MINI PUMPKIN TARTS

This satisfying Pumpkin Mini Pie is the perfect size to snack on by itself or enjoy as an elegant finish to any meal.

I love making pie dough from scratch. It's really not that hard. This  crust was easy to handle and tastes good too. You can use canned pumpkin if you like the traditional thick texture and sweetness but I like  using fresh cooked pumpkin. It is not overly sweet and much lighter. You can freeze cooked pumpkin for many months so you can still make this pie whenever you want.

MACARONI PAYASAM

This South Indian dessert is always served during festivals and special occasions. Macaroni Payasam was delicately flavored with cardamom and nuts. A great dessert for anytime of the year that anyone can cook at home.

Made with macaroni, sauteed in ghee and milk,  it can be customized to your palate by adding more or less  sugar.  Using stove top, the delicious payasam will be ready in a matter of minutes  by simmering the macaroni in a pot of milk.

The flavor of this dessert improves with time, dilute it with a little warm milk before serving since it thickens as it sits. I'm using a seashell shaped macaroni but it is great with other type of pasta too.

MACARONI PAYASAM
Yield     :   8 servings

1 cup macaroni  (seashell shaped)
1 tablespoon ghee
1 liter milk
1 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 - 3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon chopped almond/cashew

METHOD

Heat the ghee in a deep pot, add in the nuts, fry until light brown.  Transfer nuts onto a plate.

Using the same pot, fry the macaroni for 1 minute.

Add the milk, simmer until the macaroni turns aldente, stirring in between.

Now add the sugar, stir well.

Add in ground cardamom and fried nuts, stir well.

Serve hot or cold.

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EGGLESS PEACH CAKE

It's time for a treat that won't make you feel guilty, lightly sweetened, this dessert looks as good as it looks.

I'm using canned peaches but if you can get hold of the fresh ones, it would be much better. Make sure you drained the peaches pretty well before adding it to the batter.  If any of you want to switch out the peach slices for some other fruit, this cake would work with pears, plums and apricots.

An incredibly moist and light cake baked  without  egg. Everyone who has eaten it, loves it!

APAM PISANG BAKAR (YEASTED BANANA CAKE)

Banana is quite a common fruit available in most kitchen. It is my habit to turn those ripened banana into a delicious, quick week day dessert.

This recipe yields a moist Yeasted Banana Cake that will make those banana cake haters into big fans.

It combines the sweetness of ripe mashed banana with yeast minus the butter or fat. This  traditional cake is also suited to be steamed.  Like anything baked  with yeast, this requires about an hour to rise.


APAM PISANG BAKAR (YEASTED BANANA CAKE)
Serves  :    8

1+1/4 C  all purpose flour
1 C  mashed banana
1/2 C  castor sugar
3/4 C + 1 TB  warm evaporated milk
1/2 tsp salt
1+1/2 tsp instant yeast

METHOD

Grease 8 in deep cake pan. Whisk together milk, yeast and sugar in a small bowl.

In a mixing bowl, put in flour, banana and salt. Stir well.

Now add the milk mixture to the flour, stir to combine.

Pour mixture into greased  pan and let sit for 1 hour. Towards the end of rising time, preheat oven @  170C.

Bake for 40-45  minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Let sit in the pan for 10 minutes, transfer onto rack to cool.

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HOMEMADE APPLE ROLLS

We are having Homemade Apple Rolls for warm breakfast food in our home. I like to make them from scratch.

As with yeast, for this Homemade Apple Roll, you will need to plan ahead but it's so worth it. The apple filling can be well prepared a day before and keep refrigerated. It is cooked using microwave but could be done on stove top by combining all the filling ingredients, let cook for 10 minutes with  constant stirring. Leave to cool completely before use.

Unlike regular rolls, these rolls are baked as a log then equally slice after baking.

This dough works up beautifully, it is easy to do and they are so good.

SUJI COOKIES

This is the cookies I used to buy from Indian tea stall stored in a glass jar but much bigger in size. Suji Cookies is  pleasantly buttery and  slightly crunchy  biscuit.

Made of clarified  butter (ghee), flour and baking soda, it is quite simple to prepare. The only time needed is rolling them into tiny balls.

If you want softer cookies shorten your baking time and they will remain white even after baking. Feel free to  roll them to your desired size but place them  1 in apart since they will expand a little while baking.

CHOCOLATE PUDDING

This is  a real simple chocolate pudding to be enjoyed as a dessert or just to satisfy the cravings of all you chocoholics out there.

Make sure the baking  dish is deep enough to avoid spilling and easy stirring.  For deliciously dark, low fat and indulgent dessert, this irresistible  chocolate pudding fits the bill perfectly.

If desired, serve each pudding with a dollop of whipped cream or sliced fruit on top.  Hope you'll enjoy, as much as we do!

CHOCOLATE PUDDING
Servings     :      4

3  tablespoon  cornstarch
1/2  cup sugar
2  tablespoon  cocoa powder
2  cup  milk
1  tablespoon butter
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract

METHOD

Combine corn starch, cocoa powder, milk  and salt in a bowl. .

Strain the mixture into a  deep 1.5 litre saucepan..

Add in the sugar, stir to combine.

Heat the mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly  until pudding comes to a full boil, reduce heat, continue whisking until thick for 2-3 minutes more.

Remove from heat,  stir in butter and vanilla extract.  Pour into individual serving dish.  Let cool at room temperature.

Cover surface of each serving with plastic wrap. Chill in a refrigerator till serving time.

Serve each pudding with a dollop of whipped cream or sliced fruit  on top if desired.



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SOFT GINGER COOKIES

These simple cookies are  incredible, whipped up from pantry ingredients.  When you first bite into them, you feel the warmth from ginger  and  a hint of  sweetness from  honey with slightly chewy texture.

 For topping I had used granulated sugar but you can also sprinkle with silvered almond or white chocolate Awesome scent when they are baking. Especially fabulous with coffee or hot cocoa.

Most of ginger cookies recipes call for molasses but this was not available in my kitchen, therefore  had used  honey instead.

These cookies  do really  stay soft.  Soft Ginger Cookies are rolled in sugar before baking,  great  for the lunchbox  or for gatherings.

MY TIPS

Slightly flatten the cookies,  it will spread a little as you bake.

Place them 1 in apart on baking sheet, to give room for them to expand.

DAISY COOKIES/BISKUT DAHLIA

These cookies made their appearance during festive seasons but they are now available all year round during Chinese New Year, Idul Fitri, Diwali and Christmas.

They are basically butter cookies that are light, crumbly and literally melt in your mouth. Daisy Cookies are just so pretty laid on a plate. There are few variations of Daisy Cookies, what make it different is the combination of ingredients used, some use condensed milk, dry milk or custard powder  but my recipe below does not use those.

This lovely shape was obtained using a special mold but if unavailable, a  cookie press will be the best option.

Special care is required for lifting the cookies from the baking sheet since it was extremely delicate.

EGGLESS LEMON TART

The intense lemon flavor and delicate texture of this Eggless  Lemon Tart make it a perfect ending for any meal. Made from scratch, the crust contains less fat than a regular recipe.

Since I really wanted something easy to make that was sweet and bursting with tangy  lemon flavors, I settled on this Eggless  Lemon Tart. It is also an egg free recipe for the filling as well as  for the pastry.

I tried it, my family tried it. We all agreed that it came out pretty darn tasty. It had zing. The only thing that it did not have was a lot of colors for that I have used one or two drops of yellow food coloring in the filling.

So this is my low fat and  Eggless Lemon Tart recipe. I hope you will enjoy it as much as we do.

FRUITY JELLO

My son has been asking  jelly for quite some time now. I prefer to make my own instead of buying simply to avoid a ton of sugar, artificial flavors and coloring from those ready made ones.

Prepare this Fruity Jello before bed or while you are making dinner for a fast and filling breakfast the next day.  Using mixture of dried fruit. rolled oat and dragon fruit, this jelly is refreshingly fabulous.

You can use this recipe to make just about any kind of jelly. Which fruit to use is totally up to you, feel free to create your own combo of dried fruit and fresh fruit that suits your taste  also make use of unique mold that your kid would love.

*DATE OATMEAL BARS*

Date Oatmeal Bars are a wonderful treat anytime of the day.  Sweet and soft dates are sandwiched between not so buttery oat and flour mixture. They are easy to make, everyone will love them.

Since most of us eat way too much sugar in our diet, I try to use less sugar and more nutritious ingredients such as fruits, nuts and oat. My date bar recipe has these characteristics.  It  is a very nice alternative to have an easy  breakfast or snack instead of going into a fast food restaurant.

This dessert encourages us to prepare a simple meals from basic ingredients instead of expensive and less nutritious processed foods .I have tweaked the recipe as per my preference by omitting sugar in the filling and reduced the amount of butter used.  Really surprised to see that these bars were a great hit with my family.

I hope you will get to try these bars and enjoy them over and over again,

*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!

*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.

*DRY FRUIT SCONES*

Dry Fruit Scones are far from plain, they are lightly sweetened,  thick but soft and delicious.  Made with 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!

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

BANANA CRUMB CAKE

Baked this Egg Free Banana Crumb Cake for brunch or as a dessert.  I had some overly ripe bananas sitting on my kitchen counter.

This recipe is a perfect way to clear those bananas. It isn't a fancy cake but a moist and crumbly cake, full of flavor. This Banana Crumb Cake was lighter  than a typical banana cake. What makes this cake so special was the addition of  luscious crumb topping.

This cake was  perfect for a small gathering, it was easily completed in one sitting!

BLACK BREAD ROLLS

I bake this lighter and flavorful  Black Bread Rolls made with unsweetened cocoa, honey and instant coffee

This Black Bread  Rolls gets its color from cocoa and coffee. While it was a straight forward method but it takes a longer time to rise, mine took 2 hours to double in size. Anyway it worth to wait since this produces a remarkably pleasing roll.

Instead of having a regular loaf, I turned it into sliced rolls after brushing some butter over the dough then sprinkle sugar over the butter. It was rolled into a log then slice equally about an inch thick.

MY TIPS

Use your bread machine, it will be super easy. just put everything in the BM to prepare the dough.

Add more sugar since this recipe did not turn out very sweet, incorporate additional sugar for a bit extra sweetness

You can use other filling too, cream cheese, coconut, chopped nut are great alternatives.

BLACK BREAD ROLLS
Yield    :    10 rolls

2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp instant coffee
1/2 tablespoon cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 tsp instant yeast
2 tablespoon melted butter
1 medium banana mashed
less than 1/2 cup warm water
2-3 tablespoon softened  butter to brush over dough
2-3 tablespoon white/brown sugar to sprinkle

METHOD

Place flour, instant coffee, cocoa and instant yeast in a mixing bowl.

In another bowl, combine melted butter, banana, salt, honey and warm water.

Add in honey mixture to the dry ingredients.

Mix well and forms into soft dough. Knead on floured board until elastic and smooth.

Transfer into greased and covered bowl, let rise until double for 1.5 to 2 hours.

Punch dough down, roll out dough into rectangle about 10 x 12 in.

Brush 2-3 tablespoon of softened butter over the top of the dough. Sprinkle sugar over the butter on the prepared dough.

Starting with long edge, roll up dough, pinch seams to seal.  Using sharp knife,  equally  cut into  1 in  thick slice.

Place cut side up in a prepared pan, flattening them slightly. Let sit for 45 minutes, towards the end of rising time, heat the oven @ 190 C.

Bake for 15 minutes, transfer onto rack to cool.

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BAKED YEAST DOUGHNUTS

I really love baking doughnuts because I can easily avoid some calories and fat. This is a great make ahead  recipe. You can get the dough mixed up the night before and let it rise overnight in the refrigerator.

The Baked Yeast Doughnuts make from ingredients you probably already have. Using yeast dough these little treat involve no deep frying but still taste delicious.

Make them more exciting and fun with variable glazes/toppings, such as chocolate, nuts and sprinkles, vanilla, caramel or maple. They are such a delight for the whole family!

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MINI APPLE LATTICE CROSTATA

This free form pie is simply the easiest you'll ever make. It consists of a buttery  pastry and filling.

I have made my pastry completely  by hand but you can also obtain a good result using a food processor.

The filling was even easier - no cooking required, just combine the sliced apples with sugar, lemon juice and all purpose flour.  Keep the sliced apples separately, it will produce more juice if kept longer. When you have rolled out the pastry, combine the apple (without the juice) with the rest of the ingredients except the butter and mound them on your pastry. This will often take care of the problem of soggy base.

I have given my crostata a makeover by topping the apple mixture with pastry strips rather than weaving a traditional  lattice but it can be done without it.