Thunder Cake

Ok, there is small story behind this cake baking experiment.
My daughter came home from her last day of school before summer break. She asked me to bake a thunder cake to mark the beginning of a fun filled summer break.
She said "I can help you with the recipe mommy, I got the recipe from school. There you go"
and this is what she gave me.

She confirmed with me if I had all the ingredients at home. 

Now the measurements were up to me.. haha... Isn't the cute ?

I quietly googled the recipe of the thunder cake. I did not tell her that I was doing so, of course. 

I kept her under an impression that I was strictly following her recipe. 

Well, then I came across the thunder cake recipe by Patricia Polacco

Here's the link:

http://www.patriciapolacco.com/participation/kidstalk/questions_week/week_3/cake_recipe.html

I followed this recipe with a few modifications. 

Ingredients :

• All Purpose Flour - 2 1/2 cups
• Cocoa Powder - 1/2 cup
• Baking Soda - 1 1/2 tsp
• Salt - 1 tsp
• Pureed Tomatoes - 1/3 cup
• Milk - 1 cup ( the original recipe says 1 cup of water but I added milk because my daughters recipe called for milk )
• Eggs - 3
• Sugar - 2 cups
• Butter - 1 stick (cup)
• Vanilla - 1 tsp  ( I did not add it because I did not have it. It still tasted good)

Directions: 

• Pre heat oven to 350 deg F.
• Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Keep aside.
• In a mixing bowl beat the eggs, add melted butter, sugar, vanilla and blend together.
• Add milk and pureed tomatoes and blend well.
• To this mixture add the dry mixture which we kept aside. 
• Take a cake pan, grease and flour it. 
• Pour this cake mix into the pan and bake for about 40 minutes.
• You can frost it and add slices fruits of your choice ( strawberries according to my daughter's list ). But I skipped the frosting part. It was too good as is.

My daughter was happy that her recipe was a success.... ;) hushh !!

Thank you Patricia !!!

Banana Raisin Cake

Whenever I see over ripe bananas left on my table, the best use of it I can think of, is making either banana cake or banana muffins. Kids love it. And you don't want to trash the overripe bananas.

Ingredients: 

• Over Ripe Bananas - 2-3
• All Purpose Flour - 1 cup
• Whole Wheat Flour - 1/4 cup
• Eggs - 2
• Brown Sugar - 1 cup
• Baking Soda - 1 tsp
• Vanilla Extract - 1 tsp
• Black Raisins - 2 tbsp
• Vegetable Oil or Butter - 1/2 cup

Directions: 

• Preheat the oven at 350 deg F. 
• Mash the bananas and keep aside.
• In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar and oil ( or melted butter ) together for a couple of minutes.
• Now add the mashed bananas and vanilla extract into the bowl and whisk once again. 
• Now add the flour , baking soda and raisins into the mixing bowl and whisk again  till the mixture is well incorporated.
• Now, grease the cake pan with the oil spray. 
• Pour this mixture into the cake pan.

• Bake for 45 minutes or till the inserted toothpick comes out clean. 

• Take out the cake from the pan and let it cool.

• Cut it in desired shape and size upon cooling.

Note: : 

• I have used the combination of all purpose flour and wheat flour. However, you could use the entire 1 1/4 cup of all purpose OR  entire 1 1/4 cup of wheat flour instead. 

Banana Muffins

Easy to make Banana Muffins.

Ingredients :

• All Purpose Flour - 1 1/2 cups
• Ripe Bananas - 3
• Baking Powder - 1 tsp
• Baking Soda - 1 tsp
• Sugar - 3/4 cup
• Melted Butter - 1/3 cup
• Salt - 1/2 tsp
• Egg - 1

Directions: 

• Preheat the oven at 350°F. 
• Mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt . You may strain through a sieve. Keep aside. 
• In a mixing bowl , mash the bananas. Add sugar, melted butter and egg to it. Combine. 
• Add the flour mixture to it and mix well until smooth. 
• Coat the muffin pan with a cooking spray or use paper liners. 
• Spoon batter into the muffin pan cups. ( 3/4th filled )
• Bake the muffins for half an hour ( or 15 minutes for small muffins ) Or until the toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean. 

Enjoy !! :))

Vegetable Puff / Paneer Puff / Egg Puff

Vegetable Puff , alternatively called as curry puff, takes me back to my college days memories, in Hyderabad. We used to go to bakeries during lunch break or after college and order a puff and a coke religiously.
We can make Vegetable puffs by stuffing mixed vegetables into the puff. Similary, if we stuff boiled eggs, we can make Egg Puffs or stuff paneer mixture to make Paneer Puffs.
I shall tell the recipe of vegetable puff here. You can try paneer puffs or egg puffs in a similar way.

Ingredients:

• Mixed Vegetables - 1 cup
• Puff Sheets - 2
• Chopped Fresh Cilantro - 2 tbsp
• Coriander Powder - 1/2 tsp
• Roasted Cumin Powder - 1/2 tsp
• Green Chillies or Red Chili Powder - to taste
• Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 tsp
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
• Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp
• Salt - to taste
• Chat Masala - 1/2 tsp
• Oil - 2 tbsp

Mixed Vegetables: ( Boiled )

• Potato - 3/4 cup
• Carrots - 2 tbsp
• Peas - 2 tbsp
• Beans - 2 tbsp

Typically these vegetables are used, however, you can use any other you like.

Directions:

• Chop and boil all the vegetables and keep aside.
• Heat oil in a pan, add ginger garlic paste, saute for few seconds then add turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, Chili powder ( or green chillies ).
• Add the boiled vegetables and salt and fry for a couple of minutes and turn off the heat.
• Add chopped cilantro, chat masala and lemon juice. Let this mixture cool down.
• Take a puff sheet, place 3-4 tbsp of stuffing on it and fold it into half and seal it.
• To seal it better, you can apply water on the edges of the sheet and press it gently from all the sides.
• Pre heat the oven at 450° F .
• Bake the puffs for 10 -12 minutes.
• Serve hot with ketchup.