Tag: aata

Ginger Jaggery Wholewheat Tea Cakes. These were delicious little babies. Light, warm, spicy, moist and just right for the season. This time around no chocolate. They were still divine; apt for holiday baking which should be in full swing now!The folk from Asahi Kasei, a Japanese brand, sent me a selection of Cooking Sheet or silicon coated parchment paper, Premium Wrap {popularly known as Saran Wrap in the US} and Frying Pan Foil to use. The products are being marketed in India and it’s really nice to see how good the quality is.  While the cooking sheet or parchment caught my eye, it was the frying pan foil that had me fascinated. Silicon coated on one side, it fries, or rather cooks, without oil, making food  a lot healthier especially for people who are diet conscious or need to avoid oil. Obviously the easiest way to experiment was to fry an egg. Felt like child’s play. The Frying Pan Foil required no oil, cooked the egg sunny side up to perfection, and it slid off like a charm. Magic! And guess what, no wash up as the pan stayed clean. The Premium Wrap is really good quality too. Essentially it is Saran Wrap, the most popular plastic wrap in the US, and the best selling one in Japan. I have tried different varieties of cling wrap here locally. This one was markedly different; has the same Saran Wrap mark of quality. It’s great to freeze food in, wrap half cut fruits etc in to refrigerate, as also to use in the microwave. In my kitchen it’s a wrap for bread or cookie dough, or for left over salad. Use it and experience the feel.  Screams quality.

Then came time for what I use the most, baking parchment or Cooking Sheet as it is called at Asahi Kasei. Really good quality parchment, silicon coated on both sides which prevents the food sticking to it. I had bookmarked these little tea cakes from Cookaroo. Instead of using Nordic ware mini bundt tins for the whole batch as initially planned, I used a combination of dessert rings and a bundt. The sheets turned out as good as can be. Nothing stuck, clean peel off – a JOY to use.

The good thing about these cooking sheets is that they work really well in the microwave too. You can steam marinated fish with vegetables, maybe just vegetables in a light marinade,  or interestingly even cheese and sesame crackers! Like all Japanese products, the whole range is top on quality and easy to use. I love the bright cheerful packaging too.

Back to the bakes. I changed the recipe as I went along. Made it whole grain, added pie spice and the zest of an orange and everything came together really well. These are best served warm from the oven, though can be reheated before serving.  A drizzle of unsweetened single cream makes them more special. Next time, I might add walnuts to the recipe, maybe dried cranberries.

Recipe: Ginger Jaggery Wholewheat Tea Cakes

Summary: Light, warm, spicy, moist, delicious and just right for the season, these Ginger Jaggery Wholewheat Tea Cakes come together in next to no time. Serves 6-8

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Ingredients:

• 100g unsalted butter, room temperature
• 135g jaggery granules {or jaggery, chopped fine}
• 45ml honey
• 30ml water
• 1tsp dried ginger powder {saunt}
• 1 tsp pie spice {or cinnamon or 1/2 tsp garam masala}
• Zest of 1 orange {or 1/2 tsp orange extract}
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 175g wholewheat flour {aata}
• Dried orange crystals or demerera sugar for sprinkling over

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Line a baking sheet with parchment and lightly grease 5 mini cake molds, {or line one 6-7″round baking tin}
2. Place the jaggery, butter, honey and water in a heatproof bowl. Heat in microwave for a minute, until the butter has melted. Whisk well with a balloon whisk until the jaggery and butter have combined.
3. Add the ginger powder, pie spice, orange zest, vanilla extract, baking powder and baking soda. Whisk well to mix.
4. Whisk in the eggs one by one. Now fold in the whole-wheat flour gently.
5. Ladle into prepared tins, sprinkle over dried orange crystals. Bake for approximately 20-25 minutes until risen and light golden brown {40-45 minutes for a larger cake}. Use tester to check if done.
6. Allow to cool in pan for 10 minutes, then gently loosen sides to demold. Serve warm as is, or with a drizzle of unsweetened single {low fat} cream.
   

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