7 COLORED RAINBOW CAKE ON MY DAUGHTER'S 7TH BIRTHDAY

My daughter loves surprises. She wanted surprise cakes on her birthdays which I bake and decorate for her. So I decided to make her seventh birthday special by making a seven colored rainbow cake. This was in October 2016. Just 6 days back we moved to a new apartment in a new place. So most of my kitchen gadgets didn't reach me yet. I prepared this only with hand whisk and so the cake was dense. But still she was very much happy for the special treat.

We need 7 layers but I had only two 20 cm cake pans. So I prepared batter four times and baked the cake. For two layers we need these ingredients below.

Ingredients for two layers:

Egg - 1

Butter at room temperature - 1/4 cup

Sugar - 1/2 cup

Flour - 1 cup

Milk - 2 tbsp

Vanilla essence - 1 tsp

Baking powder - 1 tsp

Food colors:

Red, Orange, Yellow, purple, green, blue. For indigo I mixed blue and purple.

Other than these we need buttercream to decorate the cake.

Preparation:

Beat together sugar and butter. Add egg and beat until fluffy. Mix baking powder and flour and sieve together once. Now add this dry mixture to the egg mixture. Now add vanilla essence and milk. This batter will be thick. But it bakes to a softy spongy layer, Mine is not fluffy this time as i just whisked using wire whisk. The egg mixture must be fluffy, so that cake turns good.

Now divide the batter into two and add food colors. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

Repeat for other colours too. I baked cupcakes using the extra portion of batter after the seven layers.

Prepare buttercream and divide into eight. Mix in the food colors to get rainbow colors.

Leave one bigger portion without adding colors.

Arrange the layers one by one by placing same coloured buttercream in between. Finally coat with white buttercream and decorate.

I created rain bow design and a garden with rainbow colored flowers. Add sprinkles and wait to surprise the birthday girl.

EGGLESS JOWAR BANANA LOAF

I had few overripe bananas at home. I wanted to use them off somehow. So I decided to make eggless jowar banana bread. Ht before making I'm not sure that it turns out this yummy and fluffy. So I haven't clicked pictures. Only the final step I clicked as I kept sliced banana pieces over the batter. Even after adding to the batter i had 1 extra and so i decided to decorate with banana. So here is the recipe.

Ingredients:

Overripe banana - 4 1/2 (my son gulped half of 1 banana)

Milk - 100 ml

Oil - 1/4 cup

White sugar - 2 tbsp

Brown sugar - 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp

Lemon juice - 2 tsp

All purpose flour -3/4 cup

Great millet / jowar flour - 3/4 cup

Baking soda and Baking powder - 1 tsp each

Cinnamon powder - 1 tsp (optional)

Method:

Mash 3 1/3 banana and mix in milk, oil and sugar together.

Now mix all dry ingredients and sift. Now MX the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and pour in a loaf pan. Mine is 20cm loaf pan. Now slice the extra banana and arrange over the batter.

Bake in pre-heated oven at 180 degrees for 40 minutes.

Cool, slice and serve.

ORANGE JELLY LAYERED ORANGE CAKE

Orange cake

Ingredients:

 Eggs -2
 Sugar - 1/2 cup
 Oil - 1/4 cup
 Non bleached all purpose flour - 1 cup
 Baking powder - 1 tbsp
 Orange zest - 1 tbsp
 Orange juice - 2to3 tbsp

Preparation:

 First beat eggs well and then add sugar and beat again.

 Now add oil and beat until fluffy.

 Mix baking powder and flour. Now mix with the egg mixture and add orange zest too.

 Add orange juice to get cake batter consistency. Pour in 20 cm pan.

 Bake in pre-heated oven for 25-30  minutes.

 Orange jelly

Ingredients:

Sugar - 1/4 cup
Water - 250 ml
Agar agar - 20 gram
Orange juice - 250 ml

Preparation:

Boil water and sugar.

When it comes to boil, add agaragar mixed with water.

When it comes to boil, remove from flame and add orange juice.

Pour in 20 cm plate and allow to set in refrigerator.

Layering:

Whip cream with orange zest and some powder sugar.

Slice cake into two and place in a serving tray.

Layer first layer of cake with cream, then jelly, cream and finally next layer of cake.

Coat the cake with  cream.

Store cool in refrigerator and serve cool.

MILLETS CHOCOLATE BANANA LOAF

Ingredients:

Eggs - 3
Brown sugar - 3/4 cup
Ragi / finger millet flour - 1 cup
Bajri / pearl millet flour - 1 cup
Baking powder - 2 tbsp
Overripe banana - 3
Butter - 1/4 cup
Chocolate - 150 gram

Preparation:

Beat egg and sugar until fluffy. 

Melt butter and chocolate together. 

Mash bananas. 

Mix butter mixture with bananas. 

In the egg mixture add flours and baking powder. 

When mixed well add banana mixture.

Pour in greasd and dusted loaf pan and bake for 50 minutes.

APPLE JOWAR MOIST CAKE

Ingredients:
Eggs - 2
Brown sugar - 1/3 cup
Jowar flour - 1/2 cup
Almond flour - 1/2 cup
Apple small sized - 1
Lemon juice - 1/2 tsp
Orange juice - 1/4 cup
Melted butter - 1/4 cup
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Cinnamon powder - 1/4 tsp

Preparation:
Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees celcius.
Grind apple with lemon juice and orange juice.


Beat eggs with sugar until fluffy.


Mix jowar flour, almond flour and baking powder together.


Fold in this mixture to the egg mixture. Add apple paste, cinnamon powder and butter.


Fill in a greased and floured 18 cn cake tin.


Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes.
 

After 10 minutes remove from the tin, cool and serve.

BASIC BUTTERCREAM AND FEW VARIATIONS

Basic ingredients:
Butter - 1/2 cup
Icing sugar - 1 1/2 cup + (1/2 cup icing sugar for russian tulip piping)

For vanilla buttercream:
Vanilla extract - 1/2 tsp
Milk - 1 tsp

Orange buttercream:
Orange zest - 1/2 tsp
Fresh orange juice - 1 tsp

Chocolate buttercream:
Melted chocolate - 1 tbsp
Milk - 1 tsp
or
Add 1/2 cup cocoa powder
Vanilla extract - 1/2 tsp
Milk - 2 -3 tsp
Tip:
For strong chocolate flavor more cocoa powder and more milk accordingly can be added...

Lemon buttercream:
Lemon zest - 1/2 tsp
Lemon juice - 1 tsp

Any fruit flavor like raspberry, strawberry, pineapple etc:
Add 2- 4 tablespoon of particular jam or one tablespoon smoothly pureed fruits.
If necessary few drops of food coloring can be added.
Tip:
Use jam with no seed or fruit pieces. If not available please press through a sieve. For filling or spreading it doesn't matter.



Coconut buttercream:
Add 2 tablespoon of thick coconut cream.

Preparation:
Leave butter at room temperature overnight to make soft. Sift icing sugar and keep aside.
It is very important that the butter must be softened naturally to room temperature. If the butter is melted and cooled you don't get fluffy buttercream.

In a mixing bowl take softened butter.


Beat with hand mixer for about 5 minutes until it's pale and fluffy.

After beating for 1 minute.


After 5 minutes it became light, pale and fluffy.


Now add icing sugar teaspoon wise and mix well in low speed. When the added sugar is incorporated well add the next spoon. Scrap the sides using a spatula often.


When all the sugar is added, run the mixer at high speed for two minutes. Till this step is the basic recipe and at this point of time, flavor and some liquid for variations must be added as listed in the beginning.

I prepared vanilla buttercream. So clear vanilla extract and milk are added.

Soft and fluffy buttercream is now ready.


This butter cream is suitable for spreading over a cake, sandwiching between layers and also for piping.

If colored butter cream is required, add gel food colors and mix thoroughly.


I just showed three cupcakes frosted over flower shaped cupcakes.


This one is a flower using petal tip no: 123.


Or simply a star tip swirl.


If piping using Russian nozzles, the frosting must be stiffer to hold the shapes. So add another 1/2 cup of icing sugar to this basic butter cream. So the ratio is 1 part of butter to 4 parts of icing sugar.

Also it is very important to use icing sugar for smooth piping. If icing sugar is not easily available then you can prepare your own icing sugar. To get the recipe click here.

GERMAN CHRISTMAS STOLLEN

Ingredients:
All purpose flour - 600 grams
Luke warm milk - 200 ml
Butter - 200 gram
Powder sugar - 50 grams
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Egg - 1
Dry yeast - 7 gram
Vanilla extract - 1 tsp
Lemon zest - from 1/2 lemon
Black sultanian raisin - 75 grams
Golden raisins  - 100 grams
Mixed candied peel - 75 grams
Blanched and chopped almonds - 50 grams
Orange juice - 1/2 cup (Traditionally rum is used)

Extra:
Butter and powder sugar - 2 tbsp each for single coating or more according to the layers you make.

Preparation:
Soak raisins and mixed candied peel in orange juice.

For the dough take flour in a big bowl and make a pit in the middle


Pour warm milk in the middle, add yeast, a pinch of sugar, cover with damp cloth and rest for 10 minutes.


After 10 minures add powder sugar, salt,  egg, vanilla extract and lemon zest. Make a dough, its not a matter even if all flour is not used. Allow to raise for 45 minutes.


After 45 minutes add butter and make a soft dough. Rest for 30 minutes.


After 30 minutes mix the raisin-peel mix and almond and make a soft dough.


In a tray place a baking sheet and roll in to 1 inch thick disk. Fold one side to the center to get the traditional stollen shape.


Cover with cling film and rest for 30 minutes. In this mean time heat oven at 180 degrees Celsius.
After 30 minutes bake at lower tray for 35 to 45 minutes.

When completely cooled down, melt 2 tbsp butter. Brush over the stollen and sprinkle icing sugar.
Again repeat brushing butter and icing sugar coating several times to get traditional stollen. I just made a single layer.


Soft and mouth watering stollen is ready to serve.




Note:To get traditional taste add rum in place of orange juice and coat about 1/2 cm sugar.
Also store for a week by covering with a cling film. After 1 week you get the traditional taste.

MILLETS CHEESE CAKE

Ingredients:
Jowar / great millet flour - 125 grams
Kambu / pearl millet flour - 50 grams
Butter (at romtemperature)- 125 gram
Cottage cheese / soft paneer - 125 grams
Yoghurt - 2 tbsp
Eggs - 2
Sugar - 100 gram
Salt - a pinch
Baking powder - 1 tbsp
Vanilla sugar / vanilla extract - 1 tsp


Preparation:
Pre-heat oven at 180 degrees Celsius.
Cream together butter, cheese / paneer, salt and sugar.


Add eggs one by one and beat well.


Mix jowar flour, kambu flour and baking powder together.


Add little by little to the batter and beat well. Finally add 2 tbsp yoghurt and beat again.


Grease and dust a 18 cm cake pan and bake for 40 - 45 minutes.



Soft millets cheese cake isready to serve plainly with tea or with fresh cream.