The Leftovers Cake

The Diwali frenzy has died down. The diyas have been washed and stored away. The fairy lights have been brought down and carefully returned to their boxes. The din of the crackers had quietened. The belts have loosened a notch. And the fridge is groaning under the weight of the mountain of mithais!

While we wait an entire year to indulge in these special Diwali sweets, the week long exchange makes us groan at the sight of yet another laddoo or barfi. 

Short of giving it away or crumbling it into yet another kheer or dessert, there aren't too many options around. But this year I decided to be inventive!

 

While the overdose of mithais had everyone gagging sweet, the realm of cakes had been untouched. If I could reinvent the barfis into a less sweet, unconventional tea cake, I was sure it would  find many takers. 

My inspiration came from the delicious Mawa Cake. This east meets west fusion was perfect for the cake I had in mind. After all, most mithais had a generous base of mawa to complement the dry fruits tucked within. Armed with a random mix of Kaju katlis, anjeer barfi, pista rolls and lavang latikas I set out to bring my experiment to life.

The result you ask? This gorgeous golden hued, light as air cake. The crust was crisp and inside was all soft sweetness. Redolent with the fragrance of mawa and dry fruits, this cake was an instant hit with the young and old alike. People came back for seconds. And thirds! Dipped into tea. Warmed for a quick snack. Topped with shrikhand for a rich dessert. This was definitely the most versatile product of my Diwali Leftovers! 

My fridge is emptied of all the excess mithai that lay unwanted. And I have a house filled with cake satiated tummies! Now if only someone can find a way to recycle all that Son Papdi!

Ingredients:
Leftover Mithai                200 gm
Maida                               200 gm
Butter                               200 gm
Powdered Sugar               150 gm
Cardamom powder          1/4 teaspoon
Baking Powder                1 teaspoon
Eggs                                 4

Method:
Pre heat the oven to 180 C. Beat the butter and sugar well, till it is light and fluffy. Mix in the crumbled mithai. And beat well, till the batter is smooth. Sieve the maida, cardamom powder and baking powder and fold into the batter. Beat the eggs and incorporate into the batter. Mix everything well to get a smooth, consistent batter.
Alternately, if effort is not your thing, just whizz everything together in a food processor or mixie. Pour into a greased baking tin and bake for 45 minutes till a skewer inserted comes clean. Cool and slice!

Gulab Jamun Cake

Traditional Indian Mithai and Cake? Doesn't sound quite right does it?! To most it seems incredulous that one carry marry the flavours of the Indian dessert palate with that of the European ones. But having successfully attempted the hugely popular Mawa Cake, I knew not only was it possible, but it was absolutely divine! A warm homecoming with the heady aroma of baking. 

Now those who have read my very first post, know that baking for my grandfather can be quite a challenge. But I hadn't been around for his birthday in a long time, and I really wanted to bake him something special. 

My news feed of late had been flooded with stories of Rasmalai Cake. While I personally don't enjoy rasmalai, it did give me an idea. I knew I had to make a cake that had its roots in the familiar. It really was a no brainer then. No dessert is ever as popular as the Gulab Jamun, and I knew I had to attempt yet another G-jam makeover.

I started my research and realized there had been a few attempts at recreating the magic, but nothing I looked at really hit the note. I read on and picked the brain of another Baking Diva I know. Also, Monster Munchkin would want to be part of the process, so I needed something simple yet drool worthy! This recipe seemed about right. But it needed a little more to make it truly festive and celebratory. I played with a few suggestions that would complement and not overpower the actual cake. And most importantly not push it to the realm of the too-sweet-for-seconds shelf. 

To be honest, I had my reservations even when I put the finishing touches. What if it was a total disaster? It seemed perfect on paper. The cake was light and baked to perfection. The frosting was not just a mouthful of oversweet fluff, and very consciously incorporated the only mithai my munchkin deigns to eat.  But what if my instincts were a little off! Heart in mouth, I carted it to my grandparents' place. Sure, it looked good. But aah! The all important taste test was still waiting. 

The first forkful, and my grandfather declared it a success! And it had nothin to do with the fact that his granddaughter and great grandson had baked it. For once, even my worst critic (Me!), had to nod in agreement. This was one for the kitchen heirlooms. A dessert that was going to grace my table many more times in the future!

Ingredients:

Cake:

Gulab Jamun Mix             3/4 cup

Whole Wheat Flour          3/4 cup

Sugar                                 3/4 cup

Milk                                  1 cup, warm

Vinegar                             1 tablespoon

Baking Powder                 1/2 teaspoon

Baking Soda                     1/4 teaspoon

Oil                                     1/4 cup

Salt                                    a pinch

Green Cardamoms            6

Frosting:

Kalakand                          200 gm

Almonds                           8

Cream Cheese                  180 gm

Gulab Jamuns                   8 small

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Mix the vinegar in the milk and keep aside for 15 minutes. Powder the sugar with the cardamoms. Sift all the dry ingredients together and give it a twirl with a wire whisk or spoon. Make a well in the center and add the rest of the cake ingredients. Whisk it well by hand or electric whisk till well blended. Bake in a greased 8 inch round pan for 35 minutes. Let it cool completely.

Upturn the cake onto a plate and slice horizontally in the middle. Liberally soak the two halves with the syrup from the gulab jamuns. Keep aside for 10 minutes. Lightly beat the cream cheese with a fork till fluffy. Spread a thin layer over the soaked halves. On the lower half, arrange sliced gulab jamuns to cover the entire area. I sliced my gulab jamuns into three parts, but it depends on the size if the jamuns. Now place the top half of the cake over this layer. The two halves reconciled, it was time for the final touch. Run the Kalakand in the mixer till smooth and mix into the remaining cream cheese. Generously swirl over your cake, letting your inner artist run free. Slice the almonds into chunky flakes and drop all over the frosted cake. 

I refrigerated the cake overnight and then brought it to room temperature before serving. But if your will power is being tested, you can dig in right away!

Almond Cheese Spread

We shook off the snow and tumbled into the house. We were cold and hungry. And you know what's my comfort food on a cold, snowy day? Hot, buttered toast! Nothing can make me feel as good. So aunty put the griddle on and liberally coated it with butter, placing two slices of bread to crispen to that beautiful gold. 

When she flipped it over to the other side, I thought we were almost done. But, nope! She had an ace up her sleeve. She dolloped on some cheese spread and let it just melt into the crisping toast. Dotted with ketchup. And then judging my impatience correctly, let me wolf it down straight from the pan.

I waited for the salty, slightly plastic cheesiness of store bought spread to hit my tastebuds. But instead was surprised by subtle flavours so generously complimenting the creamy goodness that could only come with homemade love!

It was so good, I wolfed down six toasts before my foodie brain could form the words, " May I have the recipe, please?"

That was 12 years ago, and I still slather this spread with the same reverent wonder. For me it has the same joy as my grandma's home made white butter. Another dairy addition to my toast I can't get enough of!

Another good thing about this cheese spread is that it sneakily incorporates the wholesome nutrients that  growing tots may screechingly run from. But ever know a kid to turn down cheese and toast? Nope! So say hello to our hidden superfood friends- Almonds and Garlic. Even Keto Hubby gave the spread a big thumbs up! It was just the thing he needed to jazz his Keto Bread :)

So I'll go steal a spoonful from the jar, while you go whip up your own batch of yummy health.

Ingredients:

Cheese           200 gm (grated)

Cream            1/2 cup

Milk               1 cup

Almonds        20

Vinegar          1 tsp

Sugar             1 tsp

Red Chillies   5

Garlic             5

Pepper           1/4 tsp

Method:

Soak the almonds and red chillies for half an hour. De-seed the red chillies. Remove the skin from the almonds and discard the water. Run the almonds, chillies and garlic in the mixie to make a coarse paste. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend till smooth. Refrigerate and use within a week.

Notes:

I used fresh cream (malai) skimmed off the top of our milk. You can use packaged cream as well. 

Since the chillies are soaked and de-seeded, they are not spicy and are mild enough for kids. You can however reduce the chillies if you like.

For the Keto version replace the sugar with Stevia. 

Moist Honey Cake

Two rough looking mountain men stood outside my door. Wild eyes, chiseled features, long unkempt hair and sinister moustaches. "Bhaia ne bheja hai", they said. As I pondered which cousin had decided to prank me, Hubby turned up behind them. " They are with me." All further questions were preempted by the younger of the two. " Bhabhiji, patila. Fresh Honey hai hamare paas." 

Confession time. My hubby is pretty gullible when it comes to helping people in need. I have never known him to say no. Ever! So as I pondered what racket these guys were running, they produced a hive from their sack. Soon, oozing into my bowls was the fragrance of roses and spring! At least this was a sweet smelling racket. Three litres lighter and a few hundred rupees richer, the men departed happy.

Before I could launch my tirade, Hubby appealed to my health freak side. Uh uh! I was not falling for that. Honey may have health benefits, but there was no way i was consuming unprocessed honey! A few neighbours assured me this honey was marvellous. They had purchased from the Mountain Men in years past and never been disappointed. But I just wouldn't budge. So there stood the bottles in the pantry, forlorn and dusty. A month later, I opened them to check if they had gone stale. Once again, the promise of roses and sunshine enticed me. The monsoons were in full swing and the rains had me longing for spring. If I closed my eyes and inhaled the honey, I could just feel the fresh warmth around me. I had to figure out a way to incorporate this!

There was still no way I was going to consume it raw, so a cake was the safest route to take. Google to the rescue and I chanced upon Marcy Goldman's recipe. It had the right texture I needed and the ingredient list was perfect to warm up these windy weeks of grey rain! I scaled and adapted it from here. And my house was enveloped with the warm smells of heavenly baking!

This cake is not over sweet or sticky as most honey cakes are. It is light, almost delicate with an intense flavour that just gets better with time. No stale cake quandries with this one. Infact this cake was so good, I had to bake another batch the very next day!

So elevate your monsoon cuppa with your very own version of sunshine. And bake some goodness today. Don't worry about indulgence! Honey is healthy, remember ;)

Ingredients: 

Maida                    1 and 3/4  cups

Baking Powder      1/2  teaspoon

Baking Soda          1/2  teaspoon

Salt                         1/4 teaspoon

Cinnamon               2 inches

Cloves                    10

Ginger Powder       1 teaspoon

Nutmeg                  1/4 teaspoon

Peppercorns           4

Oil                           1/2 cup

Honey                     1/2 cup

Granulated Sugar    3/4 cup

Brown Sugar           1/4 cup

Eggs                        3 (small)

Vanilla Essence       1/2 teaspoon

Warm tea                1/2 cup (I used Early Grey)

Orange Juice           1/4 cup (fresh)

Orange Zest            1/2 orange

Whiskey                 60 ml

Method:

Pre heat the oven to 180 C. Grind together the cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, peppercorns and ginger powder. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda and the spice powder. Make a well in the middle and pour in all the rest of the ingredients. Use a wire whisk to mix it all together. If you want to use an electric mixer, use it on slow speed. Too much air into the batter will spoil the texture of the cake. Scrape the bottom and the sides to ensure the batter is mixed thoroughly. Pour into a greased and lined 9 inch bundt cake pan. Bake for 60 minutes. The cake should spring back when you gently touch the center. Let it rest in the oven for 15 minutes before you demould and attack!!!

Notes:

I used early grey tea to intensify the citrus notes. You can use your regular brewed tea. Jus remember no milk or sugar.

You can also substitute the tea for strong brewed coffee.

You can bake the cake in three loaf pans, two 9-inch square or round cake pans, one 9 or 10 inch tube or bundt cake pan, or one 9 by 13 inch sheet cake. However I found baking in a ring or tube pan gave better results.

If you have large eggs, use 2 1/2 or just 2. 

The whiskey can be substituted with rum or fresh orange juice.