Zebra Cake for Kids

This recipe is long overdue. For Christmas I had prepared a Zebra cake following Farida’s step by step zebra cake pictorial. An impressive cake that turned out delicious.
Since I used a small cake pan, only half of the batter could be accommodated, hence I made two small cakes with the below recipe.

 

 

Zebra Cake Recipe

Preparation: 15 mts, Baking: 40 mts

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Ingredients: 4 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup milk
1 cup oil (corn, vegetable or canola)
2 cups maida/all-purpose flour
1 tsp vanilla essence
3 tsps baking powder
2 tbsps dark cocoa powder

1 Combine eggs and sugar in a bowl till light and creamy. Add milk, oil and vanilla essence and beat till smooth.
2 In a separate bowl, combine maida and baking pwd. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and beat until the batter is smooth and the dry ingredients are completely incorporated. Do not overbeat.
3 Divide the batter into two. Add the cocoa pwd to one portion and combine well.
4 Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease the baking pan. The most important part is assembling the cake batter in a baking pan. Pour 3 heaped tablespoons of plain batter into the middle of the baking pan. Then pour 3 tablespoons of cocoa batter in the center on top of the plain batter. Continue alternating with plain and cocoa batter without pausing for the batter to spread.
5 Bake for 40 minutes. Insert a toothpick into the center of the cake it should come out clean when ready. Remove from the oven. Run a small thin knife around the sides of the pan to loosen the cake. Leave aside for 15 mts and invert the cake onto a cooling rack. Turn the cake back over and cool further.

 

Tomato Cheese Salad

Tomato Cheese Salad

Summer is in full swing. Going the salad way is becoming a regular routine at home. We had an abundant harvest of tomatoes this year. Tomato pickle was prepared last week. Today, I prepared an easy, breezy, cheesy, super simple tomato salad using little cubes of cheese and cucumber. Variations can include paneer, tofu or cheese of your choice. Loved the combination and the addition of cheese enticed my 8 year old as well as the boiled egg quarters you see in the plate. He loves eggs.
De-seed 2 large tomatoes and dice. Peel and dice 2 cucumbers. Cut a cheese cube into small pieces. In a bowl, whisk 1 1/2 tbsps olive oil, a large pinch of powdered sugar, crushed pepper, pinch of salt and a tbsp of chopped coriander leaves or mint leaves. Add the diced tomatoes, cucumber and cheese to the bowl and mix well. Chill and serve.

Tomato Cheese Salad Recipe

Prep time: 10 min

Cook time: 0 min

Yield: 3

Main Ingredients: tomato cheese

 

 

Italian Confetti Pasta Salad

Ingredients

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 2 cups colored rotini pasta
• 1 cup chopped tomatoes
• 1/2 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
• 1/2 cup sliced black olives

Directions

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Rinse in cold water, and drain.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, vinegar, salt, black pepper, and garlic until well blended. Mix in basil. Add pasta, tomatoes, bell peppers, and olives; fold gently until mixed. Chill several hours. Stir gently before serving.

Chicken Chow Mein

Yield: 4 servings

INGREDIENTS

• 12 oz (350g) fresh Asian-style egg noodles or linguine
• 4 tbsp plus 1 tsp vegetable oil
• ½ cup chicken stock
• ¼ cup soy sauce, plus more to serve
• 1 tbsp rice wine or dry sherry
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• 4 scallions, white and green parts, cut into 1in (2.5cm) lengths
• 5 oz (140g) shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
• 1 small red pepper, seeded and chopped
• One ¾ in (2cm) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and shredded
• 6 skinless and boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 4 oz (115g) green beans, cut into 1in (2.5cm) lengths

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the noodles and cook according to the package instructions. Drain and rinse under cold running water. Drain and toss with 1 tsp of the oil. Mix the stock, soy sauce, and rice wine in a bowl, sprinkle in the cornstarch and stir to dissolve.
2. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a wok or large frying pan over high heat. Add the scallions, mushrooms, red pepper, and ginger. Stir-fry until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
3. Heat 2 tbsp of the oil and heat. In two batches, add the chicken and stir-fry until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the vegetables.
4. Add the remaining 1 tbsp oil to the wok and heat. Add the green beans and stir-fry for 2 minutes or until crisp-tender.
5. Add the noodles and return the chicken and vegetables to the wok. Add the stock mixture and stir-fry about 2 minutes, or until the noodles are piping hot. Serve at once, with soy sauce for seasoning.
Variations:
Seafood Chow Mein:
Instead of chicken, use the same weight of raw shrimp, shelled and deveined, or a mixture of shrimp and other seafood such as scallops. Reduce the cooking time to 1–2 minutes. In step 3, add 4oz (115g) of bean sprouts along with the green beans.
Stir-fry noodles:
Always add fresh noodles towards the end of a stir-fry recipe. They will go soggy if overcooked. If using dried noodles, boil them first, then rinse and drain until ready to use.

Notes

Nutritional Benefits: low in saturated fat.

Crispy Duck

INGREDIENTS

• 1 duck
• 4–6 store-bought Chinese pancakes
• 10 oz jar hoisin sauce
• ½ cucumber
• 6 scallions

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325°F.
Cut off the flap of fat that hangs over the duck’s cavity. Sit the trimmed duck on a rack or slotted tray over a deep roasting pan and roast for 4 hours.
Turn the oven up to 450°F and give a final 30 minutes of intense heat. Or, if it’s easier, just leave the duck in the low oven for 5½ hours. The choice is yours.
Sit the pancakes on the top part of a steamer to cook or simply follow instructions on the package. Pour the sauce in a bowl with a spoon.
Cut the cucumber into matchsticks (like you get in a Chinese restaurant).
Cut the scallions lengthways into short strips (again, like they do in Chinese restaurants).
Carefully take the roasting pan out of the oven and transfer the duck onto a board. When you can handle it comfortably, shred it and set it on the table with the sauce, cucumber, scallion shreds, and pancakes. Wrap the duck meat, topped with the sauce, cucumbers, and scallion, in the pancakes. When the duck fat has cooled a little, pour it into a bowl or jar. It makes great fried potatoes.

Chicken and Noodle Stir-fry

INGREDIENTS

• 12 oz (350g) fresh Asian egg noodles or fresh fettuccine
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• ½ red, green, and yellow or orange bell pepper, seeded and sliced
• 4 oz (115g) shiitake mushrooms, quartered
• 1 tbsp peeled and shredded fresh ginger
• ½ cup chicken stock
• 2 tbsp ketchup
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• Few drops of Asian sesame oil
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds, for garnish

Special equipment:

• Wok or large frying pan

Directions

1. Bring a saucepan of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook the noodles about 2 minutes, until barely tender. Drain and rinse under cold running water. Toss with 1 tbsp oil.
2. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a wok over high heat. Add the chicken and stir-fry for 3 minutes. Remove and set aside. Add the peppers, mushrooms, and ginger to the wok and stir-fry for 3 minutes.
3. Mix together the chicken stock, ketchup, soy sauce, and cornstarch. Return the chicken to the wok, add the noodles, and pour in the stock mixture. Stir-fry for 3 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Just before serving, drizzle with the sesame oil and sprinkle with the sesame seeds.
Variation: Vegetable and Noodle Stir-fry
Replace the peppers with 1 cup small broccoli florets, 1 sliced yellow squash, and 4 cherry tomatoes, halved. Add the broccoli and yellow squash with the ginger but add the tomatoes during the last minute of cook. Sliced onion, added with the broccoli, is also good.

Chinese Chicken Salad

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce, divided
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil, divided
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 1/2 head napa cabbage, thinly shredded (about 6 cups)
• 1/4 head red cabbage, shredded (about 2 cups)
• 1 large carrot, shredded (about 2 cups)
• 3 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced, greens included (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 (8-ounce) can sliced water chestnuts
• 1 (11-ounce) can Mandarin oranges in water, drained
• 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon minced ginger
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chili-garlic sauce or chili sauce
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine 1 tablespoon soy sauce and 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil and brush onto chicken breasts. Arrange in a baking dish and bake until juices run clear, about 13 to15 minutes. Remove from oven, cool completely, and cut into 1/4-inch slices.
In a large bowl, combine Napa cabbage, red cabbage, carrot, scallions, water chestnuts, Mandarin orange and sliced chicken. In a separate bowl, whisk together 3 tablespoons soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, ginger, oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil, brown sugar and chili sauce. Pour dressing over salad and toss to combine. Divide among bowls and top each serving with 2 teaspoons toasted almonds.
Serves: 4
Calories:415
Total Fat: 14 grams
Saturated Fat: 1.5 grams
Protein:32 grams
Total carbohydrates: 41 grams
Sugar: 25 grams
Fiber: 9 grams
Cholesterol: 66 milligrams
Sodium: 930 milligrams