Banana Walnut Cake

Super simple cake! And has some nutrition too :) And you can modify and make many variations easily. AND it's a fantastic way to use over-ripe bananas. :)


Ingredients

1. 1.5 cups flour (Maida. I try and mix a bit of millet flour in it - but if you want it very sweet, stick to maida)
2. 1 cup white sugar (I mix some brown sugar in it. I also reduce sugar and add raisins instead)
3. 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
4. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5. 1 teaspoon baking soda
6. 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
7. 1 egg
8. 3 very ripe bananas. There's a trick I learned from an expert - store overripe bananas in the freezer. Thaw them and use - they become super-sweet! So you can cut down on the sugar. More bananas, less sugar. You can add more than 3. 
9. Some walnuts. Heat them a little, it reduces the bitterness. Cool and break into small pieces.
10. Baking paper, if you have. 
11. A deep baking tray. You can also use the long bread tray like in the picture. 
12. A dry sieve for the flour

Preparation

1. Pre-heat the oven at 180 degrees. If you are using a convection oven, set to Convection mode. 
2. Sieve the flour, baking soda, and baking powder together, and keep aside. This is to ensure they mix well. You do this for all cakes. 
3. Beat the egg until fluffy.
4. Smash the bananas into pulp. You can leave it slightly chunky, that's fine. 
5. Melt the butter. 
6. Now mix flour, egg, sugar, bananas, butter, vanilla essence, walnuts - and raisins if you have. 
7. Line a deep baking tray with baking paper. If not, you can apply butter and then sprinkle some flour on it. 
8. Pour into tray evenly. 
9. Bake for 30 mins at 180 degrees and check. If a toothpick/fork comes clean, it is ready. If not, bake for another 10 mins. 
10. Cool and cut! This cake tastes even nicer the next day if you keep in fridge. 

How to lose weight, raise your immunity/energy levels

The best thing I have ever done for myself is go to a Nutritionist. Life-changing to say the least. In addition to the increased energy and fitness, it also saves me a lot of money in medical expenditure later, because prevention is cheaper than cure. :)

This is not a crash diet or a drastic change from a typical Indian diet, I am having all food groups, and I don't starve - so it is easy to sustain all my life. Sharing some of what I learned from her, and have been applying to myself since this May. I went to Qua Nutrition, but am sure there are many such places. There are many diets these days, different bodies react differently, I am just sharing one that worked for me. :)

• She prepared my diet based on a comprehensive blood and urine report, my lifestyle, calorie-needs and metabolism. So it is best that you see a nutritionist yourself if you have specific needs or issues. What works for me may not be what is good for you. I am trying to share what is possibly generic and applicable to all. 
• I had slightly high cholesterol, had put on weight, and I was pre-diabetic in May. When I did my tests in September, my HbAIC (mean sugar level) had dropped from 6.3 to 5.6 in 3 months, just via diet and exercise. And I had lost weight and built muscle. 
• Weight alone is not a good indicator - if you have built muscle mass, your weight may remain the same but you look more toned and slimmer. If you diet is not balanced, you may lose muscle, in which case you weigh less but look flabby and saggy. 
• At the end of 3 months she made me repeat my blood and urine tests and then decided whether I am doing better - not just by my weight-loss or "feeling fine". :)  
• Feeling fine does not always mean you have great numbers in your medical reports, that is not a good indicator always. You get symptoms only when things have worsened.

Diet

• The key thing here is portions. I am actually having more variety of foods, but smaller quantities of each.
• For every meal, I make sure I have some form of protein. 
• The immediate effect I felt after starting this diet is a rise in energy levels. I used to feel tired very often earlier, given my workload. 
• When I travel I now know what foods to choose. My nutritionist also gave me choices when some foods won't be available. 
• Sweet cravings happen when you are low on micronutrients like magnesium - a good diet gives you those micronutrients via healthier options like walnuts and pumpkin seeds so it reduces your craving for sweets. 
• I still have tea and coffee (3 glasses max), but if you can stop it is good. I use jaggery instead of white sugar. I still have the occasional sweet and dark chocolate. 
• There are loads of foods that are good for you, this is not the complete list. You can find a lot of information online. The key thing is to develop an awareness of what you are eating and how it satisfies your nutrition needs. 

Morning

• I have 5 almonds soaked overnight in water, and peeled. Raises your good cholesterol levels, which in turn reduces your bad cholesterol.
• She also asked me to have methi water - soak a teaspoon of methi seeds in a full glass of water overnight. Have only the water first thing in the morning. This helps balance your sugar levels and cholesterol. I believe methi also cools the body. Some people may have reactions to this, so you need to try and check. Discontinue if you have bloating or other symptoms.
• I exercise every morning - either a 1-hour walk, or strengthening exercises at the Sports fitness centre I go to. So I have been asked to have 2 dried figs or 2 dried prunes also so that I don't exercise on an empty stomach. 
• Ideally you should not have tea/coffee - or have a 20-min break before you have it. Stopping tea completely didn't work for me. 
• To have during my exercise I take a cup of green tea with lemon in it, in a bottle.
• Breakfast is my usual 2 dosas/idlis/parathas/oats, or 1 omelette once a week. Different things throughout the week. And with breakfast I have 2 boiled egg whites every morning. This ensures I have good protein in the morning, keeps me full and energized all morning. My dosa recipe, which contains millets also. 
•  I have been asked to have 2 Omega 3 Fish oil capsules.

Mid-morning

• Around 10.30 - 11 (half-way between 2 meals) I have 10 cranberries or a spoon of pumpkin seeds. All good fats and micronutrients that the body needs. 
• Along with a fruit. This mid-morning meal ensures I am not overly hungry by lunch-time, and so I need less food at lunch-time, I don't over-eat. And fruits eaten by themselves ensure the nutrition is better absorbed by the body. Add 2 pinches of cinnamon powder to the fruit to lower blood sugar if that is a need. 

Lunch

• 15 mins before lunch and dinner she has asked me to have a glass of water with a spoon of apple cider vinegar in it, for fat-burning. I keep forgetting this. :) 
• Lunch is: 
• 100 gms rice/millets/2 chapathis (You can vary over the week. We completely switched to millets because it's bringing down my husband's sugar levels significantly, he is diabetic, on insulin. I make it like rice - 3/4th glass any of the millets + 1/4th glass rice. With a pinch of salt. Just add less water. I also lost weight after I stopped wheat. Some of us are gluten-intolerant and we don't know that - but if you lose weight it means wheat didn't really agree with you. I do eat parathas and rotis occasionally)
• 100 gms any kind of dal/rajma/chickpea/chicken/fish/paneer/mushroom/tofu (any protein basically - have a different one every day if you can)
• 100 gms vegetables (try to have a variety)
• 100 gms chopped salad (tomato/cucumber/capsicum/carrot/onion etc - just cut in strips or chunks and add a dash of lemon on it. Actually quite easy to have. Very important - fibre is key in losing weight)
• 100 gms low fat home-made curd (very important to make the curd at home - the bacteria might be mostly dead in most shop-curds that have been kept for a while. Getting the right amount of stomach bacteria is a very critical part of a good diet - if your digestion isn't happening well, everything you eat is of no use, because the body isn't absorbing the nutrition. Get one of those ceramic jars (jaadis) you get in road-side stalls, which people use to make pickles - curd sets better in it because it retains heat. Get the first culture from someone who makes curd at home, sometimes shop curd won't work)
•  Chew on some jeera after the meal if you have a tendency to bloat. Keep in mind that if you have never had salad you may have bloating for a few weeks until your body gets used to it. I had that problem. But now I can eat any amount of salad and I am fine.)
• 100 gms is a small katori. Measure initially until you get used to it. 

Mid-afternoon

When you start feeling hungry again. 

• 10 pistas
• 1 fruit - a different one from the morning. The idea is to have a wide variety of fruits. Have different ones every day if you can. Just one each. 

If you have a huge gap between lunch and dinner, you can also have some sprouts/khakra/curd in between - the idea is to not feel ravenously hungry for dinner and then overeat.

Dinner

• I started having my dinner at 6.30 PM a month ago - and it changed my life. :) I lost a kilo - and I have more energy to work/take my calls during the evening. The idea is to finish your food 3 hours before you sleep so everything is used up, not stored as fat. This is not something the nutritionist told me, it is just something I tried out because some of my friends do it. I had a mental block about having dinner so early, but got over it once I started doing it - now I enjoy the feeling of going to sleep feeling light.
• 1 spoon of apple cider vinegar in water 15 mins before dinner.
• Dinner for me is a repeat of lunch. But if you are the kind who likes to have a different meal, you can do that too. All you need to keep in mind is that you have this combination:
• 100 gms carbs
• 100 gms protein
• 100 gms vegetables
• 100 gms salad
• 100 gms curd

• Soups are also a great way to get nutrition in. My basic soup recipe, which I got from my friend Vinisha, is very simple. Fry some chopped onion and garlic, add the vegetable/dal, add water and cook. Cool and grind, and boil again and add some herbs. Even pepper is enough. A dash of lemon at the end will make almost any soup tasty. If you add cooked tofu or mushroom in it, you have your protein. And adding some cooked millet noodles in the soup will make it a complete meal. 
  

Bed-time

• If you feel hungry, have a glass of milk with turmeric in it. 
• I have one walnut before bed. 
• If you have digestive issues, have some saunf tea. Pour boiling water in a glass with 1 teaspoon of saunf. Let it remain for 10 mins and then have the water.

Sleep

• Good sleep is very very key  to losing weight. You should get at least 7 if not 8 hours of good sleep. The less sleep you get the more chances of putting on weight, especially around tummy.

Exercise

• Exercise is very very key. Diet alone is not enough. You can do simple things. A full one hour walk is one of the easiest ways to lose weight. Low intensity, long-duration exercise. I believe visceral fat starts breaking down only around the 45th minute. You can walk at a normal pace. This worked for me, I lost weight. I only do this on alternate days, but if you can do every day it is even better. I keep a timer for 30 mins on my phone, and then walk back from wherever I have reached. I walk early mornings. 
• Alternate days I do muscle-strengthening exercises. Floor exercises mostly. Very important as you grow older, especially for women. Any gym instructor can teach you this. Or do yoga. 

Menopause

• Diet and exercise do help with menopausal symptoms. The body loses its protective estrogen shield and so you develop all kinds of vague illnesses. 
• Include soya products in food, like soya bean, tofu etc a couple of times during the week. Preferably natural forms, not processed.
• Flax seeds and chia seeds are also good, do alternate days. 
• Nettle leaf tea is supposed to reduce hot flushes. 
• The entire diet and exercise listed above balances your system, so it also reduces menopausal symptoms. 

All the recipes in this blog are healthy, except for the cakes. :) Please comment/mail if you know of healthy recipes I could try out or any useful tips. Thanks in advance!

Also see: https://noodlesandmangopickle.blogspot.com/2018/11/diet-plan-to-reduce-cholesterol-raise.html

Christmas Cake

Last year I finally baked my very first Christmas cake! 😋😃 All thanks to Aarathy, my friend, who is also my baking teacher and inspiration. She bakes this every year for Christmas. This cake is based on this recipe, with some modifications. I've also added some tips from all my trials and errors, and from my friend Philomena who bakes tonnes of cakes every Christmas. It is actually quite simple, don't be fooled by the number of steps. The only thing you have to be really careful about is the caramel. 

Note: Ideally you should keep this cake for a week at least, covered in foil, for the taste to mature. So plan accordingly. :) 

Step 1: Soaking dry fruits

Some people keep this for 2 days, but the longer you keep, the better. Some keep it for months - I did, for 6 months - and once for 1.5 years. :) You can use rum, brandy, or whiskey. 

Utensil: Tall glass bottle

Soak the following in a glass bottle in brandy/rum/whiskey. Keep it tightly closed, and shake the jar everyday. Some people also add figs and other fruits, this list is completely your choice - don't add things that could get sticky. You will find a lot of mixes online.

1. Caramelized orange peel, chop into small pieces
2. Caramelized cherries, chop into small pieces
3. Candied ginger, chop into small pieces
4. Seedless raisins - add different varieties
5. Crushed vanilla pods, a few 
6. Black currants
7. Star Anise

Step 2: Baking

Utensils

1. Any oven. Note that convection ovens may not give you a crispy dark brown outer layer, but will cook evenly. 
2. It is worth investing in measuring cups and measuring spoons. For half cup, one-fourth spoon etc, the whole set. You get really pretty colourful plastic and ceramic ones these days. Am sure you get them online too. 
3. A big fairly deep pan. This cake rises a bit, so needs some depth. 
4. A sieve for the maida and spices
5. Big glass mixing bowl
6. A small deep bowl to beat 5 eggs
7. Egg beater. I prefer the one in the shape of a spring, like this. 
8. A pan to caramelize sugar
9. Baking paper if you can get. Also called parchment paper. If not, you can just butter the pan and add some maida and shake it off
10. Electric beater. This makes it easier to mix - you can also do this with your hand, but make sure you beat well.
11. Ladle with long handle to add water to the hot sugar syrup
12. Keep some Burnol and ice ready - in case you burn your hand while making caramel. Just a precaution - I will explain how to prevent this. 😁

Cake

1. All Purpose Flour / Maida – 2 cup / 240 grams
2. All Purpose Flour / Maida – 2 table spoons for tossing dry fruits
3. Sugar – 1 1/4 cup / 250 grams
4. Soft Unsalted Butter – 250 grams
5. Eggs – 5
6. Baking Soda – 1/2 tsp
7.  Baking Powder – 1 tsp
8.  Salt – 1/2 tsp
9. Dry Ginger Powder / Chukku Podi – 1/4 tsp
10. Cinnamon Powder / Pattai Podi – 3/4 tsp
11. Cloves Powder / Krambu Podi – 1/4 tsp
12. Nutmeg Powder – 1/4 tsp  (Buy nutmeg and roast and powder if you don't get this)
13. Cardamom Powder / Yelakai Podi – 1/4 tsp
14. Vanilla Essence – 2 tsp
15. The soaked dry fruits - 2 tbs, or a generous quantity - your choice, if you like your cake heady
16. Cashew nuts, almonds, walnuts - totally 200 gms. Roast the walnuts a bit, otherwise has a bitter taste. Put them in  a packet and crush a bit.
    

For Caramel:

1. Sugar – 1/2 cup
2. Water - One cup

Method:

Efficiency Tip: As and when you finish with one utensil, measuring spoon/cup, bottle, jar etc, keep it back in cupboard/fridge, wherever it belongs. That way you will feel less hassled because the table/kitchen counter won't be crowded, and you don't have to waste time cleaning up afterwards. :) If you are lucky enough to have helpers, get them to clean up vessels too at every step. 

1. First make the caramel mix and keep it aside, since it needs to cool. Take sugar in a sauce pan and heat it on low heat. Now it will start to crystalize. Keep stirring and it will slowly start to melt. Keep heating on low heat, keep stirring, until suddenly it froths up and becomes this nice dark colour. When it starts smoking, take it off the heat. 
2. WATCH OUT . Be very careful when you add in water. Water will splash when you add it to the hot sugar syrup - and this is a very painful burn. Use a ladle with a long handle and slowly add water, little by little. 
3. Stir well so it mixes and does not solidify. Note that if you add more water the caramel will solidify later. 
4. Now put back on the fire, and stir until the whole mixture has the consistency of honey. Set aside to cool.
5. If it solidifies later, heat a bit and add some water. 
   
6. Take dry fruits in a bowl, squeeze out some of the brandy, and toss it with flour. The fruits should be completely covered with maida. This is to prevent the dry fruits from sinking to the bottom of the cake. Set aside. 
7. Sieve flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, spice powders altogether and set aside. This is to ensure they spread evenly.
8. Melt the butter in a pan. 
9. Beat the five eggs in a separate bowl, and use the egg beater to make it fluffy.
10. Now switch on the oven and heat it at 180 degrees for 10 mins. If you have a Convection oven, set to Convection. I do this at this time because otherwise it cools down by the time the mix is ready. 
11. In a big mixing bowl, add melted butter, sugar, vanilla and beat using an electric beater till it is creamy.
12. Now add the eggs into the butter-sugar mix in the bowl and beat again till creamy.
13. Now add in half of the flour mix and half of the caramel. Fold gently.
14. Now add remaining flour and remaining caramel and fold again.
15. Add in dry fruit mix and fold gently.
16. You can also add a little of the alcohol from the dry fruit mix if you want your cake headier. Don't add too much - you could get a headache if there's too much alcohol in the cake. This cake should ideally be a little moist. 
17. Take the cashew, almond, walnut, toss in a tsp of maida and mix in. This is to prevent them from sinking to the bottom.
    
18. Take the big baking pan and line it with the baking paper. If you don't have that apply butter on the pan, sprinkle some maida on it, spread and throw off excess. This is to prevent the cake from sticking on the pan.
19. Pour this in the prepared pan and bake for 30 mins at 180 degrees. Check at 30 mins with a tooth pick. If it has cooked well, the tooth pick will come out clean. If not, keep for some more time. I have a Convection oven, other ovens may need slightly longer. 
20. Remove it and let it cool. Now invert it and peel off the parchment. Slice and serve. 
    

Storage

• This cake tastes better the longer you keep it. And you don't have to keep it in the fridge. 
• Apply some of the brandy/rum/whisky from the soaked fruit mix on all sides of the cake. 
• Wrap well in aluminium foil and keep it in a cool dry place. You can put it in a zip lock bag. I keep it inside the oven itself if I am not using it. People keep it in a cupboard for months too. The pic below is the bottom of the cake. 😀

Tell me how it came out, post pics. 😊 And always eager to learn tips, so please add them in the Comments section, thank you! 

Ripe Mango Curry

Finally learned to make the amazing ripe mango curry my dear friend Meera used to make for me decades ago! Lip-smacking delicious, and so easy to make. Maanga Pulisheri as it is known in Kerala. I wrote about it in this story. This is her recipe. Super-simple and goes great with rice and pickle!

Ingredients

• Small ripe sweet mangoes, 4. If the very small variety, take more.
• Half litre curd, preferably sour. Packet curd is also fine. 
• Nearly half a coconut, grated. Should come up to half of the small mixie jar
• Dry red chillies, 5-6
• Curry leaves, one big stalk
• 1 spoon raw rice, or half spoon rice powder

Method

1. Cut the mangoes into two pieces, with skin, don't throw away the seed with the pulp on it. 
2. Boil the mango pieces with the seeds, with turmeric - and a little jaggery if you want the curry sweeter. I don't add it. NO SALT. Salt will curdle the curd that you add later. Just enough water to cover the mangoes. Close and cook until mangoes become really soft.
3. Grind the grated coconut + 5-6 dry red chillies + half spoon rice power/1 spoon uncooked rice. Make this a smooth paste. You can use puttu podi for rice powder. This is to thicken the curry. Transfer to a vessel.
4. Shake the curd in a glass jar so it breaks well.
5. Add to coconut mix and mix well.
6. Now add to the cooked mango and bring to boil. Once the bubbles start forming at the sides, switch off.
7. Now add salt.
8. Season with red chilly, mustard, curry leaf in oil. 

Vazhaithandu Lemon Rasam Recipe - Banana Stem Lemon Rasam

Plantain stem is a high fiber content vegetable and is also good for people with diabetes, high cholesterol and kidney stone.

https://www.archanaskitchen.com/vaazaithandu-lemon-rasam-recipe-plantain-stem-lemon-rasam