Whole Wheat Nutty Banana Muffins (no butter)

At the end of every week I am left with a minimum of three over ripe bananas and this time I decided I would make muffins but healthy muffins. So here is the version with nuts, no butter and no sugar. Whole wheat is always better than Maida ( the bleached refined version of wheat) that is widely consumed. I have added walnuts, almonds and flax seeds to the batter, but you can add what ever you like. Also I have substituted sugar with honey and palm jaggery. Making it a healthier alternative to refined sugar.

Ingredients:-

• Whole Wheat Flour – 1  1/2cups
• Ripe Bananas – 4 (small size) mashed
• Honey – 1 cup
• Palm Jaggery – 3 tbsp
• Salt – 1/2tsp
• Baking Soda – 1tsp
• Baking Powder – 1 tsp
• Cinnamon Powder – 1/2 tsp
• Mixed cup of nuts (walnuts, almonds) – 1 cup
• Flax Seed – 1/3 cup
• Egg – 1
• Vanilla Essence – 1 tsp
• Milk – 2 tbsp
• Oil – 2 tbsp

Instructions :-

• Preheat the oven to 180C and lightly oil a muffin tray and set aside
• In a bowl whisk honey,palm sugar / jaggery, vanilla extract, egg and salt.  Then add the mashed banana to the mixture
• In another bowl combine baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon powder and nuts with whole wheat flour.
• Slowly combine the dry ingredients to the banana mixture and combine well
• Scoop equal quantities of the batter into the muffin tray and bake for 20 – 30 min
• Enjoy 🙂

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Mango CheeseCake

Mango cheesecake

Staying on the mango track, I am trying to make as many mango yum yums as I can 🙂 Sorry about the baby lingo. My baby just called me mama and so now I am  talking as much as I can as I have heard that the more you talk to your baby, the faster and the better they talk. Yes baby talk does not help but hey! how do you look at a 7 month old and say “Would you like some purred carrot and milk “:)  I say “who wants nyum nyuum carrot” 😛

OK!! Mango Cheesecake!! focus!!

Ingredients

♥ For the crust

Marie or Parle G biscuit – 1 double pack ( Graham Crackers works too)
Butter – 2 tbsp

♥ Filling / cheesecake center

Panner/ Cottage Cheese – 2 packets
Cream – 400ml
Sugar – 1/2Cup
Gelatin – 4tbsp
Mango – 4 medium size (puree)
Water – 1/2 cup

♥ Mango Syrup

Mango – 2 medium size
Sugar – 2 – 3 tbsp (depends on the sweetness of the mango)
Water – 1 Cup

Instructions:-

♥ Butter a 24 x 7cm spring form cake tin and set aside. Pulse the biscuits in a mixer till it has sand like texture. Add the butter and pulse just a little longer. Pat into the base of the cake tin and tap  to the bottom till a nice tightly packed bottom layer is formed. Refrigerate for 2 -3hrs.

♥ Heat the water till luke warm and add the gelatin powder. Mix it well and let it cool down. In a mixing bowl, add the cottage cheese and cream. Mix well till the mixture is nice a smooth. Add the cooled gelatin to the mixture. Then add the mango puree and sugar a little at a time (keep tasting the mixture and add only the amount of  sugar required, every mango has a different degree of sweetness). Once the biscuit layer has hardened pour the mango cream on top.  Refrigerate 6- 8hrs. I let it sit over night

(I divided the cream and cheese mixture into two and added two different kinds of mangos.  I used two mangos of the same kind for one layer and another layer with two mangos of another kind. So the difference in the color, I like the distinct taste of each of the mango layers)

♥ For the syrup, mix the sugar and water and heat o a low flame. When the mixture starts to boil add the mango puree and mix well. Let the mixture boil for a while. Slowly the mixture becomes thick. Let the mixture be a little runny. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and let it cool down. I like to pour the syrup just before serving.

( if you add gelatin to the above mixture and pour it over the cream mango layer once it has set, you will have a mango jelly layer on top. Personally I think that will be just too much gelatin and jelly like texture)

 

Good Old Banana Bread Muffins.. My lazy day breakfast…..

Banana Bread Muffin

Ok by far the easiest recipe I have posted. Its pretty much a one bowl deal and if you make them over a weekend, you have next weeks breakfast pretty much DONE!!

I give my baby one banana mashed every morning, after his milk. So by the end of the week I usually have 3-4 over ripe bananas. So the best way to use them is by making banana bread muffins. You can do variations of them. Add walnuts one week! Cranberries, almonds, chocolate chips, dates .. .. I will post them as I bake them..  I think I will try making them with oil instead of butter next time.. ok let’s get to the recipe 🙂

Banana Bread Muffins

Ingredients :-  

Flour – 2 cups
Banana – 3 – 4 medium size
Powdered Sugar – 2/3 cup
Butter – 100 gms (at room temperature)
Vanilla Essence – 1 tsp
Salt – pinch
Baking Soda – 1/2 tsp
Eggs – 2 (at room temperature)
Milk – 1 tsp

Instructions :- 

Preheat your oven to 180c and line a muffin tray with muffin liners/ cupcake lines ( or just butter the tray well if you don’t want liners)

In a bowl, whisk banana (mashed), butter and sugar. Then add eggs one after the other and later add vanilla extract and milk. Into the same bowl sieve in the baking soda, flour and salt. Fold into the banana mixture. Dont over work the batter.

Scoop the batter equally into the muffin tin and let them bake for around 20 – 30 mins.

Enjoy 🙂

Quick Carrot and Sausage Soup

The other day, my husband rushed back from office, mid day and I realized he had a fever. I was on panic mode as there was nothing in the fridge and I knew a bowl of soup would make him feel better. The only thing in the fridge was the carrots I keep for my sons carrot puree and luckily there was  a pack of chicken sausages. I made the soup in half an hour and he felt much better the minute he took the  first sip. Thankfully his fever did not last more that a two days.

((Note to self) – Always keep enough vegetables in the fridge to make a soup)

Ingredients ( for one bowl)

1) Carrots –  4 medium size
2) Onion – 1 ( finely chopped)
3) Garlic – 1 tsp of garlic chopped
4) Chilly powder or Paprika – 1 tsp
5) Sausages – 5 medium size
6) Bell Pepper – Half of one ( chopped into little squares)
7) Salt – half a tsp
8) Olive oil – 2 tbsp
9) Pepper powder – (optional) 1/2 tsp
10) Water – 1 cup

Instructions –

Preheat the oven to 180.
Prep your carrots by washing, drying, arranging them on the baking tray and drizzling it with a little olive oil. Once the oven is ready let the carrots roast for 15 – 20 mins. Once they are almost golden pull them out.
While the carrots get ready, heat the water in a sauce pan, Once the water starts to boil, add the sausages and let them cook well. Once done take out the sausages and reserve the water separately.
Once the carrots have cooled,  in the same pan heat the olive oil and add the onions and garlic. Fry till the raw smell of the onion is gone. Now transfer the carrots, onion garlic mixture into a blender. Add the chilly powder and salt. Blend till the mixture is nice and smooth. Now transfer the carrot mixture to the sauce pan and add the sausage water. Let it simmer for a while. Mean while you can chop up the sausages to small circles and add to the boiling mixture.

Bring the soup to a boil and its ready!!

Garnish it with bell pepper and coriander leaves.

Mango and Almond Chip Ice Cream

Its summer time and that means its mango time! I am going to try making as many mango based yummies as I can. My little baby boy Adithya just turned 7 months and now he’s constantly on his fours, crawling around the house, trying to climb up and always falling down while sitting up straight. So I spend most of my time on the floor along with him. So posting recipes are little slower these days. And I usually cook only when he is asleep or when my husband is on baby duty. That happens only on weekends as he’s constantly working!

My little Adi just started solid food and we started with Banana. Now he has Raggi ( finger millet), carrots, rice, lentils and orange juice. I think I will introduce him to Mango too. Any way , this means I am constantly either feeding him or cleaning him. So sitting down and typing in these recipes don happen often.

Alright! Let’s get to the recipe huh….. 🙂

Ingredients 

1) Mango puree – One cup ( I just cut two big mangoes and ran in the blender to make one cup of mango pulp)

2) Powdered Sugar – Half cup ( I used a little more cause the mango wasn’t as sweet as I would have wanted)

3) Milk Powder – 1 cup and 2 tsp

4) Salt – A pinch

5) Fresh Cream – 200 ml

6) Toasted Almonds – A hand full, finely sliced

Instructions –

In a mixer, add the mango pure, cream and sugar and blend till they combine well.

Then add the milk powder and salt and blend well. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl as the milk powder may stick to the side of the bowl. Once the mixture is ready pour into the required ice cream bowl/ container.

Make sure you churn the mixture every one hour 3- 4 times. And at the final churn add the almonds to the mixture uniformly around the container and let it sit in the freezer overnight .

The next morning you have fresh mango ice cream with no added additives or color or preservative. Enjoy!!