Eggless Pina Colada cake - Baking Eggless Challenge

This week's Baking Eggless challenge had us making a rich, fruity cake - a Pina Colada cake. I had heard, of course of the pina colada drink, but I had never heard of the corresponding cake. Pina Colada, apparently means pressed pineapple, because of the fresh pineapple used in the famous cocktail. This beautiful cake was suggested by Meena of Chettinad Fiesta.
When Gayathri of Gayathri's Cook Spot posted the translated version of this recipe, (the originals are all in Polish, I believe) I was a little skeptical. There were quite a few steps and quite a few ingredients required. Although I have baked cakes many times, I haven't baked too many layer cakes. My decorating skills leave much to be desired as well !
But I love the flavors of pineapple and coconut (how could a self respecting south Indian not love coconut ?? ) and I already had a good recipe for a simple yet delicious sponge cake, eggless to boot!
So, I gathered all the ingredients and took the plunge and made the cake almost as specified in the original recipe. Here it goes :



Eggless Pina Colada Cake :

The Sponge Cake : The original recipe made a sponge cake using 7 eggs !!!! There wasnt any way I could replicate that recipe by replacing the eggs. I had however, made this eggless sponge cake quite a few times and felt this would be a good base for the pina colada cake.

Ingredients:
1 C unbleached all purpose flour
½ C whole wheat pastry flour
1 C sugar
1 C yogurt
½ tsp baking soda
1 ¼ tsp baking powder
½ C oil
1 tsp vanilla extract

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. In a bowl, beat the yogurt to remove any lumps, add the sugar and mix well.
3. Add the baking powder and the baking soda and mix again. Set this mixture aside for 5 minutes until tiny bubbles are formed.
4.Add the vanilla extract and mix well.
5. Add the combined flours slowly to the yogurt mixture and mix gently until no dry flour can be seen.
6.Grease a baking pan ( I used a round 8 inch pan). Pour the batter and bake in the preheated oven for about 30 - 35 minutes.
7. Let the cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Pineapple mousse : This mousse is more of a jam type filling made with fresh pineapple and cornstarch. There is no dairy product used in it. I halved the original recipe.





Ingredients :
1 fresh pineapple
1 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp sugar (if required)
¼ C pineapple juice or apple juice
¼ tsp ground cardamom (optional)

Method:
1. Peel and core the pineapple. Remove as many brown bits from the pineapple as possible.
2.Chop the pineapple into small pieces.
3. Place the chopped pineapple in a thick bottomed pan, along with the juice and the sugar, if using.
4. On medium flame, let the pineapple cook until tender.
5. Dissolve the cornstarch in a little juice or water and add to the pineapple mixture.
6. Cook until thickened.
7. Take of from flame and cool.
8. Mix in the ground cardamom.

Coconut Cream
Ingredients:
1 can (400 ml) coconut milk
1 C sugar
¼ C sour cream
½ C ricotta cheese
1 tsp coconut extract

Method:
1. Pour the coconut milk in a pot, add the sugar and boil until the mixture thickens to the texture of a syrup. Cool until just warm.
2. Reserve ¼ C of the syrup.
3. Add the extract, sour cream and ricotta cheese to the rest of the coconut syrup until well mixed.
4. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Assemble the Cake :
1. Cut the cooled cake into two halves, slicing it horizontally, as evenly as possible.
2. Place the lower half on a serving plate. poke small holes gently and pour the reserved coconut syrup all over.
3. Spread a generous layer of pineapple jam over the cake.
4. Then spread about half a cup of the coconut cream mixture gently over the jam.
5. Place the top half of the cake over the bottom layer
6. Use the remaining coconut cream to frost the top and the sides of the cake evenly.
7. Chill the cake in the refrigerator overnight so that the flavors can meld.
8. Decorate the cake with shredded sweetened coconut.
9. Cut into beautiful slices and amaze your family!!

Result :
The resulting cake was definitely unique in its combination of flavors, nothing like I ever had prepared before. If I had to make this again, I would try to get more of the pineapple flavor, maybe by adding crushed pineapple to the cake.
I would also make the cake layers moister by adding glazing it with either simple syrup or pineapple juice.
My children and hubby, however, loved the cake !
If you want to make the cake for a larger crowd, you could double the cake recipe and the coconut cream recipe.

Red Chori Curry

I have always wondered why it's assumed that people following a vegetarian/vegan diet must find it difficult to fulfill their protein requirements. One look at the lentil / bean section of any Indian grocery store would have you gaping at the sheer variety of products available. There are several kinds of whole beans, lentils, legumes , nuts to create a variety of dishes that will not only satisfy your palette but also provide excellent nutrition.
Any of the beans can be paired with a myriad of vegetables to create soups, stews, curries, salads and even rice dishes, so that you wouldn't need to repeat any dish for quite some time.
On a recent visit to my local Indian grocery, I picked up a packet of chori beans.
I am always interested in trying out new ingredients and new recipes (much to my husband's woe) and the little red beans seemed very promising.

One search on the internet and a whole slew of recipes showed up. These dark red beans are also known as Adzuki or Aduki beans and are widely used in Japan. They are very rich in soluble fiber and are also a good source of minerals and high quality protein.The beans have a subtle , sweet taste which is why adzuki bean paste is used in desserts in East Asian cuisine. These beans sprouts very easily and can be used like moong sprouts in salads and curries.

In making the red chori curry, I sprouted beans for a couple of days and then cooked them in a pressure cooker before using them in the curry.

As with all beans, it is best to soak the beans in plenty of water. Soaking decreases the cooking time and makes the beans more digestible.

Recipe : Red Chori / Adzuki Bean curry

Ingredients:

3/4 C dried adzuki beans - soaked and sprouted.
1 medium onion - finely chopped
2 tomatoes - chopped
2 green chilis
2 pods garlic - finely chopped
1/2 inch ginger root - finely chopped
2 tsp oil of choice
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp red chili powder / paprika
2 tsp half and half or coconut milk (optional)
salt and black pepper to taste
chopped cilantro leaves for garnishing

Method:
1. Cook the bean sprouts either on the stove with plenty of water or in a pressure cooker. Set aside.Note that if you do not have the time to sprout the beans, you can also use them as is.
2. In a wide bottomed pan of choice, heat the oil and add fennel, cumin and mustard seeds.When the mustard seeds start spluttering, add the ginger and garlic and saute until fragrant.
3. Add the slit green chilies and onions and saute until onions are translucent. Add all the spice powders,except the garam masala and let cook for a minute or so.
4. Then add the chopped tomatoes, salt and black pepper and cook until the tomatoes break down and get cooked.
5. Add the beans and a 1/2 cup of water , mix well , cover and let simmer on a low flame until all the flavors come together.
6. Mash a few beans with the back of the ladle to thicken the curry, if required.
7. Taste for salt and adjust if needed.
8. I added a little bit of coconut milk to get a creamy texture for the curry, but only because I had a can open that I needed to finish off. You could use cream / half and half or even a bit of evaporated milk instead. You could also omit it entirely.
9. Take the pan off the flame, stir in the garam masala powder and garnish with chopped cilantro leaves.

Serve hot with Indian flat bread or steaming rice for a flavorful, nutritious meal !