Bake it count
The Covid-19 has played kaput with most of our New Year’s Eve party plans. If you are also staying in, ring in the New Year with a fresh twist to an old favourite cake and fruit recipe that you can bake with your family.
1/2 cup milk + 1 teaspoon vinegar/ lime juice, for the buttermilk | ½ cup roasted walnuts, chopped | 2 tablespoons sugar | ¼ cup brown sugar | Some Orange zest | 1 teaspoon vanilla essence | ¼ cup melted butter | Some milk, for brushing | Icing sugar, for dusting on top | For Soaking | ¼ cup orange juice | 2-3 tablespoons tutti frutti | 1 tablespoon golden raisins | 1 tablespoon black currants | 1 tablespoon cranberries
| 2 tablespoons dried and candied assorted fruits (Kiwi, Pineapple, Orange) | 2-3 soft dates | For The Dry Mix | 1 cup whole wheat flour | 1 tablespoon cornflour | 1 teaspoon baking powder | ½ teaspoon baking soda | ¼ teaspoon cinnamon powder | ¼ teaspoon ginger powder | 2 tablespoons milk powder
| A pinch of nutmeg (optional)
■ Start with soaking the fruits into the juice. Mix them all really well and keep aside for an hour.
■ For the dry mix, sieve everything (all the dry mix ingredients) together and keep aside.
■ For the buttermilk, mix in the vinegar/ lime juice into the milk and set aside for exactly 10 minutes.
■ Now, take the chopped walnuts and add ½ teaspoon of the dry mix to it. Keep it aside too.
■ For the caramel syrup, heat sugar and 1 tablespoon water in a pan. Cook on a low flame with continuous stirring until the mixture turns golden.
■ Once it turns golden, add in 4 tablespoons of water and cook until the solution becomes uniform. Remove and keep aside to cool.
Method
■ Now, to make the cake batter, take a large mixing bowl. Add the soaked fruits, caramel syrup, brown sugar, orange zest and mix well.
■ Add the prepared buttermilk, and give a good mix.
■ Now, add in the dry mix in two parts. Add the first half and mix very gently. DO NOT OVER MIX.
■ Add the balance dry mix and melted butter. Again, give a gentle mix.
■ Lastly, add the walnuts and mix once again.
■ Transfer the batter into a baking tin (lined with parchment paper) and bake at 170 °C for 45- 50 minutes in a preheated oven.
■ Remove and brush with some milk. This prevents the cake from drying.
■ Cover with a muslin cloth and let it cool in the baking tin itself for 10 minutes.
■ After 10 minutes, unmould and cool it further on a wire rack. This prevents soggy bottoms.
■ Once cooled completely, dust with some icing sugar on top.