Sheet cake decoration, tips (carrot cake for Thanksgiving)

Here is the 1/4 sheet cake I prepared for the Thanksgiving dinner hosted by our friends Mr&Mrs. Raynor. That's a very pleasant and happy thanksgiving celebration for us to be with their family on that day. We enjoyed many delicious dishes like whole turkey, bean rice, jerk chicken, homemade jerk sauce, Jamaican curried chicken, potato salad, Mac n cheese and Regi's prayer.  I made poori (fried whole wheat bread), South Indian chicken curry with coconut and cashew masala and carrot cake. We had a happy dinner together and enjoyed shopping till midnight:) Here I am giving out the recipes for the moist carrot cake, cream cheese icing, butter cream icing for this sheet cake. (Sugar proportions are varied for this particular cake for decorative purpose....this works for me). Also I have given some basic tips on making a large size sheet cake, soaking,  transporting the cake etc.

All praise goes to GOD.

Orange rose icing.

Flour, sugar, my recipe notebook, toasted walnut, orange peel.....ready for baking.

Ingredients:
Carrot - 4
Apple (small) - 1
All purpose flour - 2 1/4 cup
large egg - 4
sugar - 2 cup
butter - 1 1/4 cup
shredded coconut (dry / fresh) - 3 tbsp
vanilla extract - 2 tsp
orange peel - 1 tbsp
orange juice - 3 tbsp
cinnamon powder - 1 tsp
baking soda - 2 tsp
baking powder - 2 tsp
salt - 1/2 tsp
walnut - 1 cup (toasted)
raisin - 1/4 cup

Ginger powder - 1 /2 tsp

Method:
Shred the carrot. Core, peel and shred the apple. (Pineapple can also be used instead of apple, but sometimes that makes the cake soggy. So I use apple for controlled moisture) . Preheat oven to 350 deg (175 deg C) for at least 30 minutes before we start baking. Grease and flour the cake tin. Keep aside. Beat the eggs in a mixer or using a fork till fluffy. Then add vanilla essence,orange juice, sugar, butter and beat till its fluffy. Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt TWICE. Put it in a mixing bowl and add the liquids from mixer. Mix well. Add the shredded carrot,apple, coconut, orange peel, cinnamon, coarsely chopped walnut, raisin and mix slightly. The batter should be approximately of 7 cups. Now the batter is ready! Pour into greased cake tin. Bake at 350 deg F for 45 minutes or till an inserted skewer comes clean.

Cream cheese frosting:
Ingredients:
Cream cheese - 8 oz (1 pack)
unsalted butter - 8 tbsp (1 stick)
confectioner's sugar - 4 cup
vanilla extract - 1 tsp

Bring cheese and butter to room temperature by leaving them in counter top(not any means ...this is important). Mash together the cheese and butter. Sift the sugar and add it along with vanilla essence. Mix well. Enough to frost 2 to 3 dozen cupcakes (1 tbsp icing per cake) or 9x13 sheet cake. Makes one tub (US) frosting.

Butter cream frosting:
Ingredients:
Butter - 1/2 cup (1 stick)
confectioner's sugar - 4 cups
milk - 1 tbsp
vanilla extract - 1/2 tsp
salt - a pinch
food color - if needed

Bring butter to room temperature by leaving it in counter top. First beat the butter to fluffy. (I did manually using a fork, but a mixer is good for this).Mix other ingredients logically to get a smooth flowing but stiff icing.
Butter cream icing is ready!

Tips for moist cake finish / Soaking before icing:
Sugar syrup :
brown / white sugar - 3 tbsp
water - 1/2 cup
Microwave sugar and water for 2 minutes or heat in stove top till it gets slightly thick. switch off and let cool. After baking the cake, cool it completely in wire rack. Then transfer it to the base. If the cake needs to be transported, then stick the cake to the base with few tsp of icing. This steps prevents sliding of cake while carrying it. Then using a skewer randomly pierce all over the cake and brush the sugar syrup on top of cake. This keeps the cake very moist and delicious while refrigeration / storage. Then do the icing. Keep refrigerated. Keep in room temperature for at least 1 hour before serving.

Tips on transporting a sheet cake without much equipments.
Transporting the perfectly iced cake to the party location is equally as much challenging as preparing it. Here are some tips and tricks I use to transport the cakes without buying any special cake carriers.


USA cake sizes (standard / commercial)
Serving sizes may differ. It is always nice to make some extra servings while planning a party. Here is an approximate calculation for number of servings of cake in a very generous serving (2 to 3 inch pieces). One may increase the servings by reducing the portion, but I prefer to stick to the generous serving for my guests:)

Number of people vs size of cake (ref 1, ref 2)
8 inch cake =  8 to 10 people
Quarter (1/4) sheet cake (9x13 inch) = 18 to 20 people (28 formal / small servings)
Half sheet cake (11x15) = 30 to 40 people
Full sheet cake (18x24) = 70 to 80 people (110 formal small servings)

How to cut a 9x13 inch cake while serving:
9x13 is the normal homemade sheet cake size needed for a birthday party.
see how to slice the cake for 18/21/28 plates.


How to carry a sheet cake for a home party?
1.Buy a cake carrier / container. (or)
Use a cookie sheet as an inexpensive / reusable cake carrier as strong base (may be it wont have a lid or get creative to make a lid at home using a heavy duty aluminum foil) . I always keep a sturdy wooden board under the cookie sheet for extra strength, as many cakes may come up to 3 kg and the cookie sheets may wobble. This set up is good enough to transport within 1 hour drive if we have someone to hold the cake.
2. Glue the cake to cake base cardboard / cookie sheet by using some icing / frosting. By this way, cake won't slide while driving.
3. Have a responsible friend to hold your cake carefully. Plan the route, drive smoothly.
4. If the cake is larger and if we can't find a lid, then get creative and make a cake lid at home. This time I used a maruchen noodle box I got (free) from local grocery store as 'home made cake cover/ lid'. Just cut two sides and slide the lid to the cookie sheet without touching the cake....stays neat.
4. Don't transport cupcakes after icing. Do the icing in the party premises. Cupcakes are hard / expensive to transport if you are not commercial. So stick with sheet / round cakes:)

Time taken to bake a 9x13 inch cake:
40 - 50 minutes.

Always choose a very good quality cake tin. I prefer wiltons cake tins or glass pans for large cakes. They are quick to bake, even finish and results without browning the cakes.
Cool completely for 4 hours or overnight.

Planning:
Plan the size of cake (as mentioned above) and buy ingredients earlier.
(1/4 sheet cake need 7 cups of cake batter).
Prepare the icings earlier and keep refrigerated. The sugar in the icing acts as a natural preservative and hence the icing can stay longer in fridge. I prepared the icings 3 days before thanksgiving day.
Cake should be baked on the day or two before icing. Keep it refrigerated with a cling wrap cover.
Icing can be done one earlier and kept refrigerated. Keep the cake in room temperature for at least 1 hour before serving  (melts the icing slightly and gives a soft texture).

Poori and chicken curry I made for thanksgiving dinner party.

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Update Feb 21, 2014
Birthday carrot cake with pink roses and yellow flowers for Em

Thanksgiving wishes and prayers

Wishing all my readers, friends and family a blessed , prosperous and happy Thanks giving!

Thanksgiving Pictures Comments - Photobucket

Thanksgiving Pictures Comments - Photobucket

Thank you, Heavenly Father, for having created us and given us to each other in the human family. Thank you for being with us in all our walks of life, for your comfort, your companionship, your guidance, your love, and your presence. Thank you for safeguarding us and protecting us. Thank you for yesterday, today, tomorrow and for the whole of our lives. Thank you for friends, family,  health and your grace. May we live this and every day thankful for all that has been given to us.
Amen.
(Prayer inspired by American Catholic website).

Happy Thanks giving and thank you all!

Pumpkin rice

With the start of Autumn season, we can see orange in everything....from leaves to veggies to celebrations. Pumpkin is more associated with pies, cakes and pancakes in US. I wanted to try my spicier favorites too. Here is a rice I love very much with pumpkin. This is my mom's creation for us when we were kids. In one of our bedtime stories, there came a scene in which two bunnies would ask for a pumpkin from an elderly bunny to make some rice as camping food(it was a translated version may be...so that the cake could have become a rice). Then we asked mom to make a pumpkin rice for us and she gladly created this recipe, which we cherish very much:)

A small cute 99 cent pumpkin I bought. I didn't carve it.....instead cooked that.

Pumpkin seeds tastes great when dry roasted.

Pumpkin patch in Giamarese farm

Pumpkin rice

Ingredients: 
Pumpkin - 200 gm
rice - 2 cup
salt - as per need
oil - 2 tsp
sugar - 1 tsp (optional)
onion - 1
green chilly - 4
cinnamon - small piece
bay leaf - 1
fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp
curry leaf - 1 sprig
channa dhal - 2 tbsp
cumin - 1/2 tsp
shredded coconut - 1 tbsp

Method:
Wash and cook the rice with 6 cups of water till tender but firm.
Drain and keep the rice aside.

In a separate vessel, heat the oil and add fennel seeds. As it gets red, add bay leaf, cinnamon, channa dal and onion. Fry till onion gets soft. Then add the sliced green chilly, curry leaves and chopped pumpkin. Cook covered till channa dal and pumpkin are well cooked. Then add salt. Taste it. If needed add sugar (brings out the pumpkin flavor). Add freshly shredded coconut, cumin and cook till pumpkin turns almost mushy.

Mix with the cooked rice. Pumpkin rice is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve as main course meal with any raitha or appalam (pappad).

Happy Diwali !

 

Wishing all my readers and friends a joyful Deepavali.
Wishing you all enjoy the day with family and friends with beautiful rangolis, mehanthi , favorite foods, new dresses, sparkling crackers, lamps (diyas), health , wealth ,prosperity, new movies and most importantly with lots and lots of happiness and smile,
May all the days ahead are filled with happiness in all of our homes,


Happy Deepavali!
Love,
Viki Xavier

Bruschetta

Bruschetta is an Italian appetizer dish prepared during November to taste the newly prepared olive oil.  This is a very quick recipe and easy to follow. I prepared this as a main course meal along with soup. Here we have a farmer's market in the neighborhood that sells freshly baked Italian bread and rolls. There will be a rush for this bread always and I love that freshly baked smell very much. So we pick up three or four big breads for a dollar (unbelievable price:) ) whenever we go there.  I adopted this recipe from various foodnetwork tv shows according to our taste. Try this bruschetta and enjoy !

Ingredients:
Bread rolls - 1
small avocado - 1
butter - 1 tsp
extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)- 2 tbsp
garlic powder - 1 tsp
basil leaf - 3
salt - to taste
pepper - 1 tbsp
onion - 1
cherry tomato - few
tomato sauce (ketchup) - few tsp

Method:
Heat oven to 350 deg F.
Slice the rolls in to thick slices in diagonal way (larger surface).
Mix butter, Evoo, salt, garlic powder, pepper powder , finely chopped basil leaf to a paste.
Brush this mixture over the bread.
Sprinkle few pieces of sliced onion.
Bake for 6- 8 minutes for denser breads and lesser for white rolls.
Spread coarsely mashed avocado and top with sliced cherry tomatoes and tomato sauce.
Bruschetta is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Serve as appetizer or side dish with soup.
Shredded cheese can also be added on top.

Note:
Instead of baking in oven, the bread can be fried in butter in a pan and spread the topping.
Avocado and tomato sauce is purely optional.

Capsicum Ramen noodles

Fresh Capsicums show up in every local market during the summer and mild weather conditions here. I admire them for their gorgeous colors and shapes....the common green chillies, jalapenos, sweet red capsicum, perfectly shaped yellow, rare orange, economical green peppers, locally grown multi colored peppers, long hot varieties and many many varieties. Whenever we go to a farmer's market I will definitely buy one or two peppers. Though literally I don't know much recipes for these capsicums, I will buy as if I am seduced by these colors:) Then only I will think for ways to using them whenever I open the fridge. In this recipe I prepared a noodle dish with a single sachet of Ramen noodles and increased the meal quantity by adding lots of capsicum, so that it serves two.  Here is the flavorful spicy noodles version using Ramen noodles and capsicum.

Ingredients:
Ramen noodles - 1 pack
(Oriental flavor vegetarian noodles - 85 gm sachet - 400 k cal)
green Capsicum / bell pepper - 1/2
red capsicum - 1/2
onion - 1
fresh green peas - 1/2 cup
ginger - 1 inch
flavoring sachet in the noodles - 1 (or) 1/2
tomato puree - 2 tbsp
oil - 2 tsp

garnish:
spring onion - few tbsp
tomato ketchup - 1 tbsp
hot sauce - 1 tsp
chilly flakes - 1/2 tsp

Method:
Cook noodles with 2 cups water. Rinse in cold water and drain. Keep aside.
Saute the finely chopped ginger. Add chopped onion and saute till it wilts.

Then add the sliced capsicum and saute for a few seconds.
Add the tomato puree and cook for 1 minute.  Then  add the cooked noodles, tomato sauce / ketchup, hot sauce, flavoring mix given in noodles packet. Switch off.
Garnish with finely chopped spring onion and chilly flakes.

Capsicum noodles is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Serve hot as main course with any protein rich side dish.
Makes a good lunch pack too.

Kathirikkai kadalai paruppu koottu

Brinjal curry with channa dal masala, eggplant Bengal gram curry.

This curry made with mashed bengal gram (channa dal) and brinjal is quite common in Southern Tamilnadu weddings. This koottu can be prepared more like a dal or like a thick curry (as I have shown in photo) and both ways it tastes good.

Ingredients :
Brinjal - 200 gm
channa dal (kadalai paruppu) - 1/2 cup
tamarind - small amla size
coconut oil - 1 tsp
mustard - 1/2 tsp
hing - a pinch
curry leaf - 1 sprig
turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

To fry and grind:
coconut oil - 1 tsp
channa dal - 2 tbsp
coconut - 3 tbsp
cumin - 1 tsp
dry red chilly - 4
coriander seeds - 2 tbsp

Method:
Fry the items given one by one and let cool.
Grind to a  fine paste. Keep aside.

Take channa dal, chopped brinjal with turmeric powder, 2 cups water and cook completely (using pressure cooker or stove top).
Add the tamarind extract, salt,  masala paste prepared and bring to a boil. Cook till raw smell goes.

Heat 1 tsp coconut oil in a wok. Add mustard and after it crackles add curry leaves, hing and pour over the dhal. (Some times I add onion also while tempering, which is not common for this recipe). Switch off.

Brinjal dal curry is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve as side dish with rice or chapati.