Zebra Cake

Everybody like vanilla cake and chocolate cake, but mix together is this zebra cake. Yesterday was one of my friend’s birthday and thinking of what to bake, suddenly this cake came to mind so tried this.

                                This cake is so moist just you will finish all the cake at the time, no remaining for tomorrow. This cake taste good as it is if you want you can add chocolate glaze. Anyhow you are going to have it is your choice how you want to enjoy this cake.  

  

Ingredients:-

• Eggs - 4 Nos.
• Sugar - 1 cup (200g)
• Butter - 1 cup (200 g), at room temperature
• Milk - 1 cup (240 ml)
• Vanilla extract - 1 tsp
• Flour - 3 cups (375g)
• Baking powder - 2 tsp (10 g)
• Salt - 1/4 tsp

For the chocolate batter:-

• Cocoa powder - 3 tbsp (25g)
• Milk - 1/4 cup (50ml)
• Sugar - 1 tbsp (15g)

Procedure:-

1. Grease and line with parchment paper, a 24 cm (9 in) round cake pan. Preheat oven at 180 (350 F).
2. Whisk together in a large bowl the dry ingredients, flour salt and baking powder. Set aside
3. In another bowl mix the cocoa powder with 1/4 cup milk and 1 tbsp of sugar
4. Mix butter with sugar until creamy. Add eggs one at a time and mix until well incorporated. Add vanilla extract.
5. With the mixer on low, alternate adding gradually milk and flour mixture until all is well incorporated.
6. Remove half of the batter and mix them with the chocolate mixture
7. Use one tablespoon for each batter to create the layers of batter on the prepared pan. Begin from the middle of the pan, take one spoon of white batter then over it add a spoon of chocolate batter and repeat this steps until all batter has been used. (If you don't have the patience to make these layers just add one batter on top of the other and create swirls with a knife or fork to create the marbled effect)
8. Bake for 50-60 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
9. Remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes on a cooling rack before removing from the pan.
10. Serve as it is or top with chocolate glaze.

Notes:-

• Round cake pan is the best, so that you can get the swirl shape.
• Parchment paper is compulsory so that it won’t stick down or if you are using springform pan  it will leak from down.
•  For the exact zebra or swirl pattern add equal portion of batters i.e. if one spoon each continue the same pattern till the end.
• Cool the cake before removing from the cake pan.

Sholez zard

Sholeh zard is a veg rice pudding. It is commonly served during important days. It is literally means loose yellow. It tastes yummy.

• Basmati rice – 400gms
• Water – 1 litter hot water
• Unsalted butter – 100gms
• Sugar – 500gms
• Almonds – 100gms, slivered
• Saffron threads – 3tsp, ground, dissolved in 4 tbsp water
• Rose water – 80ml
• Cinnamon – 2tsp,to dust
• Unsalted pistachios – 2 handfuls, crushed

1. Wash the rice in cold water till the milky water begins to run clear, and soak for at least 1 hour or minimum 24 hrs. Thereafter, place the rice in a large, heavy bottomed pan with water and bring to a boil. Cover with lid and turn heat to low. Allow rice to cook for 30 minutes. The grain should appear short and broken.
2. Add butter, sugar, almonds and the saffron water to the rice. Stir gently over a low flame.
3. When all the ingredients are incorporate, replace the lid and allow cooking for 20-25 min. when ready, taking off the burner, adding rose water stir gently.
4. Refrigerate for at least 5 hours or overnight. Serve cold or at room temperature with a dusting of cinnamon or mix well. Add crushed pistachios.

Strawberry Cake

Strawberry – 250gms (chopped)

Butter – 100gms

Maida – 100gms

Egg – 3 No.

Baking powder – 1tsp

Sugar – 100gms + 3tbsp (powder)

Milk – 3tsp

Water - ¼ cup

Vanilla Essence – 1 tsp

1. First we have to make strawberry purée, for that we have to take a wok add the chopped strawberry and sugar. Let it boil for a minute and add the water till the strawberry become soft and mashed nicely. Now keep it side, let it cool.
2. Sieve maida and baking powder, twice or thrice. Keep a side.
3. Greece the baking tray and apply maida over it and remove the excess maida from the tray. Keep a side. In a big vessel take butter and wipe it nicely. Now add sugar little by little 3 times. Keep some sugar.
4. Now add maida to the above batter.
5. In between switch on the oven so that it will be pre-heated.
6. Separate egg white and the yolk, in another vessel put the egg white and beat it nicely, when it become fluffy add the remaining sugar to that. If you hold the vessel upside down also the egg white should not fall down.
7. Add the egg yolk to the butter batter.
8. Now do cut and fold method and put the egg white in the butter batter.
9. Now add the essence and the strawberry purée in the batter. And pour this in the baking try and keep it in oven 250 degree for 30 min.
10. Check it by putting a knife in to the cake if the knife is clear, then it s done other wise keep for some more time.

Strawberry chocochip cake

• Maida - 250gm
• Butter - 250gm
• Sugar - 250gm(powder)
• Egg – 4
• Choco chips – 50gm
• Fresh strawberry – 100gm
• Sugar – 3 tsp
• Salt - a pinch
• Baking powder - 1tsp
• Vanilla essence - 1tsp

1.     Sieve maida and baking powder, twice or thrice. Keep a side.

2.     Chop the strawberry roughly.

3.     Now take a pan and put the strawberry and 3 tsp sugar, heat it till all the juice come out if the berry and mash it nicely and keep aside.

4.     Greece the baking tray and apply maida over it and remove the excess maida from the tray. Keep a side.

5.     Take all the dry fruits in a small vessel and to that add 2tsp of maida and mix it and keep it a side.

6.     In a big vessel take butter and wipe it nicely. Now add sugar little by little 3 times. Keep some sugar.

7.     Now add maida to the above batter.

8.     Add the strawberry mixture and mix it nicely.

9.     In between switch on the oven so that it will be pre-heated.

10. Separate egg white and the yolk, in another vessel put the egg white and beat it nicely, when it become fluffy add the remaining sugar to that. If you hold the vessel upside down also the egg white should not fall down.

11. Add the egg yolk to the butter batter.

12. Now do cut and fold method and put the egg white in the butter batter.

13. Now add the essence in the batter. And pour this in the baking try and keep it in oven 250 degree for 20 min.

14. Check it by putting a knife in to the cake if the knife is clear, then it is done other wise keep for some more time.

AMANDE CRÈME BRÛLÉE

Don't be afraid! Its written in french i.e. Almond Creme Brulee or Almond burnt cream, which mean a baked custard dessert, topped with caramelized sugar crust. Actually brulee is made of egg yolk but I don't like egg in chilled form, so I tried this one in which they had used custard powder.

•  China grass - 10 gms
• Custard powder - 2 tbsp
• Milk - 6 cups
• Sugar - 6 tbsp or 100 gms
• Vanilla essence - 1 tsp
• Sugar - to caramelizing
• Almond - Few (finely chopped)

1. Soak the china grass in a cup of water for 5 - 10 min. Heat the pan, add the mixture and stir it continuesly till the grass dissolves completely. Keep aside
2. In the deep bowl, combine the custard powder in cold milk. mix it well and keep it aside.
3. In another pan, boil the remaining milk and sugar. When the milk starts to boil add the custard mix and the china grass mixture and stir it continually until it boil and cook well. 
4. Keep this mixture aside till it cools. 
5. Now add the almond and mix well. Divide it into different bowl and refrigerate it till it sets.
6. Now in a pan heat a teaspoon of sugar till it caramelize and the colour changes to light brown.
7. Now pour this over the set custard and sprinkle some almonds on top and serve it immediatly. 

NOTE: If you want to reduce the calories, you can use low fat milk.

Khoya paratha

• Unsweetened khoya - 1 cup
  
  
• Sugar - 4 tsp
• Cardamom powder - ½ tsp
• Wheat flour - 1 cup
• Water - ½cup (Approximately)
• Salt -  to taste
• Oil - to fry

1. In a bowl mix khoya, sugar and cardamom powder. Keep aside.
   
2. In another bowl add wheat flour and salt, mix well. Now add  water little by little and make a dough.
3. Take small ball size dough and make little flat and keep the khoya mixture in the center and close the dough and role it flat.
4. Heat the tava and put this paratha. Let it brown from one side then turn the other side.
5. Now apply oil on both the side, when cooked nicely, remove from the tava. Now ready to serve.

• TIPS:
• The dough should not be very hard.
• Khoya mixture should not be watery.

Badhusha

• Maida - 300gm
• Sugar - ½ kg
• Cardamom powder - ½tsp
  
• Vanaspathi - 100gm
• Bakking soda - a pinch
• Curd - 1 Tbsp
• Oil - deep fry

1. First we will make sugar syrup by adding sugar and water in 2:1 ratio and also add cardamom powder, it should be sticky.
2. Now in a big bowl add maida, vanaspahti, bakking soda and curd, mix all together with hand.
3. Now add water as little as possible and make a dough.
4. In a wok add oil to heat. Take a small portion of dough and make a ball and give a dispersion in the center.
5. Now deep fry it batch by batch till light brown and soak in the sugar syrup for 45- 1 hr and take it out.

Note:

1. To conform that your dough is ready, take a portion and role it, it should role with out crack.
2. Don't keep the dough for long time, other wise it will ferment.
3. Don't make the ball and keep, do it at the time of  frying.
4. You can also decorate it with colored desicated coconut by mixing the coconut with different food colors.

Chocolate peda

• Milk powder - 1 cup


• Condensed milk - 200gms


• Cocoa powder - 3-4tsp


• Butter - 80-100gms
  

1. Microwave the butter for 1 mint. at 100% till it melts.


2. To the melted butter add the milk powder, condensed milk and cocoa powder.


3. Keep this mixture in microwave for 1 mint. at 100% and mix it well in between.


4. Again keep in the microwave for 10 sec at 100%, keep a watch when it become fluffy off it.


5. When the heat become tolerate to hand grease your hand and make it into peda.

Sweet with maida

It is very simple sweet. If you want to make it rich you can add the dry fruits.Insted of adding cardamom powder you can also add rose essence or syrup, it smells good and the colour will also be very nice.

• Maida - 1 cup


• Sugar - 5 tsp


• Cardamom powder  - ½ tsp


• Semolina or suji - 3 tsp


• Salt - a pinch


• Water - as required
  


• Oil - to deep fry

1. In a wok keep the oil to heat.


2. Take a vessel and add maida, suji, salt and sugar, mix all this nicely with the help of water. Not too thick or not too watery.


3. Now add the cardamom powder.


4. In the hot oil pour this mixture and deep fry till golden brown


5. Now it is ready to eat.
   

Payasam or kheer(rice)

• Rice - ½ cup
• Water - 10 cups or more
• Jaggery - 1 cup or as required
• Cardamom powder - ½ tsp
• Sugar - 4 tsp
• Salt - a pinch
• Coconut - 1 ½ cup
• Ghee - 2 tsp
• Cashew nut - to garnish

1. Soak rice for half an hour.
2. Now grind it with coconut nicely.
3. In a kadai add the ghee and roast the cashewnut and keep aside.
4. In another kadai put the jaggery and little water so that it dissolves. Now filter it to remove the dirt and keep a side.
5. In another kadai put this rice paste, salt, sugar and jaggery, mix it well.
6. Continua sly stir it so that it won't stick down, till it thickens.
7. Now add the cashewnut and serve it hot or cold.

Bebinca
(rich, layered pudding)1 kg castor sugar
3 cups coconut milk (extract of 2 coconuts)
20 egg yolks
100 gm flour
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
2 tsp cardamom essence
1 cup clarified butter (ghee)

Mix the castor sugar with the coconut milk till dissolved. Beat egg yolks till creamy, and add to the coconut milk and mix the flour in it thoroughly, without any lumps. Add this to the mixture of coconut milk, sugar and eggs, along with the nutmeg and cardamom. Take a deep pan, about 6 inch in diameter and put a tablespoon of clarified butter in it. Put it under a grill ( medium heat ). Take it out of the grill and pour enough butter into the pan to cover the bottom about 1/2 inch in thickness. Put under the grill for about 2 minutes and let it cook till it is deep brown in colour. Remove from grill, put a dessert spoonful of clarified butter over the cooked layer, following it with enough batter to cover the first layer, about 1/4 inch thick.
Repeat this process till all the batter and clarified butter has been used up in the same way. The batter must always be in the same proportion. The last layer has to be the clarified butter. When cool, turn out onto a dish, keeping the first layer face down. Decorate the last layer with a few slivers of toasted almonds if desired. To serve, cut into thin slices

Vermicelli Pudding

• Vermicelli – 2 ½ cups


• Sugar – 1 ½ cups


• Hot water – 5 cups


• Milk powder – 3 tbsp


• Ghee or clarified butter – ½ cup


• Cardamom powder – ¼ tsp


• Orange food colour – ¼ tsp


• Cashew nut – as required


• Salt – a pinch

1. In a kadai put ¼ cup ghee and add cashewnut and roast it till golden brown.


2. Remove the cashewnut and keep a side and add the vermicelli and fry it till golden brown.


3. When it is brown add the hot water and colour, cover with lid till it is cooked fully.


4. When all the water is evaporated add the sugar, milk powder, cardamom powder and the remaining ghee, mix well.


5. In mean time grease a plate with ghee and keep a side.


6. Mix all the ingredients well till it separates from the kadai.


7. Now switch off the stove and transfer it to the greased plate and arrange the cashewnut over it.


8. Cut it when it is set and now it is ready to serve.

Chocolate Peda

• Milk powder - 1 cup


• Condensed milk - 200 gm


• Cocoa powder - 3-4 tsp


• Butter -80 - 100 gms

1. In a microwave safe bowl put the butter for 1 min. at 100% power, so that the butter melt.


2. To this add milk powder, condensed milk and cocoa powder.Mix it well.


3. Now keep this mixture in the microwave for 1 min. at 100% power.


4. Mix it well and again keep into the microwave at 100% for 10 sec, but keep a watch, when it comes as fluffy take it out.


5. When it become tolerant to your hands grease your hand and make it as peda shape.
   

Note: If you want it to make more rich you can add cashew nuts, raisins etc.

Malai Phirni

It is Kashmir's famous dessert made from milk, rice and sugar. It is very easy to make in microwave and delicious to eat.

• Rice - 50gms


• Toned Milk - 3 cups
  


• Sugar - 100gms


• Cardamom powder - 1tsp


• Cream or malai - 1 tsp (whipped)

1. Clean, wash and soak the rice for 30 min.
   


2. Drain the water and grind the rice, sugar and cardamom with little water.


3. In a microwave safe bowl, boil the milk at 100% for 6-7 min.


4. Now add the rice paste to it and microwave it covered for 10-12mins. at 50% power or till it thickens.Stir in between.


5. Cool it and then add the cream, again microwave at 50% power for 7-8mins.
   


6. Now chill in the refrigerator and serve it.
   

Vermicelli or Semya Cake

This dish was tried by me, actually I was thinking of making kheer but I thought I should try some thing different, so the result is this.

• Vermicelli - 1 cup
• Sagu or sabudana – ¼ cup
• Sugar – as required
• Cardamom powder – ½ tsp
• Salt – a pinch
• Milk –1 cup
• Ghee - as required
• Cashewnut - as required
• Raisins - as required

1. In a pan put ghee and fry the cashew nut till golden brown.
2. In a pan put 2 tbsp of ghee and put the vermicelli and fry till golden brown and now put water to cook.
3. In another wok fry the  sagu till it pop up and then add water to that so that it cook nicely.
4. Now put the sagu to the vermicelli and add the milk, sugar, salt and cardamom powder, cook it till dry.
5. Now add the fried cashewnuts to this.
6. In a mean time apply ghee to the plate and transfer it.
7. Let it cool and now cut in to pieces as desired.
8. It is ready to serve.

Eggless Cake

• Maida - 200 gm
• Sugar - 150 gm
• Milk Powder - 100 gm
• Condensed milk - 100 gm
• Butter - 150 gm
• Vanilla essence - 1 tsp
• Baking powder - 1 tsp

1. Sieve maida and baking powder and keep aside.
2. Grease the vessel in which you are going to bake and dust maida over it and keep aside.
3. Preheat the oven at 200 degree Celsius.
4. Take a big vessel and in that add butter whip it nicely, now to that add sugar and make as a creamy texture.
5. To this cream add milk powder, condensed milk and vanilla essence.
6. Mix this mixture nicely.
7. Now add maida to this mixture  and mix it well.
8. The batter should be lose not too much, if you lift the spoon full of batter and drop it down it should fall as a ribbon.
9. Now you can transfer this batter into greased vessel and keep in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes at 150 to 200 degree Celsius.

Marie Biscuit Pudding

• Marie biscuit or Tea biscuit - 1 pack


• Milk - 500ml


• Sugar - 5tbsp


• Cornflour - 3level tbsp


• Cocoa powder - 3tbsp


• Coffee powder - 4 to 5 tbsp


• Nuts - for garnish

1. Dip the marie biscuit in coffee decoction (on both side) and layer them in a serving bowl.


2. Put all the biscuits like this.


3. In a pan boil milk and sugar.


4. In another bowl mix cocoa powder and corn flour. Make a paste using very little milk, take care not to form lumps.


5. When the milk boils, add this cocoa powder paste and mix well.


6. Keep string because it will start thickening immediately.


7. Switch off the stove when it thick kens.


8. While still hot pour it over the biscuits and cover the biscuits all over with the sauce.


9. Now garnish with the nuts.


10. Keep it in the fridge for 4 to 5 hours and serve it chilled.
    

Chocolate Marie Biscuit Magic

• Marie Biscuits or tea biscuits - 1 pack or 12 nos


• Butter - 4 to 5 tbsp


• Cocoa powder - 1tbsp


• Sugar powder - as per taste


• Instant coffee powder - 1tbsp


• Milk - 1/4cup

1. In the milk add the coffee powder and little sugar.


2. Dip each biscuit in the milk and arrange it one top of the other.


3. Cream butter and sugar together with cocoa powder.


4. Apply this cream evenly on all four side of the stacked biscuits.


5. Keep this in the fridge for at least 2 hours and cut into slices.
   

Biscuit fudge

It is a recipe for both non vegetarian and vegetarian. If you eat egg then you can add eggs otherwise you can add gelatin or custard powder.

• Butter - 1/2cup


• Sugar - 2cup


• Cocoa powder - 5tsp


• Milk - 1/2cup


• Biscuit - 8 to 10 nos


• Nuts - as required


• Vanilla essence - 1tsp


• Egg/ gelatin / Custard powder - 2no /2tsp /2tsp

1. Keep wok on the stove and put the butter in sim flame.


2. When it starts to melt switch off the stove.


3. In a bowl add sugar and cocoa powder, mix all togather.


4. Switch on the stove


5. Now put the cocoa powder in butter and mix it
   


6. Stitch off the stove.


7. Now add milk and mix well.


8. Switch on the stove.


9. Add egg and whisk it nicely.


10. Switch off the stove.


11. In a greased vessel put 1/4th of this mixture  and some nuts over it and keep it in the fridge for 10 to 15 minuets.


12. Then take it out of the fridge and dip the biscuit in the milk and remove excess milk and arrange it over the syrup.


13. Then again pour the remaining syrup and the nuts over it. Now keep it in the fridge till it sets.
    


14. When it is set  it is ready to eat.
    

Gulab Jamun

It is a dessert which is popular throughout the India.

• Maida - 250gm


• Khoya - 200gm


• Ghee - 250gm


• Milk - as required
  


• Cardamom powder - 1/2tsp


• Water - 300gm


• Sugar - 600gm


• Salt - a pinch


• Oil - to deep fry
  

1. First make the sugar syrup, for that in a kadai put the water, sugar and the cardamom powder half of  half teaspoon.


2. Let it boil nicely.


3. In a vessel put the khoya, remaining cardamom powder, salt and maida, mix all this with milk.


4. Kneed this as a dough.


5. Now make as a small balls.


6. Now in a kadai heat the oil and deep fry the balls till golden brown.


7. Now put this in the sugar syrup.
   

Sweet Maida Pakoda

It is a very simple and easy snacks  which can be made  in 5 min. When you eat this you will feel as if you are eating some kind of cake. It has coconut so it is good for children.

• Maida - 1cup


• Coconut - 1/2cup(small pieces)


• Sugar - 1/2cup


• Salt - a pinch


• Cardamom powder - 1/2tsp


• Oil - to deep fry
  

1. In a big vessel put maida, coconut, sugar,  salt and cardamom powder.


2. Add little water and make as thick dough as  you make for chapati.


3. In a kadai put oil to heat. Now put this dough into small pieces.


4. Deep fry till it become golden brown.


5. Now it is ready to serve.

Tips :- If you want to make this more rich, you can add cashewnuts, raisins, dry fruits etc