Ann's Bakery Style Marble Cake

As a kid,I used to eagerly wait for Christmas.No we did not celebrate Christmas at home,nor did we receive any gifts from Santa.But still Xmas was special.Our home used to be filled with Plum Cakes,all of them received as gifts from my father's clients mainly.Since my family did not eat eggs most of them would be given away to friends,family,neighbours and our helps at home.One or two cakes would be kept at home for us kids.

That deep rich cake,laden with dry fruits and nuts,covered with a thick sugary icing and decorated with roses,flowers and leaves were what our dreams were made of!We could never have enough of it.Having tasted quite a few fruit cakes,I still believe that what we tasted during those days is unmatchable in taste and texture.

Though I wanted to make a Fruit cake this year,I chose not to as I have a li'l cake monster at home who wants to lick the bowl and spatula and waits like a hawk till it bakes so that he can have a piece :)Fruit Cake can wait :)

I chose this recipe as I am a big fan of Ann's Bakery cakes.The Rumberry Cake is among my most favorite,followed by this delicious Marble Cake.The recipe appeared on their Facebook page and I quickly jotted it down to try soon.What better occasion than Christmas right?I wish you all a Merry Christmas,hope you bake and serve and eat lot of Cakes and spread joy this season :)

Ann's Bakery Style Marble Cake

Recipe (as published on their Facebook Page)

Ingredients

Butter - 225 gms
Castor Sugar - 225 gms
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Vanilla - 1 tsp
Eggs - 4
Flour - 225 gms
Baking powder - 2 tsp
Ground Nuts(Almonds/Cashew/Walnuts) - 50 gms,I used Almonds
Milk - 50 ml
Melted Chocolate - 50 gms

Method

Preheat oven to 180C.Grease and flour a 6 cup Bundt pan.*
Beat together butter,sugar and salt till creamy (about 4 minutes).
Mix in vanilla and beat again.
Add in eggs one at a time,beating for a minute after each addition.
Sift together flour,baking powder and ground almonds.
Add the flour mix and milk alternately and beat till you get a smooth and fluffy batter.
Divide the batter into two and fold in the melted chocolate into one portion.
Spoon the batters alternately into the prepared tin and using a bamboo skewer or a knife,marble lightly.
Bake for about 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
Cool completely on a wire rack.

Step by Step pictorial

Preheat oven to 180C.Grease and flour a 6 cup Bundt pan.*

Beat together butter,sugar and salt till creamy (about 4 minutes).

Mix in vanilla and beat again.

Add in eggs one at a time,beating for a minute after each addition.

Sift together flour,baking powder and ground almonds.

Add the flour mix and 

milk alternately and beat 

till you get a smooth and fluffy batter.

Divide the batter into two and 

fold in the melted chocolate into one portion.

Spoon the batters alternately into the prepared tin and 

using a bamboo skewer or a knife,marble lightly.

Bake for about 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Cool completely on a wire rack.

Notes

• You can use any normal tin to bake,not a bundt pan necessarily.I had enough batter to fill a 6 cup bundt tin and a 300gm loaf tin.
• Please ensure all ingredients are at room temperature.
• You can use your method of choice for marbling.The original recipe suggests to pour one batter completely topped with another and then marbled.I however always go with my method as that gives a nice marble effect every time.

Khichdi / Masala Khichdi / Vegetable Khichdi | One pot Rice meals

Khichdi is something I make at home at least once in a week,sometimes more.It was Arjun's first solid food.Initially I made it without any spices for him but now I just make one batch,for us as well as for him.I couldn't believe such a simple dish created such a furore of being called the National dish by some while some argued it is not.There is no doubt about one thing however,and that is the taste!

It packs in flavor as well as nutrition since it is a one pot meal consisting of rice,dals and vegetables.You could completely customize it according to your taste.Don't like rice?Add millets!Don't like vegetables?Make it plain!Or add vegetables of your choice!!Don't like spices?It tastes good with just a tadka of ghee and jeera!

Served warm with a dollop of ghee on top,this absolutely tastes divine.You need to eat it to believe it :)

Khichdi / Masala Khichdi / Vegetable Khichdi

Ingredients

Raw rice - 1/2 cup
Dal - 1/4 cup (I used a mixof Toor dal,Moong dal and Masoor dal)
Onion -1 small,chopped
Tomato - 1/2 medium sized tomato,chopped
Capsicum - 1/2 of a small capsicum,chopped
Carrot - 1 small,chopped
Beans - 4-5,chopped
Pumpkin - about roughly 1 cup,chopped
Water-3 cups

For the tadka

Oil+ghee - 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Jeera - 1/4 tsp
Whole peppercorns - about 5-6
Curry leaves- a few
Hing - a pinch
Ginger garlic paste - 1/2 tsp(optional)
Haldi - 1/4 tsp
Chilly powder - 1/4 tsp
Coriander powder - 1/4 tsp
Garam masala - 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste
Ghee - 1 tbsp

Method

Wash and soak together rice and the dals for about 30-45 minutes.
In a pressure cooker add oil/ghee and splutter mustard seeds and jeera.Add in the peppercorns and curry leaves.
Now add the hing and chopped onions and saute for a minute.
Add the ginger garlic paste and saute for a minute or till the raw smell of the paste disappears.
Now add tomato and the vegetables and give a good mix.
Time to add the spice powders - haldi,chilly,coriander and garam masala.
Give it a good mix.
Add the drained rice and dal mix and add salt to taste.
Add water and check for seasoning.Close the cooker and cook for 2-3 whistles on high and simmer for another 10 minutes.
Switch off the flame and let the pressure settle down.
Open and mix well.If you feel it is watery,simmer for a few minutes more and if you feel it is dry add hot water till it reaches the consistency of your choice.
Add ghee and close the cooker and let the flavors infuse.
Serve warm with some more ghee :)

Step by Step Pictorial

Wash and soak together rice and the dals for about 30-45 minutes.

Wash and chop the vegetables.

In a pressure cooker add oil/ghee and 

splutter mustard seeds and 

jeera.

Add in the peppercorns and 

curry leaves.

Now add the hing and 

chopped onions and saute for a minute.

Add the ginger garlic paste and saute for a minute or till the raw smell of the paste disappears.

Now add tomato and the 

vegetables and give a good mix.
Time to add the spice powders - 

haldi,

chilly,

coriander and 

garam masala.

Give it a good mix.

Add the drained rice and dal mix and 

add salt to taste.

Add water and check for seasoning.Close the cooker and cook for 2-3 whistles on high and simmer for another 10 minutes.
Switch off the flame and let the pressure settle down.

Open and mix well.If you feel it is watery,simmer for a few minutes more and if you feel it is dry add hot water till it reaches the consistency of your choice.

Add ghee and close the cooker and let the flavors infuse.
Serve warm with some more ghee :)

Here's a small video :)

Notes

• The spice powders can be added more/less according to your taste palettes.Since I am serving this to Arjun as well,I keep it to the bare minimum.
• You can add any vegetables of your choice,I sometimes add only carrots and beans or only potatoes or then a medley of vegetables like I've used here.
• The water quantity is approximate.You may need less or more depending on the amount of vegetables you add or depending on the cooking time.Like I said,once you open the cooker you could add more water or simmer and cook till the Khichdi reaches the consistency of your choice.

Arjun is THREE!!!

The li'l fellow turned THREE last month,I mean,can you believe it?Where did the time go?

Arjun is ONE!

Arjun is TWO!!

Lots has happened since my last blog update.Though I've been planning to update the blog more regularly,clearly it isn't happening.Arjun has joined Pre-school and most part of the day goes in getting him ready for school,dropping and picking him up,cooking for the day and it is only when he takes a short nap in the afternoon I get a breather.I just want to cuddle up reading a book then or watch some television or better still lose myself in Instagram where I seem to spend most of my time these days.Do follow me there for regular updates of Arjun,food I cook,cakes I bake and more such fun stuff.

So coming back to his Birthday,we celebrated his birthday in our usual fashion.Close friends,cake cutting and dinner.Maybe when he grows up a little and wants his own party with friends I can plan something of that sort :).

Unlike Ajay who asks for 'anything you like' or 'chocolate' when asked for a choice in the birthday cake,Arjun is very opinionated and clear about his requirements :) He asked for a Strawberry and Chocolate cake with Gems and the baker/food blogger in me did a very happy dance!I had bookmarked a 3 shaped cake from Pinterest and did a chequerboard cake.Made Eggless Strawberry and Chocolate sponges and sandwiched them using chocolate ganache and covered the cake with good ol' chocolate buttercream and of course,Gems!

We also celebrated his star Birthday which was two days before his birthday and his grandmother made a Sheera(Kesari)which he cut like a Birthday Cake :) Made a huge batch of Eggless Chocolate cupcakes too for him to take to school,Oh I've always wanted to do such stuff and it gives me so much happiness to actually plan such things and execute :)

Hoping to continue blogging as always.So for some inspiration and motivation,if anyone of you are still coming back to read my blog,please let me know in the comment section.What recipes you'd like to see or what I can do to improve the quality of the blog,or anything actually.Hope to hear from you soon:)

Eggless Marble Banana Cake | Easy & Simple Cake Recipes

Remember the Zebra Cake I posted some eons back on this blog?My God,that was such a gorgeous cake.Everyone on the blogosphere went crazy baking these amazing Zebra cakes,which required a little precision in pouring the batter and Voila!you get pretty Zebra stripes when you cut the cake.I wonder how I had the courage to try something like that then,I mean,I was just a beginner baker.But I think that's why I did it,had no clue about the nuances and I just went with the flow and followed the recipe to the T.

If you're wondering why I'm going all nostalgic,well this Banana-Chocolate cake is a Zebra cake inspired cake.I say inspired because,Radhika who posted this recipe says the stripes were not even and she was calling it a Marble cake instead.Well,so am I.The batter was not as thin as the original Zebra cake recipe and I'm guessing that's the reason the stripes were not even.But hey,no one's complaining!

I have not been baking actively these days,primarily due to curb the intake of flour,butter and sugar but mostly because I'm trying to include more fruits and vegetables in my toddlers diet(as well as ours!)as snacks and he's loving it so far and hasn't asked for cake in a long time.But some indulgences once in a while is allowed no :)and this has fruit too,so win-win!

Though the cake is delicious as it is,I decided to dress it up with a bit of leftover ganache and believe me,it tasted yum!You could just dust a bit of powdered sugar on top or serve it plain :)

Eggless Marble Banana Cake
Recipe courtesy - Sugar and spice by Radhika

Ingredients

• 
  
• All Purpose Flour (Maida)- 150 grams
• Baking Powder - 1 tsp
• Baking Soda - ½ tsp
• Salt - ½ tsp
• Mashed Bananas - 1 cup
• Butter - ¼ cup
• Caster Sugar - ⅓ cup
• Vanilla Essence - 1 tsp
• Milk - 2-3 tbsp
• Cocoa Powder - 2 tbsp

Method

Preheat oven to160C.Grease and flour a 7' round pan.

In a bowl, sieve flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In another bowl, whisk butter until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes with an electric mixer. Add in the sugar and whisk for another 3-4 minutes. The mixture should turn fluffy and lighter in colour.

Add in the mashed bananas and vanilla essence. Mix until properly combined.

Mix the flour mix into this little by little,adding milk little by little if you feel the batter is turning dry.

Divide the batter into two equal parts. Leave one part as it is, and mix in the cocoa powder to the other.

To form the swirls, start by pouring 1-2 tablespoons of the plain banana batter in the centre of the cake tin.Next, pour 1-2 tablespoons of the chocolate batter right on it. Make sure you pour it in the centre.

Next, pour the plain banana batter and so on. Repeat until you use up all the batter.

Do not try to mix the batters,just keep pouring the batters alternatively.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the cake turns golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of the pan comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack.

Step by Step Pictorial

Preheat oven to160C.Grease and flour a 7' round pan.

In a bowl, sieve flour, 

baking powder, 

baking soda 

and salt. Set aside.

In another bowl, whisk butter until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes with an electric mixer. 

Add in the sugar and whisk for another 3-4 minutes. The mixture should turn fluffy and lighter in colour.

Add in the mashed bananas 

and vanilla essence. 

Mix until properly combined.

Mix the flour mix into this little by little,

adding milk little by little if you feel the batter is turning dry.

Divide the batter into two equal parts. 

Leave one part as it is, and mix in the cocoa powder to the other.

To form the swirls, start by pouring 1-2 tablespoons of the plain banana batter in the centre of the cake tin.

Next, pour 1-2 tablespoons of the chocolate batter right on it. Make sure you pour it in the centre.

Next, pour the plain banana batter and so on. Repeat until you use up all the batter.

Do not try to mix the batters,just keep pouring the batters alternatively.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the cake turns golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of the pan comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack.

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Now for the Giveaway winner,you thought I forgot about it?Sorry for the delay guys,been running around like a crazy headless chicken all of last week or rather last month.

Perfico.com has beautiful personalized gifts for all occasions.When they contacted me for a product review and a giveaway and delivered the personalized Wine glasses the very next day,I was impressed.The packing was perfect as well.I was delighted to see the wine glasses with A & D printed on it just like how I'd requested.

The winner who gets these personalized wine glass is 

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Sukanya :)

Please e-mail me your complete address with phone number so that I can pass it on to Perfico.Also mention how you would like to personalize these glasses.