150ml.(tinned juice can be used);    9. Cream of tartar- 1/3 tsp.;    10. Pineapple essence- 1 tsp.

(2)- For icing-

1. Mascarpone cheese-150 gm.;     2. Whipping cream- 300 gms.;    3. Icing sugar- 100 gm.;    4. Vanilla essence- 1 tsp.

(3)- For layering- Chocolate Ganache is to be made with the following- 

1.  50 gms. dark, semi-sweet chocolate, chopped;    2. Heavy cream-100 gms.;    3. Sugar-2 heaped tbsp.;    

4. Vanilla essence-1/3 tsp.

(4)- For decorating-  Butter-icing is to be made for it as-

1. Butter-icing-  made by beating together 150gm. unsalted butter, 100 gm icing sugar and 1 tsp. vanilla essence.

2. A few mauve and yellow fondant roses and some leaves. In India these things are not available in the market so, they have to be made at home.

Method:-

(1)- For the cake- 

1.  First of all sprinkle baking powder over flour and sieve 3-4 times so that the two are nicely mixed. Now sprinkle salt over it and mix nicely with fingertips.Keep aside.

2.  Take egg-yellows in a clean bowl, beat lightly , add 2/3 sugar and beat till thick and light in color. Add oil, beat some more and add pineapple juice along with essence.

3. Turn the oven 'on' at this stage. This cake should be baked in a slower oven. The recommended temp. is 160 C but I prefer baking it at 140 to 150 C. 

4.  Take a clean and dry mixer bowl, put egg-whites in it, sprinkle cream of tartar over it and beat for half a minute on medium and then on high till whites become quite fluffy. Start adding sugar, a little at a time, beating continuously till egg-whites are quite stiff and sugar has dissolved.

5.  Sprinkle the flour over egg-yellow mixture and mix with a spatula to combine nicely so that you get a smooth batter. Now add 1/4 of the egg-whites into this batter and mix gently to make the whole batter light.

6.  Tip this whole, lightened batter on top of the remaining 3/4 egg-whites and mix very gently by cut-and-fold method, taking care not to deflate the egg-whites and yet mixing evenly. Scrape the bottom of the bowl also otherwise, some batter  may be left sticking to the bottom as it sinks down, being heavy.

7.  Take one 9 inch round baking pan and one 6 inch, round pan, nicely cleaned and dried ( not greased or lined) and, fill them approximately half with the batter, not more as it needs a lot of space to expand.

8.  Bake one cake first, at 140 C. It may take anywhere between 60 to 90 minutes. It is done when a clean skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Take it out of the oven and immediately hang it upside-down on a wire rack to cool completely otherwise it sags in the middle. In the same manner bake and cool the second cake also.I'd made 2 small cup-cakes also which were not used in this cake.

9.  Cooling the cake completely will take more than 2 hrs., after which time, with the help of a sharp knife, loosen the edges from the pan and , with the help of a blunt table knife or a spoon handle, try lifting it's edges from the pan- bottom slightly and gently. Once you've loosened the cakes from the pan, let them remain in the pan and put in the fridge, covered with foil, till they are needed for icing. 

(2)- Preparing the ganache for layering-   

1.  Take chopped chocolate pieces in a heat-proof bowl. Bring cream to a boil in a sauce pan and as soon as it reaches the boiling point, pour it over the chocolate pieces, cover with a lid and leave it for 2-3 minutes. The cream would've softened the chocolate in this time so stir to make a smooth paste of chocolate and cream. Mix-in sugar and vanilla also. Let cool a bit.

2.  Take the cakes out of the fridge and slice both the cakes into two layers. The chocolate ganache would've cooled to only slightly warm by this time. Spread it on lower slices of each cake (do not let it drizzle down over the sides).Let the Ganache cool down completely before covering with the second layer of each cake. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate again till you prepare the icing.

(3)- The Icing-

1.  Beat mascarpone with 2tbsp. sugar in the mixer bowl, till it thickens (it will not become stiff like icing cream).

2.  In another bowl, beat the cream with remaining sugar and vanilla and, beat till it thickens and starts stiffening slightly. Stop immediately for if you over-beat, it may turn into butter. 

3.  Now mix cream and mascarpone, with gentle strokes. Your icing is ready. Take-out the cakes from the fridge and spread a thin layer of icing all around it and refrigerate, covered, for at least one hour. This step arrests the loose crumbs which, otherwise, may spoil your icing. Take out the cakes once again, place the larger one on your serving platter and cover with icing on all the sides, with a broad knife and place the smaller one on top of it. Ice the smaller cake also.   Here I must mention that the consistency of your icing should be correct. I added more mascarpone and less cream so my icing kept sliding down as you can see in this picture. Don't repeat my mistake and your icing will stay on the cake.

To smoothen the sides and top you will have to wipe the knife again and again and, dip it in water.

If you are still not satisfied with the smoothness, put the cake in the fridge for 15 minutes or so, to harden the icing a little and then try smoothing by dipping your knife in warm to scalding water (not boiling). 

4.  Once the icing is to your liking on both the cakes, put them in the fridge again till you prepare butter icing for decoration.

(4)- Decorating-  

1.  First make butter icing by beating 150gm. unsalted butter, which should be beatable and not melting, with 100gm. icing sugar (you can add more if you like it sweeter) and vanilla essence. When you get a smooth and 

light butter icing, stop beating it.

2.  Now take-out the cakes and gently put the smaller cake on the bigger cake, fill you icing gun, put a nozzle of your choice and make shells or rosettes or whatever you prefer, on the margins and all over the cake making a design of your choice.

3.  Arrange the fondant roses in a pattern of your choice and lo! your cake is ready to eat!

It is a very light, moist and tasty cake! You may go wrong in icing and decorating but this cake still never, ever goes wrong!

Enjoy!

        

Very Easy 'Vegetable Pulao' ( vegetable-rice)

                                                  Vegetable Pulao: the easy way. 

This is one method by which children can be made o eat vegetables with ease! It is also a very good dish to try for beginners as, there is almost nil chance of it coming out bad. It is very tasty in spite of being so easy. Try and see for yourself!

Ingredients:-

1.  Long grained rice- 120gm.( approx 1 1/4 cup);    2.  fresh shelled peas- 80gm.;    3.  Cauliflower- about 120gm;     4.  Potatoes - 2,medium (200-250gm.);     5.  Onions- 3 medium;    6.  Tomatoes-  3 medium (about 150gm.);    7.  Ginger- about 1-inch piece;    8.  Fresh coriander(hara dhania)- a small bunch;    9.Green chillies-3-4 or more if you like it spicy;     

10.  Cumin seeds (jeera)- 1 tsp.;    11.  Desi ghee or veg. oil- about 70 ml +2 Tbsp.;   12.  Salt- as per your taste. 

Method:-  

1.  Wash and cut cauliflower into small florets; peel wash and chop potatoes into small pieces; skin and slice onions lengthwise; wash and chop green chillies and fresh coriander; peel, wash and grate ginger; wash and chop tomatoes into small pieces.

2.  This pulao is prepared by cooking the vegetables and rice separately so first of all you have to make the 'sabzi'. Heet ghee or oil in a kadhai or big fry-pan, add cumin seeds and when they turn slightly brown, add sliced onions. Stir-fry till onions become pink and add grated ginger and chopped chillies. Keep stir-frying till onions are pinkish-brown and then add peas, fry a bit more and add cauliflower and potatoes. Mix-in salt also. Lower the heat, cover with a lid and let cook, turning from time to time with a spatula, till vegetables, specially potatoes are almost cooked. At this stage, add chopped tomatoes and coriander reserving some coriander for final garnish. Cover and let cook for some more time, turning every few minutes. Once the vegetable is nicely cooked, check for seasoning, i.e., salt and chili.  

3. While the vegetable is cooking, wash rice 3-4 times and boil in plenty of water. When cooked, strain  and keep the rice aside, without lid, to cool slightly.

4.  Once the vegetble has been cooked and rice are also ready, add about 2 tablespoons of oil/ghee to the vegetable, about 1/2 tsp. of salt and 1/4 tsp. of chili powder, mix and then add cooked rice. Toss rice and vegetable with light hands, to mix thoroughly without breaking the rice-grains. Check for seasoning again and if you have to add anything, sprinkle it over the pulao and toss lightly with a wide spatula.     

5.  Your pulao is ready to eat! It tastes divine with 'mithi sonth' i.e.'Imli ki chatni' ( sweet and sour tamarind sauce), tomato ketchup or 'Raita'.

Note:- Any other winter vegetables like carrots and french beans can also be added to this pulao, by reducing the quantity of other vegetables slightly. You must remember though that, the quantity of carrots and beans should be lesser than that of peas, cauliflower and potatoes as in smaller quantity they add to the taste by creating variety but, in larger quantity they become too overpowering, thus spoiling the taste.

                                                                            Enjoy!

Sweet-corn soup, with fresh corn.

                                                  Sweet-corn soup made with fresh corn

This is a delicacy of this season that justifies the word 'delicacy' by it's delicate taste and the subtle aroma of fresh corn. It is one of the 'simplest', 'healthiest' and, of course, 'tastiest' soups.
Very very satisfying, to make as well as to eat1


Ingredients:- 
1.  Fresh corn on the cob (Bhutte)- 3 medium sized,giving you 300-350gm. kernels (daane);    2.  milk-  1 cup;    3.  Sugar-  3 tsp., slightly heaped;    4.  Cornflour- 2 heaped tsp.    5.  salt and water- as needed.
Accompaniment-  Chilli vinegar ( soak 2 chopped green chillies in 50 ml vinegar, to which a little salt and water have been added).


Method:- 
1.  Remove the kernels from the cobs with a sharp knife. Discard any pieces of cob or husk if they are mixed in kernels. Pressure-cook the kernels for half an hour, with approx. 800ml. water, reducing the heat to low after the first whistle. Let cool-down from hot to warm (do not throw the water).
2.  Take-out and reserve about 1/4 of the kernels and liquidize the rest, with some of the water in which it was cooked, in the blender, till you get a smooth (but not very thick) paste.
3.  Put the fresh-corn paste in a sauce pan/ cooking vessel, add the remaining water back into it and put it on the stove.

4.  Add reserved kernels and sufficient water to make about 5 bowls ( 1 bowl is approx. 250ml. soup) and add sugar and salt. The taste of both sugar and salt should be moderate. Bring it to the boil. 
  

      








5. Mix cornflour with a little water to make a thin paste and, reduce the heat to medium and add it to the soup, stirring constantly. Cook till the soup thickens. Now add the milk, increase the flame to high again and bring to the boil again. If you want a thicker soup, you can add some more cornflour mixed in water and, if you want to make it thinner, add some water.
Sugar and salt should also be tasted at this stage.
6.  Your soup is now ready! Pour into bowls and inhale the aroma first! I like eating it as it is i.e., without any accompaniments but, most people add chili-vinegar and, some like to add chili-sauce and soy-sauce also though they are recommended with plain corn soup and vegetable corn soup; not with sweet-corn soup.  
7.  The quantity given here is sufficient to make 6 bowls of soup but, 10-12 bowls can also be made with it just by adding more water, salt, sugar and a little cornflour. Try not to increase the quantity beyond 12 bowls as then the taste and aroma of sweet-corn will be highly compromised!

                                   


                                                                          Enjoy!

Simple and easy 'Matar Pulao'.

                                                               'Matar Pulao' (peas-rice) 
                            This recipe is very easy and simple, without any elaborate preparations. 

This is a favorite dish of children as well as adults and we keep waiting for fresh peas to appear in the market, to make it! This is a complete meal in itself and is so easy that anybody can make it!

It can be eaten with curds; 'raita', 'chatni' or, just on their own. Children love it with tomato ketchup also!

Ingredints:- The quantity given here should be sufficient for two people.

1.  Long-grained rice- 120 gm.( approx. 1 1/4 cup);    2.  fresh shelled peas- 120- 130 gm.( 1 1/4 cup);

3.  Onions- 2-3 medium, sliced lengthwise;      4.  'Adrak' (fresh ginger)- 1 inch piece, grated; 5.  Green chillies- 2 medium sized, chopped;    6.  'Hara dhania' (fresh coriander)- a small bunch, chopped;    7.  Water- 550 ml.; 

  

8.  'Jeera' ( cumin seeds)- 1 tsp., heaped;    9.  'Desi ghee' (clarified butter)- 45 gm.(veg. oil can also be     

used);    10.  Salt- according to taste.

Note- A basic rule to be followed while making any pulao is that the quantity of water should be double the quantity of rice, by volume.

Method:-  1. First of all heat 'desi ghee' in the pressure cooker and add 'jeera' when it becomes hot. As soon as 'jeera' starts browning a little, add onions that have been sliced lengthwise. Fry the onion for some time, till it becomes pink, and then add grated ginger and green chillies and keep stir-frying.

2. When onions turn slightly brown, add shelled and washed peas, turn the flame to medium and stir-fry for about 1 minute.

3. Wash rice thoroughly 2-3 times (there is no need to soak rice), drain all the water and add to the peas in the cooker. Stir-fry for half a minute more turning gently so as not to break the rice grains.

4.  Now turn the flame high and add water and salt. Stir with a ladle and taste a drop to check for seasoning. You can add more salt at this stage and, some red chilli powder also if you feel that the water is not spicy enough. 

5.  Close the lid, wait for steam to appear and then put the weight. When the first whistle comes, reduce the flame to medium and check the time. When you feel that the steam is again starting to develop in the cooker, reduce the flame further to 'low' and wait. The total time taken to cook the pulao, from the first whistle, should be 5 minutes. About 50 to 60 seconds before the end of 5 minutes, increase the flame to 'medium' again and then, as soon as the 5 minutes are over, put the flame'off ' and let the cooker sit like that only, for 15 to 20 minutes to let the pressure come down on it's own. 

6.  When you open the lid, your pulao will be ready to eat and still steaming hot!  

Enjoy!

  

Cape Brandy Pudding/ Tipsy Tart

Cape Brandy Pudding or, Tipsy Tart

  Here is a Delicious South African delicacy which is not a tart at all, and neither is it a pudding!
  You can eat it as a dessert while still warm or, as a tea-time snack and I guarantee that you won't   
be  able to stop at one piece! It has such a unique and flavorful taste that it gives the impression of
 a very complicated procedure of making but actually it is very simple! With a few added ingredients, it can serve as a delicious Christmas cake also.


Ingredients:-


For the cake: -  
1.  Dates-250gm., stoned and chopped;    2.  Boiling water-250 ml.;    3.  bicarbonate of soda- 1tsp.;    
4.  Butter-120gm.;    5.  Sugar- 180gm.(preferably powdered as it is easier to work with);    6.  Eggs-2;
7.  Flour- 240gm.;    8.  Baking pdr.- 1 tsp.;    9.  Salt-approx. 1/3 tsp.;    10.  Walnuts or pecan nuts-100gm.

For the Brandy sauce :-
1.  Sugar- 200gm.;    2.  Water- 200ml.;    3.  Butter-30gm.;    4.  Vanilla essence- 1tsp.;    5.  Cinnamon 
powder- 1/2 tsp.;    6.  Salt- a pinch;    7.  Brandy- 100 ml.                                               

Method:-
1.First of all, grease and dust a large ( 10 1/2- 11inch) round cake dish. I baked it in a loaf tin but it is not actually recommended as this cake should not be very high.
2. Now take half the chopped dates in a bowl and pour boiling water over them, add baking soda, mix and keep aside. If your dates are not soft, take all of them. After a few minutes this bowl can be kept in a water bath to hasten cooling. At this stage you should also turn the oven 'on', setting the temp. at 180C.

3. Sieve together flour and baking powder 3-4 times then, sprinkle salt over it and mix with fingers.
4. Beat butter (room temp.) and sugar in the mixer bowl, first at medium for about a minute and then on high speed till the mixture turns fluffy and creamy. Now add eggs, one at a time, beating for about a minute after
each addition.When eggs have been mixed nicely, you can stop the mixer.
5. Add chopped walnuts and half the dates ( if you haven't soaked all of them)and mix. Sprinkle flour over it 
and fold-in with a big spatula to mix nicely. Lastly add the cooled,soaked dates mixture and mix gently but thoroughly.

                                 










6. Pour this mixture in the prepared pan and put in the pre-heated oven. It should be ready in 40 -50 minutes.
Check after 40 minutes. If it feels firm to the touch and the skewer comes out without any wet batter attached to it, it is done otherwise bake it for another 10 minutes and check again. Take out when it is done.
7. While the cake is baking, make the soaking syrup. Take sugar and water in a pan and cook till sugar dissolves. Now add butter also and keep cooking for a few minutes so that the quantity of water reduces a little but it should not be syrupy thick. Remove from fire and stir in vanilla, salt and brandy.
8. When you take out the cake from the oven, wait for 2 minutes and then start pouring the brandy sauce, which should be warm, over the cake, with a spoon. It will sink-in slowly so you will have to be patient about it. You can also poke some holes on the cake with a thin skewer, which should not go more than half-way, for easier absorption. Since I had made this cake as a loaf, mine was soaked only till half-way and some sauce was left-over. If you do not like very moist cakes you should also not use all the sauce.

   9. Whether you soak this cake fully or not, either way it makes a big hit! I know because the last time I made it was in the form of cup-cakes and I'd made them really moist and they were really appreciated!

10. This cake can be eaten warm or cold; with whipped cream or without it; as a dessert or tea-time snack, it is just delightful every way! If you want to make it for Christmas, just add 1/2 tsp. ginger, a big pinch nutmeg and the zest of two oranges to the batter and you'll get a very exotic Christmas cake1




                                                                            Enjoy!


                                                                           
                                                                                                               

Delicious and easy Coconut Cake.

                                                              
                                                                   Coconut Cake

'Delicious, aromatic and easy to make'; This is how this cake can be described! And the best thing 

is, it does not need any icing or accompaniment! Try baking it and you'll understand what I mean. So, here is how you go about it--

Ingredients:-     1.  Flour-280 gm.;    2.  Baking powder- 1 1/2 tsp.;    3.  Sugar (powdered)-280gm.;

4.  Butter-220gm.;    5.  Eggs- 4;    6.  Milk- 100ml.;    7.  Curd or buttermilk- 50ml.;    8.  Desiccated

coconut- 1 1/2 cup;    9.  Vanilla essence- 1 1/2 tsp.;    10.  Salt-1/2 tsp.

Method:-     1. First of all, grease and line a 9inch baking pan with butter paper, putting two layers on the base and, set the oven temp. at 180 C (only the bottom coil).

2. Sieve together flour and baking powder 3-4 times, on a news paper or brown paper so that they are nicely mixed. Sprinkle salt over it and sift with fingers to mix.

3. Beat together butter (room temp.) and sugar, first at medium and then at high speed, in the mixer bowl.

When the mixture turns creamy and fluffy, start adding eggs, one at a time and beat for at least one minute after each addition. If the mixture curdles on adding egg, add a table-spoon of flour also and mix nicely.

4.  When all the eggs have been added, mix-in the curd and vanilla and stop the mixer.

5. With the help of a big spoon or spatula fold-in the flour alternating with milk, in four batches, ending with flour. Now, sprinkle the desiccated coconut over the batter and mix gently. Do not beat.

6.  Spread this batter in the baking pan ( it will not be of pouring consistency), smooth the top and put in the oven. It will take 50 to 60 minutes but, as there is a lot of variation in the oven temperatures, start checking after 40 minutes with a clean and dry skewer or knitting needle. If the skewer comes out with wet crumbs attached to it, let it cook for 10 more minutes and check again.

7.  For the last 10 to 15 minutes, you can turn-on both upper as well as lower coils to get a nicely browned

upper crust, as I did. When the cake is finally done, take it out of the oven and put the pan on a rack to cool.

With the help of a knife, loosen the edges from the pan but let it cool in the pan only.

8.  It is now ready to eat so unmold it on a platter  and start-off immediately!

 

   

                                                                           Enjoy!