If you like coconut, you will love these

I have always loved coconut, I love the things made out of it like Pina Colada, Thai food and coconut curries. In baking, it adds both flavor and texture however the end result can be dry when using desiccated coconut so when making coconut cake, often it is combined with yogurt or sour cream. I also made coconut tarts which are delectable and my best friend's favorite too. Recently I have learnt recipe of Basbousa which is a middle eastern coconut cake with a twist (and sometimes semolina aka suji is also added) from my neighbor. I will be posting it sometime next week. 

The entire prelude was to state that I made coconut cookies and they turned out awesome. I got some nice compliments for this. I think I will be settling down with this recipe of coconut cookies, atleast for a while. The recipe has been taken from Martha Stewart site and as they describe it, they are a cross between butter cookies and coconut macaroon, exactly what I was looking for. I love what salt does to these cookies and its background hint makes you wonder, whats that. 

Coconut Cookies

Adapted from Martha Stewart

Ingredients:

Shredded/Desiccated  Coconut approx. 5 cups

Sugar 1 cup

Salt 1/2 tsp

Baking powder 1/4 tsp

Butter 1/2 cup chilled and cut into cubes

Egg 1 

Vanilla essence 1 tsp

Flour 1 1/2 cup

Method:

1. Set aside 2 cups loosely packed coconut on a plate.

2. Place rest of the coconut, salt, sugar and baking powder in a food processor and process until finely grounded. 

3. Add butter and process until no lumps remain.

4. Add egg and vanilla and process just until smooth.

5. Add flour, pulse until a crumbly dough begins to form scraping the sides but don't over-mix.

6. If you are making by hand, or don't have food processor, grind the ingredients in step 2 in a grinder. Add butter and rub with fingers until mixed. Add egg and vanilla and mix well with a wooden spoon. Add in flour and combine to form a dough with hands. Don't knead.

7. Using a scoop or table spoon, form equal balls and roll them into reserved coconut. 

8. Arrange balls on lightly greased baking sheet at well placed distance. I used parchment lined baking sheet.

9. Bake in a pre-heated oven at gas mark 5 for about 25 minutes until light golden in color. 

10. Cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to wire racks and cool completely.

Not a Baker's but food lover's challenge - Making Nanaimo Bars with The Daring Bakers

Food Blogging community is amazing. I am loving each bit of it since I have started blogging and joined food blogosphere. I love being part of The Daring Kitchen. Thankyou all of you for inspiration, setting great standards in recipes, presentation, photography and help. 

The January 2010 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Lauren of Celiac Teen. Lauren chose Gluten-Free Graham Wafers and Nanaimo Bars as the challenge for the month. The sources she based her recipe on are 101 Cookbooks and www.nanaimo.ca

I really liked the challenge but it was more of a food lover's challenge then a baker's since it is pretty straightforward (although lengthy) to make but very challenging to resist. The way the layers compliment each other is great. I did not go for gluten-free version of graham crackers though since I knew they were not going to be used up and also because the three kinds of flour are difficult to find here. I have always loved graham crackers and making it yourself was a great idea. It is so simple to make and next time I do plan to make it with whole wheat flour to yield healthier version. 

Nanaimo Bars are a classic Canadian dessert created in none other than Nanaimo, British Colombia. In case you were wondering, it’s pronounced Nah-nye-Moh. These bars have 3 layers: a base containing graham crackers, cocoa, coconut and nuts, a middle custard layer, and a topping of chocolate. They are extremely rich and available almost everywhere across the country.


Assembling Nanaimo Bars themselves is a fun task. Making each layer, chilling and making next is quite fun. I loved the bottom layer - the way chocolate, crackers and coconut were complimenting each other was phenomenal. You must try this recipe. I loved the idea from one of my fellow Dating Bakers of turning these bars into mini chocolates or chocolate bars.  However, they are eaten, they are addictive and delicious.


For a very dear friend of mine who was looking for any gluten-free dessert recipe for her son's upcoming birthday, I am listing down ratios of gluten-free flours as well. 

Graham Crackers
Ingredients:
Sweet Rice Flour or Glutinous Rice flour 1 cup
Tapioca Starch/Flour 3/4 cup
Sorghum Flour 1/2 cup
OR 
Substitute all above three flours with 2 1/2 cups plus 2 tbsp of All-purpose-flour


Dark Brown Sugar (lightly packed) 1 cup [I used light brown sugar and it was ok]
Baking soda 1 tsp
Salt 3/4 tsp
Unsalted butter (frozen and cut into 1 inch cubes) 7 tbsp
Honey 1/3 cup
Milk 5 tbsp
Vanilla essence 2 tsp


Method:
1. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, combine the flours, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt. Pulse on low to incorporate. Add the butter and pulse on and off, until the mixture is the consistency of a coarse meal. If making by hand, combine aforementioned dry ingredients with a whisk, then cut in butter until you have a coarse meal. No chunks of butter should be visible.
2. In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together the honey, milk and vanilla. Add to the flour mixture until the dough barely comes together. It will be very soft and sticky.
3. Turn the dough onto a surface well-floured with sweet rice flour or all-purpose flour and pat the dough into a rectangle about 1 inch thick. Wrap in plastic and chill until firm, about 2 hours, or overnight.
4. Divide the dough in half and return one half to the refrigerator. Sift an even layer of sweet rice flour or All-purpose flour onto the work surface and roll the dough into a long rectangle, about 1/8 inch thick. The dough will be quite sticky, so flour as necessary. Cut into 4 by 4 inch squares. Gather the scraps together and set aside. Place wafers on one or two parchment-lined baking sheets. Chill until firm, about 30 to 45 minutes. Repeat with the second batch of dough.
5. Gather the scraps together into a ball, chill until firm, and reroll. Dust the surface with more sweet rice flour or all-purpose flour and roll out the dough to get a couple more wafers.
6. Prick the wafers with toothpick or fork, not all the way through, in two or more rows.
7. Bake for 25 minutes in a pre-heated oven at gas mark 5, until browned and slightly firm to the touch, rotating sheets halfway through to ensure even baking. Keep an eye if you are using all-purpose flour since they get browned quickly.
9. When cooled completely, place enough wafers in food processor to make 1 ¼ cups (300 mL) of crumbs. Another way to do this is to place in a large ziplock bag, force all air out and smash with a rolling pin until wafers are crumbs.
10. This proportion makes a lot of wafers so you might want to divide the recipe into half. 

Nanaimo Bars 

Ingredients:

For Nanaimo Bars — Bottom Layer
1/2 cup (115 g) (4 ounces) Unsalted Butter
1/4 cup (50 g) (1.8 ounces) Granulated Sugar
5 tablespoons (75 mL) Unsweetened Cocoa
1 Large Egg, Beaten
1 1/4 cups (300 mL) (160 g) (5.6 ounces) Graham Wafer Crumbs (See previous recipe)
1/2 cup (55 g) (1.9 ounces) Almonds (Any type, Finely chopped)
1 cup (130 g) (4.5 ounces) Coconut (Shredded, sweetened or unsweetened)

For Nanaimo Bars — Middle Layer
1/2 cup (115 g) (4 ounces) Unsalted Butter
2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons (40 mL) Heavy Cream
2 tablespoons (30 mL) Vanilla Custard Powder (I used Betty Crockers' Caramel powder)
2 cups (254 g) (8.9 ounces) Icing Sugar [i used 1 1/2 cups to reduce sweetness]

For Nanaimo Bars — Top Layer
4 ounces (115 g) Semi-sweet chocolate
2 tablespoons (28 g) (1 ounce) Unsalted Butter

Method:
1. For bottom Layer: Melt unsalted butter, sugar and cocoa in top of a double boiler. Add egg and stir to cook and thicken. Remove from heat. Stir in crumbs, nuts and coconut. Press firmly into an ungreased 8 by 8 inch square dish or pan.
2. For Middle Layer: Cream butter, cream, custard powder, and icing sugar together well. Beat until light in colour. Spread over bottom layer.
3. For Top Layer: Melt chocolate and unsalted butter over low heat. Cool. Once cool, pour over middle layer and chill.

Some important points:
1. Toast almonds and coconut lightly for added flavor.
2. If you are making in a hot weather, make sure you chill each layer for neat appearance and layers dont' get smudged. 
3. Chocolate in the top layer should be cool so it doesn't melt the middle layer but still liquid for easy spreading.
4. These bars freeze really well and graham crackers can be put in air-tight container for upto 2 weeks.
5. A very good video which i found helpful can be watched here 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5aqa6R1jIM&feature=fvsr 
6. Some good sources on gluten-free baking
 http://www.thesensitivepantry.com/the-sensitive-pantry/2009/8/3/grahams-plain-fancy.html 
http://glutenfreemommy.com/gluten-free-grains-101-the-best-flour-blend/ 

Genoise Sponge turned into a Black Forest Gateau and a great book review

This is another post right from the heart. Long before I knew I would do Cake Decorating at some point in my life, this was my favorite thing to make. Black Forest Cake moistened with syrup and loaded with fresh whipped cream and topped with any seasonal fruit of your choice. It is quick to do and is definitely a crowd pleaser in my case hubby pleaser. This cake gained additional importance in my life since my hubby dear loves it. He totally enjoys chilled moistened cake with fresh cream and strawberries. So today, I planned to give him a little surprise as he was missing this cake alot lately and I was not getting time to do it. Another reason for this post is one of my apt follower requested something similar in order to please her man. God, we spoil them :) 

This recipe is adapted from a wonderful gift from my sister. The only thing common about this book is that it is a Chocolate Cookbook. But it is a such a unique and informative book that educates you about chocolate in a very interesting manner. It has all the information on types of chocolate, how to taste it, how to judge quality, special equipment and tools required to work with it and what not, followed by very nice set of selected recipes. When it was given to me I thought it was a chocolate bar. I love this information packed (as opposed to calorie packed) chocolate bar on my kitchen shelf. Thankyou sista :)

Enough of talking, coming to some recipe education, Genoise Cake is originally a French butter sponge cake or European sponge cake [description courtesy: Joy of Baking] is somewhat similar to sponge cake with a difference that in this one, a little melted butter is added which give extra flavor and richness to the sponge. In sponge, eggs are usually separated and beaten but in Genoise, eggs are beated whole. Since the Genoise sponge can be dry, it is important that it is moistened with syrup or juice and the flavor penetrates into the sponge when it is kept for sometime. So make sure you time your making and serving carefully.

Genoise Sponge

Ingredients:
Eggs 3
Sugar 1/3 cup
Flour 1/2 cup
Cocoa Powder 2 tbsp
Butter (melted, don't boil it) 1 tbsp

Method:

1. Prepare 6" round cake tin. For double recipe use 8". Grease it lavishly and then dust with flour. Remove excess flour. 
2. Beat eggs and sugar for about 8 minutes with a beater until ribbon like.
3. Sift flour and cocoa powder together. 
4. Add quarter of flour+cocoa mixture to the egg batter and fold in carefully incorporating maximum air. Use spatula to do this. Add in remaining flour in batches alternating with melted butter until everything is incorporated.
5. Pour the mixture in prepared pan and bake in a pre-heated oven at gas mark 4 for 25-30 minutes until done.
6. Keep in pan for 10 minutes after removing from oven and then loose the edges with knife and invert it carefully on a plate. Invert again so the face of cake is up again.


For Black Forest Gateau:
1 chocolate Genoise [see above]
Whipping cream or fresh cream 3/4 cup
Icing sugar 1 tbsp
Sugar 1/4 cup
Water 1/4 cup
Strawberries 5-6 [chopped or sliced]


Assembling:
1. Make syrup by placing sugar and water in a pan and heating it till sugar dissolves. I added a stick of cinnamon for added flavor.
2. Whip chilled cream to soft peaks. Add in icing sugar and beat again until fluffy.
3. Cut Genoise into half carefully with a serrated knife.
4. On one half, Pour half syrup evenly distributing specially around the edges.
5. Spread half cream and strawberries.
6. Sandwich with other half of Genoise. 
7. Repeat step 4 and 5 above.


Chill in fridge for atleast 2 hours before serving.

What can beat the aroma of fresh home-made bread? NOTHING!

When entering a super market, we often experience the aroma of freshly baked breads and bakery items. It is that smell which tempts you to buy some even if you don't need them. Nothing can beat that aroma and atleast thats true for me. Although Sunday (or Friday here in KSA) is a lazy day but at the same time, I want to have something special for breakfast, an elaborate family meal. I do try lot of breads and rolls but I have to 'plan' them out due to time required to rise, roll and again rise the dough. Since I have discovered this recipe, I make this very often for two reasons, its super quick and tastes awesome. Though I am not an expert in bread making chemistry but I have a feeling that a little baking powder in this recipe does the trick. You have to try this recipe if you are yet to break your yeast fear and also to treat your family with something special. Sacrifice one hour of your off day and result -  super soft, airy, light bread rolls which you can munch on whole day, well worth right?

I stumbled upon this recipe when one of my other overnight bread recipe turned out a disaster the next morning and hubby was adamant to eat home made bread that day. 
Serve it right out of the oven with butter (slightly salted), cheese, labneh (greek yogurt) and ofcourse tea/orange juice. Consider yourself warned, this is addictive. This recipe is adapted from a great blog Tea and Wheaten Bread and she has some great posts on breads and rolls. Thanks Granny [can I call you so??] again for sharing this wonderful recipe. This recipe goes to Susan who conducts YeastSpotting.

Soft and Simple Bread Rolls
adapted from Tea and Wheaten Bread
Ingredients:


Flour (all purpose flour) 2.5 cups
Yeast 1 tsp (instant or granules)
Warm water 7 fluid ounces [I take it as needed]
Dried milk powder 1/2 tbsp [or use 100ml milk plus 100 ml water mixture, didn't try this]
Vegetable Oil 2 tbsp
Sugar 1 tsp
Salt 1/2 tsp
Baking Powder 1/8 tsp


Method:
1. For yeast: If you are using granules, places yeast, 1tsp extra sugar and little warm water approx. 2 tbsp in a small bowl and leave to froth for about 10 minutes until pale and foamy. If you are using instant yeast, skip this step.
2. Although the original recipe call for a different method, I made it in my own way. Turned out great nevertheless. 
3. Place all ingredients including frothed yeast in a large bowl or food processor or stand mixer if you have with dough hook or blade.
4. Mix all very well, if you are doing with your hands it will be a little messy but thats alright.
5. Start adding warm water and you have to add enough water to make a VERY soft dough. The consistency of the dough is directly proportional to the softness of bread. If it gets too sticky, sprinkle some more flour until everything is smoothed out and you have a very soft, smooth dough by kneading it a little.
6. Place in a greased bowl to rise for 15-20 minutes covered in a warm place. If you have winters, put it in oven which was on a while ago or place it near burning stoves.
7. Punch down to knock out air and make 6 small smooth balls. 
8. Arrange them in a 5-petal flower shape in an 8 inches round cake tin which has been greased lightly. 
9. Cover and let it sit to rise again for 30 minutes. 
10. Bake in a pre-heated oven for 20-25 minutes at gas mark 4 until golden brown. You can put under grill for 1 minute if the top is still white and bottom is done.

Naan Khatai - a traditional cookie flavored with cardamom and pistachios

Sometimes you are at a loss. No ideas whatsoever, you have favorites at Tastespotting, you have archives, you have notes on what recipes to try and you have people feedback but nothing seems to fit. I cannot write a post to 'fill in' space. I have to absolutely love that recipe and it should look and taste amazing not to mention that it should be photographed decently.

This weeks' post is one of a kind of traditional Pakistani biscuits called Naan Khatai. It also has roots in Indian cuisine but they generally use semolina as well. This is a very old hands down recipe and I can't even recall whose recipe is this actually. It consists of only three main ingredients - oil, flour and sugar. It is flavored with freshly grounded cardamom. The cookies are brushed with beaten egg yolk and sprinkled with pistachios. The typical texture of these cookies should be powder like on the cracked tops. You can find them in almost all Pakistani bakeries and they are true all time favorites.

So next time when you have guests coming over in less than 30 minutes, give this a try. No need to thaw butter or use electric beaters. I am sure they will love it. And did I tell you that its totally egg-less?


Ingredients:
Flour 1 cup
Castor Sugar 1/4 cup
Light flavored Oil little less than 1/2 cup e.g canola
Ground cardamom 4-5
Egg yolk beaten, for brushing
Grounded pistachios for sprinkling


Method:
1. Place sifted flour, sugar and cardamom in a bowl.
2. Start adding oil and binding it with your hands.
3. When everything is combined and a ball can be formed, don't add more oil if left.
4. Make small balls [about 8 in this quantity] and place it on greased baking tray pressing them slightly.
5. Brush with egg yolk and sprinkle with pistachios.
6. Bake in a pre-heated oven for 15-20 mins at gas mark 5 until golden from bottom and tops have cracked and are nice and golden.

Shortbread - perfect textured cookies that melts in your mouth

This post is a quick post and the aim is to share a very successful recipe of shortbread cookies. I made it for a Flower Power Party held at my place last week [thats why I wasn't blogging that frequently]. I had made many things based on the theme and one of the most successful item was flower shaped shortbread cookies decorated with royal icing. Here is a picture of the party and the cake. This might give ideas to some of you for any parties you might be arranging. 

This recipe is taken from one of my top favorite blogs Joy of Baking written by Stephanie Jawroski. It was one of the first blog that inspired me to start blogging and I love the information she provides and am so impressed with the fact that she is doing this for a very long time. What a great informative website we have to follow. I have had no disappointments following the recipes of this site.

Shortbread are one of the most premium and luxurious cookies. Although made up of four key ingredients, these delectable treats are perfect combination for an evening tea. The flavors and textured can be varied by adding chocolate chips, or 1 tsp of cinnamon or 1tbsp of espresso powder or lemon/orange zest.For a more crunchy shortbread, you can replace 1/4 cup of flour with rice flour and for a more delicate taste, replace 1/2 cup flour with corn flour. You can create so many variations with the presentation also by decorating it with royal icing, sprinkle granulated sugar before baking, dipping them in melted chocolate etc. They store very well, in air-tight container for upto one week or in freezer for upto one month. Make sure you wrap them well before freezing. although many people suggested that its a good recipe to make cookie lollipops but i found the dough way to delicate to handle the stick and even after baking they are so fragile that they can't be made into lollies.

So here is the recipe exactly adapted from Joy of Baking followed by my royal icing recipe.


Ingredients:

Flour 1 cup 

Salt 1/8 tsp

Unsalted butter, room temperature 1/2 cup

Powdered (confectioners or icing) sugar 1/4 cup

Vanilla essence 1/2 tsp

Method:

1. Cream butter beating for about 1 minute on low speed.

2. Add sugar and beat for about 2 minutes until mixture is light and creamy.

3. Add essence and beat.

4. Add in sifted dry ingredients.

5. Mix gently with hand until just combined. Do not knead.

6. Make a flat fat disk and wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for atleast 1 hour.

7. Roll out on lightly-floured surface about 1/4 inch thick.

8. Cut into desired shapes and lift carefully with a broad knife.

9. Transfer onto parchment lined baking sheet or un-greased sheet.

10. Place it in fridge for 15 minutes. this step will make sure that cookies don't loose their shape.

11. Bake in a pre-heated oven at gas mark 5 for about 10 minutes until just golden at the base.

12. Cool completely before storing.

Royal icing:

Please refer to my previous post for the recipe.

Make royal icing of medium consistency. Add 1 tbsp water at a time. A good test for this is to leave a trail and if it disappears in 10 seconds, the icing is of right consistency for decorating the cookies. Fill  in piping bag with basic round tip [Wilton's 2 or 5] or zipper bag with corner snipped off. Play with designs. You can also add food color to royal icing but make sure that you add it before thinning it as food colors often alternate the consistency.

Architect instincts revived with this month's Daring Bakers Challenge

I missed last month's challenge because of travelling so I was really looking forward to the next one. But when I read the challenge, I was not excited, honestly I did not like at all. Two reasons for this, I don't have association with the tradition of making ginger bread houses (GBH) as many of my fellow bloggers have.After reading the challenge, I concluded that it was primarily for display purposes rather than eating and taste. I do cake decoration also but I always try to make sure that it doesnt only look fantastic but everything is edible and tasty too. I think your hard work pays off if people love what they see AND eat. 

Before continuing further, first off, blog checking lines

"The December 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to you by Anna of Very Small Anna and Y of Lemonpi. They chose to challenge Daring Bakers’ everywhere to bake and assemble a gingerbread house from scratch. They chose recipes from Good Housekeeping and from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book as the challenge recipes."

Since GBH is not a tradition for us, I chose Y's recipe primarily because of simplicity and ingredients availability. I decided to make half quantity of it because I wanted to make a small house for the challenge without consuming lot of ingredients. As compared to my first challenge Macaroons, this turned out pretty neatly and the entire process was a breeze. I think in the end I thoroughly enjoyed constructing the house as I always wanted to be an architect. Thankyou for the challenge, I have GBH expereince under my belt.

Y's recipe has few ingredients which are always available if you are a seasoned baker. The dough was initially dry and even after resting in fridge, it was falling apart. However, I managed to roll it out on a lightly floured surface and was able to cut out walls, roofs, front and back. Here is a small template I drew. 

The cookies once baked puffed up somewhat as mentioned in the recipe too but they were also very prone to breakage and turned out very fragile. Nonetheless, stable enough to be glued with royal icing, the house is still there after 2 weeks. I now plan to throw it away, and I hate doing that. The freshly baked cookies (I made some extra walls and doors) did not taste that bad, infact my fear of using spices like cloves, ginger finally broke. I think they really makes one wonder 'Whats that taste in the background'

Y's Recipe:
Scandinavian Gingerbread (Pepparkakstuga)
from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book by Beatrice Ojakangas 

1 cup butter, room temperature [226g]
1 cup brown sugar, well packed [220g]
2 tablespoons cinnamon
4 teaspoons ground ginger
3 teaspoons ground cloves
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ cup boiling water
5 cups all-purpose flour [875g]

1. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until blended. Add the cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Mix the baking soda with the boiling water and add to the dough along with the flour. Mix to make a stiff dough. If necessary add more water, a tablespoon at a time. Chill 2 hours or overnight.

2. Cut patterns for the house, making patterns for the roof, front walls, gabled walls, chimney and door out of cardboard.

3. Roll the dough out on a large, ungreased baking sheet and place the patterns on the dough. Mark off the various pieces with a knife, but leave the pieces in place.

4. [I rolled out the dough on a floured bench, roughly 1/8 inch thick (which allows for fact that the dough puffs a little when baked), cut required shapes and transferred these to the baking sheet. Any scraps I saved and rerolled at the end.]

5. Preheat the oven to 375'F (190'C). Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until the cookie dough feels firm. After baking, again place the pattern on top of the gingerbread and trim the shapes, cutting the edges with a straight-edged knife. Leave to cool on the baking sheet.

Royal Icing:

I used my own recipe of Royal icing which I learnt from Wilton cake decorating courses. It goes like 

3tbsp meringue powder

4cups icing sugar

6 tbsp warm water

Beat all ingredients in grease-free bowl till stiff peaks are formed.

I know many of my readers back home don't get meringue powder so you can use egg whites to make royal icing. I am quoting Y's recipe here. I have never tried making royal icing with egg whites.

1  large egg white
3 cups (330g) powdered sugar
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon almond extract

Beat all ingredients until smooth, adding the powdered sugar gradually to get the desired consistency. Pipe on pieces and allow to dry before assembling. If you aren't using it all at once you can keep it in a small bowl, loosely covered with a damp towel for a few hours until ready to use. You may have to beat it slightly to get it an even consistency if the top sets up a bit. Piped on the house, this will set up hard over time.

Happy Holidays to all my fellow bloggers!

Oatmeal BELL Cookies

Its been a long absence. I was visiting home and as vacations and festivals bring with it, I was very busy. I had a terrific vacations and now I am back on track. Working and baking and lot of things in-between. Best part of the trip was that I met couple of very old friends of mine who were also visiting from US and UK. Its great to see old familiar faces. One of them bought something which was utilized as soon as I touched the base. Hershey's chocolate. Initially I thought they were KISSES but then when I was already in the middle of the recipe, I realized that they were not KISSES, they were BELLS. Nevertheless, I continued and am glad I did. The recipe which was picked up from Hershey's website yield some great cookies both in quantity and quality. They are good all alone and I like them better without chocolate but since I had to utilize the chocolate, I pressed them anyway. This recipe is definitely a keeper and makes good cookie jar filler.

Oatmeal KISSES BELLS Cookies


Ingredients:

• HERSHEY'S KISSES BELLS Brand Milk Chocolates
• Butter or margarine, softened 1/4 cup
• Shortening 1/4 cup [If you don't have it, use butter instead]
• Granulated sugar 1/2 cup
• Brown sugar 1/2 cup
• Egg 1
• Flour 1 cup
• Baking soda 1/2 tsp
• Salt 1/2 tsp
• Rolled oats 1 cup + 1 tbsp
• Chopped nuts 1/2 cup

Method:

1. Cream both butter and shortening. Add in sugars and beat.

2. Add in egg and beat.

3. Add in all dry ingredients except oats and nuts.

4. Lastly add in oats and nuts.

5. Make 1 inch balls and place on un-greased baking tray.

6. Bake in a pre-heated oven at gas mark 5 for 8-10 minutes until golden brown.

7. Immediately press one KISS/BELL on each cookie.

8. Cool before storing.

I am giving oven temperatures conversions for your convenience.

Fahrenheit	Celsius	Gas Mark	Heat of Oven
225°	110°	1/4	Very cool
250	120	1/2	Very cool
275	140	1	Cool
300	150	2	Cool
325	160	3	Moderate
350	180	4	Moderate
375	190	5	Moderately hot
400	200	6	Moderately hot
425	220	7	Hot
450	230	8	Hot
475	240	9	Very hot

Surprise your family with a soft Apple Cake

I am travelling tomorrow to my home town, Karachi, Pakistan to spend Eid holidays with my family. This Eid is called Eid-ul-Adha and is celebrated on every 10th of last month of Islamic calendar. On this Eid Muslims sacrifice animals to remember Hazrat Ibrahim's (PBUH) obedience to Allah. 


I recently received an award from Memoria. She is a new food blogger, started around the same time as me but have come up with some great recipes and pictures - both are criteria of a good blog for me. Her recent entry of white cake is the one I am looking forward to try. As per blog award rules, I have to answer 35 questions in one word. So those of you who are interested, go to the bottom of this post. Thanks Memoria.

Winding up home for holidays is never easy and specially the food stuff. I try to bake-away of whatever is left, cheese, cream, butter etc. Usually three fruits come regularly in our house, apples, bananas and oranges. But sometimes, there is bad luck for some and they do not get eaten. Such was the condition of apples lying around in fruit basket with their wrinkled skin. They were hopeless but I try my best not to throw away things. Thats where my baking ideas creep in and I 'tastespotted' (this is my new google for recipe search) since I am a highly visual driven person. In my view, if it looks good then it tastes good. Seven recipes of apple cake that looked mouth-watering. Finally I was settled down with Zahavah recipe which had canola oil instead of usual butter since I was short on butter too (remember I am travelling :)). Another plus of this recipe is, it is so easy to make except the apple coring and slicing part. So far so good. I was all set to give it a try. When it came out of the oven, it looked delicious and after few clicks when I sliced to have a bite, it was awesome. The inside is soft and the apple chunks melt in your mouth while top is brown and crispy. Yum. This recipe is definitely a keeper. So next time, when you have apples waiting around to get consumed, stir up this cake and your family will love it. Perfect to accompany an early winter afternoon tea.

Apple Cake


adapted from koshercamembert


Ingredients:


Apples 4-5
Butter 2 tbsp
Sugar 2 tbsp
Lemon 1 tbsp


For Cake:
Flour 1 cup
Sugar 3/4 
Eggs 2
Canola Oil 1/2 cup
Baking Powder 1 tsp
Vanilla 1 tsp
Demerara Sugar 2-3 tbsp


Method:
1. Peel, core and thickly slice apples.
2. Squeeze lemon juice on it and mix.
3. Melt butter, add in apples and sugar.
4. Cook for 5 minutes until bubbly.
5. Place all cake ingredients in a bowl and beat it at low speed until combined.
6. Mix in half of the apples.
7. Pour it on a greased 9x4 inches rectangular pan or 9 inch round pan.
8. Spread rest of the apple mixture and sprinkle demerara sugar on it.
9. Bake in a pre-heated oven for 1 hour at gas mark 4 until golden brown and crisp crust is formed.

And here goes the answer of 35 questions. 


1. Where is your cell phone? Table
2. Your hair? Curly
3. Your mother? Best
4. Your father? Caring
5. Your favorite food? Pasta
6. Your dream last night?
7. Your favorite drink? Water
8. Your dream/goal? Business
9. What room are you in? Bedroom
10. Your hobby? Baking
11. Your fear? Animals
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Business Owner
13. Where were you last night? Mall
14. Something that you aren’t? Careless
15. Muffins? Chocolate
16. Wish list item? Kitchen Aid
17. Where did you grow up? Karachi
18. Last thing you did? Dinner
19. What are you wearing? Jeans
20. Your TV? LCD
21. Your pets? None
22. Friends? Few
23. Your life? Busy
24. Your mood? OK
25. Missing someone? Mum
26. Vehicle? Accord
27. Something you’re not wearing? Socks
28. Your favorite store? Tavola
29. Your favorite color? Black
30. When was the last time you laughed? Yesterday
31. Last time you cried? Today
32. Your best friend? Mom
33. One place that I go to over and over?
34. One person who emails me regularly? Client
35. Favorite place to eat? Fuddruckers

Chocolate Muffins for Monthly Mingle

My third consecutive post on chocolate, my love for this wicked thing is now evident. But wait, I have a reason. When Meeta from WFLH announced this month's monthly mingle, I thought I will post some traditional Pakistani brunch recipe, Halwa Puri which is very popular as a typical late sunday brunch. But time and resources restricted me, plus I am not very pro in traditional dishes. But that is in the plan, may be I will post next month when I am visiting home for Eid.


Often people confuse cupcakes with muffins. Yes, the shape is same and they are baked in what we call muffin tray but the difference that sets them apart is sugar,fat and egg content. Usually in muffins all these ingredients are in relatively low quantity and as the ratio of these ingredients increases, it yields what we call cupcakes. Since muffins are on healthier side and often whole wheat flour is used in place of white flour, they can be taken as a breakfast. Various fruits and nuts are incorporated to kick up the taste. Also cupcakes are often decorated with various frostings while muffins are not.

This recipe was taken due to my soon to expire sour cream, another favorite ingredient of mine. The settled taste that develops in baking goods made with sour cream is phenomenal. You can use 50-50 ratio of cream and yogurt if sour cream is not available or even full fat yogurt. This is a great recipe, can be made quickly which is often my criteria of selecting recipes, yields perfect dome shaped muffins and tastes excellent. What else can you ask for a breakfast or brunch dessert?

Originally the recipe was Spiced Chocolate Muffins, but I didn't use spice. The recipe was taken from little chocolate cookbook, my mother in-law gifted me a while back. This is the first recipe I tried out from it and the book looks promising.


Ingredients:


3 1/2 tbsp softened butter
1/2 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2/3 cup sour cream
5 tbsp milk
1 3/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp all spice (optional)
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips


Method:
1. Cream butter and sugars.
2. Beat in eggs, sour cream and milk thoroughly.
3. Sift all dry ingredients.
4. Stir it into sugar mixture or beat in at low speed.
5. Lastly, add in chocolate chips.
6. Divide the mixture into paper-lined 12-cup muffin tray about 2/3 full. 
7. Bake in a pre-heated oven at gas mark 4 for about 30 minutes. 
8. Cool in muffin tray for 10 minutes before taking them out and cool completely.


This post goes to Meeta for her monthly mingle theme Brunch.