Choco-Nut Tea Cake

Surprised to see a baked goodie here after so much rant about a diet?Worry not,you've come to the right place,lol.Thanks to all of you who sent me mails asking if I was ok,the diet part aside,I am doing great.But blog wise,I've been a bit off since I've been not cooking anything new and the least exciting.So I thought I should give a small treat to all of you and to myself for successfully[almost] going on with the diet and shaking off my weight here and there.

A tea-cake is called so because it is generally served with afternoon tea but can be applied loosely to any kind of cake that is sturdy enough to be picked up with the fingers.[source]

I've always been a tea-cake fan because it is the perfect answer for those cake-cravings sans the frosting.Though I've never actually baked a tea-cake per se,this and this are very similar to these.With the strong taste of butter and vanilla along with the melt in the mouth goodness and the crunch of nuts and chocolate chips in every bite this one's a winner for sure!!

Choco-Nut Tea Cake
Recipe source - Lakshmi Nair

Ingredients

Flour - 1 cup

Cornflour - 4 tbsp

Baking powder - 1 tsp

Butter - 1/2 cup[100 gms]

Powdered sugar - 3/4 cup [ I took a heaped 1/2 cup of sugar and powdered it]

Eggs - 2

Vanilla essence - 1 tsp
Milk - 1/2 cup

Nuts - 1/4 cup[I used cashewnuts and walnuts]

Chocolate chips - 1/4 cup

Method

Preheat oven to 180C.

Grease and line a loaf tin.

Sift together flour,cornflour and baking powder,reserve.

Cream together butter and powdered sugar till light and fluffy.

Add eggs one at a time and beat well.

Mix in the vanilla essence.

Spoon the flour mix about 3 tsp at a time alternately with milk and beat well till you get a smooth batter.

The batter would be thickish,not a flowing one--mix in the nuts and chocolate chips.

Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 30 minutes or till a toothpick inserted comes out clean.*

Remove the cake to a wire rack and let it cool down.

Cut into slices and serve.
You could also bake this in a square pan and cut the cake into small squares,choice is yours!!
*[I had some leftover batter and I baked it in small tart molds.]

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Mixed Vegetable Kurma

Kurma or Korma as it is sometimes called is the most battered dish,according to me.Anything and everything is added to the dish and is conveniently called Kurma.Most of the times it consists of uncooked potatoes,a medley of vegetables,strong taste of masala and a watery consistency.99% times,this is what you get if you order Vegetable Kurma at restaurants.Vegetarians like me,sometimes,have no choice other than to gobble it down.Either it is this,or the the cloyingly rich,creamy Kurma which would make you choke with all the cream and nuts added into it.

I do not claim that mine is a better version than the restaurants,heck--I am not even comparing the two.This one is a very simple kurma,which goes well with Ghee rice,Chapathi and even Appam.No fancy ingredients,gets done in a jiffy and tastes delicious!!

Mixed vegetable Kurma

Recipe courtesy - Radhika,my sis-in-law

Ingredients

Mixed vegetables - about 2 cups--I used Potatoes,Carrots and Green peas

To be ground into a paste

Grated coconut - 5 tbsp

Cashewnuts - 4-5

Tomato - 1,chopped

Whole garam masala - 2 cardamoms,2 cloves and a 1' piece cinnamon stick

Haldi - a pinch

For the tadka/seasoning

Oil - 1 tbsp

Green capsicum - 1,chopped

Salt to taste

Coriander leaves to garnish

Method

Cook the vegetables till soft.

Grind the ingredients given for the masala to a smooth paste.

In a kadai add oil and saute capsicum.

When the capsicum becomes soft[not cooked] add the ground masala and mix well.

Add salt to taste and then the cooked vegetables and let it come to a boil.

Simmer for 5-7 minutes till the kurma starts to thicken,garnish with coriander leaves.

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Broccoli Soup

I feel like baking,not so much for the eating part[that too,yes] but for the whole exercise of baking-measuring out the ingredients,sifting the flour,beating the batter,lining the tins and waiting for the cake to bake while the whole house is filled with the yummy aroma coming out of the oven..Hell,I miss baking!!

So many great recipes are doing the rounds,I've especially bookmarked this cake from Deeba's this one from Baking Bites,The Food Librarian is tempting me with her Bundt Cakes,I will be baking a Bundt Cake for sure on November 15th!!Not to give in to temptations,I've cleared my stock of butter,flour and eggs..ah the miseries of one trying to lose weight!!


Why all this banter for a simple soup post??Well,this explains the plight of the poor soup.I had some yellowing broccoli in the fridge and it was pureed into a soup.Doesn't sound much exciting,right?But if you are not dieting,there are different ways to pep up this simple soup.I had the same soup once in The Wharf,Mahabalipuram where cubes of Cheddar was added to the soup and every mouthful was so flavorful with the slight aroma of Broccoli and the strong taste of Cheddar..ah,bliss!!

Broccoli Soup

Ingredients

Broccoli - about 1 cup of florets

Onion - 1,chopped

Milk - 1 to 1 1/2 cups

Water - 1 cup

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

In a kadai add a tsp of oil and saute onions.

When the onions start browning,mix in the broccoli florets and give a good toss.

Add a cup of water and let it cook for 5-7 minutes.

Switch off the flame and let it cool down to room temperature.

Blend to a puree in the mixer adding milk as required.

If it is too thick,you could add more water or milk.

Put it back into the kadai and cook it for another 3-5 minutes.

Add enough salt and pepper to taste.

You could add cubes of Cheddar just before serving the soup for a gourmet touch!!

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