"Appetizers"- Suralichi Vaadi/ Khandvi

I know what you are thinking...how did she find the time and patience to make THAT??? Yes, with little 'E' and even 'littiler' ( is that a word even?) 'A', days are rough, busy, and crazy. But you know, your mouth still waters..isn't it?
 You still crave stuff...resulting into me making yum yum food like this...
This is my moms recipe( and YES!!! she is here for 3 months now!).

Ingredients:
1 cup Besan/ Gram flour
3/4th cup Buttermilk
2tsp all purpose flour
2 cups water
Salt ,turmeric, chili powder to taste
For Tadka- 1 tbsp oil, mustard seeds, sesame seeds
For Garnishing- Fresh coconut, cilantro

Method:
1) Mix besan, all purpose flour,buttermilk,water, salt,chili powder,turmeric etc into thin paste.No lumps in the batter.
2) Cook the paste in a non stick pan on medium heat and stir continuously

3) When the paste looks shiny/glossy and cooked (10mins) or so, taste and confirm that it is cooked.Taste to check if the batter is cooked or spread some on a flat cookie sheet, let it cool and see if it forms a layer that can be peeled easily.If not cooked the rolls won't come out good.
4) Spread the paste on flat cookie sheet.DO NOT oil the cookie sheet. You will need 3-4 baking trays/ thalis etc so keep those handy.The batter has to be spread fast into thin layer.Will a spatula or a steel 'vati'/bowl.

5) When cooled, with a knife draw vertical lines on the cooled batter.Roll into Vadis/ Khandvis

6) Heat oil, add mustard seeds, sesame seeds and pour on the vadis.

 7) Garnish with grated coconut, cilantro etc

                                     Enjoy the soft texture with slight sour-spicy taste of the vadis!

"Sweet Treats"- Vanilla Sponge Cake with Butter-Cream frosting

 So....my little girl "A" (http://www.ayana-eternalblossom.blogspot.com) is 7 months old already!!! Time really flies...it was like we just got her home from the hospital and she is 7 months already! When she was born I had decided that every month we will celebrate her 'month birthday' and I will bake a cake of that months birthday number. Now because of the long hospitalization and all that worrying and tensions, I wasn't able to do as I had wished for. But this month...I DID!!!

I found this really awesome recipe online on the 'CAKE BOSS' website. Now usually, I am not a 'spoon-by-spoon' baker.Meaning I always have this habit of modifying the recipe and then bake.But this time I decided to follow the recipe Spoon by spoon, step by step and  minute by minute. And VIOLA! the cake was D- LI- CIOUSSS!
Here is the link to the recipe:

http://www.cakeboss.com/CakeBossSpongeCake.aspx

     

I did not do a good job of taking great pics...but believe me, for the amount of butter in the recipe, The cake came out really soft-spongy and moist.

 Same recipe, just poured it in muffin pan and baked Cuppy Cakes for Big Bro 'E'.

For the icing:
Ingredients:
1/2 cup Unsalted butter
1- 1and1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 tbsp heavy cream
few drops vanilla essence
Food coloring
Sprinkles
 Method:
1) Thaw the butter at room temperature
2) Add sugar,cream and vanilla and beat in a electric mixer till fluffy and well blended.
3) Add food coloring if you want it colored
4) Decorate the cake with icing gun and add sprinkles.(Cake should be cooled before icing)
Tip: I like to spray sugar syrup (1/2 cup water+1/2cup sugar----boil for 7-10 mins ---cool) on the cake to keep it moist before frosting the cake.
5) Store the cake at cool temperature.
6) Yumm Yumm Yumm!