My First Swiss Roll

15th of August was husband's birthday and he wished for a cake which was low in calorie as well as in guilt. Now, birthday cakes are meant to be indulged rather than count the calories. However, being the finicky guy that he is about cream and butter, I knew I had to pay heed to his demand or be ready to gulp down the entire cake myself. A bit of research showed me that it wasn't that diffucult a job either. You can have a beautiful birthdayish cake even without adding that cup of butter. The answer to my problem was a Swiss Roll. I was so pleased to know about the ingredients, I immediately set about on the task to get my tools ready. The basic success of the Swiss Roll depends on how well you have separated the eggs. A little drop of yolk in your egg whites will spoil your chances of getting the perfectly whipped stiff white peaks and creamy egg yolk batter. So you should either have an egg separator ready or be quite an expert of doing it without the tool. 

The next important step is the baking of the sponge. You should bake it just until the toothpick inserted comes out clean. A minute more than that and you will, although still have a beautiful soft and moist sponge, get cracks while rolling it with the filling. While I failed to understand this in my first attempt and hence got a few cracks here and there, it is definitely a lesson well learnt. I also tried to decorate the swiss roll with a baked pattern but I guess I have to read up a little more to get hold of the technique. My pattern got a bit burnt and so I had to invert the swiss roll and add the filling on the side of the pattern, hence those red starwberry spots in between the chocolate filling. So keeping the decorated Swiss Roll for another day!

Ingredients

4 large eggs separated (it is best to separate eggs when they are fresh and cold out of the refrigerator; once separated, bring them to room temperature before starting the procedure)

1/4 tsp salt

A pinch of cream of tartar (optional)

3/4 cup castor sugar

3/4 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanila extract

For the filling

4 cups icing sugar 

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3 tbsp butter (preferably unsalted) cut into squares

120 ml milk at room temperature

P.S.: This is a standard chocolate sauce recipe. The excess sauce you can store in the fridge for later use. You can also use any filling as you wish like fresh fruit jam, whipped cream, etc. 

Direction

Take a 32x23 cm flat baking dish and grease it. Line the dish with parchment paper in a way that there are no bubbles or raised edges. It should be as smooth as possible. This will help you get a smooth wrinkle-free base once baked. The greasing of the bottom of the pan before lining helps keep the parchment paper in place. 

Now, take the bowl of egg whites (which you had separated while the egg was still cold from the fridge and brought to room temperature) and ensure that there are no drops of yolk or dirt in it. Add the salt and cream of tartar (if using) and beat them to stiff peaks but not dry. Takes about 10 minutes in the electric beater with the paddle attachment. 

Now beat the egg yolks till creamy. Add the sugar little at a time and beat till a pale thick and creamy batter is formed. This will take another 5-10 minutes. I usually first beat the egg whites till stiff and then use the same attachment for the yolks. It is okay to have whites mixed in the yolk but strictly no for the reverse. Hence, if you intend to use the same attachment for both the whites and the yolks, you must always beat the whites first. 

Now sift the flour and baking powder. Add the vanilla extract to the batter and beat for a second until combined. Now, add the sifted flour to the batter in two batches and mix till smooth and no lumps remain. 

Meanwhile, start pre-heating the oven at 180 degree celsius for 10 minutes. 

Now add the egg whites and with the help of a spatula (never use an electric beater) fold into the mixture till smooth. Take care not to overmix the batter which will deflate the whites. Also, always move the spoon in one direction to fold in the whites. Pour this batter into the prepared baking dish and smooth out the top.

Bake in the pre-heated oven for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Check at 15 minutes and then again in 2-3 minutes. A minute over baked and you are sure to get cracks on top while rolling as well as hard edges. 

Immediately remove from the baking dish and onto another parchment paper of the same size. Roll the swiss roll along with this parchment paper and let it cool. This will help gain its shape. When just warm, unroll it gently and spread the filling without spoiling the bend and roll up again. This time without the parchment paper. Once rolled, cover it up with the paper loosely and let it cool completely on a wire rack. Slice when cooled. You can also chill it and bring it slightly back to room temperature before serving. 

  

Spinach and Cheese Stuffed Carrot Bread

There were some fresh carrots lying in the fridge and some wilting spinach in the freezer. There had to be a way out to use them before the carrots loose their crunch and the spinach its life. However, stir fry or salad or sandwich was definitely not on my mind. Not being a vegetable lover, I had to think of something to camouflage the goodies and feed myself and my family. Bread it was and what better way to have a complete meal along with a bowl of soup! A wonderfully healthy and wholesome bread made with 100% wholewheat, goes well even with your faborite dip or a fresh and fluffy Spanish Omelette! 

Ingredients

2 1/2 cup wholewheat flour

1/2 cup carrot puree (boil the carrots, drain and reserve the water, and puree the carrots in the blender)

2 tbsp sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup milk powder

1 tsp vital wheat gluten (optional; you can use 1 egg optionally or skip it)

1 1/4 tsp instant dry yeast

100 ml lukewarm water (use the liquid in which you boiled the carrots for maximum health)

2 tbsp olive oil plus more for greasing

For the filling

1/2 cup spinach puree

5-6 slices of cheese

2-3 tbsp coriander and garlic paste (blend together in the grinder)

1 tbsp your choice of seasoning (I used a mix of cumin powder, coriander powder, and pinch of homemade garam masala)

Salt to taste

1 tsp olive oil

Direction

Prepare the filling first. Mix all the ingredients except the cheese slices and keep aside. If you feel it is too watery, drain the liquid and keep it in a bowl for use in some other curry or gravy. 

In a bowl, take the warm water (feels confortable when put on the back of your wrist or 40-45 degree celsius measured on the food thermometer) and dissolve 1 tbsp sugar. Add the yeast and mix thoroughly. Let it stand for 10 minutes undisturbed until frothy and foamy. 

In another bowl, mix together the flour, milk powder, salt, wheat gluten, and remaining sugar. Now slowly add the frothy yeast liquid and start mixing the dough with a spatula in one direction till all the liquid is absorbed. Now add the puree and start kneading with your hands. It will feel very sticky and messy at the beginning. Add the oil and continue kneading while adding some extra flour if required. Do not add too much flour. The dough needs to be smooth, non-sticky, and elastic but will still be a little soft and moist as for wholewheat we need to keep it moist. Oil the dough on the outside and loosely clingwrap it and keep in a warm place to rise for about 1-1.5 hours or until doubled. 

  Now roll out the dough on a clean and lightly floured surface into a rectangle. 

Arrange the cheese slices on top unevenly and fill up the spaces with the spinach puree. Start rolling in towards the other end, pinching the edges as you go.

Now grease two loaf tins and line them with parchment paper. Cut the log of dough into half and keep each half in the prepared loaf tins. 

Cover and keep aside for 1-1.5 hours or until doubled. While nearing towards the end of the proofing time, start pre-heating the oven at 180 degree celsius for at least 10 minutes. Slice thin long strips of capsicum and arrange on top alternating with slices of cheese. 

Bake in the pre-heated oven for 20 minutes or until browned on top and the tap sounds hollow and the internal temperature is between 80-100 degree celsius (on the higher side). 

Remove from the loaf tin immediately and let it cool completely on a wire rack before slicing. 

 

Wholewheat Jaggery and Ginger Biscuits

I am dedicating this post to my dear Aunt, Ira Chakraborty or Ira Jethai as we lovingly call her. Jethai refers to Mom's elder sister in Assamese. She is no longer with us today but her recipes continue to remind us of her beautiful and loving ways of showing her love for us through her awesome yet simple dishes she used to cook for us whenever we used to visit her. 

A very soft spoken lady, she was the eldest of the family and I used to hear it from Mom how she used to be the strict guardian when it came to protecting and disciplining her siblings. It has been almost 2 years now and while we are busy with our routine lives, her memories and thoughts continue to linger in our minds. The recipe for these biscuits were recently found by one of her daughters, who made them and then shared the recipe with me. The only change I made was with the flour and the kind of sugar used in the recipe. The cookies are deliciously crunchy and healthy and leaves me with fond memories of her everytime I take a bite with my cuppa!

Ingredients

1 3/4 cup (150 gms) wholewheat flour

1/4 cup (50 gms) wheat germ (optional; can be replaced with equal quantity wholewheat flour)

1/2 cup (100 gms) butter

1/2 cup (100 gms) brown sugar (you can reduce the quantity if you want as per your taste)

1/2 cup jaggery grated

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp ginger powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp lemon juice

Note: If you are using all cup measurements, please use it throughout and do not mix the metric. If you use cup measurements for some and grams for other ingredients, you might end up with a imperfect batter/dough. 

Direction

Take the butter, sugar, jaggery, lime juice, and ginger powder in a bowl and melt it, either in the microwave or on stove top. If using the microwave, ensure that the jaggery is completely melted and no solids remain. Keep aside and let it cool. 

Now sift the flour with soda, baking powder, and salt. Take this in a bowl and add the wheat germ, if using. Now add the melted butter and jaggery mixture and start mixing the dough to a smooth lump. Ensure that the dough is not too dry nor too wet and the mixture just holds together. 

Pre-heat the oven at 180 degree celsius and line a baking tray with parchment paper. Take small portion of the dough in your hands and gently roll it between your palms and flatten it to about 1/4 inch thickness. Arrange the flattened dough balls on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat for the rest of the dough. Keep at least 1" space between the cookies as they expand while baking. 

Sprinkle some sugar on top and bake in the pre-heated oven for 15-20 minutes till the cookies are browned (not burnt) but still a little soft to touch. Do not bake the cookies till hard. You will end up with rock hard cookies. 

Remove from oven and let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let it cool completely before storing in air tight jars.