Thin Poha Chivda (Flattened Rice Snack Mix)

Thin Poha Chivda (or Flattened Rice Snack Mix) is a gujarati snack very near and dear to my heart. I love it since my childhood days. Here is my mom's recipe that I'd like to share with you all today! Do give it a try.. It is addictive and you'd always want more!

Ingredients:

• 6 cups Thin Flattened Rice/Thin Poha
• ¹/₂ cup Oil
• 1 cup Peanuts
• 1 cup Roasted Split Bengal Gram/Daliya
• 2-4 green chillies - chopped into small pieces.
• 18-20 curry leaves
• 1 ¹/₂ tsp Mustard Seeds
• 1 ¹/₂ tsp Cumin Seeds
• 2 tsp Powdered Sugar/Granulated Sugar
• ¹/₂ tsp Turmeric Powder
• Salt - to taste

Method:

• Dry roast the Poha until they are crispy. You can do this over cooktop or in the oven. If you choose the cooktop method, make sure you keep stirring the poha to avoid burning the bottom layer. For the oven method - pre-heat the oven to 300 F; lay the poha on a cookie sheet and bake for 5-7 minutes. They are done when you feel the crispness upon tasting. Empty the poha into a mixing bowl (big enough to stir them later on) and set it aside.
• Now in a medium skillet, over medium heat, add the oil, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, green chillies and peanuts. Keep stirring constantly. Here we are shallow frying the peanuts and the serrano peppers while the mustard and cumin seeds crackle. If you like your chillies to retain its heat in the chivda, add them in the next step instead of now.
• When the peanuts are nearing completion, about 3 minutes, add the roasted split bengal gram and curry leaves; stir for another minute. 
• Now switch off the flame and quickly add the curry leaves, salt, sugar, turmeric powder and asafoetida and after giving it one last mix, add it to the poha and mix well until all the poha turns yellowish green in color. It's important to ensure this step is completed as quickly as possible.
• Let it cool and come to room temperature and then store it in a clean, dry air-tight container.

Enjoy this with tea/coffee or just by itself!!

Eggless Vanilla Cake with Buttercream Frosting

Eggless cake is something that has been so frequently requested and it prompted me to try the eggless cake. There are so many different recipes that are available on the Internet and so vividly different from one another making the hunt even more difficult

Finally after a few attempts that I wasn't very happy about, I am finally satisfied with this recipe that I'd like to share with you all..

Below are the pictures of the cake I baked on the occasion of Mother's Day and it was a super hit.. Everybody absolutely loved it! Unfortunately, I did not get a chance to take a cross sectional picture!

It is very simple and I hope you guys give this a try.. Do let me know your feedback in the comments section below.. Happy cooking

Ingredients:

• Cake:
• 1 cup hung yogurt
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 ¹/₂ tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• ¹/₂ cup oil
• 1 ¹/₂ cup all purpose flour (Maida)
• 2 tbsp Semolina/Sooji
• ¹/₄ cup warm milk (I used half and half; regular milk can be used as well)

• Butter-cream Frosting:
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup shortening
• 5 cup confectioners sugar
• ¹/₄ cup half and half milk (you can use regular milk but I feel half and half adds to the creaminess)

Method:

• Cake:
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit/180 degrees Celsius.
• In a mixing bowl, mix the hung yogurt and sugar; beat well.
• Add baking powder n baking soda, mix well and let it stand for 5-10 minutes. The mixture will bubble up.
• Add vanilla extract and mix well.
• Add oil and mix well.
• Add the sieved all purpose flour and Sooji and mix to combine; do not over mix.
• Finally add 1/4c warm milk (I used half and half; regular milk can be used as well) and mix well.
• The mixture should be of dropping consistency.
• Pour in the prepared tin. (I split the batter into two tins for the sake of incorporating more layers..)
• If you are splitting into two tins, bake for 20-25 minutes - or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
• In case you decide to choose the single tin method, the baking time will increase by about 10 minutes; total bake time of 30-35 minutes (or of course until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean).

• Butter-cream Frosting:
• Cream butter and shortening together
• Add the sugar half cup at a time Remember to sift the sugar if you see it has lumps in it.
• Add the milk towards the end about a tbsp at a time; stop when you feel you've reached the desired consistency.
• Now add the color of your choice and give it one last mix. For the rosettes, I added 5 drops of red and 2 drops of blue.
• Frost the layers (if you have them) and the cake to just make a crumb coat (yes crumb coat because we are going to cover the entire cake with rosettes the coating doesn't need to be perfect!!..).
• I used white colored frosting for layers and the crumb coat and then colored for the rosettes (unfortunately this is not visible in the pictures). You can go with whatever your heart desires :)
• I used Wilton 2D tip and used a swirl motion to create the rosettes. I worked my way from edges to the center.

Enjoy!!