The Best Wholewheat Carrot Cake

Hi Everyone! I hope everyone is having an awesome start of 2019. This is my first blogpost of the year and am excited to be back again to my space. 2018 was a slow and steady year for me. While I spent a lot of time learning to be a mother of a hi-energy toddler, I also lost a little focus on my mantra of healthy living. But I was aware what I was doing wrong. I wanted to give myself the time to figure out ways to adapt to my new life. After-all, it all about re-inventing. Because change is the only constant here. Do tell me what were your hits and miss of the year 2018.

Now coming back to 2019, I am so excited to share with you all the best wholewheat carrot cake recipe ever. Literally! I am excited about this like a little kid who first learns to read. Or like a girl who bakes her first cake without fail. The reason for this excitement is because though I love baking and do that quite often, I still hesitate making major changes in a cake recipe. Breads and muffins are very forgiving. But not cakes...to me. That said, I went all out and dared to make bold changes in the traditional carrot cake recipe. And sometimes it is a good thing. I was very nervous, when my oven timer beeped and I pulled out the cake. Well it looked as I would expect. But any of you who bake, know that it is not the real test. I jumped with joy when i flipped the cake on the rack because I could feel it was light, airy, spongy and super moist. It gave no feel of this being a 100% wholewheat cake.

Recipe
makes one 8*2 inch round cake

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil/vegetable oil
1/4 cup Greek yogurt
2 large eggs
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup palm sugar/white sugar
1/2 Tbsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp all spice
1tsp baking soda
1/2tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup 100% wholewheat flour
1.5 cup finely grated carrots, fresh
1/2 cup pecans/walnuts chopped (optional)

1. Preheat the oven at 350 deg F and prepare a 8 inch or 9 inch round baking pan.
2. In a bowl, combine oil, Greek yogurt, eggs, honey, sugar with an electric mixer.
3. In another bowl, sift all the dry ingredients.
4. Mix the dry ingredients in batches to the liquid ones. Make sure you do not over mix. Just until well incorporated.
5. Fold in the freshly grated carrots. Stay away from the store bought grated carrots. They lack the moisture which your cake badly needs. It is really worth the time and pain to freshly grate the carrots for that beautiful chiffon finish.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 mins.
7. Let it cool in the pan for a good 10-15 mins.
8. Place it carefully on a cooling rack and let it cool for another 10-15 mins.

So take my word on this being the best wholewheat carrot cake ever. It will be a guilt free, go-to cake and pass all the tests to be made for your little ones anytime. 

Not just that, bake it in 2 layers and incorporate your favorite cream cheese/Greek yogurt frosting and it will an elegant formal cake suitable to any occasion.

Tex Mex Wonton Cups

Entertaining should be fun for both the guests and the host. Putting together some good drinks and easy appetizers is always a crowd pleaser and less stressful for the host too. This makes getting together with friends, chatting and sharing bites all good memorable times. And it is so much fun to play around with the party snacks. Last time I made wonton cups appetizers with traditional Asian flavors. So this time around I filled them up with Mexican. What I really love about these is how easily they are available almost everywhere nowadays and allow one to get creative. Needless to say, they get ready in jus few minutes. I like to use Hong Kong style wonton wrappers as they are little thicker and hold better while baking. So let’s get cooking :)

To prepare what I have above in the picture, you would need -

24 wonton wrappers, HK style
1 can organic black beans, washed and rinsed
1 red onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup frozen corn, thawed
2 Tbsp cilantro, chopped
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp cumin powder
salt to taste
some cheese to garnish

• Preheat oven at 375 deg F
• Arrange the muffin pan with 2 wonton wrappers in each to make a cup, that we would use for our filling.
• Bake for 7-9 mins.
• Meanwhile, heat a pan with little oil. Saute onion, bell pepper, corn and black beans, in the specified order. Add the salt and the spices and cook for 2-3 mins. Let it cool for 10 mins.
• Once the wonton cups are ready, assemble them with the filling and top with cheese.
• Bake in the preheated oven at 375 deg F for 6-7 mins.
• Top with sour cream (optional)

Baked Whole Wheat Spinach Tofu Samosa

Hi all! I am sure everyone is having a blast this summer and enjoying the sun. The picnic baskets, beaches, barbeques and drinks to keep you cool are all the fun summer brings along. I have always found barbeque in hot summer quirky. But then it rocks together so why bother. The sizzling sound on the grills and the hot food together with some iced drinks is beyond perfect. 

Apart from the traditional American barbeque foods, I always love bringing in the flavors of my Indian origin to the food. Simple things like grilled corn on the cob drizzled with lemon and spicy salt instead of butter gives a homely pleasure. Likewise serving hot Samosas. Samosa is not a barbeque food but it fits into any occassion for all Indians. I come from North India where it is not an exaggeration if I call Samosa as the religion for any snack time ;-) Traditionally, it is deep fried spicy potatoes filled pastry. 


Samosa is characterized by its deep fried flaky buttery crust. It has evolved a lot with time. People use their choice of fillings from potatoes, peas, lentils to meats. After All, food is all about creativity. Here is my healthy take on it - I fill it up with spinach and tofu yummy filling with just the right spices. Use a whole wheat dough and bake it instead of deep frying. This not only saves a lot on calories but also adds in lot of healthier components like fiber, protein and essential vitamins and minerals. As always, eating healthy does not mean giving up your favorite foods. It is just about doing it the right way. So here is the recipe -

Whole Wheat Spinach Tofu Samosa
serves 8

For the filling
4 cups fresh spinach
1 red onion, chopped
1/2 block of firm or extra firm tofu, drained, dried and crumbled
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1tsp red chilli flakes
salt and pepper to taste

For the dough
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 Tbsp oil of your choice, I used virgin coconut oil
2 tsp salt
1 tsp red chili powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
cold water

• To make the dough, mix all ingredients except water. Work the oil with your fingers in the flour mixture.
• Now use cold water to knead a smooth but firm dough. This is very important.
• Cover with a damp towel and set aside for 30-40 mins minimum.
• Preheat the oven at 400 deg C
• Meanwhile, work on the filling. Heat a saute pan with 2 tsp of oil. Add the onion and cook for few mins until translucent.
• Add spinach and cook it down. This will take couple of mins.
• Turn off the heat and add spices and crumbled tofu. Set aside to cool at room temperature.  **The tofu should be quite dry. If not, remove all the excess water from the filling mixture by straining through a strainer. 
• Make dough balls of about 3 inch each in diameter.
• Roll them out evenly in round disc shape of around 6 inch diameter.
• Now depending on how you like decide the shape you want for your samosa If you want triangles (like shown in my picture) cut the disc in half which will make 2 triangle cones. Else make it a crescent shape.
• So fill in the mixture in your decided cutout and carefully seal the ends. This is imp. You can use water to make perfect tight edges.
• Prepare a baking sheet and line with parchment paper. Line up the filled samosas and brush with your choice oil. I used a mix of vegetable and olive oil.
• Bake in preheated oven for around 30-40 mins. If your samosas do not get the brown covering, broil them on low for 2-3 mins.
• Serve with ketchup or your fav chutney.

** whole wheat samosas are best enjoyed fresh for the crispy flaky crust. If you want to use these for later, use more of all purpose flour in the dough.

Homemade Baked Potato Chips

Mmm Mmm! Crunchy. Chips are everyone's favorite snack. You cannot just eat one. But with more insight into things we should eat, we avoid fried foods like Chips. The food industry analyzed the public behavior and came up with Baked chips instead. But are those baked chips any healthier? Actually not. As a rule of thumb, always turn to read the ingredients list. The ingredients in a regular bag of chips are simple - Potatoes, Oil and Salt. But the story changes for the baked bag of chips. It has ingredients like Corn Starch, Soy Lecithin and Corn Sugar. Check out the images below. 

If I want to eat baked chips, why do the ingredients need to change. It should just be the method that is subject to change - baking instead of frying. Well the big names in the food industry fail to do so. So I now bake my own when am in the mood for crispy, crunchy potato chips. And best feature of homemade is that they are served warm!!


So as for the recipe it is as simple as it can get. All you need is -

Potatoes, washed and dried
Olive Oil
Salt
Cayenne Pepper (optional)

• Preheat oven at 400 deg F
• Slice the potatoes using a mandolin slicer really thin.
• Drop the slices in a bowl and mix with oil, salt and pepper.
• Prepare 2 cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.
• Arrange the potato slices in single layer so they do not top each other.
• Bake for 25 min

Zucchini Pizza Bites

With healthy snacks, let your imagination run wild. When am hungry but have nothing handy to eat and also in crunch of time, I like to open my fridge and juts grab 5 or less ingredients. After that it is all about thinking fresh and thinking out of the box.

The other day I found some leftover minestrone for lunch. But there was no bread in the pantry and I was craving a slice of pizza to go with my soup. It was a busy day and I had no time to make one or grab one from outside.  That is when these zucchinis came on handy. Need I say more? The recipe is in the name - Zucchini Pizza Bites.

• Set the oven on broil.
• Cut zucchini in ½ inch thick rounds. I use a mandolin slicer for this as it makes the work breezy.
• Top with your favorite sauce and cheese.
• Finish with your favorite topping.
• Broil for 2-4 mins.

As I was running low on my pantry stocks the other day, I used some pepper jack cheese and sliced red bell pepper as toppings. Voila! Perfect bite and cheesy heaven.

Cast Iron Pan Whole Wheat Pizza - In Under 30 mins

America runs on Pizza! It is the best tasting, easy-n-quick food to get, sitting in the comfort of your home. A lot has been said about the nutrition in Pizza. Restaurants are catering to gluten-free, whole wheat and thin crust customer demands. But when there is so much buzz about ingredient list, pizza places usually do not provide it for the dough. One of the dangerous ingredients that can be found on pretty much any pizza you eat in the marketplace is MSG (Mono Sodium Glutamate). Not just that, the pizza sauce would contain corn syrup, other forms of modified sugars and several GMO products. If you happen to read the ingredient list, always remember; if you cannot pronounce it, your body won't either. If it reads something bad, it most likely is.

MSG is a synthetic amino acid, declared as an excitotoxin as it stimulate the cells to death. It is a chemical enhancer, that tricks your brain to eat more and more. It is very sad that our favorite foods are designed to cheat our body. But you can take back control. Here is how - without destroying the integrity of Pizza for being a comfortable and quick food - make it at home in less than 30 mins. These 30mins are well spent making pizza at home with the family rather than ordering on phone and killing time waiting for it.

Recipe
Pizza Dough (makes 3 personal pizza)
1 1/4 cup of all purpose flour
1 1/4 cups of whole wheat flour
1 pkg instant yeast
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp white sugar
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup very warm water

• Preheat the oven at 450 deg F.
• In a mixing bowl, throw in all dry ingredients.
• Knead the dough with the water. As you knead, yeast activates and it will become sticky. So you may use some oil.
• Cover and set aside for 10-15 min.
• In this time, choose and arrange your favorite toppings.
• The dough would have risen quite a lot in this time. Divide in 3 equal portions.

• Brush the cast iron skillet with some olive oil. Heat on low-medium.
• Roll the dough about 1/2 inch thick using flour. Lay carefully on the hot skillet.
• Dress your pizza on the skillet as you like. 
• Transfer the heated skillet in the preheated oven and bake for 15mins.

The dough stores well in fridge for 3-4 days. 

It is much easier to work with than any store bought dough. I prefer using cast iron skillet for 2 reasons - portion control and it makes the crust perfect crispy. You can achieve the same results on a pizza stone.

Make any night pizza night now:)

Baked Crispy Apple Chips

Did you know that the biggest problem while trying to lose weight is attributed to unhealthy and emotional snacking? On a weight loss regime people focus most to avoid unhealthy meals but forget to do the same with snacks. The problem worsens with those salty and sugary cravings. I have observed that a lot depends on availability and reach-ability. So I have now become all about keeping the healthy snacks within easiest reach all the time. But yes they gotta taste good to satisfy the cravings.

Crispy apple chips are my new addiction. They are sweet, tangy and spiced up to satisfy any palette without leaving the heart breaking guilt. One apple makes around 15 chips which is a perfect service size. I like to bake them with cinnamon that takes the flavor to a totally new level. Honestly, I find them more satisfying than a bag of chips. And even if I eat more than a serving size, hey its okay. Am just eating crispy apples.

Recipe
4 apples of you choice, i like granny smith or red delicious
1-2 tsp of cinnamon
1 tsp of sugar
1/2 tsp of salt

• Preheat oven to 250 deg F
• Cut the apples in thin round slices. I use my mandolin slicer for this step on second lowest setting. It takes less than 5 mins to do the entire batch.
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Lay the apple slices in a single layer on each.
• Sprinkle with the mixture of spices.
• Bake for 1 hr. Flip to turn sides and bake for another 1-1.5 hr

I love to bake these during a movie night after dinner. As they take long to bake. But when baking, apple and cinnamon fills the house with a sweet aroma. Makes the movie night more fun and relaxing :)

Ramekin Berry Crisp

Hello readers! I have been long gone from my blog as was managing other major life events. Nothing to worry about as everything was for good. But I indeed missed writing and reading all those lovely blog posts. As its never too late to get back to your passion, here I am again. One thing am proud of is that I did not cheat my pledge of healthy lifestyle all this busy time. I did get tempted many times but I could control myself. This makes me extremely happy and proud of myself.

As I strongly believe, eating healthy is not a diet plan. It is rather a lifestyle change and does not require you to give up on your favorite foods. The recipes just need a little modification. Every now and then we must satisfy our cravings as long as it is in control. Balance is the key to success. 

I fall victim to my sweet tooth! So instead of consuming store bought desserts, I make my own. And that portion control comes from my favorite ramekins. I have them in all the sizes. Its is officially fall and I missed on enjoying the fresh berries this summer. So last night I made myself a quick Berry Crisp with healthy ingredients like whole wheat flour, oats and nuts.

Recipe serves 2
4 oz frozen organic berries mix
1/8 cup brown sugar/stevia
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
For the Crisp
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup oats
1/4 cup sugar/stevia (use less sugar if only using strawberry)
3/4 cups chopped nuts like walnuts, pecans, almonds
2 oz of cold butter, cut in small cubes

• In a bowl mix berries, sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon. Divide in ramekins.
• Preheat oven at 350 deg C
• In a different bowl mix all the crisp ingredients adding butter the last. Work the butter through the mixture using your hands.
• NOTE: Butter must be cold.
• Divide the crisp mixture to top the berry mix in each ramekin. 
• NOTE: if you want to use less crisp mixture do that by all means. And save the crisp for later. It refrigerates well for a week.
• Bake the ramekins for 30-35 min in the oven.

Ramekin Deep Dish Upside Down Pizza

America lives on pizza! It is adult Mac-n-Cheese and tops the comfort food charts. For those busy and tired nights, ordering a box from of pizza is so easy. And seriously, how many of us can stop at just one slice of pizza when there is a whole box of it. But then it is followed by the guilt. It is not the most healthy food out there but creative minds are never behind taking up that challenge. So I like to create a single serve, full of vegetables, whole wheat pizza. And no need to share it with anyone :) That nails down the deal after a great tasting recipe.

Ragú asked me to put a spin on a classic Ragu recipe (the deep dish down pizza), and this is what I came up with as the New Tra-Dish. I changed it to add lots of vegetables, less cheese, used whole wheat pizza dough and assemble it all in a ramekin. Gotta get the vegetables for the day. It is a pizza recipe so no limits to get creative. The trick to getting a great tasting pizza is in the sauce. I use Ragú® Old World Style® Traditional Sauce. It lives by its name. Each jar of Ragú® Old World Style® Traditional Sauce is made with 11 juicy tomatoes making it its richest and thickest recipe.

Recipe

 

2 ramekins, 6 oz each
whole wheat pizza dough
1 broccoli head, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup low fat mozzarella
3/4 cup Ragú® Old World Style® Traditional Sauce

• Preheat the oven at 400 deg F
• In a pan, heat a tablespoon of EVOO.
• Add garlic and onion to saute. Now add the remaining vegetables. Cook on high for 2-3 min so the vegetables are crisp.
• Remove from heat and add the sauce and cheese. Fold the mixture nicely.
• Fill in the ramekins up-to the top with the mixture.
• Roll out the pizza dough and cut to the size of the ramekin. Slightly bigger so that it rolls over the ramekin.
• Brush the top with EVOO and sprinkle some Parmesan.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Enjoy your single serve pizza in the ramekin or invert it upside down. Be good and honor portion control. Serve with a chilled pasta salad for a wholesome meal. 

·      Ragú® has the Authentic Italian taste American family’s love and a variety of great tasting, quick and easy to make family favorite recipes.

·      Visit Facebook.com/RaguSauce for additional quick, easy and delicious recipe ideas

·      Visit www.RaguSweeps.com to enter the Ragú Better and Better Sweepstakes for a chance to win great Authentic Italian themed prizes and a grand prize trip to Venice for a family of four.

Banana Nut Cranberry Bread

Quick breads come in handy as breakfast or tea time afternoon snacks. When its about breakfast or snacks, I try to put in some extra effort for making healthy substitutes; as breakfast is the most important meal of the day and the snacks control the blood sugar levels and keep that metabolism going. 

This moist sweet bread is loaded with great foods for the body. It gets the good fats from olive oil and walnuts, antioxidants from cranberry, fiber from banana and whole wheat flour and how can we forget protein...so lots of good Greek yogurt.

The taste and texture is just like the usual banana nut bread. You cannot tell the difference. So bake one and enjoy this healthy banana bread. And the best part, it takes 10 min to prepare. Can't beat that!



Recipe
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup honey
2/3 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
2 eggs
3 large mashed bananas
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup dried cranberries

• Preheat oven at 350 deg C
• In bowl slowly mix all liquid ingredients
• Add all the dry ingredients in the bowl with liquid mixture.
• Mix well with a large spoon or spatula.
• TIP: Do not over mix quick breads if you want them moist.
• Fold in walnuts and cranberries
• Transfer the contents in a 9 inch loaf pan and bake for 1 hr
• When done, cool in pan for 10 min
• Later cool on the rack

Slice and store in an air tight container for 7 days at room temperature or freeze the slices for later. 

Low Fat High Fiber Honey Oatmeal Cookies

Oatmeal is the new king of my house these days. It is the perfect heart healthy food to rule the kitchen and an amazing skin doctor to find the front row in my beauty aisle. 

For years, I thought I was eating the best breakfast from those Quaker Quick Oats. But once you heat the pan and simmer some old fashioned oats is when you realize - what the crap was the instant stuff! So get the real thing next time if you have been relying on those instant packets. Another one of my fav is the oatmeal cookie. But knowing how much sugar and butter the traditional recipe uses, I indulged once in a blue moon. Until, I made my own recently. They came out very nice, soft and perfect texture with all the goodness of oats, whole wheat flour and honey.

Recipe
2 dozen
3 Tbsp butter, room temperature
1 egg
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup chocolate chips or raisins or both

• Preheat oven at 350 deg
• Mix the butter, honey, sugar and egg using an electric mixer.
• Sift and mix the other dry ingredients.
• Fold in the raisins
• Spray the cookie sheet with non stick cooking spray
• Drop a heap tablespoon on the cookie sheet.
• Bake for 15 min
• cool on rack

Single Serve Molten Lava Cake In Under 10 min

Warm Oven Fresh Single Serve 

Molten Chocolate Lava Cake

Its been almost 3 weeks since I have been away from my blog. Needeless to say I have been missing it terribly. Work got busy and more than that the Indian Festive Season is on with parties and events every weekend and some weekdays too in fact. The biggest challenge has been to cook festive and healthy at the same time. However, am glad I had my tips handy to eat well at events and avoid consuming excess calories. 

Today afternoon, it felt like I got sometime for myself after long and wanted to treat myself without going overboard. I am a little over the 2min microwave cake as it cannot be enjoyed after it sits out for more than 15 min. And honestly wanted a real deal oven fresh cake. After a number of trials, I could get the temperature and ingredients just right for this single serve awesome delight.

You would need -

2 Tbsp oil

1 Tbsp chocolate chips

1/2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

2 Tbsp sugar

pinch of baking powder

1 egg yolk

1/2 egg white

1 1/2 Tbsp flour

• In a mixing bowl or cup, melt the chocolate chips in the microwave oven. Take around 45 sec to 1 minute.
• Mix in the sugar and oil and whisk well. 
• As the chocolate mixture will be hot, let it cool a little and add egg. You don't want to cook the egg. Whisk and incorporate well.
• Now add all dry ingredients - flour, baking powder and cocoa powder. Whist well.
• Grease a 8oz ramekin and pour the mixture. Bake in oven for 7-10 min at 350 deg.

The molten chocolate throughout the cake is heavenly. And as this is not a microwave cake, the texture is the real deal. It can be saved to be enjoyed later too.  Though such a perfect portion is worth enjoying full right out of the oven.

Go for it, you truly deserve it!

Whole Wheat Carrot Walnut Raisin Bread (No Oil)

Summer is almost gone and the warm and bright sun will be missed. But the house is already getting warm with the tasty nutty oven fresh breads. I can see the holidays coming:)

My family loves breads that incorporate healthy veggies and are honey sweet with some crunch from the nuts. This recipe of the whole wheat no oil carrot walnut raisin bread is super moist and each slice is under 100 cal making it perfect for a snack. It is also a great alternative to pancakes in the breakfast.

Recipe
Servers 1 9inch loaf
1 1/2 cups carrot, grated
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup applesauce
1/2 cup honey or brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup cran raisins
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

• Preheat oven at 350 deg C
• In a bowl, sift all the dry ingredients together.
• In another bowl, whisk the applesauce and honey/sugar. Add one egg at a time and keep beating using a electric mixer. Add all the other wet ingredients.
• In 3 batches, mix the dry ingredients mixture. Mix well.
• Add the nuts and cran raisins and fold into the mixture.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 60 min.

Whole Wheat Corn Muffin (No Oil)

Stone ground cornmeal, whole wheat flour, a little hint of sweetness from honey and not a touch of oil ..... mmmm mmmm good eats.

Cornmeal is a wholegrain containing long list of nutrients like riboflavin, vitamin B6 and K. It contains essential minerals like iron, magnesium, potassium, zinc. Eating cornmeal makes the cell in the colon stronger speeding the antioxidant action. It helps weight loss too as it contains fiber.

Recipe
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup stone ground cornmeal
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 tbsp applesauce
3 tbsp honey
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup milk

• Preheat oven at 425 deg.
• Coat the 12 cup muffin pan with cooking spray, or line with baking liners.
• Mix together all the dry ingredients - cornmeal, whole wheat flour, salt, baking soda in a bowl.
• Whisk together all the wet ingredients - eggs, honey, milk, buttermilk, applesauce in a separate bowl.
• Mix together dry and wet ingredients.
• Bake for 15-18 min in the oven.

These corn muffins are savory delight. Moist, grainy and goes perfect with soups or stew. Or just enjoy them alone.

mexican

Golean Cruchy Chewy Cookies

Kashi foods are great and true to nutrition with all the simple and natural ingredients. But their Go Lean Crunch Cereal was too crunchy for my family and after having tried many times we just could not get ourselves to enjoy it much. But then I did not want to just throw it away given all the great ingredients it has, not to forget the high 9gm protein in one serving. As I have always liked, home made granola, I thought of turning this crunchy cereal into some crunchy chewy cookies.

They turned out so great which I could not have imagined :):) GO Lean!

Recipe
makes 10
2 cups Kashi GoLean Cruch Cereal
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 whole egg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup honey/agave nectar
dried raisins/cranberries, as much chewy as u like

• Pulse the cereal in a food processor long enough so that it breaks down. Around 7-10 min. This is so hard that the traditional roller pin method doesn't work well.
• Preheat oven at 350 deg
• In the crushed cereal add all the other ingredients and mix well with a spatula.
• Spray the cookie sheet with non stick spray or line with parchment papaer.
• Spray an icecream scoop with non stick spray. Fill the the cookie mixture tightly to drop the mounds to line the cookie sheet.
• Bake for 10-12 min
• Cool on rack

These are amazingly good cookies. crunchy and chewy with loads of flavor yet simple ingredients.

Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffin

As a kid, I knew it was a holiday morning when the house smelled great with all the special food mom made. Holiday mornings' breakfast and brunch always had yummy baked goodies like oven fresh cookies or cupcakes. Gone are days when between me and my sis alone, we would finish up a dozen cupcakes in a single day :) :) :) Also, gone are the days when we can enjoy calorie laden baked goodies, guilt-free.
But, I still keep up my mom's tradition of making holiday mornings special....with my touch of healthy substitutes and all the same flavor.

Happy Holiday Weekend To All

Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffin Recipe
Servings- Makes 12
1.5 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1/3 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/3 cup oil (optional can be substituted with applesauce)
1/2 cup blueberries
1/4 cup chopped almonds

• Preheat oven at 350 deg.
• Sift together all dry ingredients - wheat flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt in a bowl.
• Whisk together egg, applesauce, oil, buttermilk until smooth in another bowl.
• Incorporate the dry ingredients mix in batches and stir well.
• Spray a muffin pan with PAM and fill each muffin cup 2/3 full with batter. Top with chopped almonds.
• Bake for 20 min

These blueberry muffins can be stored in fridge for a week. Individually wrapped, they freeze well for months. Also I made these with no oil and all applesauce.

Happy baking and hope all had a yummy July 4!

Spiced Whole Wheat Crackers- Baked "Mathris"

This one is all for "Necessity Is The Mother Of Invention"

While trying to loose those extra lbs, I learned the importance of healthy snacking. My previous diets failed as I never snacked, not because I snacked unhealthy. We know snack on fresh fruits and veggies to loose those extra lbs.....but that can be difficult at times. Either coz you don't find your choice of fruits or you wanna give up for those old favorite fried snacks. Also, I know my sweet taste buds wanna break from all those sweet fruits.

These spiced up savory crackers are just perfect for an afternoon snack with a cup of coffee/tea. Traditional recipe calls for frying but the healthy way obviously goes the baking route. The various spices used have great health benefits and boost your metabolism. A goto savory no guilt snack....

Recipe
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2  cup all purpose flour
1 1/2Tbsp carom seeds (ajwon) -- increases your metabolism. traditionally used to treat digestive problems also
1Tbsp Cayenne pepper -- supports weight loss, detoxify, anti-inflammatory and many more
2 Tbsp Dried Fenugreek Leaves -- rich in protein, Vitamin B, minerals, folic acid and all good things your body wants
1 cup water
3 Tbsp oil

Method

• Make a firm dough of all the above ingredients.
• Let it stand as you prep your oven at 350 deg F
• Now roll the dough about 1 inch thick and cut your favorite shapes
• Bake for 15-20 min flipping sides after 10 min

Enjoy with your favorite dip. Go baking!

Naan Khatai - Indian Shortbread Cookie

Naan-Khatai is a shortbread cookie popular in India and Pakistan. It supposedly originated from Surat,India.

Growing up Naan-khatai used to be our milk cookies; as mom never let me and my sister have tea, as long as we were students. Naan-khatai used to be the bribe for having milk. And mostly oven fresh. Sweet mom:)

Last night I was craving for oven fresh Naan-khatai but could not afford the original recipe, for obvious reasons. So played my gamble with a heavy heart. But the end result left me happily amazed.

Revised Orginal Recipe
1 cup whole wheat flour
2-3 Tbsp all purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup room temperature butter
2% milk as needed
cardamom powder as needed
finely chopped pistachios as needed

Mom's original recipe used all purpose flour, sugar, butter in 1:1:0.75 ratio. Love = Butter.....remember!! Gone are those days :(

Anyways, back to recipe. This is the simplest cookie recipe on earth I guess.

• Except cardamom, pistachios and milk - mix all the other items. Most important butter should be room temperature. 
• Now get a little dirty ;-) Use the warmth of your hands trying to make a dough. It will be tough on you with that less butter. So get few teaspoons of milk. Use just enough so you can make uniform soft rounds
• Sprinkle cardamom and pistachios on each
• Preheat oven to 350deg F, bake for around 20 min.

There are various versions of naan khatai available. But I like my mom's the best. No semolina, no besan (chick pea flour) makes the cookie just perfect. One just enough cookie crisp bite and it then melts in the mouth. 

Make it to believe. Happy cooking.

Buh-Bye Cobblers

NO to the flaky biscuit topping and sticks of butter - Buh Bye Cobblers!

Yes to healthy ingredients like oatmeal, nuts, canola oil and few tablespoons of butter - Hello Crisps and Crumbles!

I love California summer with all the fresh fruits around making the best crisps and crumbles. Winter could be a little harsh in those terms but, hey there canned fruits grocery aisles. Though try to find the ones with no added sugars.

My Peach BlueBerry Strawberry Crisp

2lbs yellow or white peaches

1lb blueberry/strawberry (or mix half n half)

2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

2 Tbsp cornflour

2 Tbsp sugar

Mix in the cornstarch in lemon juice. Throw the fruits in a bowl, sprinkle sugar and mix in cornstarch lemon juice liquid. Let it stand while you prepare your crisp.

In a food processor throw in together and pulse -

2/3 cup whole wheat flour

2 Tbsp all purpose flour

2/3 cup original rolled oats

1/2 cup almonds

1/4 cup brown sugar

1tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon powder

1 tsp nutmeg powder

1/4 cup room temp cubed butter

1/4 cup canola oil

Once your crisp is ready, lay it over the fruit mix that has been sitting down for sometime. Bake it in the oven at 350deg for 40-45 minutes.

I prefer making crisps/crumbles in a pie dish. Not only does it look pretty but also gives enough space for fruits to release their sugar. Serve with some good vanilla ice cream or dollop of whipped cream.

Go experimenting - Enjoy making the versatile dessert with your choice of fruits, nuts and spices.

Happy Baking!!

Not My Mamma's Baking - My Zucchini Spice Bread

Holidays baking alone isn't fun. Baking any day and enjoying big'o'little treats fresh out of the oven is yummo!

Remember the time when you asked your mom for a recipe complaining yours doesn't come out the same as hers? Or times when you hear it's pure love in mom's cooking.

Well! That LOVE is BUTTER!!!!

Thanks to modern life, our bodies cannot process all that love. Does that mean no to baked goodies? Not for me. This weekend had a great weekend with friends with an elaborate brunch. The centerpiece was my no oil/butter spice zucchini whole wheat breakfast bread. And the party could not find a difference.

Find your fav zucchini bread recipe &


Make friends with --

Applesauce: Substitute applesauce in equal proportion of butter/oil
Whole Wheat Flour: Substitute whole wheat flour in equal proportion of all purpose flour
A pinch extra baking soda: With above change, add a pinch of extra baking powder than asked in the recipe    





People can get all confused especially when ingredients change in baking recipes. But don't. Things are simpler than you may think.

To make sure, I don't overindulge, even though this revised recipe cuts down big time on fat, sugar and adds good fiber from whole wheat flour, I shard it with friends and froze some of the remaining slices.

Ahh! Life is beautiful.