Eggless Chocolate Fudge Brownies

So how many of you eventually guessed right about what I made with those ‘yummy in the tummy’ Palak Pakoras? Yes, I made my version of Kadi Pakodi with them alright. Is that what you guessed I did? I know some of you did, from the comments you left me. Yoohoo! Full brownie points for knowing me well. No really, I mean the ‘brownie’ bit all the way. ‘Cos my dears, I have some piquant and divine brownies for you today. What’s more, they’re cocoa brownies so they’re really really easy-peasy to make as well. You cannot get away without making these. There’s no escaping now. Muhuhahaha! *evil roaring laughter* :D

Eggless No-bake Blueberry Cheesecake

If you have been looking for an eggless cheesecake recipe, you can heave a huge sigh of relief. Why? Simply b’cos your quest has just ended. Right here. Right now. What’s more, it’s a no-bake cheesecake to boot. This is something I put together sometime back. Every once in a while, I get into ‘recipe development mode’ and this is one of the recent successful experiments churned out from my bubbling lab. If you’re having someone over, this makes for a perfect make-ahead dessert. Assemble. Allow to set. Forget all about it, atleast until it’s time for dessert. Want to know the icing on the cake? It takes less than 30 minutes to put it all together. Now, isn’t that reason enough to make it asap as possible (no, that’s not a typo; that’s twice as fast as ‘asap’!!)

Eggless Chocolate Pound Cake with Cornstarch

The first event of the Free-spirit Bloggers group is here. And wowie, what an overwhelming response you gave us for the introduction post! Thank you. Forget those extra 4 brownie points I mentioned. Just drop by… I’ll have those warm fudgy brownies waiting for y’all :) So are you ready for that first burst of free-spirit we’re sharing with you?

Strawberry Gateau

Do you know what dreams are made of? Go on and tell me all about it then. I’m all ears all eyes, cos I don’t know. I do know though that one of my dreams has come true at college this term. For those of you who don’t know, I’m an Architect and I teach at Design School. The bunch of 20-something kids I was mentoring for six whole months have passed their theses with flying colours and done me proud. Shruthi, Supriya, Pallavi and Rasool, it was a wonderful experience working with you guys this term. Shine bright wherever you go!

Eggless Chocolate-chip Cookies

I would like to thank each and every one of you who took the time out to vote for CCN in the Blogjunta ‘Best of Indian Blogosphere 2010′ polls. We made it to the Winners’ list, and thank you all so verrrrrrrrrry much. I’m completely overwhelmed. Gracias gracias, muchos muchos. So shouldn’t we have a little sweet something to celebrate? Of course we should.

‘Tales From Your Kitchen’ – Sree Vani’s Chocolate Tart

You remember how I said some readers of the blog have now gone on to become thick pals? Remember Mittu and her Chocolate Truffle Cake? There’s another such friend who’s right here in Bangalore, and we even got to meet recently. I was so excited when I met Sree Vani last week at a taste-testing event we had all been to. Vani was another non-blogger who sent me her to-die-for chocolate creation for the Chocolate Fest. The minute I saw Vani’s email with the recipe and pictures, I told her I wouldn’t let her sit in peace till she made some for me. I’m still waiting to taste the tart Vani, and I hope I can get to lay my hands on some very soon!

Eggless Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake

Can I tempt you with something sweet and chocoliciously divine this new year? Of course, I’m doing this on purpose! Did I not tell you that some serious food coma was on its way here? So be it! And what better way to start you all off with food coma, than a dessert such as this one?!!

Would you believe me if I said that I’ve made this Eggless Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake atleast 8-10 times till date, but not eaten any of it, even once? Gasp, I know! No seriously, I havent. Pinkie swear. Every one of those people who got to lay their hands on this cake has always come to back to me with rave reviews, including my patrons on ‘Sweet Somethings‘, and it has been really hard to stop myself from making myself one and gorging on it. On the other hand, I’m really proud of myself for having stuck to my resolve to shed those extra pounds and get rid of those love handles. And oh yes, mission is being accomplished! Those darned love handles are gone (yayyy!), and so are some pounds, and I’m still counting. Suddenly, I’m in love with my weighing scale, ‘cos its tipping in the right direction and showing me just the kind of figures I want to see ;)

Now now, just b’cos I’m not indulging, doesn’t mean I can deprive you lot of some sin. No way! So, here’s to beginning this new year with loads of sin like in this one. May this new year be just as sweet and silken-smooth as the mousse in this cake, for all of you! And if you’re sinning, stick just to food…that’ll do ;)

They say necessity is the mother of invention…so true. I have never really agreed with the eggless versions of mousse that are prepared with marshmallows, b’cos at the end of the day, marshmallows contain egg. Oh yes, they do! So it’s just like using egg in a different form. Nada, so I had to come up with something other than that. Coming to the science of mousse, egg is basically used as a setting agent. Chocolate was already there in the recipe for a setting agent, so exit eggs, and the marshmallows. Enter whipped cream, another setting agent, and voila! piquant Eggless Chocolate Mousse – all yours! This mousse and mousse cake have now become signature desserts of mine, and I couldn’t wait to share it with you all. You know me by now…I revel in the joy of sharing :)

This one’s off to join all the other treats already partying at Cakes and More!!!’s first Bloggiversary. Happy first Suma! Wish you many many more years of delicious blogging. I know this is later than even last-minute (you know why). Nonetheless, I’m so glad that you agreed to accept my late entry.

Eggless Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake

Ingredients:

For the Eggless Chocolate Cake Base:

• All purpose flour/Maida – 1/3 cup
• Cocoa - 1/2 cup
• Sugar – 1/3 cup
• Baking powder – 1/4 tsp
• Baking Soda – 1/8 tsp
• Salt – a pinch
• Flax seed powder – 1 tsp mixed in 1/4 cup warm water (substituting 1 egg)
• Water – 2 tbsps (In addition to the 1/4 cup warm water)
• Oil – 2 tbsps (I used Rice Bran)
• Vanilla essence – 1 tsp

For the Eggless Chocolate Mousse:

• Dark Chocolate block– 125 gms, chopped (I used ‘Morde’)
• Butter – 1/2 cup (125 gms)
• Whipping cream – 100 ml
• Icing Sugar – 1/4 cup (37.5 gms)
• Instant Coffee powder (optional) – 1/2 tsp
• Vanilla essence – 1 tsp

For the Chocolate Ganache:

• Dark Chocolate – 1 cup, chopped into small pieces
• Butter – 1/4 cup
• Honey/Corn syrup – 1.5 tbsps (I used honey)
• Vanilla extract – 1 tsp

Note: This proportion makes a pretty tall 6-inch round mousse cake that serves 6-8 people. If you wish to make a bigger cake that would serve 12-15 people, just double the proportion, and set the cake in a 9-inch round spring-form pan.

Procedure:

For the Eggless Chocolate Cake Base:

• Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Line and grease a 6″ round spring-form pan and set aside.
• Put the flax seed powder in 1/4 cup warm water, add the vanilla essence to this mixture and set aside till it develops a gelatinous texture.
• In another small bowl, combine the oil and water. Set aside.
• Sift all the dry ingredients together (maida, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt) thrice and transfer to a wide bowl.
• Add the sugar, stir well with a balloon-whisk to incorporate.
• Combine the flax seed water mixture with the water-oil mixture, and mix well.
• Stir in the wet mixture into the dry mixture. The batter must have a ribbon-like consistency once properly combined.
• Pour the batter into the readied pan.
• Bake for 20-22 minutes or till done.
• Turn onto a wire-rack and let cool completely before you proceed with the mousse topping.

For the Eggless Chocolate Mousse:

• Chop the chocolate block and butter into small (1/2″ square) uniform sized pieces.
• Melt the chopped chocolate and butter together at high for 1.5-2 minutes in the MW or on a double boiler. Once done, remove from MW/double boiler and set aside to cool.
• If using the instant coffee powder, tip it into the chocolate-butter mixture now and stir well. Set mixture aside.
• In the meanwhile, whip the whipping cream and icing sugar together for 2-3 minutes, till just before hard-peak stage.
• By now, the chocolate-butter-cream mixture should have cooled down a bit. Go ahead and dip a finger into the bowl and lick it off. I insist! If the mixture hasn’t cooled yet, place the bowl in a bowl of cold water for not more than 2 minutes, or it will start to set right there.
• Once the chocolate mixture has cooled, put some of the whipped cream mixture into the chocolate mixture and fold it in gently to incorporate.
• Gradually fold in the rest of the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture and incorporate.

For the Chocolate Ganache:

You can prepare this after the mousse has set, and use it immediately after since it starts setting pretty soon.

• In a microwave safe bowl, melt the chocolate, butter and honey for about 30 seconds to a minute, till the chocolate and butter have completely melted and you have a smooth, glossy mixture.
• Add the vanilla, stir well, and allow to cool for atleast 3-4 minutes before you pour it on the cake. Hot ganache will give melting moments!

Assembling the Cake:

• Place the readied sponge base on a cake platter/working base.
• Put the spring-form pan around it and lock it in place (don’t use the spring-form base, just the rim. I used my a 6″ round cake ring).
• Poke holes on the cake base with a fork.
• Pour the readied mousse batter onto the cake, and level the top with a spatula.
• Set the cake in the fridge for 2-3 hours. Yes, this mousse sets sooner than your regular mousse. Which means that you can lay your hands on dessert even sooner! Do I see grinning about it? Yeah, I do!
• Once the cake has set for a good time in the refrigerator, give the cake ring/spring-form ring a slight jiggle sideways (in both directions), and gently unlock the spring-form rim, and take it off the base.
• Return cake to the refrigerator till you get ready to frost it with the ganache.
• Once the ganache has considerably cooled, spread it over top of cake, letting it drizzle down the sides.
• Decorate the cake with grated chocolate (yes, even more chocolate!) if you wish, or with a garnish of choice. You can see what I did with mine. Go ahead and unleash your creativity, and do your own thing. Don’t forget to stick the cake back in the fridge till you need to serve it.
• At serving time, cut with a clean, serrated knife. Wipe the knife clean between making cuts on the cake, to get neat-looking slices.

Do I have your permission to tease you with one more pic of a slice before I go? :)

Enjoy the chocolate overdose! I hope you like this one just as much as everything else you have tried from CCN. Have a fantabulous year ahead!

 

 

‘Tales from your Kitchen’ – Mridubhashini’s Chocolate Truffle Cake

It’s a wonderful feeling the way I share a really good bond with some of the readers of the blog. Some of them have gone on to become really good friends now. One of them is Mridubhashini, who is also fondly known as Mittu. We both end up chatting on IM almost everyday, and if I don’t catch her online anytime during the day, I feel like I’ve missed doing something important that day. Sometimes, because of our schedules and the different time zones we’re located in, its like playing hide and seek with each other, but we finally manage to catch up, and it feels so good. That’s how indispensable some friends become after a while, don’t they? Specially, when those friends are so like-minded! When I announced the Chocolate Fest event for CCN’s 1st Blog Anniversary, she immediately IM’ed me saying she would send me something nice for the event. And she definitely did! Mittu, am I glad we’re friends or what? For now, I’ll be content with the pictures, but when we finally meet, Im surely getting you to make this for me ;)

Now, over to Mittu -

“This is my entry to your choco-mania fest :D!!

I made this cake for my hubby’s birthday. The first one after we got married. It was pretty eventful that time, DC area was blanketed with snow and the whole place came to a halt and stepping out was a nightmare. I sent the birthday boy himself, to go get me the ingredients so I could bake it for him :D Teehee! This cake is a wonderfully chocolatey and not too sweet; its bittersweet chocolate and liqueur all the way. Hic!

Here is the recipe in the order I made it:

Chocolate Truffle Cake

(Recipe Source: Cakes: 1001 Classic Recipes)

Ingredients:

For the Truffle:

• Bitter-sweet chocolate (broken into small pieces) - 1/2 cup (4 oz)
• Heavy Cream – 3 tbsps
• Unsalted Butter – 1 tbsp
• Confectioner’s Sugar – 1/3 cup
• Orange liqueur – 1 tbsp (I used frangelico, hazelnut liqueur)
• Cocoa – 1/3 cup

For the Cake:

• All-purpose flour/Maida – 2 cups
• Cocoa – 1/4 cup
• Baking powder – 1 tsp
• Baking soda – 1/2 tsp
• Salt – 1/4 tsp
• Bitter-sweet chocolate (broken into small pieces) – 1/4 cup (2 oz)
• Butter – 1/3 cup at room temperature
• Sugar – 3/4 cup
• Cream Cheese – 1/3 cup (3 oz), at room temperature
• Eggs – 2 nos, at room temperature
• Orange liqueur – 1 tbsp (I used frangelico, hazelnut liqueur)
• Vanilla extract – 1 tsp
• Water – 3/4 cup

For the Filling:

• Bitter-sweet chocolate (broken into small pieces) – 1 cup (8 oz)
• Heavy Cream – 1/3 cup
• Orange liqueur – 2 tbsps (I used frangelico, hazelnut liqueur)

For the Frosting:

• Bitter-sweet chocolate (broken into small pieces) – 1/2 cup + 2 tbsps (5 oz)
• Butter (softened) – 10 tbsps
• Confectioner’s Sugar (optional) – 1/3 cup (adjust as per taste, or avoid altogether)
• Vanilla extract – 1 tsp

Procedure:

For the Truffle:

• Melt the butter, chocolate and cream in the microwave, or on a double boiler, over barely simmering water.
• Add the confectioners sugar ( I sifted it once before adding) , liqueur until its smooth.
• Refrigerate for about 30 mins atleast.
• On a plate put about 1 tbsp of cocoa powder.
• Roll spoonfuls of mixture into small balls and dust your hands with cocoa powder and coat the balls with the cocoa powder on the plate. Refrigerate till needed.

For the Cake:

• Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Butter two 9-inch round pans and set aside.
• Into a large mixing bowl, sift the flour cocoa, baking powder, soda and salt.
• Melt the chocolate in the microwave or on a double boiler and set aside to cool.
• Beat cream cheese, butter and sugar till creamy (at medium speed).
• Add the eggs one at a time, until blended after each addition, reduce the speed to low and add in the melted chocolate, liqueur and vanilla extract.
• Add the dry mixture gradually alternating with water.
• Spoon the batter into the prepared tins and bake for 25 -35 mins or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Cool the cakes in the pan for 10 mins and remove from pans and cool on the cooling rack.
• Once cooled, cling-wrap the 2 cakes and put them in the freezer for atleast 1/2 an hour. The cake is very very fragile and when splitting, the cake could come apart. plus this way you can avoid crumbs on the frosting and filling!

For the Filling:

• Melt the chocolate and the cream in the microwave, or on a double boiler over barely simmering water. Add liqueur, stir well and set aside to cool.

For the Frosting:

• Melt the chocolate in the microwave, or over a double boiler of barely simmering water.
• With the mixer at medium speed, beat butter and confectioners sugar in a medium-sized bowl until creamy.
• Beat in the melted chocolate until glossy and smooth. Set aside

To assemble the cake:

• Slice each cake horizontally into two layers.
• Place one layer on a flat base/serving plate, and spread 1/3 rd of the filling on top of it.
• Repeat with the 2 other layers till you have one last cake layer left.
• Top with remaining layer and spread the cake with the readied frosting evenly on the top and sides, using an offset spatula.
• Decorate the cake with the prepared truffles and sprinkle with sifted cocoa.”

That looks like a very piquant dessert Mittu! Thanks so much for sharing it with us, and also for sending it over the Chocolate Fest :)

All you folks, Sree Vani’s Chocolate Tart is coming up next so keep those pretty peepers peeled, cos that is one big mamma of a chocolate tart. Vani, unless I get some of that tart, the giveaway book ain’t reaching you ;) Just kidding, but I’m coming over for that tart sometime soon, so please make some for me. Oh yes, Vani and I live not too far from each other, so we like to exchange our baked goodies once in a while. Do I see your face turning green with envy? Muhuhahahaha ;)