This one is for all my friends who are health concious but love to have desserts. It's a Ragi flour ( finger millet/bajri) cake. Before we talk about anything else, it's important to know about the benefits of including Ragi flour in diet. It's rich in calcium and fiber content. It is an extremely good food for weight control. It helps in reducing the cholesterol level of the body. Like my earlier version of cake this one too does not have any processed sugar. Sweetness is derived from jaggery, raisins, apricots and carrots. Very little oil has been used in the recipe. There is no egg in it. To increase the health quotient of the cake, I added blanched almonds and walnuts in the cake batter. Honestly, there is nothing in it that brings in guilt. You can happily have it.
Here's the recipe.
Ingredients:
1 and 1/4 cup Ragi (red millet) flour
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup jaggery grated ( or scrapped)
15-20 small brown raisins
3-4 dried apricots pieces
10-12 blanched almonds ( blanched in boiling water for 3-5 minutes, cooled down in ice water and peeled off to remove the skin. )
1 tbsp chopped pecans or walnuts
1 and 1/4 cup milk
2 medium sized carrots grated
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder (optional, I added it because it balances the sweetness of the cake)
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
1/4 tsp nutmeg powder ( optional, but improves taste)
1/4 tsp cinnamon powder
A pinch of ginger powder (optional, but improves taste)
A pinch of salt
I also added few tutti fruity pieces. But that's optional.
1/4 tsp vanilla essence
Procedure:
1) Blanch the raisins and apricots for 10 minutes in boiling water. Switch off the flame let it stay in the hot water for some more time. ( it's completely your choice to add fruits of your choice to add to the sweetness of the cake. I had raisins and apricots handy, so I added these. You can add dates or fresh fruits also.)
Bring milk to boil. Bring te flame to low. Add grated jaggery. Stir well. Once everything is mixed well, switch off the flame. Add blanched raisins and apricots. Now let it cool off a bit and then blend it in a blender. Blend it well.
2) Now transfer the mixture to a bowl. Add oil and vanilla. essence and mix well.
3) In a separate bowl, combine all the dry ingredients: flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder, cinnamon powder, cardamom powder, nutmeg and ginger powder. Add some chopped nuts (walnuts) ( can spare few for garnishing on top) in the flour. I added some tutti fruity pieces too. Mix well.
4) Now transfer the dry mixture to the milk container. Mix it well with a whisk or spoon. You can use hand beater to mix all ingredients well. But take care not to over beat the batter. You just need a light mixing to combine all ingredients well. If you feel the batter is too thick, you can add very little water or milk and check again. (Ideally the amount mentioned in ingredients section should be enough.)
5) Line a small 8 inch baking tray with parchment paper. Or grease the tray with little oil or butter.
And transfer the batter to it. Tap the tray a bit so that all the air bubbles get removed. Sprinkle some chopped walnuts and almonds ( or any dry nuts or pumpkin seeds) over the top.
6) Preheat the oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit.
Bake the cake for 40 minutes, or until a skewer or knife inserted in it turns out clean.
So here's your 'full of health' cake. You will see a brown chocolatey crust. Let it cool down for 10-15 minutes and then serve it.
Ladies, there is nothing better than Ragi, milk, jaggery and dry fruits for us. If we need to care for ourselves, why not in a sweet way?? Have in breakfast, snacks or whenever you like with a cup of coffee or tea...
Enjoy cooking and eating.
Lots of love,
Shweta...
Here's the recipe.
Ingredients:
1 and 1/4 cup Ragi (red millet) flour
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup jaggery grated ( or scrapped)
15-20 small brown raisins
3-4 dried apricots pieces
10-12 blanched almonds ( blanched in boiling water for 3-5 minutes, cooled down in ice water and peeled off to remove the skin. )
1 tbsp chopped pecans or walnuts
1 and 1/4 cup milk
2 medium sized carrots grated
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder (optional, I added it because it balances the sweetness of the cake)
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
1/4 tsp nutmeg powder ( optional, but improves taste)
1/4 tsp cinnamon powder
A pinch of ginger powder (optional, but improves taste)
A pinch of salt
I also added few tutti fruity pieces. But that's optional.
1/4 tsp vanilla essence
Procedure:
1) Blanch the raisins and apricots for 10 minutes in boiling water. Switch off the flame let it stay in the hot water for some more time. ( it's completely your choice to add fruits of your choice to add to the sweetness of the cake. I had raisins and apricots handy, so I added these. You can add dates or fresh fruits also.)
Bring milk to boil. Bring te flame to low. Add grated jaggery. Stir well. Once everything is mixed well, switch off the flame. Add blanched raisins and apricots. Now let it cool off a bit and then blend it in a blender. Blend it well.
2) Now transfer the mixture to a bowl. Add oil and vanilla. essence and mix well.
3) In a separate bowl, combine all the dry ingredients: flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder, cinnamon powder, cardamom powder, nutmeg and ginger powder. Add some chopped nuts (walnuts) ( can spare few for garnishing on top) in the flour. I added some tutti fruity pieces too. Mix well.
4) Now transfer the dry mixture to the milk container. Mix it well with a whisk or spoon. You can use hand beater to mix all ingredients well. But take care not to over beat the batter. You just need a light mixing to combine all ingredients well. If you feel the batter is too thick, you can add very little water or milk and check again. (Ideally the amount mentioned in ingredients section should be enough.)
5) Line a small 8 inch baking tray with parchment paper. Or grease the tray with little oil or butter.
And transfer the batter to it. Tap the tray a bit so that all the air bubbles get removed. Sprinkle some chopped walnuts and almonds ( or any dry nuts or pumpkin seeds) over the top.
6) Preheat the oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit.
Bake the cake for 40 minutes, or until a skewer or knife inserted in it turns out clean.
So here's your 'full of health' cake. You will see a brown chocolatey crust. Let it cool down for 10-15 minutes and then serve it.
Ladies, there is nothing better than Ragi, milk, jaggery and dry fruits for us. If we need to care for ourselves, why not in a sweet way?? Have in breakfast, snacks or whenever you like with a cup of coffee or tea...
Enjoy cooking and eating.
Lots of love,
Shweta...
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