One of the first bloggers I knew and was inspired by was D. This was in 2003, almost a decade ago. She had a "livejournal" which I followed with enthusiasm - not just because the posts were interseting but also because she is a fab writer.
In these 9 years, D and I have moved from "freshly-graduated-MBAs-starting-their-career" to being professionally mature, finding our life partners and discovering various aspects of life along the way. And as you may have guessed, she is one of my closest friends.
She now also has various other blogs which I still follow - the Shoe Blog and more. The most recent one - and I am so happy that she started it - is a Food Blog. Tasty Indian Khana.
D is a fine cook and an amazing baker. Now that she has started blogging on food, I could not have missed the opportunity to feature one of her recipes on my blog. So here it is - a sinful chocolate cake.
Thanks D for sharing this.
P.S. This was sent to me a few weeks ago. Got the opportunity to post it today.
"Good things happen to those who wait"
Around January I started on my quest to get an oven home. Finally, last week, we had a shiny, glorious new oven at home. Oooh was I excited!
However, time is a constraint and finally last evening, when the weather was breezy, with a hint of rain, I decided to christen the oven and made a much loved baked goodie - a chocolate cake!
As far as baked food go, a chocolate cake is a sure shot hit with almost anyone. And, it is simple to make, to boot.
All you need to do is use loads of chocolate, and lots of love. The moment the cake smell overtakes your house, do not, I repeat, do not blame anybody in your family for coming into the kitchen and bothering you before you finish the cake off!
What you need:
For the CakeFlour - 1 1/2 cups
Eggs - 2 large or 3 small.
Butter - 100gms or 1/2 cup sunflower/groundnut oil
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Cooking chocolate - 1/2 block (100gms)
Cocoa powder - 2 heaped tablespoons
Sugar - 1/2 cup (add more if you like your cake sweet)
A dash of milk
Switch on the oven, at 200C or as specified by your oven instructions.
Seive together the flour, cocoa powder and the baking powder. Do this 2-3 times, till the mixture is evenly brown in colour. Keep it aside.
Line the baking pan/mould with a little oil and then dust it with plain flour, till it is evenly coated. Keep it aside.
In a bowl,whisk together the oil and the sugar, till the sugar completele dissolves. The mixture should have a thick consistency.
Add in one egg into the sugar-oil mix and an equivalent amount of flour and slowly whisk it together.
Ensure that you mix it in only one direction. Do not change the direction of whisking, as it somehow reduces the fluffiness of the cake.
Once it has completely dissolved, mix in the other egg and some more flour.
By the end of the whisking, it should be a chocolatey, gooey mixture.
Add in the remaining amount of flour bit by bit till completely dissolved.
The consistency should be runny enough to fall on its own from the edge of the whisk. If its thick, add some milk into it - not too much. And whisk it in.
If you want, this is the time you can add some walnuts/dry fruits into the cake.
Once the mixture is ready, dont let it sit for too long.
Pour it into the baking mould right away. Pour it gently, and let it flow into every nook and crevice. Then, once every drop is transferred, lightly tap the mould on the counter. THis dislodges any air bubbles that might be trapped inside.
Pop it into the hot and ready oven.
Give it 25 mins.
Relish the aroma of a fresh-baked chocolate cake at home. It is a natural perfume to make the whole house smell incredibly good and warm and welcoming.
Towards the end of the timer, dip in either a toothpick or a fork, and if it comes out clean, your cake is ready! (if not, let it stay in the hot oven for some more time)
Bring out the tray, and tap the mould again. This time to dislodge it.
Let it cool for a minute or so, and then tap it out.
Note:To take out the cake, hold a plate of the same diameter as the cake on top of the mould, like a cover. Then, in a quick action, invert it, so that the plate is at the bottom. Tap the bottom of the mould (now at top) with the back of a knife, evenly. The cake should fall into the plate. Transfer it to a wire rack to cool evenly.
To make the chocolatey icing-ganache
Chop the cooking chocolate into small squares.
Put it into a double boiler.
Note:A double boiler is basically a large vessel partly filled with water, and a smaller vessel inside it. The larger vessel is placed on heat, and the hot water heats the contents of the smaller vessel. THis ensures a consistent, low temperature.
Once the chocolate starts melting, stir it around with a spatula, and add either a little cream, or milk.
Let it heat till the consistency is runny. Add in castor sugar, and stir it well, till the sugar is completely dissolved.
Putting the cake together
Keep the cake on the wire rack, or on an icing table. If on a wire rack, keep a sheet under it to catch the falling icing.
In these 9 years, D and I have moved from "freshly-graduated-MBAs-starting-their-career" to being professionally mature, finding our life partners and discovering various aspects of life along the way. And as you may have guessed, she is one of my closest friends.
She now also has various other blogs which I still follow - the Shoe Blog and more. The most recent one - and I am so happy that she started it - is a Food Blog. Tasty Indian Khana.
D is a fine cook and an amazing baker. Now that she has started blogging on food, I could not have missed the opportunity to feature one of her recipes on my blog. So here it is - a sinful chocolate cake.
Thanks D for sharing this.
P.S. This was sent to me a few weeks ago. Got the opportunity to post it today.
"Good things happen to those who wait"
Around January I started on my quest to get an oven home. Finally, last week, we had a shiny, glorious new oven at home. Oooh was I excited!
However, time is a constraint and finally last evening, when the weather was breezy, with a hint of rain, I decided to christen the oven and made a much loved baked goodie - a chocolate cake!
As far as baked food go, a chocolate cake is a sure shot hit with almost anyone. And, it is simple to make, to boot.
All you need to do is use loads of chocolate, and lots of love. The moment the cake smell overtakes your house, do not, I repeat, do not blame anybody in your family for coming into the kitchen and bothering you before you finish the cake off!
What you need:
For the CakeFlour - 1 1/2 cups
Eggs - 2 large or 3 small.
Butter - 100gms or 1/2 cup sunflower/groundnut oil
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Cooking chocolate - 1/2 block (100gms)
Cocoa powder - 2 heaped tablespoons
Sugar - 1/2 cup (add more if you like your cake sweet)
A dash of milk
Switch on the oven, at 200C or as specified by your oven instructions.
Seive together the flour, cocoa powder and the baking powder. Do this 2-3 times, till the mixture is evenly brown in colour. Keep it aside.
Line the baking pan/mould with a little oil and then dust it with plain flour, till it is evenly coated. Keep it aside.
In a bowl,whisk together the oil and the sugar, till the sugar completele dissolves. The mixture should have a thick consistency.
Add in one egg into the sugar-oil mix and an equivalent amount of flour and slowly whisk it together.
Ensure that you mix it in only one direction. Do not change the direction of whisking, as it somehow reduces the fluffiness of the cake.
Once it has completely dissolved, mix in the other egg and some more flour.
By the end of the whisking, it should be a chocolatey, gooey mixture.
Add in the remaining amount of flour bit by bit till completely dissolved.
The consistency should be runny enough to fall on its own from the edge of the whisk. If its thick, add some milk into it - not too much. And whisk it in.
If you want, this is the time you can add some walnuts/dry fruits into the cake.
Once the mixture is ready, dont let it sit for too long.
Pour it into the baking mould right away. Pour it gently, and let it flow into every nook and crevice. Then, once every drop is transferred, lightly tap the mould on the counter. THis dislodges any air bubbles that might be trapped inside.
Pop it into the hot and ready oven.
Give it 25 mins.
Relish the aroma of a fresh-baked chocolate cake at home. It is a natural perfume to make the whole house smell incredibly good and warm and welcoming.
Towards the end of the timer, dip in either a toothpick or a fork, and if it comes out clean, your cake is ready! (if not, let it stay in the hot oven for some more time)
Bring out the tray, and tap the mould again. This time to dislodge it.
Let it cool for a minute or so, and then tap it out.
Note:To take out the cake, hold a plate of the same diameter as the cake on top of the mould, like a cover. Then, in a quick action, invert it, so that the plate is at the bottom. Tap the bottom of the mould (now at top) with the back of a knife, evenly. The cake should fall into the plate. Transfer it to a wire rack to cool evenly.
To make the chocolatey icing-ganache
Chop the cooking chocolate into small squares.
Put it into a double boiler.
Note:A double boiler is basically a large vessel partly filled with water, and a smaller vessel inside it. The larger vessel is placed on heat, and the hot water heats the contents of the smaller vessel. THis ensures a consistent, low temperature.
Once the chocolate starts melting, stir it around with a spatula, and add either a little cream, or milk.
Let it heat till the consistency is runny. Add in castor sugar, and stir it well, till the sugar is completely dissolved.
Putting the cake together
Coat the top of the cake with icing and let it cool for some time till its becomes harder.
Decorate with chocolate sprinkles and silver dragees.
Serve, and enjoy!
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