Marble Cake

*  2 cups all-purpose flour
    * 2 teaspoons baking powder
    * 1/2 teaspoon salt
    * 1 cup white sugar ( I used 1 cup granulated sugar and then grinded it)
    * 1/2 cup butter, softened
    * 2 eggs
    * 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    * 1 cup milk
    * 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1. Grease and line an 8" round pan and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 

2. Beat the butter with the sugar until light and creamy. Then add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

3. Now add a third of the flour and beat until combined, then add half the milk. Again beat the batter until milk is mixed in. Add another third of the flour, mix it in, and then add the remaining milk. Finally add the last of the flour and the vanilla essence. Beat just until everything is well combined.

4. Stir cocoa into the 3/4 cup reserved batter and mix well

5. Pour the vanilla batter into prepared pan then pour the chocolate batter on top of it. Using a knife, swirl everything together to create a marble effect. 

 6. Bake in a regular preheated oven at 180 C for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean.

Remove from pan and let it cool completely before icing and slicing.

I decorated with powdered sugar but once can frost with butter cream frosting too. 

Zebra Cake

INGREDIENTS
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup (8 oz / 250 g) granulated sugar ( I added bit more)
1 cup (8 fl oz / 250 ml) milk, at room temperature
1 cup (8 fl oz / 250 ml) oil (corn, vegetable or canola is fine)
2 cups (10 oz / 300 g) all-purpose flour
1/3 teaspoon vanilla powder
1 tablespoon (equals 3 teaspoons) baking powder (if not available, substitute with 1 teaspoon baking soda)
2 tablespoons dark cocoa powder (make sure it is not very bitter) such as Dutch-processed ( Dark zebra patterns won’t stand out with light cocoa powder)

Method

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs and sugar. Using a hand-held electric mixer or wire whisk beat until the mixture is creamy and light in color

2. Add milk and oil, and continue beating until well blended.

3. In a separate bowl, combine and mix flour, vanilla powder and baking powder. Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and beat just until the batter is smooth and the dry ingredients are thoroughly incorporated.  (DO NOT OVERBEAT to prevent air pockets from forming in the batter.

This is the consistency of the batter: neither very thick not too loose. If the mixture is too thin, add a little more flour.

4. Divide the mixture into 2 equal portions. Keep one portion plain. Add cocoa powder into another and mix well.

5. Preheat the oven to 350F (180C).

6. Lightly grease the pan with oil. If you don’t have non-stick baking pan, grease whatever pan you have then line it with parchment paper (baking paper).

7. The most important part is assembling the cake batter in a baking pan. This is what you do. Scoop 3 heaped tablespoons of plain batter (you can also use a ladle that would hold 3 tablespoons) into the middle of the baking pan. Then scoop 3 tablespoons of cocoa batter and pour it in the center on top of the plain batter. IMPORTANT! Do not stop and wait until the previous batter spreads - KEEP GOING! Do not spread the batter or tilt the pan to distribute the mixture. It will spread by itself and fill the pan gradually. Continue alternating the batters until you finish them. The pictures below will guide you through.
his is how the cake will look before it goes in the oven.

8. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes. Do not open the oven door at least the first 20 minutes or the cake will shrink and will not rise. To check if the cake is ready, insert a toothpick into the center. It should come out clean when ready. Remove from the oven. Immediately run a small thin knife around the inside of the pan to loosen the cake, then invert the cake onto a cooking rack. Turn the cake back over and let cool. You can sprinkle the top of the cake with some powdered (confectioner’s) sugar or leave it plain.

I coated it with chocolate ganache recipe from here

And some strawberry and white chocolate drops ( Using piping bag is better for this as my experiment was messy)

Pasta in Roasted Bell Pepper and Mushroom White Sauce

Step 1- Cooking pasta

Ingredients needed

Penne Pasta - 250 grams

Olive Oil - 1/2 tsp + 1/2 tsp

Salt - 1 tsp

Method

In a wide pan, bring plenty of water to boil, add salt and oil. Then slowly add the pasta and cook till the pasta is al dente.( it should be soft but firm) Stir in between to prevent the pasta from sticking together. After it is cooked, drain it in a colander and pour cold water on it. This is done to prevent it from getting cooked further. Mix another 1/2 tsp oil to it and keep it aside. (Reserve 1/4 cup of the water in which pasta was cooked as we might need it later)

Step - 2 Cooking the vegetables

Though I have used bell peppers, sweet corn, mushroom and broccoli in this recipe, you can use more too like carrots, beans, etc. Also you can add fried shredded chicken for taste . Do not omit sweet corn as it tastes great in this dish.

Ingredients needed

Olive oil - 1 tbsp ( or butter if you like)

Garlic finely chopped - 1 tbsp

Red and yellow bell pepper - half each (you can use green also)

Cauliflower or broccoli florets- 1 cup ( blanched-for that boil it in water till done with salt and immediately cool the process by putting in cold water

Sweet corn - 1/3 cup ( can use more too)

Pepper powder to taste

Salt as required

Cherry tomotoes( cut in half)- according to taste

Oregano -3/4 tsp or to taste

pasta seasoning -according to taste

Cornflour - 2 tbsp ( if you do not have cornflour, use maida/ all purpose flour)

Milk - 1 1/2 cup (boiled and cooled)

Cheese - 3-4 tbsp (use mozzarella or parmesan or even amul cheese cubes or even a spoon of cheese spread works) ( optional- I skip it when I want it light)

mushroom-1 packet ( cleaned and cut in long thin slices)

Method

1.Roast bell peppers on gas or oven. Once black, put in a container and cover for few minutes. Once done. Peel it and clean and cut into small pieces.

2. put broccoli in some boiling water and salt for 5-6 minutes till it is almost done. And then remove and put it in cold water. 

3. Heat oil in a pan, saute pasta seasoning, little oregano and garlic for a few seconds, then add onion and let it saute a bit.

4. Add cherry tomatoes  Add baby corns and mushrooms and let cover it and let it be done a bit. Then add bell peppers and be cooked. In the end broccoli. One can also add soya nuggets if one likes.   Cook uncovered till done. Do not overcook the vegetables. The vegetables should retain its crunchiness.

5. Add salt and pepper powder to taste. Or you can just add seasoning and red chilly flakes and salt. Keep it aside.

6. Add cornflour dissolved in half cup water/ milk ( I dissolve in water).  And close off when the constituency comes. 

7. Remove. Cool till room temperature and grind in mixture. Add more milk/water if desired. I generally add milk( 1/2 cup) here. 

8. Cook sauce. Add maybe 1/2 cheese slice if you desire or avoid and check salt and seasoning and add pasta seasoning/ salt/red chilly if desired. 

9. Add vegetables. Pasta is ended in end.

10. Serve hot. 

*Inspired by recipe of a friend.