Hot Cocoa - A warm soothing beverage

 There is nothing like snuggling under a comforter watching your favorite show with a warm cup of cocoa to sip on a chill winter night or monsoon evening. 

I have loved sipping on cocoa since childhood as I was never fond of any malt based health drinks so mom would allow me to have cocoa once in a while as an exception to milk . My love and liking for this beverage is eternal. Though I don't drink cocoa much these days ,I love to have a mug full of cocoa and some ME time on days when I am exhausted to rejuvenate myself.

Making hot cocoa is very easy and doesn't need any fancy ingredients. All you need is some good quality cocoa powder, sugar and hot milk .

If you like you can add a little cinnamon powder for the extra punch or add up some gooey marshmallows or chocolate shavings for added taste and flavor .

I prefer to have plain cocoa without much toppings except drizzling for some chocolate sauce /syrup once in a way .

Preparation Time - 2 mins
Cooking Time - 3 mins
Complexity - easy 
Serves - Makes 1 cup of cocoa. 

Ingredients 
1.5 tsp cocoa powder
2 tsp sugar 
1/4 cup hot water 
1 cup hot milk 

Method 

• Take cocoa powder and sugar in a mug or serving cup .
• Pour hot water and whisk it well to form a lump free cocoa decoction. 
• Pour hot milk to this cocoa decoction and stir well..adjust sugar if you need more sweetness.  
• I like my cocoa to be sweet so I add a little extra sugar ,you may reduce it if you relish a slightly bitter after taste .

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Nutty Choco Cake - Eggless

Baking a cake always comes with mixed feelings..I am sure most of us have these inhibitions lined up in our mind each time we want to bake a cake .

I am no different and I also have had my fair share of fiascos and goof ups with baking a cake in an oven . I had infact given up on baking a cake again ,but the urge in me kept nudging me to try other options to bake a cake .  

I baked a Choco Orange Cup Cake in microwave and  was very happy with the outcome ,it was soft spongy and moist . This truly gave me the confidence to explore the microwave option for baking cakes.

This time Swaty of Food Trails was the hostess for the #288th Foodie Monday Bloghop  - our weekly Monday event and suggested #ChocolateDelights as the theme and explore Chocolate based recipes . Swaty is a pro at baking cookies and her Date filled cookies have caught my attention and I am hoping to try it soon ,another way to shy off my baking fears .

I had many options in my mind to use Chocolate, but I really wanted to try and bake a cake ,so I went ahead and made this whole wheat , eggless Choco nutty cake in the microwave.  It is more like a tea cake and can be served with evening tea /coffee or can make a good option for Hi Tea parties . 

This doesn't have any kind of icing using cream or chocolate, so I can confidently say that even a beginner can try and bake this cake . It was soft and moist and the nuts gave a nice crunchy feel while taking bite.

Preparation Time - 20 mins

Baking Time - 7 mins

Complexity - Medium 

Serves - 3 to 4 

1 cup measure  = 120ml  in my recipe 

Ingredients 

2 cups whole wheat flour 

1 cup powdered sugar 

6 tsp cocoa powder 

Few drops vanilla essence 

1 tsp baking soda 

Assorted dry fruits roughly chopped (almonds, pista , cashews) 

4 tbsp cooking oil

1/2 cup condensed milk 

1/4 cup milk 

Pinch of salt

Method

• Take the whole wheat flour , baking soda , salt and cocoa powder in a mixing bowl and sift it for minimum 2 times and keep aside. 
• Rub the chopped dry fruits into this sifted flour. 
• In another mixing bowl , add the sugar , condensed milk , vanilla essence,  oil and mix it well till it appears nice and creamy.
• Add the flour mixture in small batches into this wet mix and mix it gently . Donot mix or beat vigorously, else the gluten will react and the cake may turn chewy and hard .
• The batter has to be thick but if dropping consistency.  You can add a little milk if you find difficulty in mixing the batter .
• Grease a microwave safe rectangular or flat round container and pour this mix into it .  Tap it lightly to release the air bubbles trapped . If using a glass container tap it on a soft cloth to ensure the glass doesn't break .
• You can also place a parchment paper or butter paper in the container and pour the batter over it .
• Place it in the microwave for 5 mins and check if the cake passes the tooth pick test . If the tooth pick comes out clean, then the cake is done ,else toss it for another 2 mins more .
• Let it cool well and then slowly invert it and remove it from the container.  Slice it and serve it with tea or coffee .

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Choco Orange Cake - 300th post :-)

Whoa today happens to be my 300th post and what best to suit the occasion than sharing my favorite Choco Orange Mug Cake . I would like to thank each and everyone who has been a part of my journey in this world of blogging.

A special thanks to my hubby Vj and Kalyani for having constantly motivated and boosted me for 3 long years to get back to blogging when I had taken a break due to personal reasons. If not for them, I wouldn't have been able to restart. 

I am happy to have been introduced to so many wonderful bloggers through these two lovely groups (FMBH and Shh cooking secretly) and it is so nice to keep interacting with all on a regular basis and  feels more like an extended family.

Orange and Chocolate are a match made in heaven and we i.e. hubby and me love this bitter and tangy combination a lot .

This month for our Shhh cooking secretly challenge Mayuri ji of Mayuri's Jikoni suggested Chocolate as the main theme and who can say No to such a classic theme . Mayuri ji's latest recipe Chocolate Truffles is on my to do list .Those cute truffles are an absolute treat to the eyes and am sure they are as delectable as they look . 

I was paired with Seema who blogs on Mildly Indian which is a treasure of classic recipes and there are some really unique recipes like the Sugarcane juice Poha Pongal (Karumbu chaar Aval pongal) which I would like to try . She gave me Baking soda and sugar as my secret ingredients while I gave her milk powder and dryfruits with which she has dished out Cocoa Nibs & Lime bliss balls  which look absolutely delicious. 

 Now coming to the recipe, though this is ideally mug cake, I tried to make it in cups because I just wanted to try something fancy and different :-) Who says mug cakes can't be baked in cups ? 

I am not a pro baker so I took the easy route of making it in the microwave and satisfy my craving for a nice chocolate cake which I was missing from my favorite bakery . So for all those who are skeptical about baking , go ahead and try this easy peasy cake in microwave and satisfy your cravings. 

Preparation Time - 10 mins
Baking Time - 90 seconds 
Complexity - simple 

Ingredients 

1/2 cup maida / APF
1/2 cup chilled orange juice 
3 tbsp oil ( sunflower/ rice bran oil works well)
1/3 cup powdered sugar 
1 tsp vanilla essence
2tbsp cocoa powder 
1/4  tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1/2 chocolate bar 

**donot use eyeball measurements. Use measuring cups and spoons and follow the recipe exactly if you want to get the perfect cake .
Method 

• Take 3 microwave safe porcelain cups or ramekins and grease them with some butter and keep it in fridge until use .
• Take 2 mixing bowls, one for wet ingredients and other for dry ingredients .
• In one bowl add the chilled orange juice, oil , powdered sugar and vanilla essence . Mix it well until the sugar dissolves completely.  The chilled orange juice helps to emulsify the oil .
• Take the dry ingredients maida, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, baking powder in a seive/chalni and sieve it into another dry bowl.
• Now slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and simultaneously keep mixing using the cut and fold method  till the mixture appears lump free and of a dropping  consistency.  Donot beat or mix it too hard .
• Now bring out the greased cups and pour the cake mixture until half the cup , place a few chocolate bits in center of the cake mix and cover it with some more cake mixture . Fill only 3/4th of the cup  leaving space for the cake to raise.
• Place the cups in the microwave and set it for 90sec . Take it out and let it cool for a few minutes before you can savor it. 
• The chocolate bits would have melted inside and you can get a nice gooey feel when you cut into the cake . 

Notes

I have used bournville chocolate bits but you can use any brand of chocolate or even compound chocolate works good .

The orange juice can be replaced with chilled water if you don't like the chocolate and orange combination. 

Linking it to Shhhh cooking secretly challenge - Chocolate theme for August 2020

Choco Vanilla Milkshake

Summer is slowly setting in and soon the sun will be right over our heads. This is the time of the year when all of us look for some coolers for our throat and tummy.Instead of having bottled drinks or simply chilled water,we can try and have chilled health drink.
To begin with, I am posting the  favorite of children and most elders,Choc Vanilla Milkshake.
Quick to whip up with homemade ingredients,it can be prepared anytime.

Preparation Time : 2-3 mins
Cooking Time : Nil