Yum spirits of Christmas

‘Tis the season to be jolly and these cake ladies are creating wonders in their home kitchens for the festivities ahead...

Chocolate Christmas Tree (By Shruthi Sudhir and Rashmi Bal)
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Ingredients:

1. Cocoa powder 5 tbsp
2. Flour 1 cup
3. Baking powder 1/2 tsp
4. Baking soda 1/2 tsp
5. Milk 1/4 cup
6. Oil 1/2 cup
7. Egg 1 large
8. Hot water 1/4 cup

Method:

• Grease an 8” square tin and line with parchment paper. Pre-heat the oven to 160°C.
• Sift dry ingredients thrice. Combine wet ingredients in another bowl.
• Gently fold in the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in three batches.
• Pour into the tin and bake for 60 minutes.
• Once it is baked, let it cool down to room temperature.
• Using triangle cookie cutters cut the cake and insert a straw at the bottom of each wedge.
• Frost the tree using whipped cream with food gel colour, top it with gems and sprinkles.

Carrot Cinnamon Muffin (By Shrruti Panjabi)
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Ingredients:

1. Grated carrot 300 gm
2. Butter 150 gm
3. Walnut 30 gm
4. Oil 100 gm
5. Sugar 325 gm
6. Egg 4
7. Flour 250 gm
8. Baking Powder 10 gm
9. Cinnamon powder to taste

Method

• Break the eggs and add to the sugar and beat well.
• Add grated carrots to the above mixture and beat it till it mixes well.
• Ensure sugar is mixed well and completely melted. l In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and walnuts.
• Mix the dry and wet ingredients together, bit by bit, till it is mixed well. Be careful not to over-mix.
• Melt butter and add some oil to it and mix it into batter.
• Now add the cinnamon powder as well.
• Use a spoon or ice cream scooper to put the mixture into the muffin tray lined with cupcake/ muffin liners, about 3/4th of the way.
• Bake at about 170 degrees for about 25 to 35 minutes.
• Check if done by poking a toothpick stick into the muffins. The sticks must come out clean.
• Enjoy this with a nice warm cup of ginger tea.

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Christmas Plum Cake (By Michelle Gafoor)
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Ingredients

1. Sugar 1 kg
2. Flour 850 gm
3. Mixed fruits (also known as mixed peel) minced into small pieces 1 kg
4. Petha (sugared ash gourd) 1.2 kg
5. Raisins ¼ kg
6. Walnuts or cashew nuts cut into small pieces ½ kg
7. Marmalade 500 gm
8. Spice powder 1 tsp
9. Butter 1½ kg
10. Eggs 4
11. Suji (Bombay rava) 150 gm
12. Sultanas (large dried plums) ¼ kg
13. Rum ¼ bottle
14. Baking powder 1 tsp
15. Almond and Vanilla essence to taste.

Method

• Cut mixed peel, petha, sultanas, raisins and walnuts into small pieces. Add ¼ bottle rum and keep the mix in a sealed container for a week.
• Tip: Before adding to the cake mix, remember to dust this peel with half the flour so that the fruit is not sticky and the pieces are separate. Then keep aside.
• For burnt sugar: Take 150 gm sugar in a pan and heat over a medium flame. Allow the sugar to melt and turn brown. Stir and allow to cook, until it starts to smoke and turns black. Add ¼ cup hot water to form a thick treacle. Set aside to cool.
• Beat the sugar and eggs till mixture turns white.
• Add butter and dalda and stir till the mixture turns fluffy. Add sifted maida, baking powder, suji, marmalade, spice powder, burnt sugar and essence to the mixture and mix all the ingredients well by hand.
• Add floured fruit, a little at a time and fold in by hand. Put the cake in tins lined with brown paper, smeared with butter. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degree for about an hour until it starts to leave the side of the tin. Cool and store in an air-tight tin.