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.

WHEAT COCONUT SWEET DOSA

Ingredients:
Whole wheat flour - 2 cups
Freshly grated coconut - 1 cup
Salt to taste
Sugar - 1 or 2 tbsp


Preparation:
Mix salt with wheat flour and add water to prepare dosa batter.


Heat a tawa and pour one ladle batter.


Sprinkle some coconut and sugar to taste.


Allow to cook for about 1 minute. Fold and serve.


Sweetness of sugar, freshness of coconut and taste of wheat together gives a heavenly treat to the taste buds.

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.

PAZHAM PORI / PLANTAIN FRY

Ingredients:
Plantain - 2 large or 3 medium
Non bleached all purpose flour or whole wheat flour - 1 cup
Rice flour or fine semolina - 1 tbsp
Sugar - 1 tbsp
Sugar to taste
Turmeric powder (optional) - a pinch
Oil to deep fry


Preparation:
Select ripe plantain. The skin must be black. Only then it tastes good.


Mix all the ingredients except oil and plantain in a mixing bowl. Add water to make batter of dosa or pancake consistency.


Peel the plantains and half them.


Now slice each piece to 4 to 6 pieces.


Heat oil in a heavy bottomed deep pan. When oil is hot enough to fry, dip plantain slits in the batter and fry until golden. When one side is golden turn and fry until the other side too is golden.

Serve hot with tea or coffee. It hoes best with black tea or black coffee.

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.

THINAI / FOXTAIL MILLET PALM CANDY PONGAL

Ingredients:
Thinai / Foxtail millet - 1/2 cup
Dehusked green gram splits / siru payiru paruppu / moing dal - 1/2 cup
palm candy / panankarkandu - 1/2 cup
Water 3 cups + 3/4 cup
Clarified butter / ghee - 1/4 cup
Salt a pinch
Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp
Cashews and raisins - as needed


Preparation:
Boil palm candy in 3/4 cup water until it dissolves. Filter and keep aside.


In 3 cups water cook washed rice and dal. After water comes to boil reduce flame to medium.  It will be done in 20 minutes.


Roast cashews and raisins in a table spoon of ghee. Now add cardamom powder, palm candy water, and salt.


Heat in medium flame by continuously mixing. Add ghee, roasted cashews and raisins. Continuously mix for about 5 minutes or until pongal gets thicker. Serve hot. 

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.