*PUMPKIN BANANA BREAD*

Easy to make Pumpkin Banana Bread gets an extra flavor and beautiful color with addition of the pumpkin. The pumpkin not only adds flavor but also it adds fiber and allowing the bread to call for less oil while still maintaining the perfect, most texture.

I had used homemade pumpkin puree but canned pumpkin should work too. This bread turned out great. For best result, slice when it is completely cooled or  refrigerated the bread overnight wraps in plastic wrap.

It was delicious on its own but with frosting it creates a beautiful treat!

PUMPKIN BANANA BREAD
Serves   :     12

1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup mashed banana
1/4 cup oil / melted butter
1/2 cup milk / soy milk
1 1/4  cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup rolled oat
1/4 cup cornflour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

METHOD

Preheat oven @ 175 C and grease a loaf  pan.

Sift all purpose flour, cornflour, baking powder and baking soda. Mix in salt, rolled oat and  sugar.

Combine mashed banana, pumpkin puree,  milk  and oil/melted butter.

Add in banana mixture to the dry ingredients, add in  cinnamon, stir until well incorporated.

Pour into prepared pan, bake for 55-60 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Cool in the pan 5 minutes, transfer onto rack to cool.

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*SABUDANA VADA/SAGO CUTLET*

This crispy savory snack recipe is made with soaked sago pearls and mashed potato. Sabudana Vada is one of  popular Indian food served during fasting. There are various combination to prepare it. In this case, mine was  prepared without peanut but using semolina instead.

After combining all the ingredients, it was shaped into small  round cutlet. It can be shallow or deep fried but I prefer shallow frying since it uses least oil.

FRYING TIPS
Choose a healthy oil with higher smoke point such as canola, safflower or peanut oil.

Make sure the oil was fully heated before adding any food. To check whether it is ready, drop a small piece of  bread, it should be golden brown in 60 seconds.

Do not crowd the pan. Work in small batches. The temperature of the oil decreases as soon as you add food to it.

Heavy bottomed  cookware is best for frying. It allows to keep the temperature of the oil steady. A thicker bottom guarantees the heat will slowly warm up the oil.

Discard  your used oil if it smells rancid, strong  discoloration or excessive foaming around the frying food. Be sure to cool your used oil completely before disposing


SABUDANA VADA/SAGO CUTLET
Yield     :     20 cutlets

1 cup sabudana (sago)  soaked then drained
1.5 cups mashed potato
1 onion chopped (optional)
2 green chili chopped
1 tsp ginger minced
1/2 tsp cumin seed
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tablespoon semolina
3 tablespoon chopped cilantro
salt to taste
oil for frying

DIRECTION

Wash sago,  soak in enough water for 15 minutes or  depending on the type of sago. Press sago between your finger if easily mashed, it is ready to use.

Drain out excess water and leave in a colander for 10 minutes. Mix in mashed potato, onion, green chili, ginger, cumin seed, chili powder, semolina, salt and cilantro. Mixture will be soft and sticky.

Shape mixture into flat, round  patties.

Heat the oil in a frying pan. Slide in the patties, fry until golden brown on both sides. Turn them occasionally. Remove and drain on absorbent paper.

Serve hot with ketchup or chutney.



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*EGG FREE CHOCOLATE BROWNIES*

The easiest brownies ever. Makes up in a 7 x 11 in tin. Egg Free Chocolate  Brownies are soft like a cake with crunchy almond. These are wonderful and exactly what I was trying to create, in my opinion they have  the perfect texture and  used much lesser sugar than regular brownies.

There are many ways you can enjoy this favorite by replacing almond with cashew, pecan or walnut, Omit the nuts to include dried cranberries, apricot or cherries. You can even add white chocolate or dark chocolate pieces in the batter.

*EGG FREE CHOCOLATE BROWNIES*
Serves    :   20

1.5 cup self rising flour
1/2 cup rolled oat
3/4 cup  castor sugar
100 g melted butter
1/2  cup plus 2 tablespoon  whole milk
2 tablespoon cocoa
1 medium banana mashed
3/4 cup coarsely chopped almond
1 tsp vanilla extract

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 170 C Lightly grease a  7 x 11 in pan.

Combine flour, oat, sugar and cocoa in a mixing bowl.

In another bowl, whisk together butter, milk, banana and vanilla extract.

Add milk mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir until well combined.

Fold in chopped almond, stir to combine.

Spread out  into greased 7 x 11 in pan, level out the top with spatula.

Bake for 25 minutes @ 170 C or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Cool in pan 10 minutes then place on wire rack to cool.

To serve cut into squares or rectangles.

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*DRY FRUIT SCONES*

Dry Fruit Scones are far from plain, they are lightly sweetened,  thick but soft and delicious.  Made of plain flour, butter, milk  with baking powder as a leavening agent, it is pretty quick to prepare.

Had dry fruit mix in my pantry so I  incorporated them in this recipe. These tender, buttery scones are nicely moist. It is almost the same method as preparing the pie crust. You can add pretty much anything to this basic recipe. Savory, sweet, fruity or rich, you name it, it would probably work in scones.

The key to a perfect scone is to make sure you don't overwork the dough, otherwise the result will be a hard doughy scone. They're good enough to eat on their own!

WHOLE WHEAT FRUIT SCONES
Yield   :   16 scones

2.5 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup cold butter
3/4 cup dry fruit
1/2 cup milk

METHOD

In a bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.

Cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Add in milk and forms into a dough, fold in the dry fruit.

Turn onto floured surface, knead gently  6-8 times. Divide into 2 portion.

Pat each portion into  6 in circle, to a thickness of 1.5 cm. Cut dough into 8 wedges or cut rounds with  a 2 in cutter..

Transfer wedges onto baking sheet. Preheat oven at 180 C.

Bake until golden brown for 20 minutes.

Remove from pan to a  wire rack. Serve warm.

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OATMEAL BANANA CAKE

A cake  for oatmeal lovers. This Oatmeal Banana Cake is super simple to prepare. It is slightly different from others you might have came across because my method requires no soaking of the oat.

With this cake I was able to avoid other desserts that had more sugar and  this cake requires no frosting too. I have sprinkled it with black sesame seeds but this is optional

By adding oat in your diet may help contribute to:

Reducing the risk of diabetes
Lowering cholesterol levels as part of healthy diet
Reducing risk of cardiovascular disease
Stabilizing blood sugar

OATMEAL BANANA  CAKE
Makes   :    8 servings

1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup rolled oat
1 cup mashed banana
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup melted butter
1.5 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tablespoon black sesame for topping

METHOD

Preheat oven @ 180 C and grease a  7 in spring foam pan.

Combine  flour, rolled oat, salt and baking powder in a mixing bowl.

In a separate bowl, beat banana, sugar, melted butter and vanilla until well incorporated.

Add  banana mixture to the dry ingredients, stir until just combined.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle top with black sesame seeds.

Cook until a skewer inserted comes out clean for  20-25 minutes.

Cool on pan for 10 minutes, transfer onto rack to cool.

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