CORN FLOUR ROLLS

My first attempt baking bread using corn flour. Though we can use corn flour for bread making but it lacks gluten, the most important ingredient to make the yeast bread to rise.  You could use corn flour  in a yeast bread but should not exceed 20-25%, not half.

Another words, the process are the same as per normal flour.  Since I'm using rapid rise yeast I have cut down the rising time to only 30 minutes.  It can be done plain without any stuffing, shape according to your liking. Overall the bread is very good and  much softer,  mine was stuffed with red bean paste

CORN FLOUR ROLLS
Yield   14 rolls

2 1/4 C all purpose flour
3/4 C corn flour
3 T sugar
3 T soft butter
1/2  tsp salt
2 tsp instant yeast
200 ml warm milk
extra butter for glaze
sesame seeds to sprinkle

METHOD

*   Place 1 cup all purpose flour, 3/4 cup corn flour, sugar, butter, salt, yeast and milk in a mixing bowl, blend until well incorporated  using wooden spoon or stand mixer.

*  Add the remaining flour and forms into a soft dough.

*  Transfer dough onto floured board, knead for 5 minutes.

*  Divide dough into 14 balls and stuff with filling (if using). Let sit for 30 minutes. Brush top with melted butter. Towards the end of rising time, preheat oven @ 180 C.

*  Bake roll for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Brush again with butter.

*  Cool on rack.

Linking to Bread Baking Day 36
                Yeastspotting-2-4-11

PINEAPPLE CAKE

I really excited to bake this pineapple cake for the very first time. It is egg free and so simple to put up together.

My son bought a can of pineapple slices instead of crushed ones. So I chopped them into tiny pieces before adding to the batter or much easier way use your chopper but not too fine. My can is 565g so use only 400g of pineapple plus its juice.

I'm using 3/4 cup of sugar if you want it sweeter add another 1/4 cup since the juice is also sweetened. You can also brush the top with pineapple juice after it has been baked and apply any frosting of your choice.

PINEAPPLE CAKE
Yield   One 7 in round cake

2 C all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 - 1 C sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
400g crushed pineapple
1/4 C milk
1/4 C melted butter

METHOD

*  Preheat oven @ 180 C and grease 7 in round pan.

*  Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a mixing bowl.

*  Add in sugar, milk, butter and pineapple to the flour. Mix until well incorporated, pour into prepared pan. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

*  Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Transfer onto rack to cool.

*  Serve with cream or frosting of your choice.

KASHMIRI NAAN

We went for our family dinner few weeks ago and had a North Indian meal consisting naan with  chicken and fish dishes. Since then my son had requested me to prepare the Kashmiri Naan. This naan is similar to regular ones except dry fruit mix is added to the dough. Though we have tasted other with butter and garlic but this is our top most favorite.

I didn't bake but cook them using flat pan on stove top.  It turns out wonderful and tasted almost the same as the restaurant ones.

KASHMIRI NAAN
Yield    4 Naan

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 c plus 1 T warm water
1 tsp salt
1 tsp active dry yeast
2 T melted butter
1/4 C yogurt
1 tsp sugar
4 heaped T dry fruit /nut
extra butter to apply on top

METHOD

*  In a small bowl, combine water, sugar and yeast. Let sit for 10 minutes until frothy.

*  Place flour, melted butter, yeast mixture, yogurt and salt in a mixing bowl. Mix well to form a soft dough.

*  Transfer dough onto floured board and knead for 10 minutes until elastic.

*  Place dough in an oiled and covered bowl for 2 hours.

*  Gently punch  the dough to release air. Transfer onto floured board. Divide dough into 4 ball.

*  Roll out dough then place 1 heaped tablespoon filling, shape dough into a ball then roll out into tear shaped bread.

*  Fry each naan without oil using heated flat pan until bubbles appear,  flip and cook the other side until brown spots appear. Remove from heat and apply butter if you like.

*  Repeat with the rest of the dough. Serve hot.

Linking to Yeastspotting 1-28-11 

BEANS & CARROT FRY

Eating vegetables is one of the sources of vitamin and mineral. It is important that vegetables are included in our diet. We have to choose a fresh and colorful veggie so that they are tasty as well as attractive especially for fussy kid.

Stir fry is much easier to prepare and hardly utilized much time. Just cut up any vegetable you want to use almost same size to ensure uniform cooking. It uses least spice but very delicious.

FRUIT CAKE

This is my version of healthy  and not so rich fruit cake but excellent taste. Now I'm using hot tea but you can also opt for hot milk that also works well with this recipe.

For mixed dry fruit, it can easily be replaced with dried cranberries, apricot or prunes, make sure you cut them into small pieces. No worries if you have no time to soak the fruit, you still can go ahead to cook them.

If you are having unexpected guest, this is great a treat for them which is so easy and takes less time to prepare. Hope you will enjoy this as much as we do.

FRUIT CAKE

1 C rolled oat
1 C all purpose flour
1 C dry fruit mix
1 C hot tea/milk
3/4 C sugar
2 T melted butter
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

METHOD

*  Soak fruit mix in hot tea for 15 minutes. Grease your 7 in pan.

*  Preheat oven @ 170 C. Sift flour and baking powder.

*  In a mixing bowl, place flour, salt, oat and sugar.

*  Now the dry fruit mixture to the flour and mix until just combined.

*  Pour into prepared pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

* Cool on pan 10 minutes, transfer into rack to cool.

*  Slice to serve.

Linking to Get Fit With Taste

OATMEAL ROLLS

This time I tried slightly different method for baking these Oatmeal Rolls.   What I did was heating the milk, butter and sugar in a microwave oven just until warm, not piping hot  for 15 seconds, stir then continue another 15 seconds to complete the process. Then added the milk mixture together with the yeast to the flour and form into a dough.

The result of this experiment is softer bread and really love this recipe. It is so easy to handle and shaping is a brisk, even roll out the dough without dusting with the flour. If you want, you can stuff them with your favorite filling or leave them plain. Either way these Oatmeal Rolls  are great for your breakfast or teatime snack.

PRAWN SOUP

If you are soup lover like me and used to buy those ready made soup, you should consider trying this recipe. So simple to put together and the best part is you can add any vegetable of your choice beside the carrot I'd used here.

Traditionally, most of soup recipe requires you to puree them but I prefer not to do that but this is a personal preference. Serve this Prawn Soup with toasted bread and now you can enjoy light and nutritious meal, much more tasty than the store bought ones.

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BANANA RING CAKE

Another cake using banana minus the egg. Banana is very common and consumed in almost every home. It is very nutritious, each banana contains calcium, phosphorus , potassium which are needed for the bones and low in sodium, cholesterol and fat. Bananas are also rich source of Vitamin C, iron and soluble fibre which helps lower cholesterol.

Not only this banana cake is so simple and easy to prepare but moist, aromatic and full of natural goodness! If you're allergic to nuts do omit them but they  add flavor and texture to the cake.

BANANA RING CAKE

1 1/2 C all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 C melted butter
3/4 C  milk
3/4 C sugar
3 medium banana mashed
1/4 C chocolate chip
1/4 C chopped nut

METHOD

*  Preheat oven @ 175 C. Grease the ring pan.

*  Sift flour, salt and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Add in sugar, mix well.

*  In small bowl, combine milk, butter and banana, stir until well incorporated.

*  Add milk mixture to the flour, stir and add in the chocolate chip and chopped nut. Stir until well combined.

*  Pour into ring pan and bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

*  After 5 minutes, remove on rack to cool. Slice to serve.

CHOCOLATE BREAD

There is nothing more comforting on a cold day than pulling a fresh baked bread from the oven. I just can't resist baking  them be it just plain or sweet bread.

After searching for chocolate bread on net, decided the bake this bread with slight modification from the original recipe. Used all purpose flour instead of bread flour and increased the amount of butter to 2 tablespoons. Despite these changes the bread turned fantastic. I just love the texture and taste. It is great with hot coffee of chai.

CHOCOLATE BREAD
Yield  :   One loaf

2 1/4 C bread flour
1 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/4 C warm water
1/2 C plus 2 T warm milk
3 T unsweetened cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
2 T melted butter
1/4 chocolate chip
1/4 c sugar

METHOD

*  Combine yeast, warm water and 1 teaspoon sugar in a small bowl. Let sit for 10 minutes or until frothy.

*  Place 1 1/4 cup flour, sugar, salt, butter, cocoa, yeast mixture and milk in a mixer. Beat until well blended using medium speed. Add in remaining flour.

* On floured board, knead dough until elastic about 10 minutes. Add in chocolate chip during last 2 minutes.

*  Place dough in an oiled bowl and covered for 1 hour.

*  Punch dough down, knead lightly and roll out dough  into rectangle. Roll up dough, jelly roll style, pinch ends to seal and seam side down in a greased loaf pan. Let rise 45 minutes.

*  Bake 30 minutes in a preheated oven @ 170 C.  Transfer and cool on rack.

Linking to Yeastspotting-1-14-11

PASTA UPMA

Upma is a common breakfast dish or an evening tiffin in most South Indian homes. You can use rava, vermicelli or even bread for making this tasty upma. For added taste, some add vegetables like beans, carrots, potatoes or cauliflower and garnished with cashew nut, peanut or coconut..

It is fast to cook and taste yummy. Adding lemon juice is optional and it is really healthy and an excellent dish to start your day.

PASTA UPMA

100g pasta boiled until aldente
1 onion chopped
2 green chili sliced
1 tsp mustard seed
1 tsp urad dal
1 tsp bengal gram
1 sprig curry leaves
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
salt to taste
3 T tomato sauce
2 T cooking oil
lemon juice (optional)

METHOD

* Heat the oil, splutter mustard seed, add urad dal, bengal gram, curry leaves, onion and green chili, cook until fragrant.

* Add in 1/4 cup water, salt and tomato sauce and bring to boil.

* Pour in the cooked pasta and stir well. Remove from heat.

* Garnish with coriander leaves and serve immediately.

COCONUT CAKE

Using only 6 ingredients, it is the simplest and easiest cake to prepare. You do not need any mixer but only one mixing bowl. If you are using fresh grated coconut, dry roast them until slightly dry. You can also use self raising flour, if you do, please omit baking powder and salt.

This is also my son's favorite cake, if he wants a dessert, this is what he requested me to bake. He brought them to his office and shared them with his colleagues. Most of his friends loved it and even ask for the recipe.

So easy to put together , when you are craving for a slice of cake and you want it sooner. Before you know it, the wonderful smell of amazing cake is sifting through your window. The texture was just lovely!

I am not much of an icing person but you can go ahead to apply any frosting of your choice to elevate  this cake to a heavenly dimension.

COCONUT CAKE
Makes 7 in cake

1 C all purpose flour
3/4 C sugar
1 C  dessicated coconut
3/4 C milk
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

C  =  cup

METHOD

* Preheat oven @ 175 C. Grease 7 in cake pan. Sift flour and baking powder.

* Add in sugar, salt and coconut. Pour in milk and mix until batter is smooth.

* Pour into greased  cake  pan and bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

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

Linking to Cooking with your heart

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NOODLE W/SWEET & SOUR SAUCE

This is a perfect sauce to be taken with noodle. You can add a variety of ingredients to the finished sauce to create a completely different dish. I'm using fresh yellow noodle, just blanch for 1-2 minutes in a pot of boiling water. If you're using dry noodle, please prepare them  according to the package instruction. Any type of pasta works well too.

There are several ways to cook this dish. One method is to boil the meat until soft, retaining the stock before you start cooking. Either way you choose, it turns out great and flavorful. The thickness of the soup is up to you, add less water for a thicker sauce.

NOODLE W/SWEET & SOUR SAUCE
Serves 4-6

500g fresh yellow noodle blanch and drain
2 big onion chopped
3 cloves garlic chopped
1 in ginger chopped
2 T chili paste
2 tomato chopped
500g sliced beef
250g carrot or other vegetable
3 T tomato sauce
2 T chili sauce
salt and sugar to taste
6 cups water
coriander leaves
red/green chili for garnish
3 T oil

METHOD

* Heat the oil, fry the onion, garlic, chili paste and ginger until fragrant Add tomato, cook until tomato turns soft.

* Add in sliced beef, stir for 1 minutes then add the required water, simmer until beef turns soft.

* Pour in tomato sauce, chili sauce, salt and sugar, bring to boil again.

* Now add the vegetable., once the vegetable  is cooked, remove from heat.

* To serve, place noodle in a small bowl, pour the gravy and sprinkle with coriander leaves and sliced red/green chili..

BREAD GRIDDLE CAKE

This is great if you have stale bread in you pantry. Instead of usual spread you can turn them into this super easy griddle cake. Experiment with what works best for you by adding raisin, chocolate chip or cheese.

Adding milk is depends on how wet the soaked bread is so adjust accordingly. I also sprinkles chocolate rice to some of the cake, it tasted great.

BREAD GRIDDLE CAKE
Serves 4

4 C bread torn into pieces
1/4 to 1/2 C milk
4 T sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 C all purpose flour
1 T melted butter
oil for frying

METHOD

* Place bread and milk  in a mixing bowl. Mash up the bread..

* Add sugar,  flour, salt and butter to the bread. Keep 15 minutes.

* Pour 1/4 cup of batter on greased  griddle,   fry until both sides turn golden brown.  Repeat with the rest of batter.

* Serve hot.

Linking to Yeastspotting 1-7-11

OATMEAL BREAKFAST BARS

If you need a healthy and easy breakfast or in between snack to start your day, you must try this recipe. It is  made of rolled oat, dried fruit ( you can use raisin, cherry, mixed peel, cranberries) and toasted chopped nuts ( almond, hazel, cashew, peanut). They're sweetened with condensed milk instead of sugar and contains minimal fat.

To make it easier you can press the dough into square greased tin then slice after it has been baked. You'll be amazed how this healthy  treat produces a chewy and not so sweet bar despite using condensed milk.

OATMEAL BREAKFAST BAR
Yield   14 bars

1/2 cup  plus 2 tablespoon  condensed milk
125 g (1 1/3 cup)  rolled oat
80 g   (1/2 cup) dried  fruit
80 g  (1/2 cup) chopped nuts

METHOD

* Heat the condensed milk in a microwave on High for a minute. Add in rolled oat and stir.

* Mix the rest of the ingredients and roll out into rectangle in between plastic sheet, cut into bar and place onto greased baking sheet.

* Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes or until light brown @ 130 C . Remove from pan after 5 minutes and transfer into rack to cool. Store in an airtight container.

* Enjoy your healthy bar fresh from the oven.

Thanks so much for your support and encouragement my friends, may this year brings better health and happiness to you and family. HAPPY NEW YEAR!

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