Mixed Chocolate Platter

Mixed Chocolate Platter would be an ideal choice to celebrate this festive season. Last year celebration was with mixed Cookies this year is with chocolates !  

The tray filled with three different kinds of chocolate , one for Vegans, one for True Chocolate lovers like me and the third one for kids.

First one, Chocolate truffles for the Vegans, strawberry filling covered with dark chocolate that melts in the mouth releasing the strawberry lava.  Second one for pure chocolate lovers that made with 100% coco powder perfect with coffee or as a dessert. The third one for kids, with 40% chocolate with five Swiss franc coin(s) impression embossed.

Ingredient for vegan strawberry truffles:  150 gms of  <60% Tempered dark chocolate       ;   10 strawberries        ;       1/8 cup of cashew paste (soaked and grinded)          ;        1 tsp of lemon juice      ;       1 tbsp of coconut oil       ;        3 tbsp of sugar    

  

In mixer, blend cashew paste, strawberry, sugar, coconut oil & lemon juice. In chocolate mold spread the tempered chocolate and keep it in the fridge to set well. Remove the mold from fridge and fill it with strawberry filling and transfer to fridge to set. Finally, cover the filling with tempered chocolate and once again to the fridge to set.

Now the healthy homemade chocolate……..

Ingredient –    ¼ cup of virgin coconut oil        ;       ¼ cup of 100% coco powder       ;   1/2 tsp vanilla essence     ;      3 tbsp of honey 

Melt coconut oil and mix well with honey, vanilla essence. Add coco powder and mix well until it becomes smooth consistency in order to pour it in the moulds. Transfer the mould in to fridge to set 

Finally the Chocolate Coins 

Ingredients :  150 gms of  <50% Tempered dark chocolate 150 gms  (to create coin impression, we need a coin, aluminum foil.

Cut the aluminum foils as square, slightly larger than your coin. Place the aluminum foil on the coin and press hard with your finger and make clockwise rotation all around the coin, to get an impression on the foil. Fold the foil all around the coin to get the mould. Remove the coin and pour the tempered chocolate in the foil and transfer to the fridge to set.

Fusion Bread

Time to refill my pantry jars, I have been deferring to do so for the past one week due to various reasons. I wanted to bake fresh bread for weekend breakfast but, very limited supplies………..Hmm…what about fusion bread?

Just, add whatever you left with and bake. Not bad at all……..got a very pretty, soft and tasty loaf.

 

Ingredient   -    1/2 cup of oats       ;      1 cup of all purpose flour       ;    1/2 cup whole wheat flour      ;       1/4 cup of flax seed powder         ;      3/4 cup of crushed weetabrix      ;     1 cup of milk       ;      1 /4 cup of water        ;    1 tbsp of instant yeast        ;       1/4 cup of honey        ;        1 /8 cup of melted butter     ;       1/2 tbsp of salt   

 Procedure : cook the oats and keep aside let it cool.  In a mixing bowl add warm milk, honey and yeast mix well. Add salt, melted butter, oats, flax seed powder, weetabrix, whole wheat flour and mix with hand. Add all purpose flour little by little and knead until it is smooth and elastic dough but, not sticky.

 

Shape it into a ball and place it in an oiled bowl and cover with damp cloth for about 1 1/2 hours or 2 hours or till it become double in volume. Gently deflate the dough and shape the dough into a greased loaf tin and cover the loaf with damp cloth for about an hour or it raise almost at the edges of your loaf tin. Sprinkle the chopped almond & walnuts on the top.(its an option)

Transfer the loaf into 180°C pre-heated oven and bake for about 40 - 50 minutes or till the bread is nice brown on top and sounds hollow when tapped. 

 

Hot loaf with kefir spread in a cold morning………..it’s divine!

Yeasted Banana Sandwich Bread

 

Thanks to Aparna for introducing this pretty simple, wonderfully flavored, slightly sweet sandwich bred for this month challenge at We Knead To Bake #31. The original recipe adopted from kingarthurflour. 

Ingredients:   2 cups of whole wheat flour     ;     1 cup of bread flour   ;     3/4 cup of lukewarm milk     ;       25 gms of soft butter    ;     2 tsp of instant yeast      ;      1 tsp of salt       ;     1 tbsp of honey     ;     2 med- sized banana chopped ( about 1 ½ cups )      ;    1/4 tsp of powdered cardamom     ;     1/8 cup of chopped walnuts 

Method:   Add all the ingredients except the milk, in a large bowl and gentle whisk for a while and add 3/4 cup of milk and knead until to get shaggy dough. Add more milk to get right dough consistency.

Knead further by hand until to get a soft, smooth and elastic dough but, not sticky. Shape it into a ball and place it in an oiled bowl and cover with damp cloth for about 1 1/2 hours or 2 hours or till it become double in volume.

Gently deflate the dough and shape the dough into a greased 8 1/2" x 4 1/2" loaf tin and cover the loaf with damp cloth for about an hour or it raise almost at the edges of your loaf tin.

Brush the dough with  little milk and sprinkle with little oats and Bake at 180°C pre-heated oven for about  40 to 50 minutes or till the bread is nice brown on top and sounds hollow when tapped. 

Allow it to cool completely before slicing it. The aroma of bread with cardamom and banana is divine.