Oats Carrot Cake(Eggless)

Tags

Carrot Cake gluten free, Gluten free cake, Healthy cake, Oats Carrot Cake, Oats Flour Cake

It has been very long since I posted. As most of you know, we had our little munchkin born in the month of June. I couldn’t get along with blogging. Being a first time mom , I am still in sleepless mode 🙂 In between my DD turned 4.5 months, phew did I say 4.5 months…YES she is already 4.5 months old. She was a preemie baby born 3 weeks early. She was born even before my mom could reach us. Some things were out of control, she was in NICU for sometime. We managed ourselves. First few days were totally a mess. Thankfully we got better once my mom arrived.

Fellow blogger friends, sorry I couldn’t visit your pages and leave comments. I am still not in full fledged mode to return to blogging but definitely will be coming back 🙂 So we celebrated her 3 months with this Oats carrot cake( I started writing this post when she was just 3 huh now you know!!!)…..As my mom is a complete vegetarian who doesn’t take eggs, I decided to make an eggless cake.

Ingredients:

Oats : 2.5 cups ( finely ground)

Baking Powder : 1 teaspoon

Salt : 1/4 teaspoon

Cinnamon : 1/4 teaspoon

Nutmeg : 1/4 teaspoon

Walnuts : 1/4 cup

Sugar : 1/2 cup (I used coconut palm sugar)

Carrot : 1 cup grated(finely packed)

Milk : 1 cup

Vanilla essence : 1 teaspoon

Butter : 1/4 cup

Method:

• Preheat oven to 350F.
• Combine ground oats, sugar, nutmeg powder, cinnamon powder, walnuts and give a nice aeration.
• Combine Carrot, milk, vanilla essence, butter.
• Now combine wet and dry ingredients together.
• Grease a baking tray with butter, pour the batter.
• Bake for 30 mins, until a tooth pick comes out clean.

For the glazing I didn’t get it perfect, just added butter, sugar and some orange zest. Sorry for the poor pictures, as we were in a hurry.

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Ragi Murukku/Chakkli (Baked and Deep fried)

Tags

Baked murukku recipe, Baked Ragi chakkli, Baked Ragi Murukku, Finger millet recipes, Ragi Chakkli, Ragi Murukku

My love towards Ragi continues. This was on my list of to do from a very long time. Use of oil totally scares me out. My hubby will never want me to use sunflower oil. But for Indian cooking specially deep frying, this is the best suited oil. He kept ruling out the option. One fine day when I went for shopping alone, I got one bottle of sunflower oil. He found it the next day in kitchen and started questioning me 😀 In between I gotta enjoy some pleasures isn’t it 😉

So here is the both baked and deep fried version. Warning, baked version doesn’t taste exactly the same way as deep fried version. It tends to break soon as well. But yes for health concerns they are the best. But I liked the baked version equally good as deep fried. Do give it a try 🙂

Ingredients:

Ragi Flour : 1 Cup

Rice Flour : 1/2 cup

Garbanzo Flour(Besan) : 1/2 cup ( you can use Roasted gram flour/pottukadalai flour instead)

Butter : 2 tablespoons

Cumin Seeds : 1 teaspoon

Red Chili Powder : 1 teaspoon ( I felt it was less, you can increase the quantity)

Asafoetida/Hing : 1/2 teaspoon

Salt : 1/2 teaspoon

Water : as needed

Oil : as needed to deep fry

Method:

• Mix all the flours, cumin seeds, red chili powder, asafoetida, salt, butter.
• Add water and form a nice dough, Dough should not be thick or watery. Make sure it is moist.
• Keep it covered for 10 to 15 mins.

For deep fried version:

• Heat oil in a pan.
• Take the chakkli maker/Murukku katai, fill in with dough. Start pressing in round shape.
• You can press it in a big spoon(karandi).
• When oil is hot, slowly slide in the spoon where the chakkli is pressed.
• It would start cooking. Make sure the oil in in medium hot. It should not be too hot or less.
• Turn sides after 2 to 3 mins. When it is done you will find that the oil sizzling sound stops. At that time take it out and place it in a paper towel to drain the excess oil.
• Similar way place cook other chakkli/murukku.

For baked version:

• Preheat oven to 350F.
• Get a baking sheet ready, place a parchment paper and spray oil over it.
• Now start pressing murkku/chakkli from the maker. Give enough space between each of them.
• Bake it for 12 mins first side. Take out flip sides and bake for 15 mins.
• Then take out and cool.

Enjoy the healthy teatime snack 🙂

Dilkush/Coconut Raisin stuffed bun

Tags

Coconut Bun, Dilkush, how to make coconut bun, how to make dilkush, Indian style coconut bun, Iyengar Bakery style Dilkush

Coconut bun is one of my childhood favorite. I used to have at least one piece everyday from bakery 😉 I somehow stopped it in between and found it back in my Bangalore days at Iyengar bakery. Widely called as Dilkush, made with coconut and tutty fruti. Aww how much I used to love them. Now that in US , I have the oven to bake it..why not give it a try. Yep it turned out super awesome… It is a bit long process, but worth every second of it 🙂 I have just added coconut , nuts and raisins. Dilkush is made with tuti fruti. I did not have them in stock, so haven’t added them. Here is the recipe…

Ingredients:

Whole Wheat Flour : 1 cup + 2 tablespoons + extra to dust

All Purpose Flour : 1 cup

Sugar : 3 tablespoons

Salt : 1/4 teaspoon

Water : 1/4 cup

Milk : 1/2 cup

Butter : 1 tablespoon

Yeast : 1 1/4 teaspoon

Filling:

Coconut : 3/4 cup

Cashew+almonds+ raisins  : 1/2 cup ( In case tutti fruti is used reduce cashew and almonds, avoid sugar)

Cardamom Powder : a pinch

Jaggery/Sugar : 1 tablespoon( I used jaggery)

Ghee/Oil : 1 tablespoon

Method:

• Take lukewarm water, add 1 teaspoon sugar. Mix yeast and set aside for 10 mins.
• Yeast would froth in 10 mins.
• Warm up milk before kneading dough.
• Mix whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, salt, sugar. Sieve it in a medium bowl.
• Now mix the yeast and milk with the sieved flour.
• Now knead the dough for 10 mins.
• In a medium bowl, oil the base and sides, keep the dough and oil the top portion.
• Cover with a wet towel and place it in a warm place. For me fridge top is the best place to get this done.
• Leave it for an hour.
• Now get the filling ready. Heat a pan with either oil or ghee. When hot add chopped cashews, almonds. When it turns slight golden color, add raisins. Let it pop.
• Now stop heat and add grated coconut and saute in the remaining heat.
• In case you are adding tutti fruti add it as well.
• Add jaggery or sugar mix well. Filling is ready.
• Place a parchment paper over the baking tray, spray with cooking oil and get it ready.
• After an hour, the dough would double in size. Now punch out the dough. Knead for another 2 to 3 mins.
• Cut the dough to 2 pieces. Take one piece and make a flat base just like pizza base.
• Base would be thick enough around a size of 8 inches.
• Now on top, place the filling. Leave 1/2 cm on the edges. Place this base in the baking tray.
• With the other portion of dough, flatten similar to the base.
• Cover it over the base with filling. Pinch the edges. Take a fork and club the edges of both base and top.
• Cover this as well and set it for 30 mins in a warm place.
• Have 1 tablespoon of milk and a bit of sugar mixed and ready.
• Preheat oven to 400F. Before baking, just brush this milk and sugar mix over the top.
• Bake for 20 to 25 mins. Mine took 25 mins.
• Cool it, cut and serve 🙂

You can totally use All purpose flour/maida instead of whole wheat flour.

Tutti frutti can be used with only coconut, no need of raisins and cashews.

 

 

 

Ragi Kaara Biscuits (savory)

Tags

cracker recipes, easy cracker recipes, Finger Millet buscuits, Finger Millet crackers, Finger millet recipes, healthy cracker recipes, Ragi Biscuits, Ragi crackers, Ragi Flour recipes, Ragi Kaara buscuits, Ragi Khara buscuits, Ragi recipes, Ragi salt biscuits, Ragi savory biscuits, savory biscuits

It has been really long since I used my oven to bake something. Guess it is almost 3 months now. Finally few days back I tried to make a beetroot cake, guess what it turned out to be the worst I had ever tried 😛 We threw the complete cake in trash 😦

Coming to this post, yesterday I tried these biscuits and turned out super awesome.These Ragi biscuits are very famous in Bangalore. My usual snack during my spinster Bangalore days used to be these. One pack would cost around 20 to 30 rupees. My friends used to make fun of me on why am I having these biscuits. But I love these biscuits so much, specially the savory biscuits. I wanted to try and turned out well. My hubby will pick up only one piece of any snack that I make, at the max 2. This time he had 3 at a time and he said everything was perfect and Malar is very happy now 😀 Hope everyone likes it too 🙂

 

 

Ingredients:

Ragi Flour/Finger Millet Flour : 1 1/2 cups

Whole Wheat Flour : 1/2 cup

Oil : 1/4 cup +1 tablespoon

Salt : 1 1/2 teaspoon

Sugar : 1 teaspoon

Red Chili Powder : 2 teaspoon ( can increase to 3 teaspoons)

Yogurt/Curd : 4 tablespoons

Water : 1/4 to 1/2 cup(adjust accordingly)

Method:

• Dry roast ragi flour for 5 mins. (3 mins in medium and 2 mins in low medium)
• Make sure not to burn the flour, keep stirring. Leave it to cool after roasting.
• Next in a medium bowl, sieve the roasted ragi flour. Add wheat flour, red chili powder, salt and sugar. Mix well.
• Now add yogurt, oil to the flour and mix. Then slowly add water and make a soft dough.
• Let it rest for 10 mins.
• Meantime preheat oven to 400F and line the baking tray with parchment paper. Spray with cooking oil.
• Now in a surface sprinkle some flour. Divide the dough to 3 parts. Roll the dough on the surface and take a cookie cutter ( I used just a small bowl to make round shape) and cut the dough to desired shape.
• Place on the baking tray. I baked it for 23 mins. ( First I tried with 18 mins, didn’t feel the crunchiness, so added 5 more mins)

This is a great tea time snack. Serve with a cup of tea or coffee 🙂

Notes:

I could get around 20 pieces. It depends on the size and shape which you are preparing.

Oil can be replaced with butter. Red chili powder can be replaced with green chili paste.

If desired instead of yogurt, egg can also be added.

For sweet version add sugar more with just a pinch of salt and cut down chili powder.

If you want a gluten free, cut wheat flour and add ragi flour instead.

 

Sweet Somas/ Coconut Gujiya (Baked)

Tags

Baked Gujia, Baked Gujiya, Baked kajjikayalu, Baked Somas, Baked Sweet Somas, coconut gujia, Coconut Gujiya, Gujiya, kajjikayalu recipe, Somas recipe, Sweet Somas, Sweet Somas recipe

Diwali preparation in full swing , here is a traditional recipe which is tuned a little healthier 🙂 You can have it guilt free 🙂 We call this as sweet somas in TN. Gujiya usually prepared with mawa, but the filling can be changed. So here it is with coconut and jaggery(gur). Replacing sugar with jaggery make it much better. I have prepared this with both All purpose flour and Whole wheat flour.

You can find step by step pictures at the end of the post.

Below are made with Maida

 

 

Below are made with Wheat flour

Ingredients:

For the filling:

Grated Coconut : 1/2 cup

Roasted Gram(Channa Dalia)/Pottukadalai : 1/2 cup

Jaggery/Gur : 1/4 cup (You can increase it as per your taste)

Poppy Seeds/Khus Khus : 1 tablespoon ( optional this gives a lot of crunchiness)

Cardamom/ Elaichi : 2

Water : 1 tablespoon

For the covering:

All purpose Flour(Maida)/Whole wheat flour : 1 1/4 cups

Corn Flour : 1 tablespoon

Oil : 1 teaspoon + extra to brush

Salt : a pinch

Water : as needed to knead dough

Method:

• Mix all purpose flour or wheat flour with corn flour, oil, salt. Add water slowly and knead a soft dough.
• Cover it set aside for at least half an hour.
• Next Grind the roasted gram/pottukadalai along with cardamom to Suji/Rawa  consistency and set aside.
• Heat a pan and dry roast grated coconut till nice aroma comes and water content goes off.
• Next dry roast poppy seeds for just 2 mins.
• Place the jaggery in the pan, add 1 tablespoon water and heat it. Heat till it gets meted.
• Now add jaggery syrup with roasted gram flour, coconut, poppy seeds and mix.
• It should not be watery, just a dry mixture.
• After half an hour, form small poori’s with the dough.
• Take a small round bowl and place it over the poori and squeeze it, remove the extra edge to form a nice round shape.
• Now place the filling in between and fold over.
• pinch the edges. Make sure they are pinched properly otherwise they would open up while baking or frying.
• Now take a fork and pinch on the edges. Or with a pizza cutter the edges can be trimmed off. I used fork, as I don’t have a cutter.
• Preheat oven to 390 F and grease baking tray with oil.
• Now place one by one and brush them with oil.
• Bake for 12 mins in one side. Then remove flip sides and bake for another 12 mins on the other side.
• Remove and cool down for few mins. Now the baked somas/Gujiya is ready 🙂

As always this can be deep fried in oil.

Jaggery can be replaced by sugar.

 

Oats Banana Bites

Tags

easy oats bars, Oats, Oats Banana Bar, Oats Bar, Oats recipes, Oats Vegan bars, Simple Oats recipe, Vegan snack bars

Back with a baking post. Had some ripe banana’s and wanted to finish it. Then prepared this Oats banana bits with apple sauce. Have prepared this long ago and forgot to post it. If you buy snack bars from super market, this is a great option for home made.

Ingredients:

Oats flour : 1 cup

Rolled Oats : 1 1/2 cups

Unsweetened Applesauce : 1/4 cup

Banana : 2 (fully ripe)

Baking powder : 1 teaspoon

Cinnamon ground : 1 teaspoon

Salt : 1/2 teaspoon

Brown Sugar : 1/4 cup(can be replaced with honey)

Vanilla Extract : 1 teaspoon

Oil : 2 tablespoons

For Chocolate Syrup:

Chocolate chip : handful

Butter : 2 tablespoons

Method:

• Mash banana well and mix with unsweetened apple sauce.
• Mix oats flour, rolled oats ,baking powder, salt, cinnamon, brown sugar together and whisk well.
• To this add the banana, unsweetened applesauce, vanilla extract, oil and form a dough. It should be thick just like cookie dough and not runny at all.
• Preheat oven to 400F. Grease a baking tray with oil.
• Spread the dough in the baking tray and make it to uniform rectangle shape.
• Bake for 40 mins.
• Cool down and then cut it to small pieces.
• Then heat a small sauce pan, add the chocolate chips and butter. stir until they melt.
• Now pour over the pieces. I have done it for few pieces and left others.
• For vegan option we can use without chocolate syrup 🙂
• Store in an airtight container in fridge.

Enjoy these healthy bites 🙂

Spinach Pakoras (Baked)

Tags

baked pakora, baked spinach pakora, easy spinach baked pakoras, healthy pakoras, Healthy Spinach, Indian spinach snack recipe, Pakoda, Pakora, Spinach Pakoda, Spinach Pakoras

Temperature dipping down, makes me feel like having pakora’s/ pakodas 🙂 Have a huge pack of spinach , so thought of preparing pakora and did not want to have the deep fried one’s. Ever since Vidya posted her Onion Pakora, I wanted to try the same way. So all credit goes to my dear friend 🙂 Completely a guilt free snack for tea time which tastes awesome 😀

Ingredients:

Baby Spinach : 1 1/2 to 2 cups packed

Chickpea Flour/Besan/Garbanzo flour : 1/2 cup

Rice Flour : 1/4 cup

Asafoetida/Hing: a generous pinch

Ginger : a small piece finely chopped

Ajwain/Carom Seeds : 1/2 teaspoon

Red Chili Powder : 1/4 teaspoon

Pepper Powder : 1/2 teaspoon

Water : as required

Salt : 1/4 teaspoon

oil : 1/4 teaspoon

Baking Powder : 3/4 teaspoon

Method:

• Mix Besan, rice flour, red chili powder, pepper powder, salt, ajwain, hing together.
• Chop baby spinach, ginger and mix with flour.
• Spinach would have some water content, so it is better to mix with flour before water.
• Add water slowly and make batter. Make sure the batter is thick and not running and be careful while adding water.
• Add baking powder at the end and mix. Rest for 5 mins.
• Meantime preheat oven to 400 F
• Grease baking sheet or use parchment paper and grease it.
• Take batter and form round patties, need not be shaped, place them on the baking sheet.
• Bake for 15 mins, then flip sides and baked for another 20 mins.
• If you want it very crispier bake for extra 10 mins.
• Make sure spinach is more than flour, as it shrinks while cooking/baking.
• Serve with hot chai 🙂

 

Cornflour Cupcakes and Muffins

Tags

Butter Cream Frosting, Cornflour, Cornflour Cupcakes, Cornflour Muffins, cupcakes, Gluten Free Cupcakes, gluten free food, Gluten free Muffins, Gluten Free recipe

As I mentioned earlier, I am experimenting some gluten free food nowadays. Not that I am intolerant to gluten, just wanted to explore it. So tried this Cornflour muffins and the cupcakes 🙂 Loved the taste. Do give it a try friends…

As soon as mixed and placed in muffin liners, bake it soon.

Ingredients:

Cornflour : 1 cup

Salt : 1/4 teaspoon

Cinnamon Powder : 1/4 teaspoon

Baking Powder : 3/4 teaspoon

Sugar : 1/2 cup (I felt it was little more, you can reduce the quantity)

Milk : 1/4 cup +2 tablespoons

Unsalted Butter : 2 tablespoons (at room temperature)

Oil : 2 tablespoon

Vanilla Extract : 1 teaspoon

Egg :1

Frosting:

Butter cream frosting : as required

Method:

Preheat oven to 350F and place muffin liners in baking tray.

Beat egg, oil, unsalted butter, milk,vanilla extract and beat well until fluffy.

Mix cornflour, cinnamon powder, salt, baking powder, sugar and sieve for 2 to 3 times.

Now mix wet and dry ingredients together, until combined.

Now fill each liner with the batter and immediately bake for 20 minutes.(check with tooth pick as well)

Cool down for 10 mins.

For making cupcakes, I just added butter cream frosting done by beating butter, icing sugar, vanilla extract 1 teaspoon until fluffy and with piping bags made the designs 🙂

Hope you like it friends…..

Multigrain Cracker Laddoo

Tags

churma laddoo, flax meal in laddoo, Flax Meal laddoo, Healthy laddoo, Jowar Ladoo, Laddoo, Multigrain Crackers, Multigrain Laddoo, Multigrain Spinach Crackers, Ragi Laddoo, Whole Wheat Flour Churma Laddoo

The Multigrain Spinach Crackers is a big hit at my home. Last long weekend for our road trip which was an unexpected trip, we decided just on Friday afternoon 😛 and my hubby said prepare some food and pack it up( we had to leave on Saturday early morning 6 AM), I had already decided on those crackers and I was totally busy doing lots of cooking and parallely I baked these crackers too. In some thought I just switched off the oven timer and forgot to pick them out of oven 😛 after 5 mins I realized and they got a little over baked 😦

Didn’t know what to do and when my hubby tasted he said it is a bit bitter in taste. First I thought I would throw away. Then I remembered my grandma, when she does a little extra cooked deep fried items like murruku, sedai , she would crush them in stone grinder(ammikal) and how much ever it was burnt that taste would subside and after crushing to fine powder they tastes so yummy 🙂 I know that Churma laddo is also done this way. So I immediately made it something like that 😛 and guess what I finished it all within 2 days (Poor chap my hubby got only 3 ladoo’s 😛 ) I used my wet grinder to grind it 😛

The most interesting part is that these laddoo’s have spinach in it 😀 and no sugar instead I used jaggery 🙂

Ingredients:

Whole Wheat Flour : 3/4 cup

Sorghum Flour/Jowar Flour : 3/4 cup

Finger Millet Flour/ Ragi Flour : 3/4 cup

Flax meal : 3/4 cup

Spinach puree : 1 cup

Salt : 1 1/2 teaspoon

Carom Seeds/Ajwain : 1/2 teaspoon

Turmeric Powder : 1/2 teaspoon

Oil : 3 tablespoons

Baking Powder : 3/4 teaspoon

Cumin Powder : 1 teaspoon

To make laddoo:

Ghee/clarified Butter : 1/4 cup

Jaggery/Gur : 1/4 cup

Water : required to make jaggery syrup

Method:

• Mix all the flour together, with salt, cumin powder, carom seeds, baking powder.
• Add 1/2 amount of olive oil to the flour and mix.
• Next slowly add the spinach puree and mix the flour. Make it to a nice dough.
• Rest the dough for 15 mins and have it covered to avoid drying.
• Mean time preheat oven to 350 F
• Nicely butter the baking sheet and get it ready.
• After 15 mins divide the dough to 3 portions. Roll the partitioned dough with any flour and form a nice round. Make it to a medium size thickness.
• The edges would crack, because of the Sorghum flour, just don’t worry about it. With the hand pinch the edges and continue to roll.
• Cut them in to pieces and arrange them in the baking sheet.
• Bake it for 15 mins. Take out the baking tray and flip sides.
• Bake for another 15 mins. Once done cool it for 10 to 15 mins.

Now that the crackers are ready, to make laddoo crush them to fine powder.

• Heat ghee in a pan. Add water and make jaggery syrup.
• Mix with the above crushed powder.
• Grease your palms with ghee and make laddoo’s.
• They might fall apart and you won’t be able to bind them well, if you use more ghee and make these balls/laddoo’s

Tasty yummy laddoo is ready 🙂

Multigrain Loaf

Tags

100% Percent Multigrain Bread, 100% Wheat flour bread, Bread, Easy Multigrain Bread recipe, how to make flax meal, how to make oats flour, how to make quinoa flour, Multigrain Bread

Finally I prepared this mutligrain loaf/bread, it was on my list for a real long time. Did not get the courage to prepare it. Made it with Whole wheat flour, Oats flour, Quinoa flour and Flax meal. It was not at all hard, turned out soft and fluffy. So here we go with some interesting ingredients in this loaf.

Ingredients:

Whole Wheat Flour : 2 cups

Oats Flour : 1/2 cup

Flax Meal : 1/2 cup

Quinoa Flour : 1/2 cup

Instant Yeast : 2 1/4 teaspoons

Honey : 1 tablespoon

Salt : 1/4 teaspoon

Sugar : 2 tablespoons

Olive Oil : 1 tablespoon

Warm Water : 1/4 cup

Warm Milk : 1 cup+ extra if needed

To Make Quinoa Flour:

Dry roast quinoa in a pan , when there is a slight popping sound leave it for few mins and stop roasting. Once it cools down grind it to a fine powder.  (After grinding quantity is increased, measure 1/2 cup from this)

To Make Flax meal:

Dry roast Flax seeds in a pan, when it starts popping remove from heat and grind it to a fine powder. (After grinding quantity is increased , measure 1/2 cup from this)

For Oats Flour :

Grind rolled oats to a fine powder. If you take 1 cup of oats, you will get 1 cup of flour

Method:

• Add honey, sugar , water, olive oil in water and mix well. Next add the instant yeast and mix well. Leave it for 10 to 15 mins until the yeast becomes frothy. (Use only warm water, hot water would kill yeast)
• Next mix 1 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour, oats flour, flax meal, quinoa flour and salt and sift well.
• After the yeast gets frothy add it to the flour and mix well.
• Next slowly add milk and mix dough. Bring it to a sticky dough consistency.
• Take a cutting board and flour it with whole wheat flour.
• Transfer the dough and start kneading vigorously by adding flour when ever required. Knead for around 20 to 25 mins. ( I know its hard but it is fun 🙂 )
• Oil a large vessel and place the dough in it. Cover it well with a cloth.
• Rest it for 2 hours in a warm place, either in counter top or top of fridge is good. Let it double in size.
• Remove and knead again to remove all the air with extra flour.
• Preheat oven to 350F
• Grease loaf pan with oil and place this.  I had split the dough to 2 halves as I don’t have a loaf pan, you can directly place this in the greased loaf pan. Cover with a towel and leave it for 10 to 15 mins.
• Bake for 35 mins. Remove and cool down.

Enjoy the loaf friends 🙂 This might not be so very soft as white bread, but it is soft. Sifting flour and kneading what makes it soft and fluffy.