Microwave Chocolate Cake

Happy New Year to you all.

Little M blew six candles off a couple of weeks ago and I made a chocolate cake for his birthday weekend.

This chocolate cake I made after a long gap and I love how easy and hassle-free it is. This cake is also to console the non-baker that I am and to surprise the family on special days. I am happy to share the recipe with you all..this one is a keeper, I say. Also, for firsts, I tried decorating the cake with some icing and it turned out really well. This icing is so simple and can also be done in under 5 minutes in a microwave and a handful of ingredients (my most favourite part).

I hardly try my hand at making cakes but this microwave chocolate cake is really something. It is super easy, quick and a good dessert to delight guests or even an over-excited toddler, in a jiffy. Please take down the recipe and once you try it out you won't even have to look back at as it is so easy to remember with only a handful of ingredients and simple measurements.

To take this cake up a notch I have decorated it with icing sugar and a ganache of chocolate, cream and butter - which is so easy you'll be surprised. Best part? You can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days, just remember to keep it out of the fridge for at least 30 minutes prior to serving since refrigerating makes the cake little hard. You may also microwave it for 20 seconds and serve it warm with some ice cream.

Ingredients:

For Cake
All purpose flour: 1 cup
Icing Sugar: 1 cup
Melted Butter: 1/2 cup
Eggs: 2
Baking powder: 1 tsp
Baking soda: 1 tsp
Cocoa powder: 3 tbsp
Milk: 5 tbsp
Vanilla essence: 4-5 drops

For the chocolate icing

Ingredients:
Chocolate: 1 cup
Cream: 4 tbsp
Butter: 2 tbsp



Method for making cake:

1. Break eggs in a bowl, put butter, sugar and vanilla essence.
2. Beat it with the help of a hand blender or whisk until the mixture thickens (about 6-8 min).
3. Sift together all purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and soda in a bowl.
4. Mix with the egg mix and fold. Do not beat, just mix gently. Add milk at this stage.
5. Grease a microwave safe container with melted butter. Pour the batter and micriwave on high for 5 min and then let it stand inside for 2 min.
6. Insert a toothpick in the center of the cake and if it comes out clean, it means the cake is ready.


Method for making chocolate icing:

In bowl add chocolate and cream and pop it in the microwave for first 10 seconds. Stop. Stir a bit and then microwave again for 10 seconds and make sure chocolate is melted. Once the mixture looks almost melted add in the butter and stir.

Decorating the cake:
Pour the warm chocolate sauce on top of the cake. garnish the cake with dry fruits, icing sugar and some melted white chocolate.

Chicken Kadhai

Gravy-based thick dishes delight me so much. They have simple ingredients, are easy to make and make you feel 'home' instantly. Any problem on your mind can be solved with a bowl of curry and some fresh chapatis to scoop and dunk into it. The dark consistency, the right blend of spices and add to that some fresh ingredients and your curry is ready in less than an hour.

North Indian at heart, Chicken Kadhai is a dish that is cooked in so many ways by adding capsicum and whole spices like cloves, bay leaf, cardamom. I think after Dal Makhani (see the recipe for making restaurant-style Dal Makhani here) and butter chicken, this should be the most-ordered dish in any restaurant serving Punjabi or North Indian food. The simplicity of this recipe makes it stand out and is the reason why most of the times when we have chicken at home, I end up cooking this or the biryani.

Chicken kadhai is one such curry-based dish that we enjoy scooping with soft chapatis. I abstain from eating it with parathas since I find this dish a bit on the heavier side. It doesn't have any milk-based thickeners such as cream or milk or yoghurt but the amount of spice powders in this dish can make it hard to handle if you eat too much of it. Albeit once tasted, its simply hard to resist another serving. Go ahead and try it with naan or paratha or even mix it up with some steamed rice and immerse yourself in other interpretations of this dish.

Here is how I make my Chicken Kadhai which is a favourite at home and this recipe guarantees a love-filled whatsapp from husband when I pack it for him in his lunch!

Prepping Time: 15 min
Cooking Time: 30 min
Difficulty Level: Easy

Ingredients:

Chicken pieces: 1 kg (skinless, bone in)

6-7 onions, sliced or quartered

4-5 tomatoes, pulped

6-7 green chilies

4-5 tbsp garlic, finely chopped

2-3 tbsp ginger, finely chopped

4-5 tbsp Cooking oil

1 tsp red chili powder

2 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp chicken masala

salt, to taste

Method:

1) In a thick bottom and wide wok, add oil, fry the chopped garlic until translucent stirring all the time, add chopped ginger. When that browns slightly, add sliced onions. On a low flame, fry onions until brown. Keep stirring to make sure they don't stick to the bottom or they might burn.

2) Add in pulped tomatoes and green chilies. I grind the green chilies but you can add it chopped or sliced into two. When the tomatoes gravy separate from the oil, put red chili powder, salt, turmeric powder, coriander powder and chicken masala. Let the masala cook with the gravy for a minute.

3) Finally put the chicken pieces, a small bowl of water and cover with a lid for 10 min. Open and check if the the chicken is done. If chicken still doesn't leave the bone, cover and cook for 10 min more. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with hot chapatis.

 Thanks for reading! :-)