Basic Sponge Cake - Vanilla Flavoured

My husband is a huge fan of cakes but I kept postponing telling lame excuses and blaming busy office work. this Christmas I got a gift from my husband with a beautiful electric hand blender and inspired me to try my hands on it. 

This cake is dedicated to my husband and I must admit I became huge fan of it too. I am 100% inspired to make many more pastries from this sponge cake. 

Soft Spongy Cake

This is the basic sponge and can magically be turned into hundreds of Pastries

Preparation time
15 minutes

Cooking time
45 minutes

Ingredients
1. 4 whole eggs ( Separated into whites and yolks)
2. 1 cup plain flour (approx 100 gm)
3. 1 cup castor sugar (approx 100 gm)
4. 1 tea spoon of Vanilla essence
5. 2 table spoon of melted butter

Cooking Method
1.   Add 4 separated egg whites in a bowl and whisk till fluffy and semi peak
2.   Using wooden spoon mix separated 4 egg yolk and one cup of sugar. Add a tea spoon of vanilla essence and 2 table spoon of melted butter to the mixture
3.   Add yolk sugar mixture to peak egg white and mix gently without breaking air in egg white. Mix using wooden spoon and don't use machine or blender
4.   Add flour little by little to the mixture and mix gently with wooden spoon. Success of cake depends on fluffy egg white, so ensure not to break air while mixing
5.    Grease cake tin with very little butter and fill cake tin about half way through. Shake cake tin gently to ensure the mixture is even without peaks

Baking In Oven
While preparing the mixture preheat oven for 15 minutes at 195' Celsius. 
Bake the cake mixture in the middle of oven at 195' Celsius for 25 minutes
Resist opening oven door in the middle of  baking
After 25 minutes insert a tooth pick in the middle of cake. Cake is cooked if the tooth pick comes out clearly
Allow cake to cool clearly for one hour by placing it on a  cooling rack.

Soft spongy and fluffy cake is ready to be served.

Serve a slice of cake with a dollop of whisked cream and tea spoon of Strawberry jam. Cake is good plainly as well.

Storage Life
Slice the cake and serve the pieces in air tight container.
Storage Life --- 2 days

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Photos for Home Page

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Orundai Kolambu

Orundai Kulambu

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Yummy Hot Pav Bhajji

Hot Pav Bhajji - Perfect for Sunday Evening!!!

Ingrdients:
Vegetables: 2 Large Potato + Any Vegetables (I used 1 Carrot, 5 Beans, 1/2 Capsicum, Green Peas)
For the Gravy:
tea spoon of fennel seed and Jeera, 1/2 Onion, 3 Tomato, Ginger, Garlic, Chilli Powder, Corriander powder, Amachir powder, Salt
Oil, 3 tea spoon butter

Method:
1. Slice the vegetables in cube size and presurre cook them until soft. Mash them into a coarse paste using back of the spoon
2. Take a flat pan, add some oil and one tea spoon of butter. When the oil is hot add a tea spoon of fennel seed and jeera. when the spices are brown add ginger and garlic and fry them. Add the thinely sliced tomato and fry them.
Add sliced tomatoes and allow them to cook until it becomes a paste. To this mixture add chilli powder, corriander powder and a pinch of turmeric powder. Let the dry ingrdients cook and add the mashed vegetables. Add little water and 1 tea spoon of butter and allow the mixture to cook. The misture is ready when vegetables are all cooked well with the spices and come together, to finsh off add a knob a butter...
3. In a frying pan, cut the pav into half and heat them with a tea spoon of butter.

Time to eat: serve the hot pav with Bhaji with freshely cut corriander and sliced Lemon and freshly chopped Onion

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Bread Pudding

Ingredients:
1. 4 Slices of white bread, with trimmed edges
2. 2 Cups of warm milk
3. 1 table spoon of butter
4. Cinnamon Powder
5. Cardomon Powder
6. Sugar - 3/4 Cup
7. Vanilla extract - 1 tea spoon
8. Raisins
9. Cashew or any nut (optional)

Method:
1. Boil milk to luke warm temperature. Switch off the heat and add butter to it.
2. Grind 1 cinammon stick, 2 cardomom pods and sugar.
3. Add the ground mixture to warm milk.
4. Slice bread into cube size, after trimming the edges
5. Arrange the first layer of bread slices in a baking tray.
6. Add few raisins and cashews.
7. Pour milk mixture on bread. ENsure that bread layer is soaked well in Milk
8. Arrange second layer of bread and pour remaining layer of milk and add little raisins.
9. Allow the misture to rest for 10 minutes. Ensure all bread is soaked in milk mixture. (Fill 3/4 of the oven tray as pudding would raise while baking)
10. Preheat the oven to 180 degree celcius for 5 minutes.
11. Bake the bread and milk mixture in the oven for 45 Minutes at 180 degree celcius.
12. The pudding would raise have a nice golden brown crispy top layer.
13. Pudding would be crispy in the top and soft inside.
It can be served hot or cold.

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Potato Drumstick Curry

Serving

• 3 People

Preparation Time

• 30 Minutes

Ingredients

1. Potato - 2 Peeled and thickly sliced 

2. Drumstick - 1

3. Onion - 1

4. Red Chilli - 2

5. Chilli Powder - 1/2 Spoon (To taste)

6. Turmeric Powder - 1/4 Spoon

7. To Season - Mustard, Urud Dhal, Curry Leaves

8. Salt - To taste

9. Oil - 2 Spoon

Preparation Method

• Heat one spoon of Oil in a pan, add mustard seeds to the oil. Once the seeds splutter add urud dhal and curry leaves and allow them to fry.
• Add the small sliced onions and cook till onion turn to brown colour. Add a pinch of salt to onion. This helps the onion to release the moist quicker and get cooked.
• To this mixture add Sliced Potato and drumstick.
• Add Chilli Powder, turmeric Powder & salt and mix well
• Pour some water; cover it with a lid for the vegetables to be cooked.
• Allow the curry to cook for 15 minutes with the lid closed. Mix the curry after every five minutes and check if enough water is available.
• Once the vegetables are cooked, add one more spoon of oil and fry till water completely goes out.
• Curry is ready to eat!!! Serve hot with Rice!!! Enjoy!!!

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Vendaikkai MoreKolambu

வெண்டைக்காய் மோர் குழம்பு - Vendaikkai MoreKolambu   

Serving:

• 3 Person

Preparation Time:

• Preparation time - 15 minutes
• Cooking time - 10 Minutes

Ingredients:
To Grind:
1. Grated Coconut (1/4th of Coconut)

2. Cumin seeds (சீரகம்)

3. Green Chillies (3 to 4 as per taste)
4. Turmeric Powder
To Season:
1. Mustard Seeds - 1 spoon
2. Urud Dhal - 1/2 spoon
3. Channa Dhal - 1 Spoon
4. Red Chillies - 2  (To taste)
Gravy:
1. Curd - 1/2 cup
2. Lady`s Finger - 10 in number
3. Gram Flour - 2 spoon
4. Asafetida (Perungayam)
5. Salt (To taste)
6. Oil - 2 Spoon (Coconut oil suits more for this dish)
7. Curry Leaves to garnish

Preparation Method:

• Grind the Ingredients - Grated Coconut , Cumin seeds, Green Chillies and Turmeric Powder to a thick paste. Add water while grinding and ensure that its a smooth paste.
• Heat oil in the pan and add the sliced Lady`s finger. Cook the lady`s finger till its cooked completely. Once cooked, remove the lady`s finger from the pan and keep it aside.
• Add 2 spoons of coconut oil in the pan, once the oil is hot add mustard seeds and allow it to splutter. Add some urud dhal, channa dhal, red chillies and curry leaves. Fry them till crispy.
• Add the cooked lady`s finger to the seasoned ingredients and mix well.
• Add the ground paste to the mixture, add some water and cook for 3 minutes.
• To the gravy add 3 spoons (Half portion of the entire quantity) of curd and allow it to cook for 5 minutes
• Switch off the stove, add the remaining curd (2 spoons), curry leaves and some coconut oil.
• Serve hot.. Moore Kolambu is ready to eat.....!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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